At 07:59 AM 2/7/98 +1000, Paul Webster wrote: > This is a funny distinction. Surely JW devices come from the same >batches as OTPs? Now, how do they test devices? You can't test an OTP >device by programming it and running a program, can you? Only by >sampling, because then you've cooked it. Unless you "sample" test by >making QTP (note: I didn't say OTP that time!) devices for orders and >testing them, but then you have to know what the program is supposed to >do to see whether it is actually working or not. > > What am I rambling about? Just seems to me that only JW devices could >be fully tested and characterised prior to shipment so whatever testing >OTPs get, it must be to a lesser spec anyway. Have I missed something? > I guess I ought to know this but I never really found out: do companies making regular commercial grade components usually test each component in some way??! I never exepected that, I always thought that components for non-critical applications (i.e. consumer electronics) were only spot checked. I could understand maybe testing each one of the industrial or aerospace/military versions for saftey's sake (although, you would also expect the final equipment manufacturer to test each final device under these circumstances). Sean +--------------------------------+ | Sean Breheny | | Amateur Radio Callsign: KA3YXM | | Electrical Engineering Student | +--------------------------------+ Fight injustice, please look at http://homepages.enterprise.net/toolan/joanandrews/ Personal page: http://www.people.cornell.edu/pages/shb7 mailto:shb7@cornell.edu Phone(USA): (607) 253-0315