Vacation Lessons: Naive People Pay Twice

It was New Year's eve, and our boots, dirty from holiday snow, were resting in the corridor. We have kind of forgotten to bring them inside. And lo and behold! The next morning they were missing. Not all of them though. Only so-horrible-that-even-i-am-ashamed-of-them boots of mine were still waiting to be invited inside. The rest were gone.

Where did they go? Why didn't they leave a note to us? The walls were silent. Our neighbors have shed a quantum of light on the issue: someone had a big party on our floor. Someone had an argument in front of our door. Sigh.

The superintendent of our building couldn't help us with our search, and besides, how dare we leave personal belongings in the common area? Didn't we know that it's prohibited by condo rules?

Yes, we did. But as usual, a series of mistakes leads to a sad finale. I shouldn't have believed in the good of people and shouldn't have suggested to leave the boots outside. Someone should have brought them home once the snow has melted. So there we go. Bye-bye boots, we loved you.

The worst thing is that our kid needs something on his feet to walk through the snow. So we just had to order the same boots for him. But Ecco customer service sucks is performing poorly and the boots still haven't been delivered.

Lesson learned!

Vacation Lessons: SMD, c'est fun!

On the same electronics note, I had a chance to try some SMD soldering. I've taken my kid on the trip to an electronics store, which meant I'd inevitably have to buy something for him. But his choice was surprisingly good! An Xmas tree with blinking LEDs, SMD-style. It was a rare case of mutual agreement.

Soldering these tiny elements was fun. Lesson learned: I need a desoldering wick and a smaller soldering iron tip. So here's the end result, look at the quality and enjoy a good laugh!

Vacation Lessons: Iterative isn't Always Good

As a dedicated fan of iterative development in software, I naturally try to apply this approach to other spheres. Lesson learned: iterative approach to real-world crafting leads to wasted time, materials and nerves. And the end result will still carry the marks of pain.

To be more specific, by iterative approach I mean a draft-review-refactor loop. And by crafting - working with soft metals and a bit of electronics.

So, the task was: Make a model traffic light using 3mm LEDs and Arduino to control them. The body should be made of brass. Excited by the simplicity of Arduino, I've added a bonus task: make the system modular by using a shift register IC in every light post and allow serial connection of them.

Designing is for schoolgirls, so after a short run-through in my head and a brass soldering test (I've never done it before), I started implementing.

The thing about real world, which really is obvious, but wasn't so for a guy that has started working on something he wanted for ages; the thing is that refactoring costs much more, and every iteration leaves a scar on the final product. It's not quite like shifting bytes in that programming thing of yours! What a revelation.

Well, if you're still with me, enjoy the graphical story:

1. Electronics prototype and a soldering test. Everything seemed nice and easy.

2. Body, alpha version. After soldering it completely shut, I discovered that one of the LEDs doesn't work. And the body wasn't designed to be serviceable. After cutting it open and seeing that a LED contact has just de-soldered, it was clear that the body should be made serviceable after assembly. Refactor!

3. Body, beta version (current state). It kinda holds straight, but the maintenance door at the back doesn't stand firmly in place.

4. Shift register IC. The initial idea was to do the breakout by myself ('cause it's fun!). After soldering 3 connections out of ~16, it became clear that it's going to be an ugly mess that will never work. So I had to get a ready-to-use breakout from Sparkfun. And then found out that they didn't provide a ground output header, so I had to add it separately at the back. Doesn't it look like code?

5. Tools used (forgot to add a drill to the composition).

So the lesson is: when you're dealing with physical stuff, you have design the whole thing first. Yes, it's boring, but then you'll have a chance of getting something done. Unlike me and my traffic light that has stuck on the beta stage.