Well, it has been some time since last I bestowed these e-halls with some of my quip, not that any of you missed me. I'm several months into my final year of college, and therein lies the reason for the afore-mentioned absence. However, I reasoned that it was time to enlighten you all once again. To begin with, I'll update you all on a few matters...
To begin with, you may (but probably don't) recall an earlier blog entry where I was looking for the "perfect" computer case. Well, I've managed to locate it. It's the ABS Diablo ADV (which I can only surmise stands for "advanced", as a previous version of the Diablo is in existence). It has all the qualities I was look
ing for, and more. The essentials are a front intake fan (250mm), a massive side intake (360mm), and two top exhaust fans (180mm each), all with built-in speed controls. The bonuses are that the case includes an LED temperature readout, and all the fans feature nice blue LED's. Conveniences and considerations are that the standard I/O ports and the temperature readout are all located on top of this behemoth, so they'll be easily accessible with the case placed on the floor. Another addition is that it features chassis intrusion detection - I'm not sure whether to call this a benefit or not, since I've never owned a case that included it, and I'm not entirely sure of all the implications it entails.
Okay, on to other things... As I'm headed for my electrical engineering degree, the majority of the classes I'm taking are in that field. I'm smoking the tests in my nanotechnology class, even though the lectures usually tend to go over my head. The exams in my microprocessor class are going less than as well, to say the least... I'm keeping up on the labs, however (remember to set those interrupt flags immediately after the interrupt call, kids). I have a "mini-project" coming up in there... If anyone has an idea for something interesting but not too complicated to implement on a small microcontroller with ATD, timer, and serial communication capabilities, throw it my way. And my analog IC design class is going well enough. I'm completely blowing off my social psychology elective - I've attended around half the classes, and I fully intend on bombing (but still passing) the test in there in about an hour...
Let's look at politics, shall we? I'll make it brief. Obama is president elect. Say what you will, I don't care. I myself didn't vote (call me un-American if you must). I wasn't a supporter of McCain, but I refused to vote for Obama in support
of the Republican party. I'm a moderate through and through, and the only thing that has riled me during the election proceedings is all the poser extremists, on both sides. On the Republican front, there are those who would claim Obama is the anti-Christ. Among the Democrats you'll find some willing to lick his feet, or at least many who think the country will immediately change for the better come January 20th. I would like to present to you the Dave Ingalls theory of the US Presidency: He who has been elected President will be initally loved by some and loathed by others. He will make decisions at the beginning of his Presidency that will seem valiant and epic. Some of those decisions will turn out to be for the good, some of them will turn out for the worse. As time wears on, he will become subject to making decisions in order to simply "keep the peace" (I'll refrain from bringing up the economic stimulus package). The country will survive, alot of people will blame things on the President, and life will go on. Bam.
On to sports. Purdue's football team is... I'll be kind - laughable. 3 and 6 overall, 1 and 4 in the Big 10... My only consolation is that IU is doing no better, and the Oaken Bucket (read: The Big 10 Pillow Fight) may be within our grasp yet. The Colts are having a rough season (I blame the ref's), but there's hope for them still. A Super Bowl appearance is unlikely, but that victory over the Pats makes me all warm and fuzzy inside. Eli and the Giants, however, are tearing things up once again...
That about covers things. My Halloween decorations came down and the Christmas stuff went up promptly on the 1st. I used to think that the red and green stayed in boxes until after turkey day, but since there's no Thanksgiving decorations that involve lights, I decided to throw that particular pretense to the unseasonably warm November wind. Speaking of the season, I've recently become re-addicted to paintball, and you'll likely see some recounts of those experiences sometime in the future. Till next time...
50 bonus points for the first person to identify the voltage conditions for a depletion mode NMOSFET to operate in the ohmic (also called linear or triode) region.
-Addendum-
I realize it's been an age or two since anything was posted in the Prize Box. School has my puzzle-making on hold - but fear not, I will pick it back up eventually.