Jameco's Newsletter: January 2012

Circuit Skills: Infrared Light
By: Collin Cunningham

Enhance your projects with an invisible infrared trigger. The Infrared Light Barrier Kit can alert you to home or refrigerator intruders, keep the kitty-cat off the kitchen counter, or simply alert you of a visitor as far as
13 ft. away...beeeep! Electronics sensation, Collin Cunningham takes off again on the "Electronic Fun Tour"into the land of edu-tainment and fun DIY projects using infrared light!

Jameco welcomes the contributions of its customers. Frankly, we think what you write is more interesting than anything we could write. Share your electronic component story, project, or challenge, and we'll share it with the world. Send your story to MyStory@Jameco.com

Shrink Arduino Down to Size!
By: Ryan Winters

Get the same Arduino Uno functionality in a smaller footprint and for less cash! This easy-to-build kit gives you Arduino compatibility using an ATmega328 microcontroller and everything you need to build your own Arduino circuit.

Save precious board space and money!

Building an Electronic Appliance from Scratch

Hello, my name is Thomas Thwaites, and I have made a toaster. So begins The Toaster Project. This epic My Story details the foolish, insane and sometimes silly journey of Thwaites as he reflects on our modern consumer culture while building a seemingly simple electronic appliance, entirely from scratch.

Can a person in the 21st century create an everyday object?

Amateur Marketing
By: Greg Harris

The TV series Mad Men does a great job of capturing the golden era of advertising. History books characterize the 60's at a time when consumers eagerly devoured every claim an advertiser served up. Ahh... those were the good old days for marketers.

Today, marketing is a lot more challenging. What's changed? You have! Consumers understand that many (if not most) of the advertising claims are embellished, exaggerated or just plain untrue. This consumer skepticism has changed the face of good marketing.

With that as background, I was clicking through the website of one of our largest competitors when I was struck that I was looking at classic 1960s-style advertising. While not bias-free, I'll give a friendly poke and prod to my competitor and try to offer my best advice to anyone who wants to advertise in the 21st century.

Join me as I dissect and inspect the advertising messages of one of our largest competitors.

Regards,
Greg Harris
Vice President, Marketing
Greg@Jameco.com

Ball Bearing Beat Box
Be your own DJ in a very colorful way! The BeatBearing Sequencer and its classic design is a simple yet elegant way to entertain and an innovative way to rock to your own beat. Move the ball bearings on the transparent grid to change the beat.

One look and you'll want to build your own!

IQ Challenge: Test Your Electronics Knowledge

Do you know what these different symbols stand for? If you think you know, use the link below to find out how smart you are!

Do you know the difference between LCD, TFT and OLED displays? Or when one technology is worth paying more for? Here's an overview of Jameco's display technologies and an introduction to our new products.

Choose the right display with these new product options.