Analog Sentimentality

Writing an engineering book is not all about technicality on the subject matter. Sometimes, a little sentiment can come in handy to give an otherwise intellectually stimulating topic an emotional dimension. Readers may not know it yet, but I think it's about time I reveal the person I'm dedicating Deciphering Schematics to——my mother.

Neighbors knew her as a dedicated homemaker, but she is more than that (at least to me). All her life (she's nearly 80) she abides by the principle of integrity, despite a hard life in her early to middle years. In fact, some relatives took advantage of this and swindled all her limited dowry, leaving only a pair of bangles which she passed to my wife on our wedding. But instead of being bitter, she became stronger in her character and conviction. And I'm proud to say that she has taught me well by her own example.

So here it is:

To my mother——a woman who, despite her lowly education, taught me the value of integrity that shaped my character and attitude. This book is dedicated to her for showing me how to decipher the myriad of choices in life and to discover my true passion in the world of electronics.

Sometime back, the Philips CD Sound Machine I bought her stopped working. I took it back to see if it could be fixed, then realized that some electronic parts have died. But I did not throw it away and get her a new one because it has sentimental values. After some thought, I decided it would be a good idea to immortalize this sentimentality by including it as an extra teaching material in my book.

Here is a two-page sample:

Things don't last forever, but memories do, at least for a lifetime.

 

2nd Appeal for Reviews

Since putting up the appeal for reviews for Manual PCB-RE: The Essentials, there were several submissions posted on Amazon:

This is a good sign. But it still falls short of the number I hope to achieve in order to include into my next release of the book. So I'm making the appeal again to readers who have bought the book to post their reviews. The top ten will have their names and company (if they're comfortable) mentioned on the front inner pages where the reviews will be listed. And the top three entries will receive a FREE copy of my upcoming book Deciphering Schematics.

Don't wait till the last minute. Opportunity never knocks twice!

hardwear.io USA 2022

It's an exciting time at the Delta Hotels in Santa Clara as the much awaited hardwear.io USA 2022 event kick-started. Below is the schedule of the two-day programmes:

Many experts from various fields of hardware hacking will be giving their talks, demonstrating their tools and techniques, and answering questions from participants. Among them are keynote speakers Joe Grand and Window Snyder, and invited speakers Andy Nguyen, Cristofaro Mune, Damien Marion, Duy-Phuc Pham & Annelie Heuser, Daniel Genkin & Roei Schuster, David Kaplan, Derek & Ryan Chow, Francesco Restuccia, Karim Abdellatif, Laura Abbott, Sick Codes, Steffen Robertz, Steve Povolny & Sam Quinn, Jay Cox & Nic Watson, John McMaster, and Marcus Richerson.

A day or two before the event, speakers and hardwear.io staff could be seen setting up their wares and equipment to impress the participants:

Of course, such a large-scale event could not have happen without strong support from sponsors like Google, Leviathan Security Group, Quarkslab:

I'm certain those who made it to this event will have a smashing time learning new skills and winning some prizes, not to mention meeting these hardware legends in person.

Appeal for Reviews

Since it's release about a year ago, Manual PCB-RE - The Essentials has sold quite a few copies despite little publicity and no advertising. Unlike the first three books, the only thing lacking is reviews from readers. Would love to hear from my readers what they think about the content of this book, whether it has helped them learn or pick up essentials in this niche skillset and enable them to be more proficient in their PCB-RE work.

To encourage readers to publish their reviews on Amazon, here's the deal:

1. The ten best reviews will be included in the next print release of the book. This will give reviewers good exposure and publicity so please include your name and job title if you are employed, or company name if you own a business.

2. The top three reviews will get a free copy of my upcoming book, Deciphering Schematics, which will be released sometime in the third quarter of this year.

The deadline for acceptance of reviews will be the date of release of my upcoming book. If you have not gotten a copy of Manual PCB-RE, now is the time to place your order and put in your review. This offer is also extended to those who already own a copy so delay no more and submit your reviews today!

Your positive feedback is my motivation to write.