Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[mnementh]

My land lady is well aware of my health concerns and I received a text from her 2 days ago volunteering to bring me anything if I needed it. I thanked her and told her I appreciated the offer but currently I'm good on provisions. But when I do go out I feel I'm taking adequate precautions anyway and "social distancing" is nothing new to me since in general I hate people.       

I have a friend I've been conversing with who is absolutely, and justifiably, scared shit less because they suffer from COPD. And they live in a household with several people who are still working and in and out on a daily basis. They feel like they are trapped in prison. 

yup... I too practice "antisocial distancing"; difference is now nobody looks at me like I'm The Grinch. 

Well, okay... maybe I'm more "asocial"... but med's definitely on the antisocial side.

mnem
"...and loving it!"

[mnementh]

At my age and condition I'm looking at 100 glasses of water, 4 of which are poisoned. I have to drink one

There's ya problem, water. Stick to brandy!

It is perfectly fine to drink like a fish... provided you drink what they do.

mnem
"Water...? Never touch the stuff; fish fuck in it."

[mnementh]

Thank you. This is normal progression apparently. Light symptoms on week one, horrid ones on week two, recovery in week three.

If that's typical then this household may have had the whole thing weeks ago and we're doing lots of avoidance stuff for no gain at all. Think I might just err on the side of caution all the same.

That's exactly what I'm thinking has happened in most cases. We lost half the company in Feb to sickness. Being a work from home slacker I was infected much later.

Anyway, keep your pecker up and make sure that you brief the kids to offer any SK stuff here first. 

Hahaha. It's being buried with me 

So THAT'S why you need a giant underground bunker... it's a TEA burial mound!

Aaaand we've just gone recursive...   

Need a bigger lab, this is almost perfect, but not anywhere near ideal if you collect boat anchors 

Perfect for your survivors tho... all they have to do when you die is prop you up in your wheelie chair & pour it all full of concrete through the stairwell. At our typical rate of pack-rattage, should take 5-8yards.

mnem
Who wants to be an archaeological discovery in 300 years...?

[Kosmic]

Good to hear people are stepping up. Honestly I’m more scared of people than the disease. Also certainly understandably why people are shit scared. My ex is diabetic and has sarcoidosis so similar outcome there potentially as well. She’s not taking it seriously though. Not my funeral...

As for Siglent I was looking at telonic web site earlier  . I need (sorry want) a 6.5 digit DMM and nothing is out there. 

I had the impression you bought a 34401a not long ago ?

[BU508A]

yup... I too practice "antisocial distancing"; difference is now nobody looks at me like I'm The Grinch. 

Oh! You aren't?    This may come as a surprise.      

[mnementh]

They've sent me a list of what they think is in the stock, so for example, there's 15,000 Zener diodes (from 3V up to 36V) , 12,000 Dual N-Channel MOSFETs (2N7002DW), lots of useful general purpose NPN/PNP transistors and tonnes of passive components. Things that I might use, but never in those volumes. Obviously no company would buy things like that from me, they have their own (certified) supply chains, but would I ever get rid of that many components to Hobbyists? From what I know about the company, they specialised in electronics and charging stations for e-scooters and e-bikes. As far as I can see, there doesn't seem to be much in the way of CPUs, although I did spot some SPI Flash ROM, that I could use, but again, not in the volumes they're offering.

McBryce.

My general rule of thumb is this: Is the part of the lot I'm interested in worth TO ME half what the lot costs ? I've NEVER lost money buying this way and blowing the rest out on fleaBay. Remember, there are vendors there that this is ALL they do. They also have ads up all over the internet looking to buy just this sort of stuff from guys just like you.

MMLCCs by the reel CAN BE a fscking goldmine. Anything 10uF/25V & up are pretty expensive in small (10-50pieces) quantities. You know of course the same is true of certain actives and precision resistors.

This can become a right proper cottage industry and fuel for a lot of TEA if you play it right.    And of course, selling in the classifieds on eevblog is another potential marketplace, and a source of community/personal goodwill that may yield more TEAopportunities.

Honestly, it all depends on just how bored you think you'll be for the next 6 months or so until the C-19 protocols become everyday life...

mnem
*enabler*

[mnementh]

yup... I too practice "antisocial distancing"; difference is now nobody looks at me like I'm The Grinch. 

Oh! You aren't?    This may come as a surprise.      

Huh...?

mnem

[0culus]

What tics me off is FCC sold TV channels to cell phone service providers. So now the stations have to be repacked. Expensive! Then re-scanned every few weeks while the stations move to their new positions. 

I cut cable and satellite when the bill went over $100. 40+ free digital channels, so not looking back.  Have Hulu and Netflix to keep wife and kids happy.

200 Mbit fiber internet so everybody can stream what they want.

I mostly watch Prime Time and the big tv will record my shows.  NO TIVO.

It’s TV broadcast band according to the newest spectrum chart I can find....then again it’s dated 2016 and I don’t have a TV anymore that can receive (I do streaming only) so I can’t test it. It used to be a channel to the best of my knowledge though.

[mnementh]

It's mostly the UHF TV bands in their respective countries: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Band_V

mnem
 

[0culus]

Ah, it's listed as both broadcast (translators and LPTV) and wireless communications between 698-758 MHz, according to this: https://transition.fcc.gov/oet/spectrum/table/fcctable.pdf


...which is the actual reasonably up-to-date listing of allocations.

[BU508A]

yup... I too practice "antisocial distancing"; difference is now nobody looks at me like I'm The Grinch. 

Oh! You aren't?    This may come as a surprise.      

Huh...?

mnem

Sometimes, when you are on the grumpy war-path, pictures of a grinch riding on a dragon comes to my mind.
Most likely dedicated to my other hobby: P&P role-playing.

[tggzzz]

They've sent me a list of what they think is in the stock, so for example, there's 15,000 Zener diodes (from 3V up to 36V) , 12,000 Dual N-Channel MOSFETs (2N7002DW), lots of useful general purpose NPN/PNP transistors and tonnes of passive components. Things that I might use, but never in those volumes. Obviously no company would buy things like that from me, they have their own (certified) supply chains, but would I ever get rid of that many components to Hobbyists? From what I know about the company, they specialised in electronics and charging stations for e-scooters and e-bikes. As far as I can see, there doesn't seem to be much in the way of CPUs, although I did spot some SPI Flash ROM, that I could use, but again, not in the volumes they're offering.

Actually, if there are any fast PNPs (or even NPNs) then you could probably shift them: they are all discontinued now, and some people bemoan that.

Whenever I go to hamfests there are reels of unsold components.

Wasn't there a chap on this forum, that (about a year ago) did something similar. His experiences might inform you.

[mnementh]

yup... I too practice "antisocial distancing"; difference is now nobody looks at me like I'm The Grinch. 

Oh! You aren't?    This may come as a surprise.      

Huh...?

mnem

Sometimes, when you are on the grumpy war-path, pictures of a grinch riding on a dragon comes to my mind. Most likely dedicated to my other hobby: P&P role-playing.

LOL... now I see. I too was a fan back in the day... somewhere around 3.5 I lost interest due to the increasing prevalence of relentless rules-lawyering dickweeds.

Am I REALLY evil in that this image is one I find more than a little endearing...?

mnem
"Rocks fall; everybody dies..."

[mnementh]

Just found this in my inbox: https://www.techrepublic.com/article/the-most-hated-programming-languages-among-developers/

Shockingly, everybody who actually works with "the stuff" hates Java. 

mnem

[Kosmic]

I’m out today. Had round two of this infernal disease last night. Hit 39.8 degrees and burned up for 4 hours. Feel like I’ve been hit by a bus. Just when I thought it was getting better. Grr  . So far no worse than normal flu but still don’t recommend it. At least I’ve got an excuse to have a few days off work now 

Good thing you now have an oximeter now 

But if you have some trouble breathing and oxygen get too low, don't hesitate to go to the hospital though!

[McBryce]

They've sent me a list of what they think is in the stock, so for example, there's 15,000 Zener diodes (from 3V up to 36V) , 12,000 Dual N-Channel MOSFETs (2N7002DW), lots of useful general purpose NPN/PNP transistors and tonnes of passive components. Things that I might use, but never in those volumes. Obviously no company would buy things like that from me, they have their own (certified) supply chains, but would I ever get rid of that many components to Hobbyists? From what I know about the company, they specialised in electronics and charging stations for e-scooters and e-bikes. As far as I can see, there doesn't seem to be much in the way of CPUs, although I did spot some SPI Flash ROM, that I could use, but again, not in the volumes they're offering.

McBryce.

My general rule of thumb is this: Is the part of the lot I'm interested in worth TO ME half what the lot costs ? I've NEVER lost money buying this way and blowing the rest out on fleaBay. Remember, there are vendors there that this is ALL they do. They also have ads up all over the internet looking to buy just this sort of stuff from guys just like you.

MMLCCs by the reel CAN BE a fscking goldmine. Anything 10uF/25V & up are pretty expensive in small (10-50pieces) quantities. You know of course the same is true of certain actives and precision resistors.

This can become a right proper cottage industry and fuel for a lot of TEA if you play it right.    And of course, selling in the classifieds on eevblog is another potential marketplace, and a source of community/personal goodwill that may yield more TEAopportunities.

Honestly, it all depends on just how bored you think you'll be for the next 6 months or so until the C-19 protocols become everyday life...

mnem
*enabler*

Thank you for the balanced advice. I'll do a stock-take and do some maths on it to decide if I want the hassle. I don't have a lot to do at the moment (like most of the world), but that will probably change soon too.

McBryce.

[bd139]

Unusual Fluke pr0n. Axillary temperature measurement fun. So that's 39.8oC  . Have calibrated it against my Welch Allyn unit and it's bang on.



Parametamol (tylenol for you yanks) time 

[tggzzz]

Good thing you now have an oximeter now 

Make sure you know how to get repeatable results.

I have a cheap chinese one and it works more reliably on my little fingers than other fingers.

Make sure your daughters know how to use it effectively.

[bd139]

Yeah been though that. I’m solidly 97%. No sign of any respiratory problems yet.

[Specmaster]

Strewth, I see Dave is having a bit of hard time, he has decided to move back into his old lab and downsizing everything. David I see has left to start his own business, which was handy for Dave, who says that he will be over the next few months be giving away or eBaying lots of his TE kit as he wants to reduce the amount he has to move and store in the old lab as it is smaller than his newer one which was 100 sq metres.

So you lads over there in Oz, keep your eyes peeled there will be some good gear on offer soon.

[worsthorse]

There are a few of us wandering around the big empty space that is discord. Come join us.

I'd tell you have we have cookies but that would be a lie so I won't. 

[beanflying]

@med are you lost https://discordapp.com/channels/658020677533827101/662871717667930142 TEA chat is solving the worlds problems without you 

[Mr. Scram]

Unusual Fluke pr0n. Axillary temperature measurement fun. So that's 39.8oC  . Have calibrated it against my Welch Allyn unit and it's bang on.



Parametamol (tylenol for you yanks) time 

Where did you stuff that probe? I tried putting one in my mouth and according to it I was having hypothermia. Relevant differences between different multimeters too.

[Mr. Scram]

Strewth, I see Dave is having a bit of hard time, he has decided to move back into his old lab and downsizing everything. David I see has left to start his own business, which was handy for Dave, who says that he will be over the next few months be giving away or eBaying lots of his TE kit as he wants to reduce the amount he has to move and store in the old lab as it is smaller than his newer one which was 100 sq metres.

So you lads over there in Oz, keep your eyes peeled there will be some good gear on offer soon.

That's been going on for a while now. Dave was deliberating whether to move back to the old lab or not. This was the safest option financially. Now that Covid 19 is a thing that definitely wasn't a terrible choice.

[beanflying]

Unusual Fluke pr0n. Axillary temperature measurement fun. So that's 39.8oC  . Have calibrated it against my Welch Allyn unit and it's bang on.



Parametamol (tylenol for you yanks) time 

Where did you stuff that probe? I tried putting one in my mouth and according to it I was having hypothermia. Relevant differences between different multimeters too.

K type thermocouples are only good to +- 1-2 C so not up to human monitoring.