I-Connect007 Editor's Choice: Five Must-Reads for the Week

Estimated reading time: 2 minutes

It’s showtime! This past week, we saw quite a bit of news about virtual trade shows. It’s great to see show managers pivot from live, in-person events to virtual shows with only a few months to make it all happen. How would you like to be a show manager today?

We brought you complete coverage of this year’s virtual SMTA International and AltiumLive through our Real Time with… video program. And I-Connect007 is supporting the Additive Electronics TechXchange, which takes place on October 15.

We all miss the live interaction that an in-person event provides, but until the COVID-19 pandemic is resolved, we have other options. I’ve found it really easy to take notes during a virtual conference while sitting in my home office drinking coffee.

This year has been a learning experience for all of us. Is it 2021 yet?

Next week, Nolan Johnson will bring you his top five picks.

Real Time with… SMTAI 2020: Full List of Interviews With Industry Leaders
Published October 7

The virtual SMTAI 2020 show was a sort of “trial by fire.” SMTA pulled the plug on the in-person event over the summer, so show managers had just a few months to put a virtual event together. And they did a great job. We brought you complete coverage with our Real Time with… SMTAI 2020 program. Here’s a handy index of out SMTAI interviews.

Additive Electronics TechXchange Program Announced
Published October 6

I-Connect007 and SMTA have teamed up to bring you the Additive Electronics TechXchange on October 15. Check out this interview with ESI Automotive’s Lenora Clark and Omni PCB’s Tara Dunn, who discuss the technical program, which focuses on additive processes that enable line width and spaces down to five microns.

Real Time with… AltiumLive 2020: The Need for Simulation in High-Speed PCB Design
Published October 6

The virtual AltiumLive just wrapped up, and it was a real success. We have to hand it to Judy Warner and the rest of the Altium crew for making this happen. The audio was top-notch, and the video was as high-def as it could be—like looking through a window. We brought you full coverage with our Real Time with… AltiumLive 2020 program. Here is my interview with Steven Sandler, who spoke about the need for simulation, even though he makes money fixing designs that were not simulated. As one engineer said in Altium’s Discord chat room, “I don’t trust simulation. I only trust my measurements.” The problem is that no one else trusts your measurements.

Just Ask John Mitchell: The Exclusive Compilation
Published October 5

In the past, we brought you “Just Ask Happy Holden” and “Just Ask Joe Fjelstad.” Recently, we launched “Just Ask John Mitchell,” and we received all kinds of questions. Of course, some of the questions were critical of IPC, but John was happy to provide a response. Here is a handy collection of all of John’s questions and answers.

Pentalogix and Ucamco Announce Release of Pentalogix’s Gerber X3 Output
Published October 6

Sure, IPC-2581 and ODB++ get a lot of coverage. They’re hip and new (new compared to Gerber, anyway), and they may be the way of the future. But Gerber refuses to go quietly into the night, and for a good reason. At last count, about 95% of all designs are still output on Gerber, even if they’re also output on 2581 or ODB++. Now, Pentalogix has worked with Ucamco to extend Gerber’s functionality from design to EMS.