I must be getting serious about setting it up. I just ordered a beer fridge.
OK, so... basically a mini-fridge that (1) gets decent reviews, and (2) is short enough to fit under one of the folding tables.
And it's not actually for beer (duh). I just need a place to store things like solder paste that aren't all that shelf-stable (various sorts of adhesives, probably some other things) and that don't really belong in with the food.
... Still need to run a drain line for a dehumidifier; if I can't, at this point, air-condition the lab area, perhaps I can at least keep the humidity down to something tolerable.
Meanwhile, I'm still learning KiCad, which has improved considerably since I first looked at it, but still seems to have a ways to go. I might use it for an open-hardware project later this year, in addition to the client project that's the current incentive (making minor changes to someone else's design). After years of using quirky EAGLE, and making a start on learning quirky DipTrace, there's yet a whole new set of quirks to learn, o joy unbounded. I was also supposed to be learning (presumably quirky) Circuit Studio, but maybe that can wait.
(Still haven't set up any sort of machine shop. Logistical constraints (mainly Pestilence-related) seem to limit me to rather small, benchtop equipment at this point. There are decisions to be made. I ain't gettin' that Tormach 1100 this year.)
Addendum: Got a collection of related (to each other) projects that mostly could be kinda-sorta addressed using a Pi Zero or Pi Zero W, but... well, I'd still need to add some functions that the Zero kinda lacks, and, more to the point, while there are places happy to sell me one-each Zero for dirt cheap, nobody's willing to sell me a dozen unadorned Zeros at any price, and I really don't need a bunch of cases and power supplies.
So! Prolly end up buying a bunch of ESP32-based modules, adding the needed functionality, and, for some applications, leaving the built-in radio turned off and using a nRF24L01-based module instead, what with WiFi coverage being limited and most of the applications not calling for a lot of bandwidth.
(Yes, the ESP32 modules have a couple of features I need that various flavors of Arduini lack, and starting from scratch with a suitably-capable STM32-family chip not only would take longer but would be significantly more expensive; ESP32s are amazingly cheap. Were I starting from scratch, I'd likely use a sub-GHz radio, but somehow the 915MHz chips are now pricier than 2.4GHz parts. Something to do with volume, I guess.)
Comments