Fudgy McFarlen

Elevated Heart Rate After Exercise When I do not Ingest Fuel Before

I have noticed an elevated heart rate after my 15 mile ride when I do not ingest any food beforehand.   This elevated rate does not seem to end until after I have fallen asleep.  I also feel fatigued afterwards.  I eat afterwards as I am naturally very hungry but yet my heart rate stays slightly elevated until after I am asleep a while.  This is whether I ride slow or really push it and go fast.

If I ingest a bottle of soda pop with 64 grams of sugar which is the equivalent of 240 calories there about I find that after the ride my heart rate quickly goes back to normal.    In addition I do not feel fatigued when I return home.  A representation of how much sugar that is shown here.  It is significantly more than I put in any of the teas I have tried using in place of the soda pop

.colas

There are only 2 things this can be:

  • low blood sugar 
  • dehydration

Another symtom I was seeing was consistently waking up with a minor headache and of course not sleeping well.  

I suspect it is probably due to the hormones required to pull energy out of fat tissue.  This would not dissipate quickly once I return home even if I eat or drink till back on energy or water balance.   The ride is much more pleasant when I drink the soda pop.

Update:  Latest theory is that the glycogen levels in the liver store go down as I exercise. In order to extract energy from the liver at the same rate the heart has to flow more blood per unit time.

 

By Fudgy McFarlen, ago

Recipe: Leek Soup

Potato Leek Soup Recipe

Prep time: 5 minutesCook time: 30 minutesYield: Serves 4-6.


INGREDIENTS
3 large leeks, cut lengthwise, separate, clean. Use only the white and pale green parts, chop. (See How to Clean Leeks)
2 Tbsp butter
2 cups water
2 cups chicken broth (or vegetable broth for vegetarian option)*
2 lbs potatoes, peeled, diced into 1/2 inch pieces
Marjoram – dash
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme, or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
Tabasco sauce or other red chili sauce
Salt & Pepper
*If cooking gluten-free, be sure to use gluten-free broth.

METHOD
1 Cook leeks in butter with salt and pepper in a medium sized sauce pan. Cover pan, cook on low heat for 10 minutes. 
Check often. Do not brown the leeks.

2 Add water, broth, and potatoes. Bring to a low simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Scoop about half of the soup mixture 
into a blender, puree and return to pan. Add marjoram, parsley, and thyme. Add a few dashes of chili sauce to taste. 
Add some freshly ground pepper, 1-2 teaspoons salt or more to taste.

By Fudgy McFarlen, ago

Eagle PCB Schematic Capture and Board LayOut

Research Links

ULP Related Links

 

 

My Notes; Settings for least cluttered RF parts placement and top layer route

  • Turn on only:  1,3, pads, vias, unrouted, dimensions,tPlace, tOrigins

Tools for quicker RF / High Speed layout These ULP's place the components on the board in the same spacial relation they are in the schematic. Will save much work on RF board.

  • Eagle PCB ULP: ARG  –  Autoroute group that is selected in either schematic or board. Nets can be excluded in dialogue & saved in .ini file. A rip up script is automatically generated. 
    Uploaded by Jim Meech (jim dot meech at REMOVE fosterfreeman dot com) from Foster+Freeman Ltd.
  • Eagle PCB ULP: APG  – Autoplace by Group. apg.ulp places components on the PCB in the relative positions they have within the selected group on the schematic sheet. A dialogue box sets scale & x,y base positions. An ini file stores the last scale & offset values, to aid interactive placement. This ULP is a refinement of aps.ulp. 
  • Eagle PCB ULP: APS  –  Auto place sheet: aps.ulp. Place components on PCB as they are arranged on the schematic sheet. Enter sheet number,scale & x,y base point for the sheet, in dialogue. 
    the last settings are stored in .ini file to aid interactive placement. Based on autoplace-3.ulp 
  • ImportExport.Zip  –  This ULP can export a complete project as (special) script file, so it did can be imported into a different project again. Both schematics AND routed layout are exported / imported. Useful for channel duplication or creating a library of circuit snippets. 

Tools for Better BOMS

  • exp-project-lbr.ulp – Helps: version control  /  Forcing Value field "ON" with all parts / Adding the attribute fields I need for the BOM to all parts.

 

My Notes: How to "delete" a layer in Eagle PCB

  • You may at some point need to renumber a layer.  If you are out of numbers because you ran up through 16 which is the highest route number the you will need to shuffle names if you have unused numbers below 16.  i needed to use layer 3 with existing traces but it was in reality labeled 13.  I created the layer by going into  Tools > DRC > Layer tab.   
  • The layer setup was: (1*2+13*14+15*16)
  • I changed it to (1*2+3*14+15*16)…..however when I looked at "display" it showed 3 & 13 ! 
  • I then moved all the traces from 13 to 3 and still 13 showed up under layer "display"
  • I checked for any other objects on 13…found 1 more and moved that to 3.  At this point 13 was empty

    Research Links

    PDF: Eagle PCB – User Language Program Reference  –  Local Copy   
    Eagle Software download page
    Making a library part for Eagle PCB
    Eagle PCB Gerber File Name Extensions
    How to make a part in Eagle PCB
    USB to Serial Project
    SparkFun Eagle Libraries
    Scoring PCBs
    Creating a PCB Image using Export – Setting the background white for image export
    Eagle WorkShop Notes
    BobStarr.net – Eagle specialist – this page is his ULP download page.  He make a living doing this it appears.
    Eagle Scripting
    Eagle to Kicad converter
    Library part creation from BSDL files
    Exporting a board file to dxf
    PDF: Cadsoft Eagle Scripting Tutorial
    how to drag and drop a part into your personal library.
    Enhanced Part Libraries, Scripts and User Language … – bobstarr.net
    ULP Related Links

    Attrib-add.ulp – adds attribute to a selected group of parts. 
    Eagle PCB – ULP User Language Program
    Eagle PCB – User Language Programs#2
    Writing Eagle PCB ULP User Language Program Tutorials


    Eagle PCB Gerber File Extensions Layer Map
    Eagle User Language Program Manual in a format that can be searched
    Making a Library Part For Eagle PCB Program
    Electronic Schematic Capture Software


    My Notes; Settings for least cluttered RF parts placement and top layer route

    Turn on only:  1,3, pads, vias, unrouted, dimensions,tPlace, tOrigins
    Tools for quicker RF / High Speed layout These ULP's place the components on the board in the same spacial relation they are in the schematic. Will save much work on RF board.

    Eagle PCB ULP: ARG  –  Autoroute group that is selected in either schematic or board. Nets can be excluded in dialogue & saved in .ini file. A rip up script is automatically generated. 
    Uploaded by Jim Meech (jim dot meech at REMOVE fosterfreeman dot com) from Foster+Freeman Ltd.
    Eagle PCB ULP: APG  – Autoplace by Group. apg.ulp places components on the PCB in the relative positions they have within the selected group on the schematic sheet. A dialogue box sets scale & x,y base positions. An ini file stores the last scale & offset values, to aid interactive placement. This ULP is a refinement of aps.ulp. 
    Eagle PCB ULP: APS  –  Auto place sheet: aps.ulp. Place components on PCB as they are arranged on the schematic sheet. Enter sheet number,scale & x,y base point for the sheet, in dialogue. 
    the last settings are stored in .ini file to aid interactive placement. Based on autoplace-3.ulp 
    ImportExport.Zip  –  This ULP can export a complete project as (special) script file, so it did can be imported into a different project again. Both schematics AND routed layout are exported / imported. Useful for channel duplication or creating a library of circuit snippets. 
    Tools for Better BOMS

    exp-project-lbr.ulp – Helps: version control  /  Forcing Value field "ON" with all parts / Adding the attribute fields I need for the BOM to all parts.


    My Notes: How to "delete" a layer in Eagle PCB

    You may at some point need to renumber a layer.  If you are out of numbers because you ran up through 16 which is the highest route number the you will need to shuffle names if you have unused numbers below 16.  i needed to use layer 3 with existing traces but it was in reality labeled 13.  I created the layer by going into  Tools > DRC > Layer tab.   
    The layer setup was: (1*2+13*14+15*16)
    I changed it to (1*2+3*14+15*16)…..however when I looked at "display" it showed 3 & 13 ! 
    I then moved all the traces from 13 to 3 and still 13 showed up under layer "display"
    I checked for any other objects on 13…found 1 more and moved that to 3.  At this point 13 was empty
    I then went back into Tools > DRC > Layer tab and changed the layer structure to  (1*2+13*14+15*16)  hit supply , hit select then went back to  (1*2+3*14+15*16). At this point 13 no longer showed up in the "display" layer display.   See: If layer 4 is empty (no objects in it) go to the Layer Setup, make a slight change in it, Apply it to your Board, and re-define the setup correctly. Now Layer 4 should no longer be visible in the DISPLAY/LAYER list.

    My Notes: How to change entire layer of routes to another layer

    1 click the change icon (a wrench) 
    2 select layer 
    3 select the desired target layer 
    4 select the trace sement you want to change with the left mouse button OR Change:Group  to do an entire layer

    Creating Gerber Files

    wikipedia:  .drd excellon format
    How to create a Gerber file using Eagle
    Appears you can create Excellon files using excellon.cam
    How to generate drill files from Eagle that gerbv likes

    Gerbv is basically able to read the Excellon files generated by Eagle, but you have to make a few changes to them however. Gerbv expects the Excellon files to begin with a header defining the drill sizes used. Eagle's Excellon files are lacking these.
    How does Eagle generate Excellon files?

    With Eagle's CAM processor you have the possibility to generate Excellon files of your board. For this you have to supply a file defining the drills available to the CAM processor. This file usually has the suffix .drl and is called Drill Rack in Eagle terms. It contains the drill sizes in the form

    T01  0.018in
    T02  0.036in
    and so on.
    Drill sizes may also be given in mil and mm while in seems to be the default. This drill rack file may be given to you by your board house. It can also be auto-generated by Eagle with drillcfg.ulp, in which case simply all drill sizes used in your layout are written into a drill rack file. Now when you create an Excellon file with the given drill rack file, the CAM processor chooses which drill fits best for each hole using the given tolerance values. The CAM processor then outputs an Excellon file (default suffix .drd) and an information file (default suffix .dri). Within the Excellon file generated by Eagle there's no definition of the drill sizes used, it just takes the drills given in the drill rack file. However you can see in the .dri file which drills Eagle has chosen.

    So what you need to do to load your Excellon file into gerbv is just adding a proper header in front of your Excellon file defining the drills used by Eagle. You simply have to convert Eagle's drill rack file to a valid Excellon header and put it in front of the Excellon file generated by Eagle, then gerbv will know about the drill sizes. I hacked a small perl script which just does this and is called this way:

    ./eagle2exc.pl <Eagle drill rack file> <Eagle Excellon file> <new Excellon file>

    The new Excellon file contains the needed drill definition and can be loaded into gerbv. That's all.

  • I then went back into Tools > DRC > Layer tab and changed the layer structure to  (1*2+13*14+15*16)  hit supply , hit select then went back to  (1*2+3*14+15*16). At this point 13 no longer showed up in the "display" layer display.   See: If layer 4 is empty (no objects in it) go to the Layer Setup, make a slight change in it, Apply it to your Board, and re-define the setup correctly. Now Layer 4 should no longer be visible in the DISPLAY/LAYER list.

My Notes: How to change entire layer of routes to another layer

  1. 1 click the change icon (a wrench) 
  2. 2 select layer 
  3. 3 select the desired target layer 
  4. 4 select the trace sement you want to change with the left mouse button OR Change:Group  to do an entire layer

 

Creating Gerber Files

How to generate drill files from Eagle that gerbv likes

Gerbv is basically able to read the Excellon files generated by Eagle, but you have to make a few changes to them however. Gerbv expects the Excellon files to begin with a header defining the drill sizes used. Eagle's Excellon files are lacking these.
How does Eagle generate Excellon files?

With Eagle's CAM processor you have the possibility to generate Excellon files of your board. For this you have to supply a file defining the drills available to the CAM processor. This file usually has the suffix .drl and is called Drill Rack in Eagle terms. It contains the drill sizes in the form

T01  0.018in
T02  0.036in
and so on.
Drill sizes may also be given in mil and mm while in seems to be the default. This drill rack file may be given to you by your board house. It can also be auto-generated by Eagle with drillcfg.ulp, in which case simply all drill sizes used in your layout are written into a drill rack file. Now when you create an Excellon file with the given drill rack file, the CAM processor chooses which drill fits best for each hole using the given tolerance values. The CAM processor then outputs an Excellon file (default suffix .drd) and an information file (default suffix .dri). Within the Excellon file generated by Eagle there's no definition of the drill sizes used, it just takes the drills given in the drill rack file. However you can see in the .dri file which drills Eagle has chosen.

So what you need to do to load your Excellon file into gerbv is just adding a proper header in front of your Excellon file defining the drills used by Eagle. You simply have to convert Eagle's drill rack file to a valid Excellon header and put it in front of the Excellon file generated by Eagle, then gerbv will know about the drill sizes. I hacked a small perl script which just does this and is called this way:

./eagle2exc.pl <Eagle drill rack file> <Eagle Excellon file> <new Excellon file>

The new Excellon file contains the needed drill definition and can be loaded into gerbv. That's all.

By Fudgy McFarlen, ago

Recipe: Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds butternut squash, halved, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 1 1/2 cups diced onion
  • 2 carrots, peeled and diced
  • 3 (13 3/4-ounce) cans chicken broth
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1/2 cup light cream or heavy cream
  • garlic

Directions

In a medium saucepan, combine squash, onion, carrots, broth and salt. Simmer, uncovered, until squash is very tender, 
about 40 minutes. Puree soup in a blender or food processor with the butter. Whisk cream into soup. Serve in wide, 
shallow bowls with a dollop of sour cream, if desired.

Notes

  • Squash is much more sweet than I imagined
  • No carrot, butter, sour cream was added 
  • turned out very good

 

Research Links

By Fudgy McFarlen, ago

Raspberry Pi “LapTop” and Case

 

Raspberry Pi in a case running a funk a doo Motorola docking station.  Is interesting but I think the case more interesting.  I should have thought of it. 

 

Rasp-Pi-Ninja_v2_large

I also like the simplicity of yet another LED idea: PiGlow

 

Research Links

 

 

By Fudgy McFarlen, ago

Registering My Car in Missouri

Notes – 9.18.13

  1. safety / smog inspection: airbag light is not included in this.  Must have 100 miles on car after a "check engine" light before you can pass this test
  2. To register you must show receipt of payment of property taxes for the car ( or are they using as an enforcement mechanism for ALL property taxes?).  In case of 2 year you have to show for both years.  I went to main building at Tucker and Market / Clark so I could visit the tax office first.  Oh Joy.  They hold a non stop Tai Chi class there.  They are a slow moving bunch.
  3. After getting the tax receipts go to room 111 in the same building.

As much fun as a trip to the DMV.  Because it was a trip to the DMV.  Oh joy.

By Fudgy McFarlen, ago