hobbyist resources

1. Jameco has always been hobbyist friendly for all parts (chips, resistors, capacitors, connectors).
   There's now an online Clearance Center
2. DigiKey is similar
3. Mouser tends to be more expensive but has more complete lines of specific parts such as LEDs, connectors.
4. JDR seems to be mostly out of the parts business but they still have some parts such as crystals for 69 cents.

1. Marlin P. Jones has been in business a long time, offering great prices on
   • breadboards & proto boards
   • power supplies (bench, internal, plug-in)
   • GellCel batteries (as used in UPS)
   • switches, tools (good magnifier selection)
   • adapters, connectors (even fan power cords)
   • fans, motors
2. BG micro is also a great source for LCD panels, LEDs and such.
3. All Electronics tends to advertise in hobbyist magazines, particularly their LCD panels.
4. American Science & Surplus (was Jerryco) has the funniest descriptions! Just reading the catalogue is a joy!
   You never know what they'll find!
5. Don Lancaster (famous for the TTL cookbook and electronics magazine columns) has an ebay store
   See also his home page.
6. Electronic Goldmine ummm, I've been disappointed with their stuff: I tend to find it cheaper elsewhere and some of their stuff I can salvage myself.
7. Herbach & Rademan seems to specialize in motors and high end surplus assemblies.

• The Trenton Computer Festival is held annually every April, featuring a flea market, venders of new things, speakers and club events.
  It's the oldest computer show, since 1976
• Tri State Fairs in NY/NJ/CT.
• MarketPro Computer Show
• computer fairs is supposed to list computer shows, hamfests and such, and their database is barely populated.
• KGP: Ken Gordon Productions, Inc. is out of business (used to hold huge computer shows in NJ).
• Peter Trapp Computer Shows seem to be gone too.

Barbara A. Sweeney of the AT&T archives department stated that there were five titles in a series of "Bell System Aids to High School Science Programs". The first science kits from the program, which was introduced in 1961, included: "From Sun to Sound", "Speech Synthesis", "Energy from the Sun" and "Experiments with Crystals and Light". In 1968, another kit was made available called CARDIAC.

• Trade in inkjet & toner cartridges for money at Staples or Office Depot!
  They no longer give instant credit for recycling cartridges.
  
  
  • Staples’ “ink recycling reward program” pays $2 per cartridge (up to 10 per month).
    Just hand in the cartridges with your Staples Rewards loyalty card and get a credit voucher every month.
  • Office Depot credits $3 per cartridge (up to 20 per month) to your Office Depot Worklife Rewards loyalty card,
    issuing a quarterly credit voucher
    but they now require you to BUY a matching amount of stuff (using the loyalty card for credit/accounting) to get the rebate:

    Recycling Rewards will not exceed the amount of your total qualifying annual Office Depot purchases. (Qualifying purchases excludes taxes; shipping; postage stamps; prepaid gift, debit, phone or service cards; and purchases made with Office Depot Reward Cards.) Recycling Rewards will be issued as part of your Worklife Rewards mailer. Please allow 4-6 weeks for your Recycling Rewards to be posted to your account.

  
  
• old CPUs and gold parts
  Thrifty Bits of Hooversville PA buys old CPUs for the gold pins, even 80386/486!
  
  also: B.W. Recycling, Inc. Electronic Scrap Recycling in Hallandale, Florida.
  
  
• old HARD DRIVES have value!
  
  • If broken, try to RMA them. I've been surprised to find some still in warranty.
    Just enter the drive serial number, perhaps run a diagnostic.
    Seagate web page for warranty check, RMA, download utilities.
    Western Digital web page for warranty check, RMA, download utilities.
    
    
  • The Western Digital Customer Loyalty Program offers discounts for submitting old drive serial numbers
    (even old old drives like 20 meg are valid!)

    WD's Customer Loyalty Program offers our customers the opportunity to upgrade their current WD hard drive to a larger capacity drive with the latest technology. Under the program, customers may purchase a new drive with the full manufacturer warranty at a discounted price.
    Customers taking advantage of the Loyalty Program will not be required to return the current product in their possession, and benefit by the ability to upgrade into WD's latest technology and larger capacity drives. In order to qualify for the program, the following parameters are applicable to this special offer:

    • The customer's current drive must have a valid serial number that can be verified in our system.
    • Both out-of-warranty and in-warranty drives are eligible for upgrade to a larger capacity product at a discounted price.
    • An internal hard drive can only be upgraded to another internal hard drive. An external product can only be upgraded to another external product.
    • The customer does not need to return his or her current drive to Western Digital.

  • I enjoy pulling them apart for the ultra strong magnets.
    Most require only a few Torx screwdrivers (#10, sometimes #8, 6 or 4)

Anybody who has ever complained that “they don’t make things like they used to” will immediately connect with this book. Norman’s thesis is that when designers fail to understand the processes by which devices work, they create unworkable technology. Director of the Institute for Cognitive Sciences at University of California, San Diego, the author examines the psychological processes needed in operating and comprehending devices. Examples include doors you don’t know whether to push or pull and VCRs you can’t figure out how to program. Written in a readable, anecdotal, sometimes breezy style, the book’s scholarly sophistication is almost transparent.

Why did Bob Pease declare himself the Czar of Bandgaps??
Because a lot of people were repeating old mistakes in their new bandgap reference circuits. Pease has been able to cut down the repetition of old errors. From here on in, engineers have to make NEW errors. When we have the COLUMN on CZARS up on the web, we’ll link it up to this page.

• I've been a Circuit Cellar subscriber ever since Steve Ciarcia left Byte Magazine.
  It's STILL for the home hobbyist, featuring "build the …" projects and lotsa design contests.
• Elecktor Magazine is also good. I just can't keep up with so many subscriptions, or I'd get it too.
• Nuts and Volts is a good beginner hobbyist magazine with simple projects.
• Make Magazine hosts Maker Fairs, encouraging folks to truly Make It Yourself.
  See some projects on their youtube channel
• Professional organizations such as the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) (wiki) and
  Association for Computing Machinery (computer research, engineering & science) have excellent publications to keep up with the latest technology and innovations, as well as SIGs (Special Interest Groups) for further specialization.