Engineering on Friday ‘toon: Fine-Tuning the Breadboard
I can has breadboard?
Yes, my cat has attacked some of my breadboard projects. They did have to be rebuilt, of course. Easy fixes.
But I have a few boxes of breadboard projects that worked. I gently put them on a shelf and didn’t touch them for years. Now… they don’t work.
It’s insane. Nothing changed. Nothing moved. And nothing works now. I don’t get it. It’s like entropy comes for breadboard projects even in a controlled environment. Like there is a little kitten-gremlin batting around the projects in the middle of the night.
I’ve gathered that an element of luck applies to breadboard and perfboard project builds. I would estimate that it’s only about a 20% success rate in any one build. As complexity increases, successful circuit operation decreases exponentially. How many times have I rebuilt projects rather than troubleshoot? How many perfboards have I just tossed out?
Am I the only one? Please tell me I’m not…
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About the Author
Cabe Atwell
Technology Editor, Electronic Design
Cabe is a Technology Editor for Electronic Design.
Engineer, Machinist, Cartoonist, Maker, Writer. A graduate Electrical Engineer actively plying his expertise in the industry and at his company, Gunhead. When not designing/building, he creates a steady torrent of projects and content in the media world. Many of his projects and articles are online at element14 & SolidSmack, industry-focused work at EETimes & EDN, and offbeat articles at Make Magazine. Currently, you can find him hosting webinars and contributing to Electronic Design and Machine Design.
Cabe is an electrical engineer, design consultant and author with 25 years’ experience. His most recent book is “Essential 555 IC: Design, Configure, and Create Clever Circuits”
Cabe writes the Engineering Life & Engineering on Friday blog on Electronic Design.
See Cabe's cartoons & comic strips here.
