Newsletters

Browse our past newsletters on PCB design and industry information

OnTrack Newsletter - July 2019 Vol 3. No. 3

OnTrack Newsletter - July 2019 Vol 3. No. 3 OnTrack Newsletter July 2019 VOL. 3 No 3 AltiumLive 2019: The Hat Trick The third annual AltiumLive: Annual PCB Design conference is almost here again and will be located in San Diego and Frankfurt. Learn more about all that’s in store for this year’s event and how we plan to pull off a perfect hat trick! Read Article EIPC: A European Community of PCB Professionals In mid-June, I had the great pleasure of attending my first EIPC Conference in Read Article

EIPC: A European Community of PCB Technology Professionals

EIPC: A European Community of PCB Technology Professionals In mid-June, I had the great pleasure of attending my first EIPC Conference in Leoben, Austria (pictured above). EIPC (European Institute for the PCB Community) is an organization that has been around for over 50 years and serves the European Electronics Industry and supply chain while maintaining activities that involve the global industry. In this article, I speak with Tarja Rapala, the technical director for EIPC to discuss the purpose Read Article

OnTrack Newsletter: PCB Design Zen, Component Management and Brain Food - June 2019

OnTrack Newsletter: PCB Design Zen, Component Management and Brain Food - June 2019 OnTrack Newsletter – July 2019 VOL. 3 No 3 To view this email as a web page, click here OnTrack Newsletter July 2019 VOL. 3 No 3 AltiumLive 2019: The Hat Trick The third annual AltiumLive: Annual PCB Design conference is almost here again and will be located in San Diego and Frankfurt. Learn more about all that’s in store for this year’s event and how we plan to pull off a perfect hat trick! Read Article EIPC: A European Community of PCB Read Article

The Zen of Electronic Product Design and Wellness

The Zen of Electronic Product Design and Wellness When you think of a hardware startup, chances are your first thought isn’t about a meditation training device. Yet in our very noisy, stressful world, meditation is becoming a pervasive and effective way to reduce stress and improve overall mental wellness. In this article, you’ll learn about how Core Wellness Co-founder, Sarah McDevitt, left Microsoft to launch Core Wellness and develop the Core personal meditation trainer. Judy Warner: Please Read Article

Navigating the Complexities of Component Libraries and Data Management

Navigating the Complexities of Component Libraries and Data Management Keeping your component libraries and data organized, accurate and optimized for team use is critical for all engineers and PCB designers. Unfortunately, it can be extremely tedious and it takes time and energy away from the actual design of the board and products. It’s akin to an artist spending 75% of their time organizing art supplies and only 25% on painting! Below you’ll find a variety of content sources that we hope will help you streamline Read Article

How to Build a Clean and Consistent PCB Data Library

How to Build a Clean and Consistent PCB Data Library Judy Warner: Cherie, before we get started, please take a moment to define what a “library” is and what the full scope of that entails. Cherie Litson: Most of us would define a “library” as a consistent file of symbols and a consistent file of footprints (decals, land-patterns, etc.) connected with some form of a database. You don’t even need to have the database, just a good schematic symbol file and a footprint file and a method to link them Read Article

Datasheet Reliability with Ben Jordan

Datasheet Reliability with Ben Jordan In this OnTrack episode Judy Warner and Ben Jordan discuss about Datasheet Reliability. Can you trust them? And what does “Gilded” mean? This & more about verifying app notes. Watch the full episode. Read Article

Deep Space Gas Stations Prepare for In-Space Market

Deep Space Gas Stations Prepare for In-Space Market One of our favorite things to do here at Altium is to support entrepreneurs and their innovative startup companies by equipping them with our PCB design tools. Orbit Fab is one such company. In this article, partners Daniel Faber and Jeremy Schiel share their vision for the future of space and the critical need for satellite fueling stations. With help from our partners at Bolt, a technology accelerator, Orbit Fab has developed a preliminary Read Article

Go to Market Fast With Bolt’s In-House Engineering Team

Go to Market Fast With Bolt’s In-House Engineering Team Recently we had the opportunity to get to know Tyler Mincey, the VP of Engineering at Bolt which is a hardware and software accelerator with offices in San Francisco and Boston. In this interview, we talk with Mincey about his passion for engineering and the incredible work being accomplished at Bolt. Their unique model of providing venture capital along with an in-house engineering team continues to fuel a growing portfolio. Bolt is part of Read Article

Young Designer Hits Her Stride at Mil Aero Company

Young Designer Hits Her Stride at Mil Aero Company Back in August of 2017, a young and impressive PCB designer by the name of Nicole Pacino was featured in this newsletter. Pacino is a second generation PCB designer who has followed in the footsteps of her father who owned, grew and sold his successful design bureau, San Diego PCB. Since the last time she appeared in this newsletter, she has moved to the US East Coast and earned a place on the Cobham Advanced Electronics Solutions design team. At Read Article

OnTrack Newsletter: Tech Predictions, Launching Rockets, and Snapping in a ECAD tool - February 2019

OnTrack Newsletter: Tech Predictions, Launching Rockets, and Snapping in a ECAD tool - February 2019 OnTRack Newsletter February 2019 VOL. 2 No 10 FIVE TECH PREDICTIONS FOR THE NEXT DECADE Duane Benson Predicts What’s to Come in the Next Ten Years This month in the OnTrack Newsletter, we bring you a special guest article from EMS Subject Matter Expert, Duane Benson of Screaming Circuits, in which he shares five technology predictions for the next decade. Benson covers his personal thoughts on what may come in artificial intelligence, highways Read Article

2019 Five Tech Predictions — The Decade of Disruption

2019 Five Tech Predictions — The Decade of Disruption We’re coming in for a wild ride in 2019. The last few years have been pretty crazy, and 2019 looks to continue to amplify this highly innovative and disruptive trend. While some may be nervous about trends in technology such as artificial intelligence, I'm still quite optimistic. The most long-term successful aspects of our civilization are those that rip apart on a regular basis. Frequent disruption allows for people to start anew and create Read Article

Student Rocket Team Oronos Polytechnique Shoots for the Stars with PCB Designs

Student Rocket Team Oronos Polytechnique Shoots for the Stars with PCB Designs In this interview I talk with Nathanael Beaudoin-Dion, Avionics lead for the Oronos Polytechnique Rocket team from Polytechnique Montreal Technical University. Each year in June, Oronos competes in the Spaceport America Cup, the world’s largest rocketry competition which takes place in New Mexico at the only commercial spaceport in the world. Enjoy this article as well as the photos of their rockets and videos from this inspiring team. Judy Read Article

OnTrack Newsletter: Why Use a Service Bureau? Multilayer Design Tips, Steps to a Good Design Release - January 2019

OnTrack Newsletter: Why Use a Service Bureau? Multilayer Design Tips, Steps to a Good Design Release - January 2019 OnTrack Newsletter JANUARY 2019 VOL. 2 No 9 “AT YOUR SERVICE” Insights from a PCB Design Service Bureau Companies and design teams look to professional PCB design service providers to support their product development for a variety of reasons. In this article, we talk with Scott Miller, CEO of Freedom CAD, about what dynamics, benefits, and potential concerns come into play when contracting with a design service provider. READ FULL ARTICLE TRICKS Read Article

The Benefits of Using a Professional PCB Design Service Bureau

The Benefits of Using a Professional PCB Design Service Bureau Companies and design teams look to professional PCB design service providers to support their product development for a variety of reasons. In this article we talk with Scott Miller, CEO of Freedom CAD, about what dynamics, benefits, and potential concerns come into play when contracting with a design service provider. Judy Warner: Scott, will you please give us a brief overview of Freedom CAD, the services you offer, and the types of Read Article

OnTrack Newsletter: A Look Under the Hood at Altium Designer 19, and Is IPC CID Important for Your Career? - December 2018

OnTrack Newsletter: A Look Under the Hood at Altium Designer 19, and Is IPC CID Important for Your Career? - December 2018 OnTrack Newsletter December 2018 VOL. 2 No 8 ALTIUM ^® 19 HAS ARRIVED! See the New Features of Altium 19 Altium 19 has just been released and features several exciting new and enhanced capabilities. Get a first look here at some of the functionality that defines the latest version of Altium . READ FULL ARTICLE IS IPC CID TRAINING IMPORTANT FOR YOUR DESIGN CAREER? Insights from CID IPC Trainer, Stephen Chavez Stephen Chavez is the lead electrical Read Article

Altium Designer 19 Has Arrived

Altium Designer 19 Has Arrived Rather than to tell you about Altium Designer 19, we thought you’d prefer to see it with your own eyes through a series of brief videos that will allow you to explore all the new and enhanced features in Altium Designer 19. Some of the key features represented in the latest release are: Advanced Layer Stack Manager Routing Improvements Pad/via driven polygon thermal connections uVia Support Unlimited Mechanical Layers Draftsman Improvements BOM Read Article