In message <200604271324.k3RDOEKC024628@pacific-carrier-annex.mit.edu> "Howard Winter" wrote: (EPE 'makeover') > I agree - I really don't like their latest makeover - it's now much more > presentation and less content! I am > considering letting my subscription expire, which means I won't be getting > any magazines except the electronic > Circuit Cellar. Same here. I now find myself reading Elektor and CCI more and EPE *a lot* less. The little "computer-switched powerstrip" thing in Elektor last year (IIRC, can't be bothered firing up the archive software to check) looked pretty interesting as a building-block. I'm planning to build something similar for my networking gear - a 5A 5V + 2A 12V (about 50W) DC power supply for the hub, NSLU2 and WiFi adapter, and a few switched mains sockets for the PCs. Add an Ethernet interface and some form of failover switching that would allow me to use it as a primitive UPS, then graft on a solar panel or three, and a car cigarette-lighter socket and "in car charger" for my laptop... Hmm... Uninterruptable power supply for my network :) I've also got a "smart" NiMH charger design on my to-do list. One of these days... > As you say, they are importing projects, and IMHO making a pretty bad job > of it. A mains project that uses > Australian plugs and sockets, with no mention of the fact that a larger > case would be needed (let alone where > to get suitable UK sockets) was a recent example. Hmm, didn't see that one. > The removal of the > "approximate cost" on projects is a > major step backwards (when I was a kid it was really disappointing to start > collecting parts for a magazine > project, only to find that some component was either made of unobtainium, > or cost a whole year's pocket > money!). That's one of the things that really annoys mea about Elektor. I was going to build one of their USB sound cards a while back, but the PCM2902 CODEC is (or at least was, Farnell are stocking it now) a bit hard to find on this side of the pond. > And their lame excuse for removing "Shop Talk", which told you where you > could get the almost-unheard-of > components that some contributor had found in their junk box and made a > vital part of the project, was little > short of damned lies! ("Since most people shop online these days, it's not > needed any more"!) Yet more reasons to ditch EPE... They've also stopped taking freelance article submissions, and John Becker (EPE Technical Editor and the source of most of EPE's PIC projects) has retired. I suspect the quality of the stuff in the magazine is going to go WAY down over the next year or so... My subscription's due in March IIRC, and I'm not going to cancel mid-way... I might let it lapse when it's up for renewal though. I've had more use out of my Elektor and CCI subscriptions (I'm subscribed on the Elektor "Plus" scheme, i.e. I get an article CD every year - the UI is crap, but the articles are in unprotected PDF files). > I feel an "Angry of Mayfair" letter in the offing... :-) You actually think EPE would publish it if you wrote one and sent it to them? :) -- Phil. | Kitsune: Acorn RiscPC SA202 64M+6G ViewFinder philpem@dsl.pipex.com | Cheetah: Athlon64 3200+ A8VDeluxeV2 512M+100G http://www.philpem.me.uk/ | Tiger: Toshiba SatPro4600 Celeron700 256M+40G -- http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive View/change your membership options at http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist