Silicon ChipTechnical people should be held in high regard - April 2004 SILICON CHIP
  1. Outer Front Cover
  2. Contents
  3. Publisher's Letter: Technical people should be held in high regard
  4. Feature: Looking Into LEDs by Ross Tester
  5. Feature: Hands-On PC Board Design For Beginners; Pt.3 by Peter Smith
  6. Project: Loudspeaker Level Meter For Home Theatre Systems by John Clarke
  7. Project: Shut That Mutt by Branko Justic
  8. Feature: Worldspace Radio Via Satellite In Australia by Garry Cratt
  9. Project: A Smart Mixture Display For Your Car by Julian Edgar & John Clarke
  10. Project: The ESR Meter Mk.2; Pt.2 by Bob Parker
  11. Project: PC/PICAXE Interface For UHF Remote Control by John Holliday
  12. Review: Redback 8-Channel Pro Mixer by Ross Tester
  13. Vintage Radio: The art of cannibalism & making do by Rodney Champness
  14. Back Issues
  15. Advertising Index
  16. Book Store
  17. Outer Back Cover

This is only a preview of the April 2004 issue of Silicon Chip.

You can view 18 of the 96 pages in the full issue, including the advertisments.

For full access, purchase the issue for $10.00 or subscribe for access to the latest issues.

Articles in this series:
  • Hands-On PC Board Design For Beginners; Pt.1 (February 2004)
  • Hands-On PC Board Design For Beginners; Pt.1 (February 2004)
  • Hands-On PC Board Design For Beginners; Pt.2 (March 2004)
  • Hands-On PC Board Design For Beginners; Pt.2 (March 2004)
  • Hands-On PC Board Design For Beginners; Pt.3 (April 2004)
  • Hands-On PC Board Design For Beginners; Pt.3 (April 2004)
Items relevant to "Loudspeaker Level Meter For Home Theatre Systems":
  • Loudspeaker Level Meter PCB pattern (PDF download) [01104041] (Free)
  • Loudspeaker Level Meter front panel artwork (PDF download) (Free)
Items relevant to "A Smart Mixture Display For Your Car":
  • Smart Fuel Mixture Display PCB pattern (PDF download) [05104041] (Free)
Articles in this series:
  • The ESR Meter Mk.2 (March 2004)
  • The ESR Meter Mk.2 (March 2004)
  • The ESR Meter Mk.2; Pt.2 (April 2004)
  • The ESR Meter Mk.2; Pt.2 (April 2004)

Purchase a printed copy of this issue for $10.00.

PUBLISHER’S LETTER www.siliconchip.com.au Publisher & Editor-in-Chief Leo Simpson, B.Bus., FAICD Production Manager Greg Swain, B.Sc.(Hons.) Technical Staff John Clarke, B.E.(Elec.) Peter Smith Ross Tester Jim Rowe, B.A., B.Sc, VK2ZLO Reader Services Ann Jenkinson Advertising Enquiries Leo Simpson Phone (02) 9979 5644 Fax (02) 9979 6503 Regular Contributors Brendan Akhurst Rodney Champness, VK3UG Julian Edgar, Dip.T.(Sec.), B.Ed Mike Sheriff, B.Sc, VK2YFK Stan Swan SILICON CHIP is published 12 times a year by Silicon Chip Publications Pty Ltd. ACN 003 205 490. ABN 49 003 205 490 All material copyright ©. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher. Printing: Hannanprint, Noble Park, Victoria. Distribution: Network Distribution Company. Subscription rates: $76.00 per year in Australia. For overseas rates, see the subscription page in this issue. Editorial & advertising offices: Unit 8, 101 Darley St, Mona Vale, NSW 2103. Postal address: PO Box 139, Collaroy Beach, NSW 2097. Phone (02) 9979 5644. Fax (02) 9979 6503. E-mail: silchip<at>siliconchip.com.au Technical people should be held in high regard Do your friends and work-mates think of you as a “techie”? As some sort of nerdy person or even a “geek” who knows about technical stuff but is otherwise a retiring sort of person, confined to the “back room”? If so, then that is a pretty common situation and one that I think is rather sad. I hate the word “techie” and “geek”, for that matter. To my mind, these are terms of deprecation, often used by IT and marketing people in particular, to describe someone who understands stuff that they don’t. If you think of yourself as a “techie” then consider the following. In reality, you are a “technocrat” – part of a shining elite, a person who has taken the time and trouble to inform himself (or herself) about technology in a world where the vast majority of people are blissfully ignorant. Sadly, not only are the majority of people ignorant about technology but they are too lazy to do anything about or consider it “beneath them” as they occupy themselves with astrology, aromatherapy, water divining, crystal therapy, the latest fashion fad or other such trivialities. In effect, any person who makes the effort to be fully informed about the technology which surrounds and affects every part of our lives is more in control. For example, if you don’t know that high intensity halogen or gas discharge lamps present an ultraviolet radiation hazard, how can you do anything about it? If you don’t understand anything about car electronics, how can you make choices about the best sort of car to buy, or know the best way to drive it? Similarly, if you don’t know anything about TV, DVDs and home theatre systems, how can you possibly make the best decision when the time comes to buy such things? Or say you hear on the news that mobile phone towers are dangerous, do you panic when one is about to be installed a kilometre away (the normal public reaction) or are you the one to reassure others? And as someone who is better informed, you can point out that the real danger is probably from the mobile itself, rather than the distant transmitting tower. It should be clear then that people who are technically well-informed, whether as part of their job or interest, whether they read magazines such as SILICON CHIP and others, are not just “techies”; they really are a “clever elite”, the technocrats. Give yourself a pat on the back. Increase your self esteem. In fact, as technical people we need to make an effort to correct the tendency of the general public to undervalue people with technical skills. Of course, this does not just apply to people skilled in electronics; it applies to skilled people generally. And this is not to say that we need to go around with “tickets on ourselves”, thinking that we are superior to other people. But it is a far cry from being regarded as a lowly “techie”, isn’t it? Leo Simpson ISSN 1030-2662 * Recommended and maximum price only. 2  Silicon Chip www.siliconchip.com.au