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James Lewis

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Quick schematic in gschem running on OS X.
Quick schematic in gschem running on OS X.

In an attempt to find a free set of schematic and PCB tools for hobby work, I looked back at gEDA. The last time I used it was when the project first started, years and years ago. I was happy to see that OS X had a set of fink packages for the gEDA suite. After figuring out how to get X11 in Leopard (since I didn’t include it when I installed 10.5) and install fink, getting gEDA going was a snap.  The user jluciani in the Arduino forums has provided some free pcb footprints he has used from previous projects.

Initially I tried to get a LCD screen working with my Illuminato based Arduino. After a couple of attempts I realized two things: 1. The Iluminato is not ready for prime time. and 2. I burned out the LCD.  So I decided to move on to the LCD strips I have from Sparkfun.

This morning I woke up somewhere in Southern Austria. When I looked outside my window, I found a very heavy snowfall. My local colleagues tell me that we received somewhere between 50 and 60cm of snow. That is between 10 and 20ft, based on what I can see.

Four weeks ago, I developed a rash (no, not that kind). My dermatologist (www.webmd.com) concluded it was a result of being exposed to extreme dry and cold conditions. In fewer words, I was allergic to Colorado. So, I moved from Colorado Springs back to Austin. Despite growing up in Northwest Indiana, which received significant amounts of snow fall and ridiculous below freezing temperatures, I am very warm blooded. After moving just 2 or 3 weeks ago and becoming acclimated to warm weather again, I found myself headed to Europe on a business trip.

This is my third extended visit to Europe. The previous two were in November and Januarys, respectively. Eventually I will visit Europe when I don’t need 9 layers of clothing.