Safari, the web browser that I use most often, has a feature called the “reading list.” It’s like a bookmark, but much more temporary. The list is meant to be a parking lot for sites that you want to read, but not read over and over. Once you’ve read it, you’re supposed to delete the site from the list.
Of course, a lot of sites get stuck on the list, so periodically I actually go through it and read some of the sites on the list. Here are three that I think hams will be as interested in as I am.
The Inner Beauty of Basic Electronics
Many components are not only marvels of electronics engineering, but mechanical engineering as well. Open Circuits: The Inner Beauty of Basic Electronics shows us how beautiful electronic components can be. The authors, Windell Oskay and Eric Schlaepfer, have painstaking opened many electronic components and taken some really amazing cross-section photographs. Here’s an example of a 15-turn potentiometer.
Also included in the book are photographs of transistors, integrated circuits, printed circuit boards, and more. Even if you don’t buy the book, taking a look at some of the photograph’s on the book’s web site is well worth it.
RFZero
I found out about this board via a Tweet by one of the designers. The RFzero is a multi-purpose, GPS-controlled Arduino shield that uses a Si5351A clock generator to generate all kinds of RF signals. Designed by designed by Johan, 5Q7J; Bo, OZ2M; Hans, OZ2XH; and Steen, OZ5N, the web page says that it can be used for all kinds of things, such as a beacon (IBP, SPB, CW, FST4, FST4W, FT4, FT8, JS8, JT9, ModeX (JT65, Q65, …), PI4, WSPR, …), stand alone WSPR/FST4W transmitter, signal generator, VFO, QO-100 dual LO, low cost GPSDO, e.g. for 10 MHz, IC-9700 LO, 90 MHz frequency counter, and more. Being Arduino-based, you can, of course, write or modify the software yourself.
It looks like a very cool board. I might even get one myself. The price is 500 DKK, or about $73.
SIGpi: A signal-intelligence-focuese Linux “go kit”
I came across this via a tweet from RTL-SDR.Com. RTL-SDR.Com is one of those websites that you really want to read if you’re doing anything with software-defined radio (SDR).
Joe, NE2Z, has developed this Linux distribution called SIGpi. SIGpi is an installable Linux distribution for Ubuntu and Raspberry Pi 3/4 that focuses on providing multiple open source SDR programs that can be used for signal intelligence. with emphasis on capabilities in the VHF, UHF, and SHF spectrum. Optionally, you can install HF SDR software, too. For a complete list, see the SIGpi wiki.
SIGpi runs on the following platforms:
- Raspberry Pi4 4GB RAM or Raspberry Pi 400 with 32GB microSD card running Raspberry Pi OS Full (64-bit)
- Ubuntu 22.04 LTS on arm64 and amd64
This sounds like something fun to try on my under-utilized RPi4. Now, I just have to find the time for it.
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