Contest for Beginners

[xrunner]

*** 2017 Beginner Contest For Existing and New Members ***

This is a contest to win free test equipment.

First Prize: Rigol DS1074Z Digital Oscilloscope (contributed by member bson)

Second Prize: GW Instek GDM-8135 benchtop DMM and C&C 150U 150 MHz frequency Counter

Since they are being offered free and shipped it free, it's only for residents of the continental Unites States. The instruments will come with power cords and test leads, the scope with four probes.

This is not a random drawing, so you can't just say "I'm Joe Bob in for the prizes!" You will have to convince the judges that you are a) really a beginner and b) need these items (i.e. you are not the kinfolk of a millionaire who would not need help procuring equipment); millionaires can be beginners but they don't need free equipment. How do you convince us? That is your problem to solve. The judges will be myself (xrunner) and bitseeker.

Rules:

A. Brand new members are welcome; however, to express a bare minimum level of interest in the topics on this forum, please respond or ask a pertinent question to three (3) posts anywhere on this forum. Take your time there's no rush. I'm looking for at least a sentence or so in your post - not just a single word like "cool". Then once you have that history you can work on your entry here.

B. You must be able to post a picture of your work area showing where the equipment will be used and also of the equipment in use when you get it. Any additional pictures you feel are helpful also.

C. Convince us you are a beginner that needs and can make good use of this free equipment. Already having a DMM, frequency counter, or other equipment doesn't eliminate your chances of winning since beginners generally have some tools of the trade in order to become a beginner. On the other hand, having an entire lab outfitted does make one wonder about your definition of "beginner". Pictures will help. The only way to compete is to write up a post that is better than all the others at convincing the judges and submitting it to this thread. It's OK to post that you are going to enter, and converse with other members in the thread, but you still have to make a contest entry post in this thread - the entire explanation of why you think you should win. It's up to you what text/pics are in that entry post. Write a story about your electronics interest, make a technical presentation as to your beginner project, take a look at the last contest, see who won and what they said -

2015 Contest

Here's what's different than last time: since you can edit posts on this forum, I will allow other EEVBlog members participation to freely criticize your entry post (be nice guys/gals) and offer suggestions for improvement. There are many people here who are experts in electronics and work in industry, and know what a good proposal is. If you deem these suggestions helpful, you can edit/improve your entry. In fact, if you know any experts on the forum, I would encourage you to get their input on your entry. You don't have to discuss the details in the thread - you can PM any member and get help privately. The judges will not provide this assistance.

The purpose of this editing is so you can learn better writing at the same time (if you don't already have that skill). I want you to have the best chance to win, and getting feedback from these members is the best way to help you. This is like trying to convince your Boss that you have a project that would be really beneficial to the company. If your co-workers can help you that's fine. But you only get one chance with the Boss.

Simply edit your original post if you want to take any advice. It's very simple, but if you don't know how there will be plenty of members that can assist you. You can do this editing until I close the contest. At that time I will ask all the contestants to quote their edited entry and post it again. What that does is place them all at the end of the thread, so the judges can easily read them all. The judges will then review all the entries for a final determination.

So to summarize: The judges reserve the right to choose the final winners. I will ship free to the Unites States. I will keep track now until I get 12 entry posts (meaning 12 contestants) or 2 weeks have passed since the start of the contest. After I see 12 entry posts (not simply a post saying you want to compete) or two weeks, the contest will be closed to new entries. Your entry post is the full explanation with any helpful pictures of why you need the equipment, quoted to place it at the end of the thread only when I announce its time to do so. Then the judges will make their determination.

First Prize



Second prize




Disclaimer:

No warranties expressed or implied, equipment provided as-is and is not being offered as suitable for any specific application, all responsibility for use and operation of supplied equipment remains the sole responsibility of the winner, calibration not guaranteed, EEVBlog forum members cannot be held responsible for any injury or loss related to misuse of supplied equipment. By accepting this equipment you agree to these terms.

[SeanB]

Thank you for doing this, will be interesting to see how it turns out. Not entering, just want to encourage you in doing this.

[kalel]

Thank you for doing this, will be interesting to see how it turns out. Not entering, just want to encourage you in doing this.

I agree fully. I believe it is a great idea and should be maintained as possible (surely shipping these things isn't cheap, but then at least it's not international).

[xrunner]

*** UPDATE ***

An exciting change to the contest has been made. Member bson has contributed a Rigol DS1074Z oscilloscope as a prize!



The contest now has a first and second prize, meaning two winners will be awarded prizes. Please see updated rules for more information on this and time periods for the contest.

Thanks,

xrunner

[buck converter]

Definitely will enter

[xrunner]

Definitely will enter

Excellent! 

[rigol52]

Good move
and
good luck to all contributors.

[Seaofdep]

I am at the beginning of this stepping stone, I have much to learn and many tools to gather, ill make mistakes and grow stronger from them. I am a complete newbie and cant wait to soak up everything possible and experience each step as I move up. As for now ill make the best of what I have!
   It has been a rough year so my  work space is tiny and  I don't have many tools just a few  and of course  a cheap soldering iron and a small radio shack pocket multi-meter with a battery that cost more than the iron and multi-meter. I have one major project (fleamarket ptz camera  ) I am taking it slow, step by step as I research and read up as much as I can. Although  I have many projects that I can’t wait to do ill take my time as I gather the right tools and know exactly what to do and always following safety guidelines. Uh I don't own very much as of recent, having to rebuild from the ground up I learned to appreciate all & has opened my eyes. I have always been a bit of a lone wolf getting lost in books or creating some art, and with added equipment i can get lost as i jump from rail to rail lol, and winning will be  by far the highlight of the year not only will I appreciate the help on growing my work space with much needed tools for my journey ill pay it forward! Thanks to a buddy of mine,here is the new addition to the micro work station(pic). After seeing all the other work stations i was hesitant to post mine. I Dont have and feel like i cant even say i'm a beginner lol but i'm slowly gathering as i go and excited to learn and grow with my workstation .
       Even if I don't win, The kindness shown by those contributing the contest is a win in itself, Thank you and  Thank you for the opportunity. good luck.
 

[bitseeker]

Does that mean you're submitting an entry, Seaofdep?

[bitseeker]

Definitely will enter

Looking forward to your entry, buck.

[ThangNguyen]

May I ask if there is a specific place to post the entry or just in beginner?

[tautech]

May I ask if there is a specific place to post the entry or just in beginner?

Here.

Read the rules carefully and submit your argument for qualification to the competition. Edit as required until close of competition.

Sell yourself in your submission as the most worthy recipient of the prizes. 

[bitseeker]

Correct. All submissions must be posted in this thread. We won't be looking for them elsewhere.

[Seaofdep]

yes it does im about to edit my post now

[Bendba]

Nice,

We should do the same here in Australia.

[xrunner]

Nice, We should do the same here in Australia.

Good Idea! 

Looks like we have two members competing so far -

buck converter

Seaofdep

On a forum this size ... there must be a lot of beginners waiting in the wings. Come on in the water's fine. 

[Bendba]

Though I'm not able to supply the prize, I'd be more than happy to contribute to the purchase.

[xrunner]

Though I'm not able to supply the prize, I'd be more than happy to contribute to the purchase.

Thank you for the offer but it's not necessary. 

[bitseeker]

I took Bendba's comment to be with regard to contributing for the purchase of prize(s) to start a similar contest in Australia. It would be a good thing to have such a giveaway there since there are often posts from folks down under lamenting the scarcity of good deals on test equipment.

[Bendba]

Hi,

I was indeed referring to a contest in Australia.

Being quite a novice myself, I know how hard it is to get started. So I would be happy to help someone else getting there too.

{Here is my story:}

I only bought my first scope (15MHz 2 channel CRT, Leader LBO-505) a few month ago. It made a huge difference.

Luckily I found it on ebay for $50, cost me $40 in fuel to go pick it up bit I didn't want to risk shipping it.

I always wanted to know and experiment more about electronics when I was a kid but between not having any money and my mother thinking that I didn't have a future in that domain, it didn't happen, had to wait until I was 25 to get into it again, finally buy a decent multimeter and a cheap soldering iron.

Took me another two years to finally know enough to start wisely spending some money on a scope, a couple of breadboard and some new components (or last week go totally crazy and spend $500 on two pallets of ancient test gears)

It'll be a while still before I buy a brand new digital scope or bench DMM (need a bench first anyway, rather than squatting the dining table)

All in all, getting hands on the gears that make the difference between frustratingly burning up energy in protect that go nowhere and actually make some progress isn't always easy or affordable for everyone. So I'm hoping that that sort of prize for a young hobbyist might make a significant difference.

{End of the story}

[xrunner]

Do we not have any more beginners wishing to enter the contest? 

I might have to open it up to new registrations if we can't get a few more that are already registered.

[buck converter]

Do we not have any more beginners wishing to enter the contest? 

I might have to open it up to new registrations if we can't get a few more that are already registered.

Good idea, my friend is getting into electronics, does not even have DMM and wants one but has not registered for this forum!

[IonizedGears]

I'm not a beginner so I won't be entering (even though the free gear is enticing!) and I love the idea of giving a lucky newbie a solid entry into the field but what's to stop a person from falsifying a third world setup to increase their chances?

I suppose the best thing would be to have many entries to choose from and hopefully picking the best fit for the contest.

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

[kalel]

Do we not have any more beginners wishing to enter the contest? 

I might have to open it up to new registrations if we can't get a few more that are already registered.

If an international contest was possible, surely there would be many more applications. But of course shipping would be crazy for anything heavy (perhaps at maximum, a DMM in minimal packaging or some lightweight USB gear at most), and as the contestants would fairly need to pay shipping and customs, most likely it wouldn't be an affordable contest to participate in (I can imagine costs for a scope). So both physical weight, size and reward value would then need to be small also, so that the customs expenses are not crazy either. It would help if some business/company was sponsoring such competitions (as they can probably take care of customs costs and might have good international shipping methods).
Even with US only, I'm surprised there aren't more entries already with the scope being featured! Perhaps you should add something like Scope reward in the title? Not a serious suggestion, but... it might work.

Anyway, thanks for making the contest and good luck to everyone.

Edit:

I'm not a beginner so I won't be entering (even though the free gear is enticing!) and I love the idea of giving a lucky newbie a solid entry into the field but what's to stop a person from falsifying a third world setup to increase their chances?

Unfortunately, the more expensive the gear offered, the more likely it is to get some questionable entries. Perhaps it would help if you check the users posts made prior to the competition. User posts might not show if the person is wealthy or not, but based on their questions, interests, and answers to other posts, you could probably figure out if they are a beginner or not. While it might be possible that among many entries, someone may falsify things after the competition begins (or is announced), how likely is it that a person will create an account prior to the competition, and then in their posts falsify being a newbie without expensive gears or means to afford it?

[xrunner]

If an international contest was possible, surely there would be many more applications. But of course shipping would be crazy for anything heavy (perhaps at maximum, a DMM in minimal packaging or some lightweight USB gear at most), and as the contestants would fairly need to pay shipping and customs, most likely it wouldn't be an affordable contest to participate in (I can imagine costs for a scope).

If I allow the whole planet to enter then I would have to ship to the winner no matter what country they live in. Being a ham operator and having quite a few years experience sending and receiving paper QSL cards from many countries, I just don't trust mailing letters to some of them, not to mention valuable box of goodies. 

Good idea, my friend is getting into electronics, does not even have DMM and wants one but has not registered for this forum!

I don't even see a post yet that even rises to the minimum standard for a winner.

But if he wants to enter then let's go for it. I'm officially opening the contest to newly registered members.

*** CONTEST OPEN TO NEW MEMBERS ***

Here's one thing though and I'll mod the rules also in the opening post -

To express a bare minimum level of interest in the topics on this forum, please respond or ask a pertinent question to three (3) posts anywhere on this forum. Take your time there's no rush. I'm looking for at least a sentence or so in your post - not just a single word like "cool". Then once you have that history you can work on your entry here. 

But the same rules apply. If you can't convince the judges you can't win.

[Seaofdep]

well ill be a...... not even rise to the standars of a winner  lol

 I defenitley can use both prizes and am in it for the win, and being one of a couple entries of course thrilled at the same time i dont mind healthy competion . it is just mor motivation for us.< But whatever the outcome maybe, Im gratful for the opportunity.

[xrunner]

well ill be a...... not even rise to the standars of a winner  lol

Sorry the first time I saw your other post I didn't see a picture.

[bitseeker]

As it is summer in the northern hemisphere, perhaps some would-be contestants are on vacation. We shall see.

Good idea, my friend is getting into electronics, does not even have DMM and wants one but has not registered for this forum!

But if he wants to enter then let's go for it. I'm officially opening the contest to newly registered members.

Cool. Well, buck, now your friend has no reason to hide in the shadows. Time to register and participate!

To express a bare minimum level of interest in the topics on this forum, please respond or ask a pertinent question to three (3) posts anywhere on this forum. Take your time there's no rush. I'm looking for at least a sentence or so in your post - not just a single word like "cool". Then once you have that history you can work on your entry here. 

I concur. New registrants should participate in the forum in more than a token form, prior to entering.

what's to stop a person from falsifying a third world setup to increase their chances?

Specifically, this giveaway is restricted to the US due to the location of the owners of the prizes who are paying for the shipping out of their own pockets. Generally, there isn't anything stopping cheaters from entering. We are aware of that possibility and hopefully our diligence will be sufficient. If we do get snookered, then may all the faker's electronics, now and forevermore, prove to be unreliable at the most inopportune times.

[xrunner]

what's to stop a person from falsifying a third world setup to increase their chances?

Specifically, this giveaway is restricted to the US due to the location of the owners of the prizes who are paying for the shipping out of their own pockets. Generally, there isn't anything stopping cheaters from entering. We are aware of that possibility and hopefully our diligence will be sufficient. If we do get snookered, then may all the faker's electronics, now and forevermore, prove to be unreliable at the most inopportune times.

IonizedGears,

Nothing is stopping them. The alternative would have been to have a random drawing which would allow any all all persons to enter (because there would be no way to authenticate anyone). At least doing this is better than nothing.

But I can't believe many people who don't need this stuff would bother to make a false entry. If they do then they have way too much free time on their hands.

But if we have any doubts there is always the backup phone interview. 

[bitseeker]

But if we have any doubts there is always the backup phone interview. 

Ah, yes. The backup phone interview. I have been trained in behavioral interviewing techniques (a corporate euphemism for psychological probing of victims candidates) and can make unlimited calls to US phone numbers to ensure sufficient time for the torture interview.

[bitseeker]

well ill be a...... not even rise to the standars of a winner  lol

Sorry the first time I saw your other post I didn't see a picture.

Ah, I didn't see the picture before, either. Nice breadboard. It's bigger than mine! What nifty things have you built on it, Seaofdep?

[Seaofdep]

I am not exactly sure if i need to post my entry on this contest post thread or the begginer thread titled entry < all i see is my statement so far(has me excited for a win and looking at the thread every nanosecond lol).
  Thank you, I really needed it! Just about everything I have as of now is passed down or  flea market finds, and with everyday that goes by i find myself need something new lol and just  getting hands on learning as i play around with leds/speaker i/f and voltage reg. etc.. i have some digital displays and a coontroller i/f (need to find pinouts)i would like to mess with soon.
    still loads to learn and cant get enough

[bitseeker]

All contest entry posts must be submitted in this thread. Nowhere else. In addition:

After I see 12 entry posts (not simply a post saying you want to compete) or two weeks, the contest will be closed to new entries. Your entry post is the full explanation with any helpful pictures of why you need the equipment, quoted to place it at the end of the thread only when I announce its time to do so. Then the judges will make their determination.

[kbarnette]

Hello!

First off, thanks to all who have contributed to the prizes for this contest.  The generosity toward those who are new is commendable and I, for one, hope to be able at a point sometime in the future to do likewise.

That said, here is my entry:

It took me a bit to discover that Electrical Engineering was the coolest of any field one could pursue as an education/career of any option out there!  I piddled around at community college claiming I was pursuing a mechanical engineering degree but I just didn't have a passion for the field.  I'm not sure what it was that made me look seriously at EE but since I have I have been plowing through the degree as quickly as I can.  I'm currently top of my class as a full-time student (Junior, or 3rd year) at a 4-year university while working full-time doing IT work for a fortune 500 logistics company to support my beautiful wife and 2 young daughters (under 4 years old).  My oldest daughter (3) knows how a breadboard works because I'm always tinkering and I love showing her what I'm doing.  Breadboarded LEDs are her favorite component.     I also have the opportunity to participate in an FPGA hardware security research group at my university and am coming to love digital design in VHDL.  I mention all of these things merely to point out that, in spite of how busy I am, I find absolute joy in building all things electronic.

My hobby projects include quadcopters, a 3D printer, a small board-PC-based doorbell system that texts us a picture of whoever rings our doorbell in real-time, and a wireless swimming pool temperature monitoring system.  For my research group I'm trying to wrap my head around designing and laying out a Xilinx Spartan-6 FPGA board.  It's been a real trip so far.

My lab equipment consists of a cheap AutoZone DMM, an Analog Discovery 2 lab-in-a-box, and my pride and joy, a Rigol DS1054Z (purchased on the recommendation of so many on this forum).  I've been scraping and scrounging to save up for a  good multi-channel bench power supply but that's still off in the future somewhere.  I should probably design and build one but I kind of want it to look good and be easy to use and I'm not confident my first go at it would satisfy either of those requirements.  Either the 1074Z or the combo DMM/Frequency Counter prizes would be extensively used as I troubleshoot my designs and strive to reverse engineer others' designs I come across.

Attached is the picture of my computer desk which also serves as my workbench.  I've been delaying posting waiting until I could clean up my desk but I figure this is an accurate reflection of my workspace with everything I have going on.  Lest one think the Altium Designer application up on the monitor means I'm rolling in money, it is the student version ($120/yr) and was provided by my university.

I am in the US and appreciate your consideration of my entry into this contest.

If anyone has any questions or suggestions that would flesh out my "Beginner's Profile" feel free to let me know and I'll be happy to update this post.

[bitseeker]

Good to see your entry, kbarnette. Your bench is cleaner than mine -- more than clean enough to enter.

[IonizedGears]

kbarnette,

I'm not sure if you meant it or realized it but I was able to look at all of the other pictures you posted on your photobucket with the link you sent (nice guns though).

I'm in a similar situation as you. I am currently a full time Honors EE junior along with working at my university's electronics and machine tool shop and a few clubs.

~IX

[xrunner]

Lest one think the Altium Designer application up on the monitor means I'm rolling in money, it is the student version ($120/yr) and was provided by my university.

Before we can proceed with your entry please post a picture of the inside of your wallet to verify you are not rolling in money. 

Thanks for your entry and good luck!

[Yansi]

Well I could make a good use of that Rigol DS1074 or the C&C 150U 150 MHz frequency Counter too, but am not sure if I am a beginner or not so I could enter the competition. Most of the time I think I am a beginner dumb as hell, however other might have sometimes different opinions. It is a difficult task to judge myself, as compared to others I might be a complete beginner or even an intermediate (certainly not a professional). Still need at least to finish my EE degree.

[xrunner]

... but am not sure if I am a beginner or not so I could enter the competition.

Let me paraphrase a quote from the Oracle in The Matrix -

Being a beginner is just like being in love. No one can tell you your a beginner, you just know it. Through and through. Balls to bones. Well, I better have a look at you. Open your mouth, say Ahhh.

[kbarnette]

kbarnette,

I'm not sure if you meant it or realized it but I was able to look at all of the other pictures you posted on your photobucket with the link you sent (nice guns though).

Thanks for the heads-up. It's been fixed. I'm glad the contest rules make a provision for feedback.

[rustybronco]

Technically I'm a re-beginner and a new member.

Many moons ago, when I was in high school, I took four years of electronics class. I did rather well back then even to the point point of winning my state's radio servicing competition. 'Many' years have passed since then (I'm 63 now) with even a short stint at the local community college working towards a BSEET degree. As with some people life got in the way and I never finished. Now I have decided to return to doing what I always have loved, but even it is going to have to wait until I retire. In the mean time I have started to accumulate a few odds and ends in order to meet that goal. So far I have a 200 Mhz scope, a function generator, frequency counter, a proper soddering station and a few other things. I still haven't a proper place to work on things, using the dining room table, kitchen counter and even the top of a cabinet in the "office" to work on. Hopefully there will come a proper desk or spot for me to work, but in the mean time I make do with what I have.

As such that I already have some equipment, I will not be entering the contest as there are those less equipped than me. Good luck to all that enter and my gratitude to those putting this contest on.

Regards,
Dale

[bitseeker]

Welcome, Dale. All the best on your re-beginning!

[Shock]

kbarnette,

I'm not sure if you meant it or realized it but I was able to look at all of the other pictures you posted on your photobucket with the link you sent (nice guns though).

Thanks for the heads-up. It's been fixed. I'm glad the contest rules make a provision for feedback.

Nice truck as well, it's still showing all photos when I visited also, as I post this.

In line with the rules I suggest you edit your entry to add a more impoverished sentiment, bills, loans, the cost of being a student etc. Call me jaded but most of the free handouts don't necessary get to those who make use of them the most. If you want tips on how to hit more heart strings read my quote in this post here.

[kbarnette]

Nice truck as well, it's still showing all photos when I visited also, as I post this.

In line with the rules I suggest you edit your entry to add a more impoverished sentiment, bills, loans, the cost of being a student etc. Call me jaded but most of the free handouts don't necessary get to those who make use of them the most. If you want tips on how to hit more heart strings read my quote in this post here.

Thanks for the feedback. I'm starting to not like photobucket. Updating the picture when I get to my desk tonight. The truck picture is for when I was selling my truck after my company downsized when my wife was 8 months pregnant and I lost my job a few years ago (before I discovered EE and really took on a lot of classes).

[PA0PBZ]

I'm starting to not like photobucket.

You can just upload the picture to the forum as an attachment...

[Yansi]

Specifically, this giveaway is restricted to the US due to the location of the owners of the prizes who are paying for the shipping out of their own pockets. Generally, there isn't anything stopping cheaters from entering. We are aware of that possibility and hopefully our diligence will be sufficient. If we do get snookered, then may all the faker's electronics, now and forevermore, prove to be unreliable at the most inopportune times.

Hence why I better not participate. US people think they are the only one that would pay. To be honest, if I would ever win anything here, I would not be able to pay the import fees. Just do not have enough money for that.  Stupid country what I live in.

[Jono427]

Here is my entry:

Been playing with simple circuits for a long time, but finally have the time and space to really learn.  Still remember my first electronics kit in grade school. Got it from a book fair and had to choose between it or a few books - I picked the kit and borrowed the books from friends   It was one of those you attach the parts to a cardboard box and each one had springs to connect the wires between them (about 10"x5").

Once I had a job in high school I got my first multimeter (a cheap Craftsman) that I still have.  Have mostly only played around with my Arduino and RaspberryPi up to this point but have wanted to start on my own circuits and actually learn more.  I picked up "Make: Electronics" and "Practical Electronics for Inventors" to read (which is huge!) a few months ago.  Only have made it 1/4 through Make and have read a little when I want a little bit more in Practical, but already learning a lot (never learned that capacitors are different for AC and DC - probably because I have only worked with DC).  Also thought caps were connected like batteries in DC circuits, not pos and to ground.  Like xrunner just quoted from the Matrix "No one can tell you your a beginner, you just know it" - this is when I knew it.

Most of the stuff on the bench (a white folding table w/ antistatic mat) has been pulled together over the past 6 years and lots of second-hand stuff.  The bench PSU (ebay, probably from a certain school going out of business) is so much better than having 2-3 wall warts.  Currently wanting to save for an oscilloscope.  I have always been a visual learner and I think that getting one will help.  The current circuit I'm working on in Make is a blinking LED (caps, resistors, and transistors).  It would be nice to see the voltages change at different points in the circuit to see how they interact.

Thanks for doing this xrunner, bitseeker and bson - You are all awesome!  I do have a multimeter so please only consider my entry for the Rigol (as it looks like others could use the DMM and/or counter).  Also got those green/yellow pair from Frankie on these forums.  Have to say that they are great for the price and got them super quick!

[bitseeker]

I'm starting to not like photobucket. Updating the picture when I get to my desk tonight.

Attach it to your post. That's preferred anyway so that you don't have to rely on a third-party service to exist as long as your post does.

See Jono's entry as an example. Works nicely.

[bitseeker]

Hence why I better not participate. US people think they are the only one that would pay. To be honest, if I would ever win anything here, I would not be able to pay the import fees.

Yes, international contests can be challenging to both sides, depending on where you live. So, we just keep it to the local country and, hopefully, there will be others who will do something similar where they live.

[xrunner]

Thank you Jono427. 

Officially we now have three entries -

kbarnette
Seaofdep
Jono427

If I missed anyone please flog me in public.

Remember, you are free to improve your post until we notify everyone that the contest is closed. We may not get to 12 contestants but we'll let it go for a while longer.

If anyone has a better/fairer way to do these contests I'd be interested in the procedure you have in mind. Might be an interesting thread if you'd like to start one.

[kalel]

Hence why I better not participate. US people think they are the only one that would pay. To be honest, if I would ever win anything here, I would not be able to pay the import fees.

Yes, international contests can be challenging to both sides, depending on where you live. So, we just keep it to the local country and, hopefully, there will be others who will do something similar where they live.

Not being from the US I understand that custom fees and shipping for most things is extreme overseas, especially heavy and valuable items. An international contest reward might require low value, lightweight items to be shipped, or where applicable software items (such as license codes), or coupons for services. But most of those might need to be sponsored by companies (which may have better conditions), and/or perhaps items shipped from China could be used as rewards, due to low shipping rates for lightweight items - that would limit the rewards available however, instead of allowing someone to simply contribute something that they already own, which is probably more appealing.

[bitseeker]

Drop shipping could be an interesting way to deal with some of the import/export issues. However, as you said kalel, part of what makes contests like this appealing and unique is the personal aspect of the equipment coming from someone and then going to the winner(s).

[kalel]

Drop shipping could be an interesting way to deal with some of the import/export issues. However, as you said kalel, part of what makes contests like this appealing and unique is the personal aspect of the equipment coming from someone and then going to the winner(s).

True, although if that was the only way to make an international one, I'm sure some would still find it acceptable. One perhaps challenging thing would be to organize a "reward pool" where people might contribute, e.g. a trusted maintainer might keep a Paypal account for it or such (maybe there's a better service for that). I hope this wasn't too much off topic.

[bitseeker]

It was interesting. Thanks for the ideas, kalel.

[bson]

Thanks for doing this xrunner and bson - You are awesome!

It's really all bitseeker's and xrunner's doing... I'm just contributing a piece of gear sitting here collecting dust.

I was a poor student at one time too, and know what it's like to have a drive to design and build things, but no money for instruments, so will be super happy if bitseeker and xrunner find it a good home where it gets used.

I've been keeping it for a spare since I got a LeCroy WaveSurfer 3000, but I doubt it will ever get used again, so will just sit here indefinitely being of no use to anyone.

It's fully liberated as is, but I can factory reset it should the winner prefer... 

[Jono427]

Thanks for doing this xrunner and bson - You are awesome!

It's really all bitseeker's and xrunner's doing... I'm just contributing a piece of gear sitting here collecting dust.

I was a poor student at one time too, and know what it's like to have a drive to design and build things, but no money for instruments, so will be super happy if bitseeker and xrunner find it a good home where it gets used.

I've been keeping it for a spare since I got a LeCroy WaveSurfer 3000, but I doubt it will ever get used again, so will just sit here indefinitely being of no use to anyone.

It's fully liberated as is, but I can factory reset it should the winner prefer... 

Fixed it - still thanks to all 3 of you for offering stuff to new guys!

[bson]

I once borrowed a lens from a friend in Italy (back when adapting Contax mount Zeiss optics to Canon SLRs was a novelty); after checking it out and writing a brief review I sent it back.  Poor guy got stuck paying several hundred euros in VAT for his own lens to get it out of customs...  (I offered to pay but he seemed to think it was somehow his mistake.)

Shipping to even Canada is a mess of customs declarations, arbitrary fees, and lost goods.  I sold something via a photo forum (forget what), U.S. only, and silly me agreed to ship it to Canada since the buyer agreed to pay all duties and processing.  It arrived broken.  I refunded the buyer, who was still out all the exorbitant customs fees and taxes.  Needless to say, he wasn't very happy.  In the U.S. I'd just refund whatever I received and that's it, maybe pay to have it returned.  Packages don't get destroyed much in the U.S., but even to Canada... it's like they process them with a rock loader or something.

[scdreger]

My name is Scott and I’m new to hobby electronics. What began as a curiosity … one of those things I always wanted to know more about … has quickly turned into an obsession. I don’t really know of another way to describe it.

It started in March, when after having it “saved for later” in my Amazon cart, I finally pulled the trigger and ordered a copy of the “Make: Electronics” book. I read and followed along with the practical experiments until I got to the 555 oscillator which simply flashes an LED. I quickly changed out the passives and hooked up an audio jack to hear the sweet sound of a square wave oscillator – and I could change the pitch with a potentiometer!!! Don’t laugh, but I was so happy to manipulate that pot that I’m embarrassed to admit how much time I spent experimenting with that one simple circuit. You see I’ve been into analog synthesizers for years … I knew right then I had to learn how to make real synth circuits.

So I’ve began searching out every bit of information I could about electronics … looking at old schematics, new schematics, youtube videos, EEV blog, diy synth forums, PDFs of old Electro Notes newsletters … you name it. I ordered Make: Analog Synthesizers, fascinated with every detail … I was finally learning how these things worked under the hood.

With this small amount of newfound knowledge, I decided I had to make an oscillator that played in tune, one and responded at 1V/Octave so I could connect it to my modular synth and actually play it in tune. This goal led to more and more discovery … what’s an exponential converter? What’s VBE matching? Oh I can build a circuit to help me match my own, let’s do it! There have been many, many small victories and even more failures (no flames, but I have blown a piece of silicon across the room, haha). I succeeded in making my oscillator and it worked! This led me to make a voltage controlled multi-mode filter and then a VCA … I haven’t made a proper envelope generator yet, so I made a quick and dirty one by pinging a home make vactrol to mimic an envelope. Basically, all the elements of a very rudimentary synth. I keep having to buy new breadboards because I don’t want to take anything apart. Needless to say I’m hooked!

I’ve learned so much over the last few months and have so, so, so much more to learn. For Fathers Day, I received “the Art of Electronics” (from my awesome wife) which will keep me busy for a while to say the least. Another hobby of mine is amateur radio … I have a general class license, so now I’m also looking into homebrew radio projects. This has led to even more discovery. I’m simply having a blast and one of my daughters is even becoming interested, so as an aside I like to make simple circuits to demonstrate some concepts to her – having her lay down wide bands of graphite on paper and then using it as variable resistance to change the pitch of an oscillator brought a smile to her face and now she’s always popping into the garage to ask about what I’m working on.

My lab is simple but functional. For my birthday, my wife bought me an entry level 2 channel scope (I told you she’s awesome!). Luckily, I had been saving up amazon gift cards from Christmas and birthdays for a while so I could get “something good,” so I bought myself a function generator. My power supply is a Elenco +/- dual rail kit that I built and modified by deleting the AC output and adding two LED voltage meters. Being that I have a scope, I’m not sure I qualify for the contest, but all the prizes look amazing and I’ll leave that up to the judges. I won’t have any budget for “lab upgrades” until after Christmas, so I would be incredibly appreciative of any level of prize from this contest. I'd put the equipment to good use on my journey to learn everything I can about electronics.

Mostly I want to say thanks for having the giveaway and more importantly to the community here. I’ve learned a ton from what I’ve read on this very forum and from Dave’s videos (the Op Amp one has been very beneficial to me) and look forward to learning much more. At the end of the day that’s what makes this so exciting. I love learning and this hobby seems that it can provide a never ending path to amazing, new knowledge. I’m glad I took the dive and found the joy of electronics at a hobbyist level.

[xrunner]

Hello Scott, thanks for the entry and writeup. I'd say you have a nice little setup. I see you have Siglent equipment, we have a member here that will be very happy to see that on your bench (he's a distributor in New Zealand). Again thanks for the entry and have fun on the forum, it's a goldmine of information and people who can answer just about any question you might have (about anything). 

[Seaofdep]

just updated my entry  with workstation pic 

[xrunner]

just updated my entry  with workstation pic 

OK, it would help if it was not upside-down, but we can manage. 

[bitseeker]

A-ha! So he really lives down under.

[Seaofdep]

just updated my entry  with workstation pic 

OK, it would help if it was not upside-down, but we can manage. 

lol i didnt even notice , ill fix it

[xrunner]

Hear Ye Hear Ye ...

This contest will end this Saturday at 12 Midnight central time US / 0500 UTC.

If you are out there waiting to enter better get busy!

[Shock]

Only 4 entries so far?

Looks like the USA recession must have ended, hardly anyone needs free oscilloscopes anymore.

[Mattjd]

My name is Matt, and I am a hobbyist and ECE (electrical computer) engineer student. I'm turning 25 in a day. Spent most of my time (graduated 2011) after high school bullshitting in community college while working in warehouses and on farms. I eventually decided I wanted to do something with math and got my shit together. I also eventually found out it is difficult to get a job without a math degree. Turned my eye towards EE because of its so math intensive to study - felt it was a happy medium between practical and interesting. In 2015 I got my A.A.S in mathematics in preparation to move to local Uni for ECE.

Fall 2016 I took my first engineering classes, Introduction to Digital Systems and Principles of Electrical Circuit Analysis. Learned about digital logic and FPGA/HDL in the former and Op Amps, Circuit/Power Analysis in the later. Taking these classes turned me onto EE and CE which eventually led me to this forum.

This past tax season I got a big fat tax return from having worked full time and paying for tuition. Had every intention of dropping it all on gear. I found some of Dave's youtube videos when looking for recommendations. Came to the site, found out about the discount from TeEquipment. I will admit, I signed up purely for that discount. My first post is asking for it in the thread. I was promptly shut down (in a nice way) by Nanofrog.

It was at that point that I started posting to get membership status to get that discount. Ironically, and to my benefit, from discussion I was persuaded not to drop the money, which led me to buy the two Uni-T DMM and Analog Discovery...it's funny how it all worked out.

Since then I have found this site to be incredibly useful; discussing proper HDL programming for FPGAs, asking questions about transistor anomalies I was facing when studying them, etc. My current interest of study is Memristor emulators, and I must say that scope would be amazing for it - create my circuit and view that pinched hysteresis curve on it!


here's an Imgur album of my set up


http://imgur.com/a/A2EsL


In closing, I just want to say thanks to everyone who expended energy and funds putting this together.


Edit(7/6/17): I'd like to add a non academic project I worked on over the winter. My uncle was building a smoke house, and he needed a way to control the power to the heat source. I decided to make him a thermostat of sorts using my FPGA.

What I have is a thermocouple that runs into a Thermocouple to digital converter, which is connected to the GPIO of my DE0. Another wire going out from the GPIO goes to the gate of a NMOS which controls the voltage source going to a solid state relay, which controls the power to the heating element. The heating element is a water heating element by the way.

Basically, when flipping a switch on a DE0 the process would start. Power would be sent to the heating element and once temperature [z] would be detected an ON timer would start. After the time has passed, the power is cut, and an OFF timer is started. This process is then repeated for [y] cycles. The On-Off cycles are important to the smoking of the wood chips. You want them to smoke and burn but not catch fire. Lastly, the temperature and timer would be continuously displayed on the LCD.

Here is a picture when I was testing it all at my house. The water element was burning up if not submerged in water. So i found an old piece of wood and drilled a hole and placed the entire contraption over a pot filled with water.

Some design specifics:

The design was pretty simple, a state machine sufficed. A Warm Up state, Power On State, Power Off State. The most difficult part was getting the timings correct for the readings of the Thermocouple to Digital Converter. I used a MAX31855 and I had to create the SPI Master Module.

[Aviator X]

New member and beginner, here! I almost missed this thread. I am very excited to have found the EEVblog community. I will submit my entry tomorrow. I need to gather a couple of pictures for the post. Thanks.

[xrunner]

My name is Matt, and I am a hobbyist and ECE (electrical computer) engineer student.

OK Matt, we got ya in the list.

New member and beginner, here! I almost missed this thread. I am very excited to have found the EEVblog community. I will submit my entry tomorrow. I need to gather a couple of pictures for the post. Thanks.

Good deal, don't delay the clock is ticking!

[Aviator X]

I have always had an interest in electronics whispering. I love taking things apart and seeing the enigma of components, wondering what they all do. I have a pretty good aptitude for the hobby and my touch of OCD helps me spend long hours researching topics for a better understanding. I consider myself a people person and enjoy discussions with experts in their field. Unfortunately, electronic engineers and electronic hobbyist are a rare breed in my area.

As my responsibilities grew with family and work, my love to tinker had to be suppressed. There simply wasn’t enough hours in the day for everything. Then fate intervened. My eldest son inherited my curiosity of the spark. Since kindergarten, he had a love of robots. I saw it as a phase, figuring dinosaurs and cars would follow, but they didn’t. His passion grew when he found out his school offered a robotics program for third graders. The school could only afford to have a few students participate, so I enrolled him in a free robotics summer camp in preparation for the highly sought after course. That’s when my passion found me again.

My son’s team won first place in Robotics Camp! A geeky father couldn’t be prouder. We spent the rest of the weekend talking about servos, coding, and circuits. It didn’t take long before I was scratching my head as my eight year old was speaking of auto desks and 3D printer coding. When he showed me how to set up a milling machine I was floored. I headed straight to his school. I had to get him in robotics.

You can imagine the disappointment when the school informed us that the program was no longer going to be offered. The rare breed I spoke of earlier had left the school, leaving behind a STEM void. Apparently, all the equipment went with him too. This can’t be. Just when schools are losing art, music, and recess, they decide to take away this valuable program too? With stout determination I declared “I will do it!”

…wait, what?

Ok, I’ve been known to leap without looking a time or two in my life, but now I’m involving my son and other students. I don’t have equipment, I don’t have a curriculum, but I do have passion. That will have to do. An afterschool program is better than no program. I’ve already acquired a soldering iron from a neighbor and a bag of components from the local Radio Shack going out of business sale. This summer, my son and I are building the curriculum. We did the whole basic circuit thing with copper tape and LEDs, but he knocked it out of the park without instruction. I’m going to have to try harder in that department.

In short, I now have a way to indulge in my love for electronics and spend valuable time with my son. And as if that wasn’t reason enough, I can now guide young minds to explore what make things work in our technologically advancing world. This is all very exciting!

Project: Reestablish afterschool program – STEM, electronics, robotics

1.   Develop curriculum (In progress)
2.   Acquire tools, test equipment, components and safety PPE (early stages of acquisition)
3.   Reach out to community for advice, expertise, and encouragement (that’s how I found EEVblog)

I am thrilled to have found a resource like the EEVblog Electronic’s Community. The wealth of knowledge isn’t just going to help me, it’s going to help a community of kids. As great as winning a scope would be, it’s comforting to know that there are folks like you willing to spend their spare time online, helping folks like me try to find a clue. I’m going to do my best to educate, but I know the kids won’t be the only ones learning. Wish me luck on this endeavor.

Abraham/Aviator X


Images:
1. It's amazing how fast and how much kids can learn when they are excited about the subject.
2. I'd hardly call it a shop. More of a shared work bench. I'm still in the equipment gathering process.

[yami759]

Unfortunately, I didn't see this post until just recently. I suppose it's too late to enter?

Edit: I might as well put my entry in here and give it a shot anyways.

I am Fadi, a recent high school graduate getting ready to study electrical and computer engineering at Cal Poly. Though I've been interested in electronics since the eighth grade when I built up my first ever circuit, a solar-powered USB charger, my electronics life had taken a pause until recently due to my high school life getting so busy (life's tough as a high school student founding a programming club at his school while taking community college courses... not to brag or anything ). During my senior year and especially now during the summer, I've finally been able to get back into working on what I love, even going as far as to teach a friend of mine about basic electronics, being that he has recently taken a shift in interest from mechanical to electrical engineering.

As my senior project, I job-shadowed an electronics engineer and built a dance pad, like one from the popular arcade game DanceDanceRevolution (which I love). The player steps on a part of the pad (usually marked with arrows, but I was too lazy to get those printed, and this looks cooler to me anyways) as a corresponding arrow approaches a part of the screen, indicating when it is to be stepped on, with all of that going along to the beat of music. A fun way for me to get some exercise, as these "dance" sessions can get pretty intensive.

Another project I recently worked on with a team (including that friend I mentioned earlier—this is actually where he started to gain an interest in electronics himself) was a prosthetic arm for a MESA competition. Though the actual prosthesis part of the arm is incredibly basic, simply consisting of two 3D printed fingers, it was still a fun project with its own other challenges. Despite the simplicity, it was still a stressful-yet-enjoyable experience of staying up with the team to complete the physical build, work on documentation, and other not-so-electrical aspects. In the end, we were at least able to manage 2nd place on the technical paper

Finally, my most recent project is an AVR development board, largely inspired by a similar project from The Ben Heck Show. Being that I've gotten annoyed with either using a full Arduino board (which isn't necessary for most situations) or with programming a microcontroller by wiring things up on breadboard and constantly having to look up the pinouts to rebuild the programming circuit, and dealing with swapping the chip between a programming breadboard and a project breadboard, I decided to make things a bit more professional and easy on myself. This circuit is designed to work with a 6 pin AVR programming interface (for which I am using the USBTinyISP) and will be wired to allow for programming of 28-pin and 8-pin AVRs, which can easily be swapped in and out with with a ZIF socket, rather than previously prying it out of the breadboard.

Enough with rambling on about my projects, and onto the workbench!.... or, well, makeshift workbench. Being that I don't actually have the space for another table in my room to act as a workbench (not do I have an extra table for that matter), I simply move aside my PC peripherals when I wish to work on electronics, and let the majority of tools and such live on the side of my desk for the time otherwise. Being that I'll be heading off to university with its cramped dorms, I'll be prepared for a small work environment. My tools consist of the basics, most notably a soldering iron and multimeter. I originally had a cheap RadioShack plug-into-the-wall iron and my dad's old meter, but was able to upgrade to more reliable and much less headache-inducing models with some money I made off tutoring.

You may have noticed something about all my projects—they all, from an electronics perspective, are relatively simple, and in fact, most have a component count in the single digits. Though I have been interested in electronics for quite some time now, I haven't really advanced incredibly far from the basics. Though going to university will surely expand my knowledge and lead to bigger and better things, I still need the tools to succeed. Being that my family is lower-class and going through problems with money right now, I am left to pay for my own university expenses, which will definitely not be cheap. Being able to start off with one less expense to worry about, such as this oscilloscope (not that I wouldn't love the DMM or counter either!) will be a huge help, that I would appreciate immensely.

Lastly, thank you for those who donated the tools to be given away in this contest! Whoever wins, I'm sure these tools will go to someone who is in need of them!

[Mattjd]

I'm presuming that you have until the end of today. They still haven't declared it closed, so you probably still can. Good luck.

[Chris_77]

Hello.

I'm getting back into electronics after 15 or so years away, and am also looking to learn, remember, and pull myself to the "short-run production" level of electronics.

Years and years ago, I was in a merged CS/EE curriculum and took all the coursework you'd imagine. I was interested in electronics--both hardware and software--and started to get into microprocessors, namely, the PIC. I ended up building a "smart refrigerator" that could tell me how many cans of ... soft-drink ... I had in the door, and what the temperature of the refrigerator was. Good times.

Life, moving around a lot, much more school and different disciplines intervened.

I've recently picked up again and have started building/populating my lab. I was a student for 15 years (ouch), have lived the life of a country-song protagonist, and am slowly clawing my way back to feeling okay. But this isn't a sad story; it's a happy one.

I have been getting into flight simulation again--I'd forgotten my interest--and have been thinking about hardware. I was gifted LogicBots and Shenzhen I/O and re-discovered the power and joy of designing circuits and components that do something useful. As I'm apparently unemployable now (out of work for 4+ years; under-employed for a decade prior), I've decided to re-roll myself as a sort of Mad Scientist and build hardware for people who want a high-fidelity flight simulation experience, at least insofar as the avionics are concerned. These days, I read lots of books, loads of forum posts, and lurk on the Internet, picking up techniques and re-discovering things I've forgotten. I need to read AoE, but have already looked into hardware debouncing (as my device uses buttons, this is something I'll need. I'm doing it in hardware because, as a mainly-software person, I live in a world of ideal underlying signals).

My workspace is meager but growing with each new delivery. A reasonable soldering station is on the way. My old Fluke 75 is quite good, save for one LED digit that's gone a bit dim. I think it still works properly. My old pocket-sized DMM still seems to work okay. It actively feels good to read and tinker and have some kind of identity again through building electronics into something that might be useful.

Feeling useful is empowering and I am starting to feel almost-useful through electronics. It's an interesting development. I hope to bring a commercial PCB to fruition, not just for some income--I keep telling myself, "if I sell XX units, I could even buy a car!"--but to finally have something in a very long time that I can mark as a "win" and roll this into inertia to build more, do more, maybe leave the apartment every so often. I've started thinking ahead and want to even run a small workshop at the local-ish hacker-space. It's the kind of thing that I wish I had access to and I'll probably do a couple sessions on, "how to build your own small-run PCBs" and send people home with simple battery-LED-resistor PCBs. Maybe even 3D-print enclosures for these on the hacker-space's 3D printer.

Free equipment is great (truly, thank you to bson and xrunner for this!), but pales next to feeling useful again and actively learning interesting things after so long away. Electronics and the community surrounding electronics make for a convincing argument of things improving.

Anyway, here's my work-space, such as it is. I have a sturdy shelf-system that I will probably migrate to, but right now I can't move and assemble something that heavy. So Ikea fold-out table it is.

[xrunner]

Unfortunately, I didn't see this post until just recently. I suppose it's too late to enter?

Edit: I might as well put my entry in here and give it a shot anyways.

Not too late! It ends tonight.

Also got Chris_77 in the mix!

[buck converter]

I think it is great that these contests are held. Thank you to bitseeker and xrunner for putting in the time money and effort to judge this contest and bson for contributing a fabulous prize! Good luck to all contestants!

I got into electronics when I was 10 with a arduino kit. Since then I try to learn all that I can about electronics from books and the internet. I have read "Make: Electronics" top to bottom many times. This forum is one of the only places where I  talk about electronics and my hobby. Now I am a high school sophomore. The only engineering opportunity at school is the robotics club, which is why my hobby at home is important to me. I build small analog and digital circuits. When I bought a used analog oscilloscope, it changed the way I perceived electricity and allowed me to take larger stride in learning everything I can about electronics since I am a visual learner. My friend and I wish to build a digital clock, with 40xx logic and numitron tubes. The DS1074Z would be my first digital Oscilloscope, and would be a useful tool through college and beyond since I would not have room for a analog oscilloscope in a college dorm. A project I a working on right now is a super small POV (persistence of vision), that can fit in a fidget spinner. It uses addressable LEDs that communicate over SPI (apa102). The serial decoding "upgrade" would allow me to learn how SPI and serial communication. I will definitely watch Dave's latest eevAcademy episode when I find the time
files for this pov display https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bztp-P5RbSGpbm1aOUpUTmhGYms/view?usp=sharing
A complete album of pictures here https://goo.gl/photos/eqzvQYV3vHvyrneRA read the captions for info

my Tool cart: https://goo.gl/photos/rQiT6NS9vLCDBfCY8
my work counter: https://goo.gl/photos/nupDjxeHEgoCAvRg7

[xrunner]

I think it is great that these contests are held. Thank you to bitseeker and xrunner for putting in the time money and effort to judge this contest and bson for contributing a fabulous prize! Good luck to all contestants!

OK thanks for the post.

As posted earlier - this contest ends in 2 hours (12 midnight CDT).

I wish there were more prizes to give out because it's going to be very hard to pick the winners!

[buck converter]

I think it is great that these contests are held. Thank you to bitseeker and xrunner for putting in the time money and effort to judge this contest and bson for contributing a fabulous prize! Good luck to all contestants!

OK thanks for the post.

As posted earlier - this contest ends in 2 hours (12 midnight CDT).

I wish there were more prizes to give out because it's going to be very hard to pick the winners!

I will be leaving tomorrow to go camping for 2 nights and  may not have internet so congratulations to the lucky winner.

[Seaofdep]

Goodluck everyone, i have my fingers crossed ... thank You again for the  opportunity

[xrunner]

The contest is over! 


Now, the judges will make their determinations. Unfortunately, as is always the case, I wish there were more prizes. There really aren't any bad entries but we will choose one winner for the DMM/Counter and one for the scope.

Keep watching this thread for an announcement today or tomorrow. 

[psient]

Just started to learn about electronic engineering after careful consideration of Dave Jones then watching Paul Carlson on You tube. At 67, I am retired after a life time of working. I earned a living for 40 years and get 400 dollars in Social Security having gone to college for the first time in 1994. I graduated in 1998 with a masters in research not clinical psychology acquiring knowledge in statistics, formal, peer reviewed and published experimentation, and of course hoop-jumping. In 2004 I completed my earned PhD. from the University of California and formally began college and university employment as an instructor in my field. In 1993 I had no college, in 2004 I had a PhD. in human behavior research, publications, and a legit job as a professional. In 2004 I also began working on losing 1/2 my social security stipend. I lose because I was a paid professor and that meant I had to belong to a pension plan. My life is not very 'funded'.  I will always learn. I just saved enough to buy a rigol 1054 and a 3m bread board, I stumbled on this thread by accident just now. I was looking for information on the appropriate lab power supply to buy so I can start learning about circuits. I have neuropathy, diabetes, and joint conditions from my working as a journeyman carpenter in my late teens through my 30s. I qualify as a beginner for sure but probably am faced with the same ageism I met when applying for a tenured position at university. . . too old and blown out to be considered. I know one thing, with the complexity of problems all humanity is confronted with, everyone must be considered as having the potential to contribute to a solution of them. However I am glad for the younger people that they get the chance to begin here. Thanks to all who provide this contest. Obviously this is not an entry. I stiill need a power supply to begin with. If you can direct me to the appropriate thread(s) I'm still winner winner chicken dinner!!! Yes I kn ow, 
 

[xrunner]

Just started to learn about electronic engineering after careful consideration of Dave Jones then watching Paul Carlson on You tube. At 67, I am retired after a life time of working.

Quite an interesting life. Stick around here and join in the fun on the forum, there's so much knowledge here it's unreal.


But ...now there is a third prize!

The God's of the Magic Smoke hath said unto me, xrunner offer a third place prize or thou will suffer a smoke event inside one of your prized HP test equipment!

So for a third prize we have an Aneng AN8002 DMM.

Due to this event the judging will take a little longer. Please check back this evening. 

[xrunner]

I have an announcement!

This was an extremely difficult contest to judge. I wish everyone could win something. The primary concern was to get the equipment to someone who needed it the most. Therefore, this is the final call -

The winner of the DMM / Counter combo is Chris_77

The winner of the Aneng DMM is Seaofdep

If you two could PM me your names + physical street addresses I will get this equipment shipped out ASAP.

Oh, I almost forgot, the winner of the scope is ... I don't know. 

Really, I have no idea. I have spoken with Bitseeker about who he's considering but it's his call and he told me he would show up later to make the announcement. I can tell you it will be someone other than the two winners we already have. That's all I know right now.

 

[Chris_77]

Hey, wow! Thank you!

What a race the scope will be!

[Seaofdep]

Wow i cant believe i was a winner,  thanks a lot , I am so thankful and will pay it forward when I can,  thank you so much

[xrunner]

Hey, wow! Thank you!

Wow i cant believe i was a winner,  thanks a lot , I am so thankful and will pay it forward when I can,  thank you so much

Thank you and everyone for participating. Yea pay it forward it's good karma. 

Now we wait to see who won the scope!

[bitseeker]

And the winner of the Rigol DS1074Z oscilloscope is...

Oh, my. It may be cliché, but choosing just one entry is indeed difficult. You read all the entries and try to weigh all the criteria, accordingly. You want to be as fair as possible.

Given that the grand prize is quite a prize, you want it to be put to good use, not become a shelf queen nor the next listing on eBay. After all, this isn't a marketing freebie by a multi-million dollar equipment manufacturer. It's bson's scope that he bought with his own money. Thank you, bson!

So, xrunner and I deliberated about all the entrants. We even learned interesting things in the process, especially while reading historical posts. Then, it was time to decide. And I had to post the result.

Yes, I'm incrementally updating this post to drag out the suspense as long as possible. I see we have several entrants watching the thread. What fun! I hope everyone enjoyed the contest, however it turns out.

Just a reminder, that all the winners must post a follow up to this thread with glorious photos of the winning equipment in use when you get it. That way we can all get some enjoyment from seeing the gear getting some electronics work done.

The winning entry was well written (an important criterion for the contest), included some history and some thoughts for the future. It also had lots of photos attached, including those of completed projects.

Congratulations on winning the scope and your recent high school graduation, yami759. We hope that this tool will contribute to your success in college and a STEM career.

You can read yami759's entry at https://www.eevblog.com/forum/beginners/contest-for-beginners/msg1251773/#msg1251773

[xrunner]

And the winner of the Rigol DS1074Z oscilloscope is...

You? 

[bitseeker]

And the winner of the Rigol DS1074Z oscilloscope is...

You? 

LOL! Good thing it's still at bson's house. Otherwise it might get comfortable on my bench.

[tautech]

And the winner of the Rigol DS1074Z oscilloscope is...

You? 

I had my pick but you've given him something already. 

[Mattjd]

Congrats yami

[bitseeker]

I see his name on the thread, but no reply yet. I hope he didn't fall off his chair and pass out.

[xrunner]

I see his name on the thread, but no reply yet. I hope he didn't fall off his chair and pass out.

Yea prolly should have given a heads up in a PM first. 

[bitseeker]

A PM? That's no fun.

[yami759]

Oh my, this is amazing! Thank you so much to bson for providing the scope, and for everyone else who helped organize this contest! I will surely make heavy use out of this, and it will be an amazing tool for my education. I am so thankful for this contest, and am so excited to get my hands on this new tool!

I see his name on the thread, but no reply yet. I hope he didn't fall off his chair and pass out.

Actually, I'm talking to my friends on Discord (a voice chat application) about it and how happy I am about this, but they don't seem to care too much for what "an oscilloscope" may be.

Should I send my address to bson, or is someone else distributing the prize? Thank you again for this amazing contest!

[bitseeker]

It's probably best to send your info in a PM to bson, since he'll be sending the scope.

And don't worry about those who don't "get it" when it comes to electronics. We "get it" and look forward to seeing you put it through its paces on projects.

[bson]

Congrats yami!

PMs have been exchanged.

[scdreger]

Congrats to all the winners! And how cool it is that the organizers thought to do this. What a great community! 

[kbarnette]

Congrats everyone, including those who won!

[xrunner]

Contest is over

Items are shipped

It's Miller time - where's the smiley with a beer?

(maybe the popcorn eater is drinking beer through a straw?)

[bitseeker]

(maybe the popcorn eater is drinking beer through a straw?)

Yup. Stealth.

[xrunner]

Just checked tracking - people are getting stuff on Thursday! 

[yami759]

The scope came in today! Quick delivery and good packaging. I was so excited to start playing experimenting with this scope, so of course I used the square wave generated by the scope, and was so happy when I saw it! In addition to that, I decided to try it with a "signal generator" consisting of an audio plug connected to my PC and using an online tone generator. With this I made a simple sine wave and, with some experimenting and learning how to use the scope, I was able to get both to display with each other. Obviously, I have much more practical use for this to come, but I just wanted to mess around with it as I'm learning my way around the scope.

The only oddity is that it is missing a ground lead on one of the probes. Obviously, I am totally fine with this, and I don't mean to be complaining. I'm still beyond overjoyed with this scope, and am incredibly grateful for it. Just thought that I'd note everything about it. Once again, thank you so much to those who organized this contest, and especially to dson!

[bitseeker]

Wow, that was fast. Good to see you've got it up and running. Maybe drop bson a message to see if he has the ground lead lying around somewhere. Otherwise, 100 MHz probe kits (P6100) that are similar to the Rigol are available inexpensively (less than $10 for a pair) on eBay and Aliexpress. There are threads about them on the forum. Never hurts to have some extras.

[baeckel]

Congratulations Yami!  Looks like I became a Noob just a hair too late.

[bson]

Oops, I had to dig around to find all the probe bits, and I'm sure the ground lead will turn up.  When it does I'll put it in an envelope and send to you.

Edit: I think it found its way onto a LeCroy PP020 and since this is the odd one at 4.75" (120mm) I'll mail it to you.

[yami759]

You're too kind

[Octane]

Congrats to the winners!!
Thanks to all the competitors!

And even bigger thanks to the organizers and prize donors!

Michael

[Mattjd]

The scope came in today! Quick delivery and good packaging. I was so excited to start playing experimenting with this scope, so of course I used the square wave generated by the scope, and was so happy when I saw it! In addition to that, I decided to try it with a "signal generator" consisting of an audio plug connected to my PC and using an online tone generator. With this I made a simple sine wave and, with some experimenting and learning how to use the scope, I was able to get both to display with each other. Obviously, I have much more practical use for this to come, but I just wanted to mess around with it as I'm learning my way around the scope.

The only oddity is that it is missing a ground lead on one of the probes. Obviously, I am totally fine with this, and I don't mean to be complaining. I'm still beyond overjoyed with this scope, and am incredibly grateful for it. Just thought that I'd note everything about it. Once again, thank you so much to those who organized this contest, and especially to dson!

God man, its so pretty, congrats again. And congrats to the other winners (I think I forgot you the first time).

[xrunner]

Well I know at least one of my shipments was left at a front door ... 

[Seaofdep]

I have been at my front door all day lol

[jiro]

Congrats yami759 as usual I was late to the party 

Enjoy your new toy tool

[xrunner]

I have been at my front door all day lol

Somebody snuck up and stole it!

LOL - no it was the other guy, yours is 'posed to arrive today too though. Keep a watch on that door!

[Seaofdep]

Last update

I have been at my front door all day lol

Somebody snuck up and stole it!

LOL - no it was the other guy, yours is 'posed to arrive today too though. Keep a watch on that door!

i would go on  the  hunt  for my package if someone took it lol... Last update was on the 10th but yea i will be at the front door till last call lol

[xrunner]

Last update was on the 10th but yea i will be at the front door till last call lol

UPS tracking is not working correctly. Yesterday it showed more tracking than it does now - for both shipments. Remain calm. 

[Seaofdep]

Nothing today, ill be sure to be by  the  door tomorrow,  Just  an update for everyone . Thank you

[xrunner]

Nothing today, ill be sure to be by  the  door tomorrow,  Just  an update for everyone . Thank you

Yea something is wrong ... will have to call UPS and have them explain what the hell we're looking at on the tracking. It probably fell off the truck. 

[xrunner]

It's lost. 

Called UPS and the first thing the guy said after he ran the tracking number was "It's lost sir". He said packages were updated every 24 hours, and it hadn't been updated since the 10th. I have to get the info I requested in the PM I sent you, and go to the UPS store and let them take it from there. What are you going to do these days. I don't trust the USPS that much either, so I use UPS and this happens.

Always remember, and never forget, this time-honored phrase -

"No good deed ever goes unpunished"

[Chris_77]

To partially-close the loop with the thread: I received a large and heavy box yesterday. As I live on the Sun this time of year, I made certain to grab it as soon as it came in.

I have a few "teaser" images to post here; I've been designing in KiCAD for a couple days and reading more ("oh ... I'll need a separate analog ground-plane? Well then...") so will breadboard and post some images of the equipment in use very soon.

Another recent addition not shown here: the Pie Tin of Soldering.

 

[xrunner]

I have a few "teaser" images to post here; I've been designing in KiCAD for a couple days and reading more ("oh ... I'll need a separate analog ground-plane? Well then...") so will breadboard and post some images of the equipment in use very soon.

Awesome - at least yours made it.

But good news - a replacement prize for Seaofdep has been offered by another member! I will mention who if they wish. All's well that ends well! 

[bitseeker]

I have a few "teaser" images to post here; I've been designing in KiCAD for a couple days and reading more ("oh ... I'll need a separate analog ground-plane? Well then...") so will breadboard and post some images of the equipment in use very soon.

Looking good, Chris. I can't wait to see/hear more about your flight sim projects. I haven't flown much after FSX was shuttered.

[ModemHead]

... But good news - a replacement prize for Seaofdep has been offered by another member! I will mention who if they wish. All's well that ends well! 

I'll get this out to Seaofdep early next week as a replacement for the lost prize.  An ANENG 8001, a Klein MM2000, a nice pair of Agilent leads and a thermocouple.  There may be room in the box for a few other odds and ends too...

[Seaofdep]

... But good news - a replacement prize for Seaofdep has been offered by another member! I will mention who if they wish. All's well that ends well! 

I'll get this out to Seaofdep early next week as a replacement for the lost prize.  An ANENG 8001, a Klein MM2000, a nice pair of Agilent leads and a thermocouple.  There may be room in the box for a few other odds and ends too...

Thank you, words cant describe how grateful i am and how much i appreciate this, I am truly lost for words. Thank you all so much

[xrunner]

Thank you ModemHead! Seaofdep gets an even better prize and I got his phone number so I can have them do their investigation and get my money back from Uncertain Parcel Service. 

[bitseeker]

... But good news - a replacement prize for Seaofdep has been offered by another member! I will mention who if they wish. All's well that ends well! 

I'll get this out to Seaofdep early next week as a replacement for the lost prize.  An ANENG 8001, a Klein MM2000, a nice pair of Agilent leads and a thermocouple.  There may be room in the box for a few other odds and ends too...

Thanks, ModemHead! That is awesome. Not only did you redeem the lost prize, you multiplied it. And I already thought your restorations were amazing. 

[ModemHead]

Thanks to xrunner and the rest of you guys for organizing and running the contest.  It's a great thing to do. 

The new prize package is on its way to Seaofdep via USPS Priority Mail, expected delivery is Wednesday.

[Chris_77]

I have a few "teaser" images to post here; I've been designing in KiCAD for a couple days and reading more ("oh ... I'll need a separate analog ground-plane? Well then...") so will breadboard and post some images of the equipment in use very soon.

Looking good, Chris. I can't wait to see/hear more about your flight sim projects. I haven't flown much after FSX was shuttered.

I can't wait to do more "head's-down" hardware work on this either! Another slightly more concrete image: I used the Arduino Nano v3 that you threw into the box to flash my first Arduino bootloader over to a "raw" ATMega328P-PU chip! I was then able to use a super-cheap CH340G-based USB-to-Serial setup to flash some code over to the chip. More actual images will come as I become smarter than the counter--I'm trying to figure out how it works--and as I find a mechanism (banana-plug to grabber?) to hold leads onto the circuit while taking a picture.

For now, please accept this image with my gratitude (it shows the "blink" sketch working on the 328P-PU chip, and another 328P-PU loaded up to receive the Arduino bootloader):

[bitseeker]

More actual images will come as I become smarter than the counter--I'm trying to figure out how it works

Generate signals of various frequencies via the Atmega (e.g., pwm output) and send it to the frequency counter. That'll give you something to look at and experiment with.

[xrunner]

More actual images will come as I become smarter than the counter--

It's not very intelligent. I have every confidence you will exceed it's ability to reason. 

I'm trying to figure out how it works--and as I find a mechanism (banana-plug to grabber?) to hold leads onto the circuit while taking a picture.

I threw in that BNC to alligator lead but as you know or will find out there is practically no end to the number of different leads and adapters you will want. I've got a whole lot and haven't even approached the "end". 

[Seaofdep]

Both gifts are in,&nbsp; thank you to those who donated and organized this contest and to&nbsp; everyone that had a part&nbsp; of putting all this together&nbsp; and to xrunner and ModemHead, I appreciate and truly grateful for&nbsp; the help during the lost package crisis and&nbsp; for the&nbsp; kind generosity given to me. Thank you all



I only had time to unbox, I&apos;ll post update picture tomorrow when I get back home









First picture, the dmm I had to work with

Second picture, 😍 haha

[bitseeker]

Nice upgrades, indeed!

The old meter will be a nice collectible now. Radio Shack

[xrunner]

Both gifts are in, thank you to those who donated and organized this contest and to everyone that had a part of putting all this together and to xrunner and ModemHead, I appreciate and truly grateful for the help during the lost package crisis and for the; kind generosity given to me. Thank you all

I wonder what story that little lost meter could tell us if it could speak? 

In any case - looks like you're all metered-up and ready to go!

[Seaofdep]

so here the update sorry for the lagg
finally got a bit of time to test/play

Pic 1: all 3 dmms tested on my smps at 12v    (i will not say what my radioshack one would read lol)

Pic2: the dso138  hooked up to a speaker i/f project of mine