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1500 questions
65
votes
11 answers
Why do electronics have a low temperature limit?
Apart from condensation why do electronic components usually have a low temperature limit? For example my laptop says something along the lines of -10 °C to 75 °C temperature while in use.
I can understand the high temperature limit, as things will…
George
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65
votes
6 answers
How should I use a multimeter to determine which AA batteries to keep and which to toss?
I have a bag of about 50 non-rechargeable AA batteries (1.5 V) that I have collected over the years. I bought a multimeter recently and would like to know the best way to test these batteries to determine which ones I should keep and which I should…
LeopardSkinPillBoxHat
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65
votes
17 answers
How do you cut PCB?
I just spent about 20 minutes trying to cut through a PCB with a hacksaw. These things are really tough.
What is the correct tool to cut PCB material, and get a nice straight line?
I saw something about a guillotine, but can't find a vendor.
littlebirdceo
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64
votes
3 answers
Why are there only four passive elements?
I've read that there are four types of passive elements: resistances, capacitors, inductors and memristors.
The memristor was predicted 30 years before it was produced. But why couldn't you invent other type of passive element? Is there a proof?
The…
jinawee
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64
votes
5 answers
What exactly fries the chip when you invert power supply?
From my own experience, burning microcontrollers is quite easy. Put the 5V at ground, GND at VCC and in an instant your chip is burned.
What exactly goes on internally that causes it to stop functioning entirely? For instance, if I were magically…
triplebig
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64
votes
20 answers
Version control systems for hardware projects?
What are some of the good versioning systems for hardware projects? Is there equivalents of Google Code, CVS and SVN? Are such version control systems suitable for hardware projects involving PCB files, schematics..(even firmware code)?
cksa361
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64
votes
3 answers
How do I identify SMD components? (or how do I identify any component)
How do I identify the markings on an SMT component and match it up with a part number so I can be a good designer and actually look at a datasheet (and read the whole thing)?
Or identify a part to replace an unknown part on a PCB?
Voltage Spike
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64
votes
4 answers
Can a CPU function with nothing more than a power supply and a ROM, using only the internal cache as RAM?
Can a CPU (such as the Intel i3/i5/i7/Xeon) with on-chip cache RAM use that as its only functional RAM, without any external memory banks attached?
Or must there be external RAM, and the cache cannot be accessed or used alone?
Modern desktop/server…
Dale Mahalko
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64
votes
1 answer
Duracell PowerCheck - How Does It Work?
I've been using these batteries for a long time and I've never seen such a feature.
There's a band on its outer wrapping having two ends: The white circle on the left side and the another one on the right side (not visible because it's under my…
Rohat Kılıç
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64
votes
6 answers
What makes smartphones tilt-sensitive? Will they retain this ability in zero-gravity conditions?
Most smartphones are tilt-sensitive, but what device makes this possible? Additionally, how does it (and the sensors associated with it) work?
Also, since the working of these sensors seem, almost certainly, based on the presence of an external…
paracetamol
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64
votes
3 answers
How does my screen driver handle so much data?
I just did some quick calculations:
On my MacBook I have a resolution of 2560x1440 multiplied by 24 Bit for colors we get 11.05MB for a single picture or 663MB per second at 60 fps.
I guess there is some compression, but for example when I move with…
Felix Crazzolara
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64
votes
7 answers
Is it true that a SD/MMC Card does wear levelling with its own controller?
I can't find any reliable information about this. I don't have the full specification of the SD/MMC Card hardware.
Is it true? My high-level application doesn't need to be concerned with wear leveling when working with these cards?
EDIT
Could…
ivarec
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64
votes
10 answers
Why is RAM not put on the CPU chip?
Modern CPUs are very fast compared to all things external, including memory (RAM).
It is understandable, since CPU clock frequency has reached a point where it takes several clock ticks for an electric signal simply to run from from the CPU through…
Lesser Hedgehog
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64
votes
5 answers
Why do some tactile switches have 4 terminals?
I am wondering why some tactile switches have 4 terminals instead of two? For example, take a look at these switches, like the image below:
(source: pranelectronics.com)
What is the use of the two remaining pins? If the pins of the exact opposite…
rajat
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63
votes
7 answers
How are integrated circuits fabricated?
How are integrated circuits (e.g. a microprocessor) fabricated from start to finish? For example, there must be some wiring with resistors, capacitors to store energy (bits) in a field, transistors, etc....
How is this done? What machinery and…
Holly Jona
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