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How it "REALLY" works, doing it this way... to get it that way.

Started by Mr. Fidget, July 07, 2014, 03:49:30 PM

Mr. Fidget

   Life is process, experience is it's never-ending derivative. Here is an example of process examination I've embarked on, culminating into some specific advantages as a result of it's comprehension.
   In Venice Beach, at the crossroads of Venice and Marina del Rey is Washington Blvd. & Pacific Ave.
   There is a traffic light there. The light is programmed with an interesting feature. When a pedestrian has pressed the button to change the signal to "walk," the signal shows the "walk" symbol... followed by a countdown to... "don't walk."
If nobody presses, no walk symbol.  So what?
   Well it just so happens that this intersection has a built in feature to accommodate heavy beach traffic, and when the button is pressed again (before counting down to 2) the flashing "don't walk" goes back to "walk" again for a few seconds... before bringing the "final countdown."
   This can be both advantageous, and disadvantageous at multiple levels, depending on your perspective. I think it's a total win for the pedestrian, however you look at it.
   For the car(s) waiting to turn left... it is a nightmare that means they have to wait more... and can't finish their turn until the light is going yellow. Honking does often ensue as the frustrations mount. The look on their face's is priceless, but I don't exploit this power to inconvenience the peninsula dwellers.
   For the insightful pedestrian it's a blessing... but for the uninformed... it can be a trap. I have seen a guy in front of me start crossing while the "don't walk" was blinking be then & there summoned by a motorcycle officer then issued a ticket for illegal crossing... WHEN I HAD PRESSED THE BUTTON WHILE HE WAS CROSSING making a fresh "walk" for myself, WHILE HE WAS STILL CROSSING, me just behind him... "legally." That is a trap.
   When there are 30+ people waiting to cross, you need not jockey for position at the corner. I like to hang back, and see which of the fresh "pedestrian lineup" is quickest off the line... then see how the inbound pedestrian traffic from across the street flows... check the left turn lane to see if it's anybody I know... then saunter up to the button just as it counts down to "2"... collect my "fresh walk signal"... and cross the street triumphantly with a spring in my step... unimpeded by slow tourists, kids, dogs, strollers, bikes, skateboarders, and surfboards.

MF
ps. Around the intersection, it's known as "The Trick."

albrecht

Quote from: Mr. Fidget on July 07, 2014, 03:49:30 PM
   Life is process, experience is it's never-ending derivative. Here is an example of process examination I've embarked on, culminating into some specific advantages as a result of it's comprehension.
   In Venice Beach, at the crossroads of Venice and Marina del Rey is Washington Blvd. & Pacific Ave.
   There is a traffic light there. The light is programmed with an interesting feature. When a pedestrian has pressed the button to change the signal to "walk," the signal shows the "walk" symbol... followed by a countdown to... "don't walk."
If nobody presses, no walk symbol.  So what?
   Well it just so happens that this intersection has a built in feature to accommodate heavy beach traffic, and when the button is pressed again (before counting down to 2) the flashing "don't walk" goes back to "walk" again for a few seconds... before bringing the "final countdown."
   This can be both advantageous, and disadvantageous at multiple levels, depending on your perspective. I think it's a total win for the pedestrian, however you look at it.
   For the car(s) waiting to turn left... it is a nightmare that means they have to wait more... and can't finish their turn until the light is going yellow. Honking does often ensue as the frustrations mount. The look on their face's is priceless, but I don't exploit this power to inconvenience the peninsula dwellers.
   For the insightful pedestrian it's a blessing... but for the uninformed... it can be a trap. I have seen a guy in front of me start crossing while the "don't walk" was blinking be then & there summoned by a motorcycle officer then issued a ticket for illegal crossing... WHEN I HAD PRESSED THE BUTTON WHILE HE WAS CROSSING making a fresh "walk" for myself, WHILE HE WAS STILL CROSSING, me just behind him... "legally." That is a trap.
   When there are 30+ people waiting to cross, you need not jockey for position at the corner. I like to hang back, and see which of the fresh "pedestrian lineup" is quickest off the line... then see how the inbound pedestrian traffic from across the street flows... check the left turn lane to see if it's anybody I know... then saunter up to the button just as it counts down to "2"... collect my "fresh walk signal"... and cross the street triumphantly with a spring in my step... unimpeded by slow tourists, kids, dogs, strollers, bikes, skateboarders, and surfboards.

MF
ps. Around the intersection, it's known as "The Trick."
When I was in Texas I've heard that the "push button" on pedestrians is just for effect. Doesn't actually effect the traffic lights which are synced (supposedly) to traffic flow. But just a time-wasting button to keep people from crossing traffic on foot and think that they are influencing the traffic light. But I don't know if its true.

Mr. Fidget

Quote from: albrecht on July 07, 2014, 03:54:40 PM
When I was in Texas I've heard that the "push button" on pedestrians is just for effect. Doesn't actually effect the traffic lights which are synced (supposedly) to traffic flow. But just a time-wasting button to keep people from crossing traffic on foot and think that they are influencing the traffic light. But I don't know if its true.
Pedestrian control mechanisms do vary, and I've seen many implementations throughout the country. There are "dummy" buttons, intended to be activated in the future while a lowend cycle loop (residing in the adjacent control box) runs the show until "future upgrades."
   I worked for an answering service who had a client who specialized in traffic control. I'd listen to the caller, and type an explanation to the engineer client. Thats how I became interested in the systems.
   I think they need to fortify the wire from button to pole, because a thin piece of metal slid betwixt the button and pole... cuts the wire, rendering the button useless. This can make a button feel like a dummy button, until the "traffic engineer" finds and repairs it. If I was a peninsula dweller that would be my plan. I often hope selective enforcement prone officers don't know this. By doing this they can pick off any pedestrian they see fit.
   I like the "smarter" signals that will switch to walk for a late pedestrian.
   I don't mess around with most of the gaps I see in the system, I don't mess with traffic... most definitely.

I will get my fair chance to cross with "the trick."

Mr. Fidget

   Years ago I was outside a business, that had a problem. They had a horrible pothole in front of their door. It was bad enough it literally threw people to the ground every week, located in a very high traffic area.
   The business had been calling to get it fixed by "operation pothole" the LA mayors program, for two years.
   One day I was sitting in front of the store when the pothole repair guys drove by, and I offered to go chase them down.
   The shop owner said "don't bother, they just tell you to call the number and log your pothole."
   I had to try, and that is exactly what they told me. "We only have so much fill, and there is a list we have to finish each day."
   I went back to the store, a little sad, but I thought of a story I'd been told where if you looked at some variables, you could get the system to work... in spite of itself. I thought to myself "what would fix this?"
   I took a picture of the pothole and went back to where they were and said:
   "I know you guys can't just fill any pothole people tell you to, but please look at this picture for a moment. I know you know potholes better than me, and if you were to come and patch this safety hazard, I think the business would hook you up with lunch & coffee."
   You see they CAN fill a dangerous pothole, and fill it because they choose. The "trick" here was to make it more attractive (a free lunch) and show them the "theoretically acceptable" route most advantageous to my "fix the pothole" agenda.
   They came and fixed it 30 minutes later.

Mr. Fidget

   Lot's of people like a cold soda. Many get them from fountain drink dispensers. Most add ice to keep it cool. The icetray's are often not clean, as they reside within the machine, out of the view of the proprietor... and are (generally) not cleaned as often as would be desired.
   The tubes that carry the syrups, and the water... run through the ice-cold area, so the soda is usually ice cold... without ice. You also get more volume of soda with this approach.

albrecht

Quote from: Mr. Fidget on July 09, 2014, 08:12:32 PM
   Lot's of people like a cold soda. Many get them from fountain drink dispensers. Most add ice to keep it cool. The icetray's are often not clean, as they reside within the machine, out of the view of the proprietor... and are (generally) not cleaned as often as would be desired.
   The tubes that carry the syrups, and the water... run through the ice-cold area, so the soda is usually ice cold... without ice. You also get more volume of soda with this approach.
True, but it will warm up fairly quickly and the ice and, somewhat insulated, cup will keep it cool and therefore the "fizz" longer. So unless you guzzle your drink down quickly it might warm up n seem flat (especially if eating outside or in drive-thru.) But I know my mom never used the ice at a fountain drink place. I don't drink cokes but still use ice in my ice-tea or water, even though that "comes out cold." Try to avoid any drinks at that kind of establishment because it is $$ ridiculous for the price.

Keep up with the ""How it "REALLY" works" thread though. And keep on fidgeting.

Mr. Fidget

Quote from: albrecht on July 09, 2014, 09:07:00 PM
Keep up with the ""How it "REALLY" works" thread though. And keep on fidgeting.
Will do! And without any further ado, a pictorial explanation of "how to fix some intermittent mini jack issues."
   When the mini plug is inserted, shock (dropping, yanking cord at an angle, & general wear) can bend the contacts inside... causing intermittent contact, thus intermittent signal. If the plug works fine in other devices... this may do the trick:
[attachimg=1]
What you need, minus the historical text.
[attachimg=2]
Cut a small piece of straw, maybe a few. Then cut those pieces into a few strips.
[attachimg=3]
With enough straw to hold onto, put the plug in the jack. Sometimes it takes a few try's to find the right method to have the straw (as a "shim") put the pressure in the direction needed to firm up the contact.
[attachimg=4]
Using this technique (which only works sometimes) I was able to use the pictured phone for months... without intermittent breaks in L/R sound.

I think it's a handy trick worth knowing.
mf
ps. You won't find many 1934 Drake's around, but a straw, scissors, and disabled jack are easy to find.
:-)

Mr. Fidget

   These excerpt tables are from the "Engineering Stages of New Product Development" document from the National Society of Professional Engineers.
   I got it way back in the early 90's. It's a new world now, with rapid prototyping, and all the other current "modern benefits."

Here is the foreward:

Under a cooperative agreement with the National Institute of Standards and Technology the National Society of Professional Engineers established the NIST/NSPE New Product Stages of Development Task Group. The group was charged to formulate definitions of the "Engineering Stages of Development" of the new product development process. The definitions were to be applied in the operation, management and evaluation of the Department of Energy / National Institute of Standards and Technology (DOE/NIST) Energy-Related Inventions Program (ERIP), under which inventors and small businesses may receive technical and financial support to bring their energy-savings ideas to market. The definitions would serve (ERIP) in a number of ways. They could be used by engineers to determine the development status of projects seeking support, and they could provide guidance to applicants concerning necessary engineering activity.

Additional potential uses of the definitions were foreseen from the outset. They might be used in programs that require independent determinations of the development status of projects by or on behalf of a prospective sponsor. For example, they might be applied to NIST programs pending authorization by Congress as well as in other programs designed to help improve U.S. competitiveness by fostering the commercialization of new technology.

In addition, the definitions might find even broader use. If they enable ERIP engineers to determine the development status of projects and to communicate with applicants concerning the projects engineering requirements, it seems that they also would likely prove the value in facilitating communication among engineers and others involved in new product development in other areas. In this role, the definitions of the Engineering Stages of Development might become part of the language of managing new product development. Therefore, in forming the task group that was to formulate the definitions, NSPE knew it must consist primarily of persons having engineering backgrounds, but the group also needed to include inventors, educators, entrepreneurs and corporate managers. To recruit such an array of expertise, NSPE turned, in addition to its own membership, to the leaders of other engineering societies and business associations having substantial membership involved in new product development.

E. Walter LeFevre, P.E.
President 1989-90
National Society of Professional Engineers


Tables from the document:

[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]

Just food for thought.
mf

Mr. Fidget

   I'm no stranger to soldering, and fixing my own broken gear when I can. I have a good set of Logitech iem's, the Ultimate Ears TripleFi 1O. Good specifications since they are balanced armature, with a fequency response range of 10-17000 Hz, a sensitivity of 117 dB/mW, and the impedance is 32 Ohm.
   The cable is replaceable, and my active lifestyle has led to me doing this a few times. I've had a number of different failures, sometimes close to the earpiece... other times at the plug... and also mid-cord.
   The gold plated plug they come with has a high replacement expense, and gets that "additional perceived value" as a result of the gold, justifying the higher price. Since I am not using them in high grade sensitive equipment, a simple headphone jack replacement does great.
   Well, the way I do it now does great... not so much the first few times. The solder it yourself replacement jacks only cost $2, the replacement cable is about $30. The $2 version mini-plug has a little spring to help absorb tension, or shock in the cord... but it is metal, and creates friction every time the cord is pulled. This effect degrades the wire(s) quickly and causes them to fail. Then the repair operation needs to be performed again... by replacing the plug... a vicious cycle.
   I trimmed the spring a bit, and put a soft rubber sleeve inside the spring, around the cord to quell the friction... so far so good. I scavenged the part from another broken headphone jack.

[attachimg=1]
mf

phrodo

If you don't know if your AV device's remote control is working - dead batteries vs bad remote? You can check it by pointing it at a digital camera and looking in the camera's viewfinder while you push a button on the remote. If it's working the camera will 'see' the IR emitter as a bluish glow because it is sensitive enough to pick up the light. Most cell phone cameras. tablets etc will work as well.

Mr. Fidget

Quote from: phrodo on August 25, 2014, 01:00:35 AM
If you don't know if your AV device's remote control is working - dead batteries vs bad remote? You can check it by pointing it at a digital camera and looking in the camera's viewfinder while you push a button on the remote. If it's working the camera will 'see' the IR emitter as a bluish glow because it is sensitive enough to pick up the light. Most cell phone cameras. tablets etc will work as well.
Indeed you can, this effect is provided by the "infrared cut-off filter." A filter (generally) over the lens to protect the ccd or cmos sensor:
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infrared_cut-off_filter
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image_sensor
   The "night vision" Raspberry Pi, the "Pi Noir" is a normal R-Pi camera module without this filter, for "night vision" applications. The lack of the filter opens the spectrum of ir light, normally blocked by the filter, to the sensor. It's a technical "less is more" situation for the sensor, less light spectrum blocked... means more light hitting the sensor.
http://www.raspberrypi.org/infrared-camera-you-asked/
http://www.raspberrypi.org/tag/pi-noir/
http://www.adafruit.com/products/1567

Thanks phrodo, that's a good "ditwtgitw" tip!

mf

Mr. Fidget

   On the topic of digital photography, I consider "gigapan" to be one of the coolest things I have seen come along in a while. A friend of mine was part of a 70 person team taking "gigapixel" photos of Yosemite. They stitched the images that were painstakingly taken "in concert" to make an amazing gigapan. It was on display a few years ago at G2 Gallery in Venice, the print was astounding. I think it's in here somewhere: http://www.xrez.com/gallery/

A story about such endeavors: http://inclined.americanalpineclub.org/2012/05/our-members-joe-poulton-mapping-geology-with-high-resolution-photography-part-1/

This link is to other gigapans, not the one(s) he was involved in: http://gigapan.com/gigapans?tags=yosemite

   Check out the gigapan time lapse videos from Carnegie Mellon. These are videos no two people watch the same, and each unique viewing can be saved, and shared. Gigapan timelapse is amazing, being able to "zoom in" on video, and control how you watch it is a whole new media form... in a sense.

The introduction:
http://www.cmu.edu/homepage/computing/2011/spring/gigapan-time-machine.shtml
Some video demos:
http://timemachine.cmucreatelab.org/wiki/Main_Page
Do it yourself:
http://timemachine.cmucreatelab.org/wiki/Create_your_own

mf

Mr. Fidget

   If you ride a bicycle long enough, especially if you change/repair your own flats... you will need to deal with a greasy chain eventually.
   Since keyrings are inexpensive, and plentiful... I suggest bending one as shown to deal with the chain.
[attachimg=1]
   It is easier to use the one with your keys on it by removing them, than it is to get grease all over your hands. Just save the bent one for next time, and pick up a new one for your keys. Or clip an extra keyring on your keys in advance, for when you'll need it.

   I've helped more than one ill-prepared fellow bicyclist this way. This method has been a "clean way," I've used for years.

Add this trick to your knowledge base for a better cycling experience, and tell your friends, nobody wants dirty grease on their hands and clothes.

mf

phrodo

If you're wondering if a speaker is dead - or have want to identify a speaker from a bundle of wires. Take a 9v battery and put the neg/black wire on the negative terminal and briefly touch the positive wire to the pos terminal. It will make a popping sound if it's working/connected. Don't do it to much or leave it on for more than just a brief touch in order to not harm the speaker - then you wouldn't have to wonder if it was dead.  :o

Mr. Fidget

   I've worked a lot of events as a demonstrator, aka "pitchman." One year the guy working the ginsu knife booth cut himself very badly, across his thumb. He grabbed the area, applying pressure before it started bleeding. He called to his "prat" (the go-fer' kid who takes out the trash, and preps the vegetables) to "get the glue!"
   The kid produced a tube of superglue, and the two moved hurriedly to the exhibitors lounge. The pitchman was still holding his thumb, the kid cut off the top of the glue and gave the (now fully open) glue to the pitchman.
   He let the pressure off his cut, and quickly poored the superglue over the cut... he winced a bit as it set. He sat in the lounge a few minutes and let it dry. A mere 15 minutes later he was back "on the block" selling knives, the cut nearly unnoticeable as his hands went about his demonstrations.

I have used superglue on cuts ever since.

http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2187/was-super-glue-invented-to-seal-battle-wounds-in-vietnam

mf

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