Articles – Page 51

Flight Simulation Stresses USB Hubs and Reveals Other USB Pitfalls. Here are Some Helpful Hints

August 29, 2022

Ron Sartore is a serial entrepreneur and a USB veteran. He started a company named Anchor Chips in 1995, back before USB was a standard. When the USB revolution started in 1996, Sartore jumped on the standard and Anchor quickly became a leading supplier of USB controller chips, dubbed “EZ-USB.” Cypress Semiconductor bought Anchor Chips in 1999. (Infineon bought Cypress Semiconductor in 2019 and they’re still selling EZ-USB chips.) Sartore’s “semi-retired” now, but he’s still learning, designing, and building, thanks to his hobby, flying simulated aircraft, which he’s managed to turn into yet another business. As … Read More → "Flight Simulation Stresses USB Hubs and Reveals Other USB Pitfalls. Here are Some Helpful Hints"

O-M-Gosh, I’ve Been Zeked! (Part 1)

by Max Maxfield

August 25, 2022

I have to acknowledge that I’m speechless, and that’s not something you can expect to hear me say very often. The reason for my glazed look is that I recently had a video conference with an amazing 11-year-old called Zeke. After chatting with Zeke and his father, Eric, I now have a sneaking suspicion that I’ve wasted much of my life and failed to reach my full potential.

In many ways, Zeke reminds me of me when I was his age, the main difference being that he’ … Read More → "O-M-Gosh, I’ve Been Zeked! (Part 1)"

Are You Ready for Ubiquitous Connectivity?

by Max Maxfield

August 23, 2022

Let’s do a thought experiment. Suppose you find yourself trapped in a small space like an elevator and someone looks you in the eye and poses the question: “Are you ready for ubiquitous connectivity?” How would you respond? “Yes,” “No,” “Maybe,” or “What the heck is ubiquitous connectivity when it’s at home?”

Actually, that’s not a bad question. Let’s break it down. In its more general usage, connectivity refers to the state or extent of being connected or interconnected. More particularly, in the context of computing, … Read More → "Are You Ready for Ubiquitous Connectivity?"

$4 Logic Analyzer Based on Raspberry Pi Pico

by Steven Leibson

August 22, 2022

Here’s a truly inspired project. Dr. Agustín Gimenez Bernad, a Senior Developer in ServiZurich S.A. in Spain, has created one of the most brilliant hacks I’ve seen yet. He’s built a 24-bit logic analyzer that samples at 100 Msamples/sec and stores 32K samples from nothing more than a $4 Raspberry Pi Pico board and some clever code. There’s a lot to learn from this project, which is posted with some very fine documentation on GitHub, but if you just need a $4 logic analyzer, there’s still a lot to be admired.</ … Read More → "$4 Logic Analyzer Based on Raspberry Pi Pico"

Retro-Futuristic-Steampunk Technologies (Part 2)

by Max Maxfield

August 18, 2022

In Part 1 of this who-knows-how-many-parts-there-will-be Retro-Futuristic-Steampunk Technologies mini-series, we focused on one of my favorite display technologies in the form of Nixie tubes. We also featured a photograph showing the main control room of an abandoned power plant in Hungary that—much like your humble narrator—was simply oozing with style.

Read More → "Retro-Futuristic-Steampunk Technologies (Part 2)"

Intel oneAPI and DPC++: One Programming Language to Rule Them All (CPUs, GPUs, FPGAs, etc)

by Steven Leibson

August 15, 2022

Nvidia has something that Intel and AMD covet. No, it’s not GPUs. Intel and AMD both make GPUs. However, they don’t have Nvidia’s not-so-secret weapon that’s a close GPU companion: CUDA, the parallel programming language that allows developers to harness GPUs to accelerate general-purpose (non-graphics) algorithms. Since its introduction in 2006, CUDA has become a tremendous and so-far unrivaled competitive advantage for Nvidia because it works with Nvidia GPUs, and only with Nvidia GPUs. Understandably, neither Intel nor AMD plan to let that competitive advantage go unchallenged.

Let’s Read Our Little Cotton Socks Off (Part 2)!

by Max Maxfield

August 11, 2022

In Part 1 of my soon-to-be-famous Let’s Read Our Little Cotton Socks Off mega-mini-series, we closed with my noting that much of what I know (or, at least, what I think I know) leads me to believe that life in one form or another is pervasive throughout the universe. We also posed the question: “But what proportion of this life is intelligent?” (Truth be told, the actual question was: “But what proportion of … Read More → "Let’s Read Our Little Cotton Socks Off (Part 2)!"

I’ve Been Captivated by Compound Semiconductors

by Max Maxfield

August 9, 2022

The proverb “a little knowledge is a dangerous thing” was coined by Alexander Pope (1688-1744) in An Essay on Criticism (1711). If this sentiment is true, then I flatter myself that I’m a very dangerous individual indeed.

As an aside (we’re commencing on the asides early in this column because that’s just the sort of chap I am), Publilius Syrus (85-45 BC), a Syrian who started out as a Roman slave and eventually gained his freedom, presented this … Read More → "I’ve Been Captivated by Compound Semiconductors"

Optane, We Hardly Knew Yeh

by Steven Leibson

August 8, 2022

Buried in Intel’s recent and somewhat dismal second-quarter 2022 financial results was a line item under “Non-GAAP adjustment or measure” that read: “Optane inventory impairment” for the sum of $559 million. Ouch. About 60 percent of the way through the “Forward-Looking Statements” section of the financial earnings statement is the phrase “the wind-down of our Intel Optane memory business.” Bye, bye Optane.

This is a CEO-level decision, and it can’t have been an easy one for Pat Gelsinger. Optane Persistent Memory has been a foundational cornerstone of Intel’s differentiation strategy … Read More → "Optane, We Hardly Knew Yeh"

Retro-Futuristic-Steampunk Technologies (Part 1)

by Max Maxfield

August 4, 2022

From one perspective, I’m not very good in an argument because I can usually see both points of view. Oftentimes, if the argument is between two other persons, I can introduce a third way of looking at things that really gums up the works. Contrariwise, from another viewpoint, I can be great in an argument because—since I can usually find something with which I can empathize on each side of the disagreement—I can happily dispute from either position.

I’m much the same way with technology. On … Read More → "Retro-Futuristic-Steampunk Technologies (Part 1)"