National Instruments (NI) recently released a new version of its LabView test automation programming environment for the latest Apple Macintosh computers based on the Arm-based Apple M1 CPU/GPU SoC. At the same time, NI let its customers know that this release would be the last one for Apple Macintosh computers, sending a shock through some portion of the company’s customer base. Here’s the text … Read More → "National Instruments to Apple Mac: Buh-Bye"
Is it just me, or are things becoming even more exciting than they already were? I’m not sure if it’s just because I’m getting older, or if it’s all down to the world spinning faster. How old am I? Well—let’s put it this way—I’m so old that the kids next door believed me when I told them one of … Read More → "Don’t React, PreAct!"
As I wrote in a recent blog, not knowing all the stuff I don’t know didn’t come easy. I’ve had to read a lot of books to get where I am today. This was in the context of a recently published book by Lawrence M. K. Krauss: The Known Unknowns: A Brief Account of What We Know and What We Don’t Know … Read More → "It’s Time to Learn More about Timing"
Before I turned to the dark side to become the world’s greatest technical writer of my generation (at least, according to my mom), I used to be a real engineer. As I’ve mentioned in earlier columns (and to anyone I can persuade to listen), my first job was as a member of a design team creating central processing units (CPUs) for mainframe computers.
Read More → "Accelerating and Reducing the Cost of Semiconductor Process Development"
When I was a young sprout, I used to work for a pair of sister companies called Cirrus Designs and Cirrus Computers in the UK. While at Cirrus Designs, I learned all* about testing integrated circuits (ICs) and printed circuit boards (PCBs). Meanwhile, at Cirrus Computers, I learned all* about digital logic simulation, automatic test pattern generation (ATPG), and automatic test equipment (ATE). (*When I say “ … Read More → "Teradyne’s Tactics to Tackle Twenty-First Century Test"
In its infinite wisdom, the Test and Measurement Alliance (TMA) has announced that there’s been an “industry-wide decision to retire x1/x10 switchable oscilloscope probes.” What, you’ve never heard of the TMA? Me neither. However, according to the TMA’s Web site, it’s been around since 2016.
The press release that announced this discontinuation said:
“The TMA, … Read More → "Farewell my beloved x1 x10 Scope Probe"
