LE program display

[rogerwh]

I knew it!  I knew it!  There is an "inner circle" and RJ and gang are actually designing robotic machines that will soon turn on us and start controlling our lives.  Br careful with the firmware updates as soon one of them will contain the command to activate these machine monsters.  The worst part is they have somehow tricked us into believeing these are light controllers and getting us to help build them for our own demise! 

Seriously Capt. I thought everything was pretty all the way through your recommendation of changing the display.  That's what this site is built on is suggestions from users.  But when RJ disagreed instead of trying to support your suggestions you immediately went into a belittling and in my mind rather insulting post alleging arrogance on RJ's part because there was no other reson in your mind that he would ignore your valuable opinion, etc.  Not cool.  If you stick around for a while you'll see that nothing could be further from the truth.  The reason many of us are here versus other sites is because no matter how little knowledge you have of electronics, computers, software, etc., they keep it simple and do their level best to make newbies not feel inimidated or otherwise show their "superiority" in terms of knowledge.  Most folks that have that level knowledge either have difficulty in "dumbing it down" so common folks can understand it or else become frustrated in having to do so.  I've never seen an example of that on these boards from any of the regular users. 

My suggestion is that you realize that these are RJ's products and suggestions for improvement are welcome.  But, it is his decision as to whether to change or not and if he decides not to either let it go or provide some constructive reasoning as to why it should change.  If it's a good suggestion, others here will chime in and RJ will likley give it a second look.  Also remember that this is the "home field" for these products.  Criticizing any memebers of the "home team" is not going to win you many supporters.

[knguyen916]

I neither believe the design is perfect nor do I believe it can not be improved...

Off topic, what I'm wondering now is what new features are you thinking of?  j/k Have a wonderful day everyone.

[CaptKirk]

rogerwh,

Good advice.   I agree- this stuff and site is RJ's ONLY.  RJ is good, really good and generous.  Unbelievably so to share these wonderful creations.  I would not be able to do what I hope to do without his hard work and the work of his hand picked volunteers (the inner circle).  I do appreciate their efforts - really I do.  This stuff is FANTASTIC.  This stuff is so great that I want to help.

I think my response to this thread is build up of frustration over a challenging Aether build (not helped by a lack of written instructions and some "interesting" design decisions) and a number of posts that all seem to get "blown off" without due consideration. I should not have responded with sarcasm and insults but I was a bit "put off" by a lack of consideration to the efforts I was putting into the suggestions. 

In this case, RJ himself calls out the program display in the LE build video when the unit is powered up and has to explain why it says PA6 for program.  That got me thinking, and from experience I knew there was a different way to represent letters in a more "standard" way to attempt to avoid confusion. I figured I could put the time into it instead of busy RJ so I researched it, took the time to document it carefully and instead of "That is an interesting idea, I might consider it for a future firmware rev" (which would be ok and showed it was considered- I was NOT expecting it to change immediately), I got the "it is fine the way it is" answer.

Here is another example: on the Aether, I made a mistake from RJ's design and accidentally put the fuse holders on TOP of the board.  Realizing I made a mistake and not wanting to destroy the board trying to remove them, I looked at the situation and tried to make the best I could out of the situation. I figured out a way to make the board SAFER and more convienient rather than hiding the fuse behind the board.  The way I worked out eliminates contact points at the back of the fuse to high voltage and adds a block to getting to the bolys used to connect the line voltage.  I posted to ASK if there was a specific reason the fuse was on the back that I did not understand (temp issues, fuse blocks light, ??) but instead of considering  the question and understanding the change, I was told it was dangerous and "rash" where as if understood, one would see it it the opposite.  Ah well.


Sorry I questioned you RJ- please keep up the good work.  I hope you will allow me to continue to use your stuff.

Kirk

[knguyen916]

Don't worry about. Sometimes thing can escalate and be taken out of proportion (I believe the sarcasm did that). Anyhow, don't be hesitant to bring up suggestions or comments in regards to things you have questions on or don't understand. I believe it is one of the priorities of this site to help everyone learn and understand.

Once again have a wonderful day.
 

rogerwh,

Good advice.   I agree- this stuff and site is RJ's ONLY.  RJ is good, really good and generous.  Unbelievably so to share these wonderful creations.  I would not be able to do what I hope to do without his hard work and the work of his hand picked volunteers (the inner circle).  I do appreciate their efforts - really I do.  This stuff is FANTASTIC.  This stuff is so great that I want to help.

I think my response to this thread is build up of frustration over a challenging Aether build (not helped by a lack of written instructions and some "interesting" design decisions) and a number of posts that all seem to get "blown off" without due consideration. I should not have responded with sarcasm and insults but I was a bit "put off" by a lack of consideration to the efforts I was putting into the suggestions. 

In this case, RJ himself calls out the program display in the LE build video when the unit is powered up and has to explain why it says PA6 for program.  That got me thinking, and from experience I knew there was a different way to represent letters in a more "standard" way to attempt to avoid confusion. I figured I could put the time into it instead of busy RJ so I researched it, took the time to document it carefully and instead of "That is an interesting idea, I might consider it for a future firmware rev" (which would be ok and showed it was considered- I was NOT expecting it to change immediately), I got the "it is fine the way it is" answer.

Here is another example: on the Aether, I made a mistake from RJ's design and accidentally put the fuse holders on TOP of the board.  Realizing I made a mistake and not wanting to destroy the board trying to remove them, I looked at the situation and tried to make the best I could out of the situation. I figured out a way to make the board SAFER and more convienient rather than hiding the fuse behind the board.  The way I worked out eliminates contact points at the back of the fuse to high voltage and adds a block to getting to the bolys used to connect the line voltage.  I posted to ASK if there was a specific reason the fuse was on the back that I did not understand (temp issues, fuse blocks light, ??) but instead of considering  the question and understanding the change, I was told it was dangerous and "rash" where as if understood, one would see it it the opposite.  Ah well.


Sorry I questioned you RJ- please keep up the good work.  I hope you will allow me to continue to use your stuff.

Kirk

[LondoB5]

Hey Kirk....  For some reason the episode title "I MUDD" comes to mind.  Not the episode just the title.

Sorry, I could not resist.......                          

TREKSTER

"I, Mudd" is a second season episode of Star Trek: The Original Series first broadcast November 3, 1967

Now listen to me closely..."I am lying..."

btw, it's a line from I,Mudd...not insinuating anyone is lying.

[Gary]

I personally find the letters kind of weird. I remember when I first plugged in my first assembled Express, I had no idea what the heck the LED display was trying to tell me; it looked like a bunch of hieroglyphics. It look me a few days or weeks to realize it was "Lynx Express 60 Hz". No biggie... as long as it works.

Maybe CaptKirk's suggestion can be integrated into Version 6 of the Express.

 

I do think that the suggestion makes sense, but I understand that RJ has bigger things to worry about.

[WWNF911]

My take,....

Sometimes posts of a type written nature can be cold. What I mean is, it's human nature when in a conversation with someone and you can't hear their voice inflection or see their expressions, people tend to read the post and think the worst.

Take RJ's response, "Thanks but I think it is fine as it is."

Can be taken one of at least two ways depending on the voice inflection.

Suggestion,...  Visit DLA chat every now and again. Although it may have changed a little as I haven't been on in a while, you can sign in and hear real voices in conversation. Think DLA is GREAT? You'll think so even more after talking with RJ and staff. Once you do, you'll think about your conversations with them and never make the mistake of thinking the worst first again.  

Leon

[meman]

I say keep the great ideas coming since everyone seems welcome to speak freely and opinions are valued. If RJ’s replies seem short and uninviting, its because he has learned that any hint of acknowledgment to change something results in a stream of nag posts and expectations that he may never get to.

I can’t resist the Star Trek nature of this thread …so I’ll attempt to interject some humor with a lighthearted story.

A ship can only have one captain and this isn’t the Enterprise.  RJ constructed this vessel from scratch and stocked the replicator with items created through trial and error over the course of many voyages…things that he thought might help the inhabitants of his home planet to further their own goals. He and some of the appointed officers graciously allow us to roam the halls of the ship and write our opinions on its walls. A few times a year, they let us go to the replicator and clone some really cool toys that we take back to make blinky on planet Earth.

The replicator has been well stocked over the years, but the captain is a true explorer and once a voyage is completed he is not likely to make a return trip unless something extremely significant can be obtained to enhance the items currently in the replicator.

The good ship DLA is not for hire, she is a ship of leisure (that requires constant maintenance). The captain is hardworking and fair, but usually keeps the charted course a secret until he is ready to surprise his followers by adding a new item to the replicator. This brings him great pleasure. But alas, as word spreads throughout the galaxy and more people visit the ship, the captain is oft challenged. He knows the ship well and is aware of most every new comment on its walls….good ideas go into his private ships log to be reviewed another day. Folks who have not explored the older parts of the ship may not understand its history, or the captain, and often get upset when he does not change course immediately based on their comments….however great they may be. But the captain must stay his charted course and once acknowledged, visitors who continue to push their agendas and stress the captain with repeated posts on the same topic are looked upon as mutineers.

The End....

Mike E.

[kpurcell]

Sometimes posts of a type written nature can be cold. What I mean is, it's human nature when in a conversation with someone and you can't hear their voice inflection or see their expressions, people tend to read the post and think the worst.

Very true, I remember many flame wars were started at my company because some people "read too much" or "read too little" into someones message.

Remember the other point of view when writing a reply. I consider myself a guest here and appreciate the great community and all the contributors to this forum.

I believe CaptKirks intentions were good but it may have read a little differently to some. I'm glad to know that the program message can appear as PA6. PrG does seem to be an improvement when there is time and a new firmware update.

Ken

[magic8192]

CaptKirk,

I like your idea, but your negotiating skills need some work.   

[CaptKirk]

Yes they do for this forum.  Where I work, you have to fight to make a difference but that is not appreciated here.  We have something called "See the problem - own the problem" where we try and fix a issue (even a perceived one). Because that is the culture, it is understood if someone perceives a "problem" with something you worked on (even if you do not believe it is a problem), then it *is* a problem that either needs to be fixed, OR that you need to change the others perception.  No one gets bent out of shape, no one threatens any one about the process, it is just how we do things.  Yes there are some lively debates about the merits of the perception sometimes, but it usually all works out with no one getting fired.  I definitely need to stop doing that here in order to keep the peace and order and I do appologize to anyone that was offended by my attempts to correct perceived issues.

[kfxi]

THAT A BOY RJ TELL IT LIKE IT IS ! ! ! !

KEN

[rrowan]

Hi Ken

No reason for your post. There is already enough people upset and a post in all caps is not helping.

Rick R.