christmas lights

[PLFXpert 0]

1.21 JIGGAWATTS!!!!

Paint me in a corner, but my color comes back.

[freeflir29 0]

Quote

Just one of the many things that annoys 12-year-old nerds.

I think 35-40 yr old nerds too......

[quade 4]

Quote

Well, movie types can't always pronounce words correctly.

Don't forget that our President also calls them "nuculer weapons", so don't just limit it to the Hollywood set.

quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

[AggieDave 6]

"I'm sure in 1985 you can buy plutonium at your corner drug store, but in 1955 its really hard to come by..."

"What on Earth's this thing I'm wearing?"
"Ah, this, this is a radiation suit."
"Radiation suit? Of course, because of all the fallout from the atomic wars!"

just my little contrabution...

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[ernokaikkonen 0]

Hmm. Fallout. I've been playing Fallout 2 for a few days now. I finished it a few years back, but it's still a great game...

[Guest]

Quote

>I'd be interested in knowing how they're being run with with AC line
> voltage (the web site says "no bulky transformers"), but they are
> diodes, after all.

They either illuminate for only half the cycle, or there's a bridge rectifier to convert AC to pulsating DC. If you put 70 or so in series you don't need to limit current.

I've seen circuits where LEDs were used as bridge rectifiers for low-voltage applications; maybe this is the same idea writ large.

The website says they flash 60x/sec., so it looks like it's some variant of what we've both described.

"The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat."

[billvon 3,111]

>The website says they flash 60x/sec.

In that case they're just in series. A bridge rectifier would cause them to flash at 120 times a second.

[Guest]

Quote

>The website says they flash 60x/sec.

In that case they're just in series. A bridge rectifier would cause them to flash at 120 times a second.

Don't you mean pulsate? hehehe

"The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat."

[Scoby 0]

Quote

the brake lights on my motorcycle are LEDs, one little LED lights up the license plate - and they're bright! Dear god are they bright!

R1? R6? Do other bikes have them yet? I love how the taillights look clear until you start the bike up.

[PhreeZone 20]

Wildblues got an R6 that matches his skydiving gear... or is it the gear matches the bike?

Funny thing is Wildblue's gear is red/black/white....

Yesterday is history
And tomorrow is a mystery

Parachutemanuals.com

[jerm 0]

Quote

>weren't those jigawatts?

Well, movie types can't always pronounce words correctly. I remember a really old sci-fi series that pronounced 'deuterium' as 'dutronium.' Just one of the many things that annoys 12-year-old nerds.

see.. i always thought giga, i like the sound of giga better.... i still use giga... but my physics prof insisted that jiga is the 'proper' pronunciation.....

who IS the authority on this, or are we jsut saying "tom-ah-toe"?

Landing without injury is not necessarily evidence that you didn't fuck up... it just means you got away with it this time

[wildblue 7]

Quote

R1? R6? Do other bikes have them yet?

The new R6 I think uses LEDs - I have a 2000 with the Dussault undertail

it's like incest - you're substituting convenience for quality

[wildblue 7]

Quote

see.. i always thought giga, i like the sound of giga better.... i still use giga... but my physics prof insisted that jiga is the 'proper' pronunciation.....

who IS the authority on this, or are we jsut saying "tom-ah-toe"?

Well, you probably pronounce the graphic files that in in .GIF like 'gift' (without the 't') - and you'd be wrong too.

it's like incest - you're substituting convenience for quality

[jerm 0]

well, no.. i believe him, i beliebe jig-a to be proper.. i just don't care to change how i say it :)

the off thing about a GIF is that the G part of the acronym uses a soft g (graphic), yet, gif uses a harf G, hence "Jif"

*shrug*

was just confused cause bill seemes to be saying that the movie was wrong when, in facti, i believe it to be rightm and most of socity (including myself) to be wrong.

gak

Landing without injury is not necessarily evidence that you didn't fuck up... it just means you got away with it this time

[billvon 3,111]

>well, no.. i believe him, i beliebe jig-a to be proper..

Gigawatt - one billion (10^9) watts (per dictionary.com)

The prononciation key doesn't copy well, but both gigga and jiga are 'correct.' My professors always used gigahertz (pronounced gigga hertz) and that's what we use here when we talk about RF. Since we design lots of RF stuff we use that term a lot, and when Qualcomm people give talks at trade shows people seem to understand them.

[Scoby 0]

Quote

I'd be interested in knowing how they're being run with with AC line voltage (the web site says "no bulky transformers"), but they are diodes, after all.

I'm certain they are in series-parallel where the series is 120/average voltage drop of each diode. They're effectively being driven at a 50% duty cycle, which is why the rated life is 200K hours. LEDs integrate well when they're driven by PWM, so I doubt you'd notice any flicker, unlike flourescents.

[Guest]

Quote

well, no.. i believe him, i beliebe jig-a to be proper.. i just don't care to change how i say it :)

the off thing about a GIF is that the G part of the acronym uses a soft g (graphic), yet, gif uses a harf G, hence "Jif"

*shrug*

was just confused cause bill seemes to be saying that the movie was wrong when, in facti, i believe it to be rightm and most of socity (including myself) to be wrong.

gak

I always called 'em "Jiffs", as in "Choosy mothers..." heh.

I never heard the "Giga" exponential term bastardized as "Jigga" either before or after "Back to the Future". In RF applications, we always called 'em "Gigs".

"The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat."

[Guest]

Quote

Quote

I'd be interested in knowing how they're being run with with AC line voltage (the web site says "no bulky transformers"), but they are diodes, after all.

I'm certain they are in series-parallel where the series is 120/average voltage drop of each diode. They're effectively being driven at a 50% duty cycle, which is why the rated life is 200K hours. LEDs integrate well when they're driven by PWM, so I doubt you'd notice any flicker, unlike flourescents.

Jah, but when they come into widespread use, you're going to see them all flickering, out of the corner of your eye, when you drive down the street at night. There are a bunch of clueless consumers that are going to freak until they get used to that...hehehe

"The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat."

[billvon 3,111]

>Jah, but when they come into widespread use, you're going to see
> them all flickering, out of the corner of your eye, when you drive
> down the street at night. There are a bunch of clueless consumers
> that are going to freak until they get used to that...hehehe

I doubt that. Most LED traffic lights and flourescent lamps flicker the same way. Most people can't perceive flicker directly below about 20-30Hz (depending on ambient light conditions etc.) Even sodium lamps do it. AC/DC drive makes a big difference - AC drive gives you flicker at 60hz, DC drive gives you flicker at 120hz.