I found these laying around on my desk in the TSRB lab the other day so I figured I'd grab my macro gear out to take a closer look. The square IC on the left, for example, is only about 0.75cm in width. This is full frame with the 100mm macro and 68mm of extension tubes. I also slapped on the 50 in reverse for more magnification. Working distance was literally like 2 mm, but it helps.
That's cool that they actually tag their chips (GTECE25, for example). Clicky clicky for a few more shots.
Oh, I finally finished up a project I'd been working on. Some of the pins on my car stereo that connect to the faceplate broke off. The result was that the volume was as the lowest setting and I couldn't turn it up. Unfortunately, I didn't get the extended warranty so they wanted me to totally buy a new stereo. Instead, I wound up ordering a replacement connector from the manufacturer for a few bucks. I thought it just popped in place, but I had to completely take apart the stereo, remove the old connector, and solder the new one in place. Somehow, one of the pins got really stuck in place from the old connector. I wound up going to seek help from James (the ECE lab manager) who managed to drill it clean by hand. Afterwards, I soldered in the new connector, put the stereo back together, and tested it out. Sure enough, it works!!!
I'm really proud of the fix. Sure, it's not the biggest job in the world, but it's nice to solve a real problem rather than exercises in lab or practicing on boards. It's a pretty weird feeling when you're driving around with a big hole in your dashboard and a gutted stereo. Thank goodness nobody thought I was stealing my own car. =)
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