Search found 33 matches

by Ronaldlees
Tue May 21, 2019 3:03 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: Is Nuts and Volts dead ?
Replies: 114
Views: 3351361

Re: Is Nuts and Volts dead ?

I remember when the magazine was printed on like newspaper material, i liked it way better than the glossy paper..Glossy paper is so much harder for me to read, because it catches all the light. Agree. I have subscribed to other journals (in decades that have long passed) - that were printed on pla...
by Ronaldlees
Wed Sep 20, 2017 4:10 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: How to tell if a smart phone has a GNSS receiver built-in ?
Replies: 2
Views: 4460

Re: How to tell if a smart phone has a GNSS receiver built-i

Since the receivers don't transmit anything, I don't think you could sniff them out easily, unless you'd happen know the frequency of a local oscillator it uses. That would get into the specs to determine. I suppose the apps on the phone should normally do the trick. You might be able to identify th...
by Ronaldlees
Wed Sep 20, 2017 8:06 am
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: LED stays on 24/7
Replies: 35
Views: 32554

Re: LED stays on 24/7

"The LEDs can glow with only microamps of current. One message in the linked forum post indicated that just touching some piece of metal to the input of these LED lights can make them glow from close-by AC voltages. The only question I have now is why it's intermittent." You say there is ...
by Ronaldlees
Fri Sep 08, 2017 7:00 am
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: LED stays on 24/7
Replies: 35
Views: 32554

Re: LED stays on 24/7

To recap on fairness, - you forgot the title... "LED stays on sometimes" - Even in Roswell, power has to come from somewhere. When the LEDs are faintly on... have you checked if other switches, appliances are in a different state than when they are when LEDs are off ? Try switching/deener...
by Ronaldlees
Fri Sep 08, 2017 6:39 am
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: Sad Demise for a GE SuperRadio
Replies: 9
Views: 8603

Re: Sad Demise for a GE SuperRadio

Shoehorned? So, I guess this radio is really tightly packed. I remember my old Sylvania was like that, and it was hard to work on. If it weren't for the dense packing, you might work backwards from the speaker, putting a tickle on the input to the audio section and so on. I don't imagine a schematic...
by Ronaldlees
Fri Sep 08, 2017 5:57 am
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: LED stays on 24/7
Replies: 35
Views: 32554

Re: LED stays on 24/7

Now let's recap a bit and put it together... Some of these are interrelated so they are not in a logical order, but here are some points to ponder. Unless you live near Roswell NM, the LED must be getting power from someplace. I doubt that, unless you are next to a big transmitting antenna, you wil...
by Ronaldlees
Sun Sep 03, 2017 1:55 pm
Forum: Nuts & Volts Magazine Discussions
Topic: Solar Eclipse. Have your room reserved yet?
Replies: 5
Views: 16451

Re: Solar Eclipse. Have your room reserved yet?

I waited, video camera on the tripod with filters at the ready. Recording software streaming away with the sun front and centered. Then arrived the heavy overcast; it got a little dark, several times; but I could not tell the eclipse from the cloud cover. Bah Humbug! Sorry to read about your clouds...
by Ronaldlees
Sun Sep 03, 2017 1:48 pm
Forum: Nuts & Volts Magazine Discussions
Topic: August issue - radioactive cats
Replies: 5
Views: 15413

Re: August issue - radioactive cats

Just wait a while longer. With the world's furror and its radically boiling insanities, you may be able to do in situ testing soon :shock: LOL. I knew when I bought that thing 35 years ago that I'd eventually need it. Glad I hung onto it! old watches or clocks with the real glow material , i forget...
by Ronaldlees
Sun Sep 03, 2017 11:43 am
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: Effects of loss of analog TV broadcasting on viewing
Replies: 12
Views: 9849

Re: Effects of loss of analog TV broadcasting on viewing

i found out in a bad way that the digital tv was not a move for the good.. not in my opinion. the Government gave a lousy $20.00 for people to buy a converter box.. everyone thought ok, you'll be able to still pick up all your channels as before.. WRONG.. when analog went away so did the power outp...
by Ronaldlees
Sat Sep 02, 2017 9:33 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: Power question
Replies: 4
Views: 6240

Re: Power question

Hi Externet, Thanks for the links. In that first link, it mentions the RF amplifiers on the towers max out around 100 watts. That seems awfully high, IMO. The time-slot description was interesting reading, and the part about the heavy involvment of SDR (which I already knew). But it was a pretty hig...
by Ronaldlees
Sat Sep 02, 2017 12:43 pm
Forum: Reader Projects
Topic: USB oscilloscope
Replies: 1
Views: 11834

Re: USB oscilloscope

My current project is a USB oscilloscope. It has 1.4 mega samples per second sampling rate. It has a fast fourier transform function. The software is based on a watingforfriday website project PIC18F4550 USB HID. I converted the code to work with my project. Sounds great. So, you're going to be the...
by Ronaldlees
Sat Sep 02, 2017 12:36 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: Power question
Replies: 4
Views: 6240

Power question

When I drive by a cell tower, I often notice that it's baracaded inside a fence with a power sub-station and generator. I suppose it's not really a "sub-station", as it isn't really redistributing any power outside the facility. Typically there are very substantial insulators mounted on th...
by Ronaldlees
Mon Aug 21, 2017 5:12 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: LED stays on 24/7
Replies: 35
Views: 32554

Re: LED stays on 24/7

And with regards to the LED staying on, it sounds like you unwittingly fixed a short circuit somewhere, I would inspect the wire nuts, switch terminals and insulation on the wires adjacent to that fixture to make sure they are securely nutted and all exposed wire is covered. Another explanation is ...
by Ronaldlees
Mon Aug 21, 2017 4:57 pm
Forum: General Discussion
Topic: LED stays on 24/7
Replies: 35
Views: 32554

Re: LED stays on 24/7

Unless you live near Roswell NM, the LED must be getting power from someplace. I doubt that, unless you are next to a big transmitting antenna, you will light the LED. A CFL is more likely to light than a LED. Len, A long time ago when I had a novice amateur ticket, I ran a 50 watt CW transmitter i...
by Ronaldlees
Mon Aug 21, 2017 4:46 pm
Forum: Nuts & Volts Magazine Discussions
Topic: August issue - radioactive cats
Replies: 5
Views: 15413

Re: August issue - radioactive cats

Not sure what modern Smoke Detectors use, but they used to use Americum within their little shielded boxes. I believe that you could get your detector near enough to the vent opening to get a slightly elevated reading. Any one else know if this is true? CeaSaR Thanks for the idea. I tried that with...