In the marathon that forms our everyday lives, it can be difficult to remember to say, “Thank You” to those people who are making our lives better or more comfortable.
So this week, I am taking this opportunity to say “Thank You!” to some very important people.
First, thank you to David L. Jones, who allowed me to put some kind words from him on the cover of the second edition of An Engineer’s Guide to Solving Problems. Happily, he displayed the second edition in the mailbag segment of EEVblog #624.
As an aside, Dave has been doing some really interesting videos recently that I highly recommend. EEVblog #626 and #629 are both absolute gems that kept me riveted to my chair watching and listening.
Although I had previously encountered voltage dependency in ceramic capacitors, Dave presented a clear explanation for avoiding these parts in most timing or coupling applications. They are great as bypass (reservoir) capacitors, but not much else. Likewise, I might never need to know how to design a condenser microphone pre-amplifier, but it was thrilling listening to an expert teaching how to think about specific problems.
Another appropriate Thank You goes to Lou Frenzel, at Electronic Design. Lou was the first person to tell me openly and honestly that he simply did not like the title and cover of the first edition.
Let me put in another Thank You to the late George Rostky. Many years ago, George wrote a plaintive editorial, expressing regret that he had never told a particular opera singer how much he loved her. She had passed away, prompting his column on this regret. As the years have gone by, I have experienced similar regrets, when I realized that my own fears had kept me from approaching someone holding heroic status in my brain.
Finally, I want to say “Thank You” to you, the readers. You would not read a book about problems if you did not already have the interest and the passion to learn something new; to figure out something difficult, to fix something broken. You likely have the knack, and cannot help but make things better. I really appreciate your feedback, and that is the truth. Your comments have helped make the second edition better.
Thank you.