Electronics Now articles from December 1997

Electronics Now archives from December 1997

Equipment report. (Hi-Val Inc's digital versatile disc package)
December 1, 1997... A COMBINATION DVD-ROM AND DVD VIDEO PLAYER FROM HI-VAL As most undoubtedly know, DVD (digital versatile disc) is the hottest new "must-have" technology in both the consumer-electronics and computer fields. At least it's a "must-have" until you...

Intelligent roads for driverless vehicles.
December 1, 1997... While driverless cars gliding accident-free down automated roads remain years - or more likely decades - away, test tracks and roads now in use or being built are making use of technologies and techniques that might well find their way into...

Remote-control robot - planetary explorer. (Nomad robot)
December 1, 1997... A hardy traveler, named "Nomad," set a new record by traveling farther than any remotely controlled robot has ever gone over rough territory. The four-wheeled robot logged more than 133 miles (215 km) across Chile's rugged Atacama Desert, a cold,...

Low-visibility airport operations. (new aircraft guidance system)
December 1, 1997... At Hartsfield-Atlanta International Airport, NASA recently demonstrated an aircraft technology to keep commercial aircraft moving safely on runways and taxiways, regardless of visibility. A total of 53 flight tests were performed for airline and...

On-line tech tips, tools, and test gear for the troubleshooter.
December 1, 1997... Last time we introduced you to the basics of troubleshooting just about anything electronic. This time, we're going to pick up right where we left off and take a close look at on-line tech-tip databases, and then go on to look at the kinds of...

Penetrating the Pilot. (3COM Corp's PalmPilot)
December 1, 1997... The PalmPilot from 3Com is the hottest computer device to hit the market in years. I recently attended a developer's conference and am now more convinced of that than ever. Estimates at the show were that sales would top one million units by...

Building a resistor substitution box.
December 1, 1997... Now that you've completed your audio generator, you're almost ready to start doing some real testing. But first, since most of the tests you are going to want to perform will require some sort of test fixture or related device, we'll build a unit...

Build the Astro-Treker. (toy)
December 1, 1997... Here's a simple-to-build toy that can provide hours of fun and enjoyment. When was the last time you built a project that was truly impressive to almost everyone regardless of their age group or technical background? The Astro-Treker presented...

Build this twinkling holiday ornament.
December 1, 1997... An electronic Christmas ornament is just the thing to brighten the tree this Holiday! A great way to get into the spirit of the Holidays is by building this electronic Christmas ornament. This project makes a great conversation piece that also...

Build a remote control for your antenna. (television antenna)
December 1, 1997... Program your antenna direction to pick up any TV station just by selecting the channel number on your remote control! TV antennas are directional. They receive strongly from one direction and reflect signals from other directions. The direction...

All about DVD. (digital video disk)
December 1, 1997... The new, hot consumer-electronics product, the power of DVD is really unleashed when used in a personal computer. Here's why, and how easy it is to harness that power in your own set up. The compact disc (CD) opened up a whole new world of...

Reading automobile computer-service codes.
December 1, 1997... Almost all late-model cars on the road today have some form of computer control for their engines. Sometimes those control computers are referred to as ECUs (for Electronic Control Unit), ECMs (Electronic Control Module), or ECAs (Electronic...

Radio astronomy, the enigma of the Faraday disc and more. (one man's story about radio astronomy)
December 1, 1997... THIS MONTH, WE HAVE A FASCINATING COLLECTION OF BOTH PSEUDOSCIENCE AND REAL SCIENCE TOPICS. LET'S START OFF THIS MONTH'S VISIT WITH A LITTLE BIT OF THE REAL STUFF. Radio Astronomy A world-class Henrich Hertz SMT (submillimeter telescope)...