Hi all.

Had my 18th birthday on Sunday! Finally, I drink, drive (not at the same time!), buy glue, knives - anything I want! Horray!

As some in family wanted to get me books, but don't know much about electronics, they got me some Amazon vouchers, which I spent very quickly! Got myself some interesting looking books, some of which arrived today.

Introduction to the Wireless Local Loop
Digital Technqiues in Broadcasting Transmission
HF Antenna Collection

And I'm still waiting on Radiowave Propogation and Antennas for Personal Communications.

I reckon those will keep me interested for some time. I like the theory behind electronics, just as much as I like doing electronics. There are few better feelings than watching an equation fall out nicely.

Anyway, what do you guys like to get for birthdays? Would you be happy to get something electronics related, or would you rather not as you are doing it in full time education or as your job?

Sparky

 

Happy birthday, Sparky! Best wishes for an exciting and interesting adulthood!

Presents are a bit of a pain to choose. My hobbies tend to be a bit expensive or very specific for my family, so I can't ask them. It would be a pain to explain to them how to order an AVR2 programmer kit and it would ruin the surprise too.
I let them buy clothes or mementos. My mother has especially good taste in clothes, so I don't complain.

 

I've wondered about this knife ban in UK. I was skinning wires when I was 11 years old. I still carry a knife at all times. The blade is about 30mm. Would that be legal for an 11 year old in UK?

And then I'd like to say I think that law is a bit much. Just as people use knives when they can't get a gun, they can use a brick when they can't get a knife...except you can't skin a wire with a brick.

 

Let's not get caught up in this again...

But, I don't think it's illegal for a kid to have a knife - just illegal for them to buy one.

I'm also pretty sure no-one is allowed to just carry it around either.

But, let's think happy! Birthday prezzies!

 

Sorry. This knife subject might be worn out, but it's a mystery to me.

So...HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

 

What? I carry a knife on my key chain everywhere I go.
It's a Leatherman Micra that has:

knife blade
scissors
tweezers
nail file
flat head screwdriver
flat phillips screwdriver
small screwdriver
bottle opener
measuring scale

Get one for your birthday.

Happy Birthday, Sparks.

 

Happy birthday, MAN.

 

Thanks guys.

I also got a braw Tweed kilt jacket!

I also got a cool notebook which is made from recycled circuit boards! It's great to draw some circuit ideas I have!

I'll post some ideas later and see what you guys think. Nothing too exciting. The best one is probably an Antenna Tuner Circuit.

 

https://www.gov.uk/find-out-if-i-can-buy-or-carry-a-knife
It's a bit draconian, basically if the police find a knife on you, you need a good reason. If you are an 11 year old on a camping trip, I would guess it's fine. I carry a small one in my bike bag with my other bike tools, comes in handy for emergency repairs and I don't think the police would have any problem with that either.

 

Loosewire's Wisdom.....a screw driver or knife is a burglars tool if found in a

hotel hallway .No matter the size,unless minature,that would also be a

question for police. Proving intent on both sides, with a $10,000.00

attorney fee to fight a charge once filed.

On a camping trip,unless you are at a camping ground with many people

should not be problem. If there is more than 10 people and some one could see's

a knife out in the open... with any words, could be a problem.

 

Geeze, stop talking about knives and burglary tools. Let's get back to presents!

I really like geeky things. A good dev board or breakout is wonderful! Just ask me and I'll tell you the exact model number and source to get it.

This year for Christmas people kept asking me what I wanted. I really need some parts bins (got lots of bags of parts to sort & store) but I got yelled at that it was not a good gift! Neither was the 32 AWG spools of wire I wanted off EBay.

Shucks, we get my sister yarn for her knitting habit. Isn't wire the same thing?


Happy Birthday Sparky!!!

 

For my 18th birthday, I got in a fight with my dad and kicked out. Coincidence, he didn't even realize it was my birthday. Not a sob story, I deserved it.

 

Hello Sparky, happy birthday!

I've gotten to the point where I try to avoid birthdays. They cause me nothing but annoyance and strife I stopped getting interesting presents from others when I was about 18. After that I was pretty much on my own. I've received a few nice items since from family, but they're generally few and far between. I would have given anything to have received a dev board, components, electronics kit, wire/solder/iron, etc when I was your age!

It's a big milestone in any young man's life. It's a lot of freedom, but remember that with it comes responsibility. Use these new freedoms wisely, and you will have a long, happy, exciting life ahead of you!

Best wishes,
Matt

 

Happy Birthday Sparky

 

OOPS late again, Happy Birthday

 

Happy Birthday, Sparky...now you are a man among some great men.

 

What? I carry a knife on my key chain everywhere I go.
It's a Leatherman Micra that has:

knife blade
scissors
tweezers
nail file
flat head screwdriver
flat phillips screwdriver
small screwdriver
bottle opener
measuring scale

Get one for your birthday.

Happy Birthday, Sparks.

Damn I had a BA leatherman I got from the factory driving up to NC. Someone stole it at work though. I wasn't that mad till I saw how much it was gonna cost to replace it.

 

Yeah I think brand name laethermen are too expensive. Some of the clones are decent quality and a fraction of the price, and some are just garbage.

And Happy Birthday Sparky!

 

Thanks guys!

All my books have now arrived! Should last me until new year.

One of them comes with - a - floppy disk! omg! For MathCAD 2.5 - so I downloaded DOSbox and MathCAD 2.5 and it now kinda works.

Just need to get a usb floppy drive.

I've got a few floppy drives, but none are usb, so ah well.

Anyway, if you are looking for a book on a subject, check out ebay or amazon - there are always some real bargains.

Sparky

 

Happy Birthday, Sparky