Xmas? X-Ray!!!

Just learnt from my friend, Fraser Castle from the UK, that recently he's been struggling with some health issues, as well as tending to his father who is undergoing terminal illness. He's a great guy to know and one of the first few to buy my book, The Art of PCB Reverse Engineering, and left a glowing review on Amazon.

I felt kind of sorry that he has to go through so much in life, especially in Apr-May period this year when he lost a close family member. As an active member in the EEVblog forum, he had shared countless engineering topics based on his years of industrial experience, and is most helpful and inspirational to many engineers who seek his advice and assistance.

Chapter 10 of my book, PCB-RE: Tools & Techniques, is adapted from his knowledge on X-ray which he discussed in the forum. He was generous in allowing me to include his writings and the many interesting X-ray photos which he took with his personal Facitron MX-20 machine. Here's a two-page sample:

His good friend Mike also owns one of these machines, and has uploaded several videos on Youtube too. How cool is that?

I wish him good recovery and quality time with his dad as he tends to his needs. Keep yourself in good cheer and spirit, my friend!

Season's Greetings

Christmas always convey an atmosphere of peace and hope, especially in a world that is filled with so much problems and sadness. People seem more joyful during this period as they meet with family and friends to enjoy a wonderful time together, renewing bonds and friendships.

While searching for a greeting card for this post, I stumbled upon a rather interesting one that resembles an engineering drawing:

It's a Nativity scene done by the staff from Engineering Ministries International (eMi) who, since 1982, have worked on over 1,000 relief and development projects in 90+ countries. Their most recent projects involve relief work for those affected in the Mexico earthquake and the Caribbean hurricanes.

While part of the proceeds on the sales of my first book goes to two local charities in my country, I am considering apportioning a sum from the sequel book for this organisation. Readers who buy my books will indirectly be supporting a worthy cause and helping the less fortunate.

Christmas is a time of caring and giving. Let us bring some cheer and hope to those who need it, in whatever limited capacity we are able to. Have a wonderful and meaningful Christmas!

Foreword - Going Forward...?

Waiting. Still waiting. Not just for me, but for many of my readers and those who are following this blog as well. So when will Michael Dunn come back to me on his review of my book, or pen the Foreword that I reserved the honor for him? I have no idea.

Just the other day, I entertained the thought of getting an alternative choice: William Loving, the CEO of ScanCAD International, who has been very supportive of my work since it's inception. So I wrote an email to him and asked if he would be interested to put in a word for the Foreword. He readily agreed and here it is:

I would very much like to hear from my readers whether to continue waiting for Michael's response, or to go ahead and incorporate this Foreword into the book so it can be released for publication. Of course, I will still keep the option open for Michael should he decide to come back at a later date. After all, it's not uncommon to have two persons writing the Foreword.

So please leave your comments in this post so I can proceed from here. Thanks!

Why PCB-RE?

Below is an excerpt from the first chapter of my book:

Despite the high cost and challenges involved, companies and individuals engage in PCB-RE for the following reasons:

 1. Re-create the schematic diagram, in part or full, for repair

 2. Recover the Gerber data for PCB reproduction

 3. Re-design the board to circumvent obsolete parts

The first instance applies to repair technicians and agencies that carry out repair of PCBs without any proper documentation, probably from customers who are end-users and not the original equipment manufacturer (OEM), who may have limited recourse either because the OEM is no longer in business or supporting its end-of-life products, or charges a high premium for repair.

Similarly, a PCB may go out of production resulting in not enough new or refurbished stock in the market to keep existing system operational for another five years. In such cases, the customer may be forced to reproduce the PCB by sacrificing a few bad boards to re-construct the layered artworks for reproduction purpose.

Obsolescence is one major issue faced by the commercial and military alike. PCB designers do not have the ability to predict whether parts used in their design will go out of production or stock for whatever reason.1 Consequently, customers may find themselves in a tight spot when a failed component is no longer available and thus unable to replace it, rendering the faulty board useless.

PCB-RE then becomes a viable option to re-construct the schematics to facilitate re-design works, doing away with the use of obsolete components and replacing with parts that are more readily available. This is usually done without firsthand knowledge of the OEM since there might be possible infringements of intellectual property rights. The legal risks though, is negligible if the re-designed PCBs are meant only for internal consumption and not for external sales to make a profit.

From doing it manually on an ad hoc basis to full-scale automation with reproduction in mind, PCB-RE is increasingly becoming an indispensable discipline in the PCB repair and refurbish industry. The fast-changing market and shortening design-to-product cycles will only see higher demands for such services and practices, not-withstanding the idiosyncrasies and stigma that is attached to this peculiar trade which everyone seems to be doing but no one wants to admit it.

The Suspense is Intense...

Just last week, a reader from down-under inquired in my Facebook page about the status of my sequel book. He saw the photo I posted on the ScanCAD Edition and thought it was already released. Well, I had to disappoint him and tell him to wait a bit longer. Still, he's optimistic and looking forward to getting a copy when it's out.

In the interim, ScanCAD's CEO Bill Loving also emailed me to find out my progress on the book. He is looking forward to getting copies for his distributors and clients from over 48 countries, with an estimated 1000 companies in their business dealings over the past 27 years. In fact, he volunteered his staff to proofread the draft copies for free. I'm glad to have the strong belief and support from someone of his status and experience for my work.

Here's a two page sample taken from a chapter contributed by him and his colleague, Jeff Rupert, an experienced engineer and now director of sales and business development of the company:

Yesterday, a friend of mine Whatsapped me regarding its launch date. I told him I'm still waiting for the review and Foreword from the Editor-in-Chief of EDN. It's as if the suspense of waiting isn't bad enough for me, the intensity of waiting becomes harder to bear with each well-meaning concerns from friends and readers...

DMC/DMSMS 2017

Bill Loving, the CEO of ScanCAD International, just sent over a photo to inform me that my books are on display at ScanCAD's Booth for the exhibition event in Tampa, Florida:

Just last month, they were at Productronics 2017 in Munich, Germany. Bill told me he had given away a box of the books to his distributors in Europe. Interesting news indeed...

Well, you may want to drive over to the Tampa Convention Center to take a look. The Exhibition is on until December 7. Who knows, you might be able to secure a free copy... while stocks last!

Twiddling and Waiting...

The emotional complex of an author waiting for a book to be published is not unlike that of a would-be father waiting for the delivery of his child. You'd wish the wait will be over quickly but somehow it takes forever...

Yeah, I know. Some readers are probably also anxiously anticipating its birth. Just hold on a bit longer, my friends. Below is another two-page sample to sate your hunger for the time being:

Hopefully, Michael will come back soon so the book can be ready for order before Christmas. It would certainly make a wonderful gift to all my readers out there!