Advice to BSEE juniors and seniors...
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From: Joel Koltner on 20 Apr 2010 12:50 "Joerg" <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> wrote in message news:834fliFo3bU1(a)mid.individual.net... > Much more dangerous: Entitlements and pampering to the hilt. When I needed > anything fancy in electronics I had to work my butt off to be able to buy > it. Meat factory and similar pleasant jobs. Today's kids get cell phones, > TVs, gadgets, even whole cars with doing anything. So often they just don't > do anything. You certainly have a point there (and I agree with and like Phil's quote), but to an extent as technology progresses everyone is going to have more just "handed" to them. Didn't your bicycle come from your parents rather than your having to walk everywhere? Didn't you have more time to experiment with electronics because you weren't chopping wood for a fireplaces for an hour every night after school? Didn't you have electric lights rather than candles? Hence, while I wouldn't go around just buying a kid today a fancy ham radio or a car, I think you're doing a kid more harm than good if you don't at least hand them an old computer to play with (and I mean one running Windows, not a Commodore 64! :-) -- Although that'd be cool to hand them that too: "See what you could do in 64K? Today 'Hello world!' takes over a megabyte!") Heck, I doubt Jim Thompson would be any better of a designer today if his dad *didn't* have the TV repair shop and hence he had easy access to all the discrete components. Indeed, maybe he would have ended up an archtect after all if that were the case... :-) > In hindsight I am thankful to my dad that he did not simply plunk down $400 > so I could buy a used ham radio transceiver. My first big purchase like that was a Taiwanese 35MHz oscilloscope, $500 from JDR Microdevices... earned working at McDonalds for $3.35/hour. ---Joel P.S. -- There's some well-heeled amateur radio club where, when a kid passes his novice license exam, they'll buy him or her whichever handheld radio they'd like. Whaddaya think -- too much reward for the amount of effort required? Or no?
From: Nico Coesel on 19 Apr 2010 13:25 chris w <chris(a)smartjack.com> wrote: > >I've been interviewing a few new BSEE graduates for a junior engineer >position, and based strictly on what we're looking for, here is some >random advice to juniors/seniors: > >Learn a real design program like Altium. Eagle is ok, but I think >downloading the eval version and creating a few small projects would >be valuable. Create the parts in the library, capture the schematic, >layout the board, generate the gerbers and send them thru freedfm.com >until they pass. Maybe even send them to someplace like Advanced PCB >which has deals for students. Knowing current tools is important. I >think you're much more likely to use something like Altium than Spice >or Matlab (which are also good to know). > >Learn how to solder. You should own a decent soldering iron, and be >able assemble prototypes which used SMD down to 0805 or 0603. If you >looking for a job that does any sort of design, then chances are >you're going to have to do some assembly/troubleshooting of your own >prototypes. > >Get some experience with current microcontrollers. I have a >preference for Microchip, but Atmel or an ARM variant would also be >good. I know teaching the 68HC11 still has value, but knowing parts Most of the basics are still the same. >Networking is important. Lots of new products these day have some >connection to the Internet. Understand TCP/IP and ethernet. MAC >addresses, netmasks, ARP, default routes, NAT... Even getting into >the upper layers might be good, especially HTTP. > >Linux would be nice to know. Embedded Linux continues to grow. >Knowing how to compile a linux kernel, build a file system, or >whatever would be a useful skill. Engineers who know about analog design, programming, digital circuitry (programmabe logic / FPGA perhaps), Linux and networking are very very scarse. Usually an engineer masters a few areas. The biggest challenge is to put a good team together. -- Failure does not prove something is impossible, failure simply indicates you are not using the right tools... nico(a)nctdevpuntnl (punt=.) --------------------------------------------------------------
From: Joel Koltner on 20 Apr 2010 13:05 "Joerg" <invalid(a)invalid.invalid> wrote in message news:8363mdFv81U1(a)mid.individual.net... > This guy even dropped out of school, yet succeeded: > http://www.ltbn.com/hall_of_fame/Branson.html Good example. While these days most everyone is largely expected to go to college, I keep thinking about what John Larkin has mentioned regarding how many little widgets that could be created by a one-man shop would have a decent market and what you've said about how this is kinda the "golden age" of design in that so much software is now freely available and so much hardware is stocked up in Thief River Falls and only a few days away via (realtively) inexpensive mail order. Maybe making it as a sole propreitor these days is easier than ever before? ....it's just that wanting to work for a place like Tek, HP, Analog Devices, Linear Tech, etc. now seems like far less of an option if you don't follow the traditional college route. ---Joel
From: Joerg on 19 Apr 2010 14:05 mpm wrote: > On Apr 19, 11:30 am, "Joel Koltner" <zapwireDASHgro...(a)yahoo.com> > wrote: >> "Joerg" <inva...(a)invalid.invalid> wrote in message >> >> news:833dkfFhu1U1(a)mid.individual.net... >> >>> I haven't seen Linux to be important at any of my clients, in decades. >> That might say more about the kind of people who use Linux than about Linux >> itself. :-) >> >> Heck, John is using Linux these days... we use Linux at work for, e.g., >> Bugzilla (but not for anything embedded yet -- a few of us hardware types >> wanted to, but for some odd reason the software guys think they want to use >> Windows CE...)... it's (by far) the most popular platform for web servers on >> the Internet, etc. >> >> That being said, if you pick the right versions of Windows (say, XP or Win >> 7 -- *not* Vista, ME, etc.), it works just ducky too. There are various pros >> and cons of each, depending on just what level you're designing for. >> >> ---Joel > > Unless I were applying for a software game-development type job, I > think I'd have a huge hangup about even mentioning the word > "zilla" (in all its assorted falvors) in any job interview > situation. :) > > Probably just me, though.? Nah, no problem. Companies use programs such as Filezilla, it's normal. > Beyond my obvious disdain for the practice, zilla to me sound a bit > too reminiscent of the dot-com bubble. > Just put a dot-com on the end and investors will throw money at it. > So, just use a "z" in your company or product name and viola': instant > mystique. To say it in teen-speak, that's sooo last week. The rage today is "i-something". Got to have it, or you may be considered a geezer. > Instant stupidity if you ask me.... > -mpm > > Disclaimer: I did not spellcheck any of this. :) -- Regards, Joerg (who own no i-whatever at all) http://www.analogconsultants.com/ "gmail" domain blocked because of excessive spam. Use another domain or send PM.
From: Joerg on 19 Apr 2010 14:08
Nico Coesel wrote: > chris w <chris(a)smartjack.com> wrote: > >> I've been interviewing a few new BSEE graduates for a junior engineer >> position, and based strictly on what we're looking for, here is some >> random advice to juniors/seniors: >> >> Learn a real design program like Altium. Eagle is ok, but I think >> downloading the eval version and creating a few small projects would >> be valuable. Create the parts in the library, capture the schematic, >> layout the board, generate the gerbers and send them thru freedfm.com >> until they pass. Maybe even send them to someplace like Advanced PCB >> which has deals for students. Knowing current tools is important. I >> think you're much more likely to use something like Altium than Spice >> or Matlab (which are also good to know). >> >> Learn how to solder. You should own a decent soldering iron, and be >> able assemble prototypes which used SMD down to 0805 or 0603. If you >> looking for a job that does any sort of design, then chances are >> you're going to have to do some assembly/troubleshooting of your own >> prototypes. >> >> Get some experience with current microcontrollers. I have a >> preference for Microchip, but Atmel or an ARM variant would also be >> good. I know teaching the 68HC11 still has value, but knowing parts > > Most of the basics are still the same. > >> Networking is important. Lots of new products these day have some >> connection to the Internet. Understand TCP/IP and ethernet. MAC >> addresses, netmasks, ARP, default routes, NAT... Even getting into >> the upper layers might be good, especially HTTP. >> >> Linux would be nice to know. Embedded Linux continues to grow. >> Knowing how to compile a linux kernel, build a file system, or >> whatever would be a useful skill. > > Engineers who know about analog design, programming, digital circuitry > (programmabe logic / FPGA perhaps), Linux and networking are very very > scarse. Usually an engineer masters a few areas. The biggest challenge > is to put a good team together. > I never had a problem putting teams together. BUT, the average age of such teams was usually well over 40. Companies that think that everyone over 35 is past prime are going to face one project failure after another. -- Regards, Joerg http://www.analogconsultants.com/ "gmail" domain blocked because of excessive spam. Use another domain or send PM. |