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A controversial Apple's app on the latest 4S handsets now appears to have more serious consequences than merely being a very expensive 'extra'. Attractive enough for millions of users to choose iPhone 4S over a nearly identical iPhone 4. At a substantial extra cost. If you are not an Apple enthusiast or you do not have the 4S, there is something you should know about Siri that can add on to your phone bill cost.

Siri is an intelligent software assistant and knowledge navigator functioning as a personal assistant application for iOS. The application uses a natural language user interface to answer questions, make recommendations, and perform actions by delegating requests to a set of web services. Apple claims that the software adapts to the user's individual preferences over time and personalizes results, as well as accomplishing tasks such as finding recommendations for nearby restaurants, or getting directions.

Sounds good, huh? How would it affect me though, if I do not have a Siri-phone?

Following an article in Washington Post we can learn how it can and most likely will affect everyone:

A study published this month by Arieso found that the Siri-equipped iPhone 4S uses twice as mu… Read more

Back in September last year I looked at the range of boards available from TAUTIC.COM. This site is still growing and adding new stuff all the time and this last few weeks I've been using the new LED 5x8 Matrix and the PNP Driver Board.

TAUTIC has designed these matrix's to be used together in a long line and make the sort of displays you see in the doctors, train station's etc. But are great ways of displaying information on a big scale. I’ve just got the one on test here so lets see how it goes.All the files for these boards are available on line from SolderPad that will make it really easy to connect these up. The physical size of the boards and the connectors means that you can plug them straight into a bread board - very usefully for prototyping.Because I’m only using one LED display I turned it on its side and will display two small digits that are 3x5 in size.

Connecting up and getting the displays going as really easy and I had digits one the display in no time. You will have to sort your own hardware in the way of a miro or something to drive the display but these are easy to… Read more

It has been a very long time since I left formal education.  When I took my last exam, this was number one in the UK charts...  Even then, I was far from the World's best mathematician, but I have noticed that my maths skills have improved enormously over the last few years.  After giving it some thought, I have decided that this improvement is the result of one thing:

Computer games.

More precisely, it's due to Microsoft's Flight Simulator.  Flying is mainly an exercise in numbers - speed, distance, time, compass bearings, payloads... I have read somewhere that pilots are really just human computers and so using a game like flight simulator has been giving me constant practice in basic arithmetic without me even knowing it.  It's helped my Geography too.

But it doesn't stop there.  When I thought about it more, I realised that other games have helped me too.  An ancient game called Elite (on the wonderful Acorn Electron) gave me a basic understanding of demand economics.  System Shoc… Read more

At ebm-papst are well known as a fan manufacture so I was keen to see the latest development kit from Microchip, the Motor Control Starter kit. So I was interested to see how easy it is to setup and use as a development platform for getting used to using Brushless DC motors (BLDC).

BLDC motors or Permanent magnet motors are the best technology when it comes to energy saving and speed control applications due to their design. However you can’t just switch them on and watch them go and that’s because you need electronics to drive it. The motor is constructed from permanent magnets and then a number of coils that can be switched on and off in turn to rotate the magnets, and hence the motor. The speed and timing at which you switch these coils or winding on and off allows for the differences in speed, control of acceleration, breaking and even direction.

The kit comes complete on one PCB in the normal Microchip style of on board programmer and debugger (in this case a PIC24 with USB interface) the main target microcontroller, a dsPIC33 and a small 1,400 rpm three pole BLDC motor. Between the micro and the motor is the key drive circuit which has level shifters and then FETs. The circuit also include… Read more