Bouquets to all.

[heathcote]

I am a 1st time poster and long time lurker with a few projects under my belt and I would like to congratulate everyone on a fantastic forum. Soooo a big congrats to the facilitators and the regular contributors (how do you find the time??).

I have a couple of suggestions though which I would like to get some comments on.

There are many of us I'm sure who work in the electronics industry and can get frustrated when we need to recruit the right person and can't find them. It seems to me that a forum for situations vacant might be a good idea.

Another forum might be a call for project developers (renumerated or otherwise). I have many ideas both commercial and recreational which I don't seem to have the time to pursue.

Comment away please!

 

 

[moxhamj]

Rev Ed. (as in education) presumably have an education focus, but as time goes on the kids in high school will leave school and will be looking for jobs, so perhaps as things evolve there could well be a place for a jobs and projects market. The equivalent certainly exists in the software market <A href='http://www.rentacoder.com/RentACoder/default.asp' Target=_Blank>External Web Link</a>

Without wanting to put off students too much, I have found my skills in medicine to be more valued by society than my electronics skills, even though electronics is actually harder and more technically challenging. There may be little demand for electronics skills at a local level, but with the internet the market is global. There is always someone, somewhere in the world who wants a clever widget built, and there are certainly enough people on this forum to build it.

It ought to be easy to create another forum dedicated to bringing together people who want a commercial project built and those with the expertise to build it.

 

[Rickharris]

Mmm Dr. At present junior doctors here in the UK are having a hard time getting jobs, you may have read in our papers. As far as I know electronics and software engineers are in great demand if qualified to degree level.

It is also less demanding to get into an electronics degree/software degree as fewer UK students are interested in these areas.

It is quite possible to be earning in excess of &#163;60,000 after 3 or 4 years with world wide travel at the firms expense + company car and benefits working in the electronics field -

Now tell me again why I gave it up to become a teacher?

I don't know about forums but there are lots of agencies that will supply skilled folk for those with jobs to do.

A forum seems to suggest a free organisation - where is the logic there - setting up and running etc demands time and so a payment in commission or similar - Suddenly this gets less attractive.

IF such a market were developed and opened to the global community and IF we assume that the global community took an interest then on current educational proportions most of the available workforce would be Chinese or Indian.

 

[Dippy]

Yes, this is an excellent forum and PICAXE is a terrific educational device. I'm surprised it's not even more popular.

The school/sports club where I play tennis doesn't appear to have heard of PICAXE - according to a student who plays and is also doing some kind of GCSE in some kind of electroniccy subject.

I guess for people who are skilled in the programming field they would love to know what jobs are available in their own country.

BUT this is really a PICAXE project forum so I wouldn't recommend that you post a list of projects that you are thinking about as you will receive dozens of suggestions and 'design by committee' isn't always ideal.

Sadly this forum doesn't allow Private mailing so maybe post a contact email address for people to contact you off-forum.

 

[MartinM57]

...It is quite possible to be earning in excess of &#163;60,000 after 3 or 4 years with world wide travel at the firms expense + company car and benefits working in the electronics field -...

...but extremely rare for a relatively normal 9-5 job, unless you are talking about 'real men' type 24x7 support in oil/gas etc etc

 

[Rickharris]

It has been some time since I trolled the market but my son earned that after 3 years - he is a software support specilising in web security. I used to earn that working in process control.

Shortage makes for a volatile and expensive market place where the skilled and upto date are kings.

 

[hippy]

Skilled and up to date, long track record in the field, or just plain lucky, is I believe the key there. I don't want to re-start the <i>housing </i> thread, but those who have what a company want ( or the company think they do ) can go far, those who are ably skilled but don't have what they want will go nowhere fast.

 

[Dippy]

A friend of mine soon to be made redundant from Barclays had a meeting with the in-house careers advice expert. (This friend, by the way, is a Mr Unix with 15 years experience.)

In terms of job finding he was told that over 50% of job vacancies are filled by 'networking'/head-hunting. With less than 10% from job adverts and agencies.
Obv I'm talking specialist here and not board stuffers.
He was advised to find out the name(s) of department heads in other Companies and contact them directly. And not to bother HR/personnel departments.

You go to the jobs, they don't come to you. So, unless you're lucky, get on yer bikes.

Gee, how I loathe those terms 'networking' and 'Human Resources'.

I, too, don't want to stretch this out to housing/rabbit proportions, but it'll be interseting to see what kandiman has on his mind. He's gone quiet.. perhaps he's been networked?

 

[Rickharris]

Having got fed up with corporate working, I started my own company - own boss, renumeration is all yours, plenty of varied jobs and I could pick and choose as I wanted... No

Worked all hours there were, had plenty of work but soon realised that no work = no income and sometimes for what seemed an extended time span, worried I may not get work I took on everything, customers want it NOW - when your a one man band (or in my case a 3 man band) you struggle to do everything or loose the work.

Work tends to lead to more offers (if your customer is satisfied) but there are only so many hours in the day.

All the money was mine - No the tax man the VAT man the NI man and several others all took their grab.

Own Boss - Yep - No one else to blame.. errr thats' not so good either.

My 2 colleagues continue to this day but after 2 years in Germany I decided a regular job suited me better hence the teaching.

Working as a team sounds good, but calls for equal status/input in some way, a lot of overhead work to be legal, BIG issues about who owns what and what is it worth.

Frankly if you have a good idea you are best off getting a prototype together to prove the concept then look for manufacturing in China (to minimise costs).

If it works than all your time will be spent in selling it or administering th production to make sure you can meet your sales.

People do make fortunes, teams do get together and work well but not very often - most small scale businesses are one man bands people just cost too much.

I can make something for &#163;5 - I think I can sell it for &#163;10 That means people in the shop will most likely have to pay &#163;20 is the product going to sell? To make for 50p and sell for &#163;20 you have to be in the Mass manufacturing game and be selling hundreds of thousands.

Edited by - rickharris on 13/08/2007 18:28:05

 

[BeanieBots]

I agree fully with all your comments Rickharris.
Even if you do get a product going, somebody else will soon copy it. So you got the patent. So what! Do you have the money to drag that Chinese company through the courts before you sink and will you win even if you do? unlikely.

 

[Dippy]

Ah, how we can reminisce...
And how we all turn a blind eye to human rights etc. when it's done on the cheap.

Anyway, enough politics, where is Kandiman or was it just to start a loooong thread?

 

[heathcote]

Dippy wrote ... <i>&quot;Anyway, enough politics, where is Kandiman or was it just to start a loooong thread?&quot; </i>

Kandiman was asleep. I assume I'm on the other side of the world to you blokes.

What prompted my initial post was a few things and at least a number of the problems have been mentioned your posts. I take the point that the PICAXE is an educational tool but we all must admit that it has and is being used beyond that - thanks in part to this forum. PICAXE has been around for quite a few years now and there will be PICAXE trained graduates out there looking for jobs. I have recently been on a job interview panel for an electronics technician and I was very disappointed with the applicants lack of basic knowledge in this field even though they had electronics training at a tertiary level. I figured someone with a passion for PICAXEs might be the sort of person we were really looking for and what better place to find them than at this place.
Also there have been and I'm sure there are students right now struggling to think up the right idea for their graduation project. What I have thought of since my first post is that those of us with projects in mind might provide a mentoring role to such students. Point them in the right direction, supply them with some materials - that sort of thing. Of course there are dangers in this - some might get their project built for next to nothing and then make money out of it.
One of the problems has been touched on earlier and that is the privacy factor. I personally don't want my real name bandied around the internet but my ideas about these extra forums would make that difficult to control. For instance I was interested in a post the &quot;alpacaman&quot; posted recently, Not because of his project but his user name. If he is in fact involved in alpacas then I would like to suggest a project for him. <b>BUT </b> how to contact him.
I wouldn't like this thread to be as long as the last record breaker but I do find your responses interesting and thanks for that.

 

 

[Rickharris]

I am a teacher with responsibility for teaching at UK A level design and Technology - We cover Product design which for the 2nd year project requires the students to get involved with a real client.

Every year we have the same problems - No one wants to get involved. The big companies that have policies to aid education are inundated with applicants smaller companies too busy trying to survive or not interested I guess.

What I am perhaps suggesting is make friends with your local high school or technology college - they NEED input and will or at least should welcome you.

Be prepared to find out not every student is dedicated and a genius though.

You have to kiss a lot of frogs to find a prince!

Edited by - rickharris on 14/08/2007 10:40:36

 

[Dippy]

Hopefully Private Emails will be available on the new V-Bulletin style forum.
I hear it's on it'll be with us very soon... fortnight maybe?

 

[Rickharris]

HOWEVER - <A href='http://www.longtail.com/about.html' Target=_Blank>External Web Link</a> and <A href='http://www.eetimes.com/news/latest/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=201500039' Target=_Blank>External Web Link</a>

Suggest that there is a growing market in developing low cost solutions for few select customers. &quot;Instead of a small number of products for millions, it's a case of millions of products for a small number&quot;

He cites his development of a UAV for $1000 using leggo, cell phone and standard modeling equipment. rather than the $150,000,000 spent developing the military versions.

He was able to photograph the Google HQ to a resolution of 2cms.

Maybe there is a Niche market a few cunning artificers could exploit.

example concept:
Most rooms are variations on rectangles. Most people can not visualise 3D concepts from 2D drawings. A simple system of flat screens to build the approximate room shape. Feed from the outside by building simple video projectors consisting of a lens and a small back lit LDC screen - these are now cheap and plentiful thanks to digital cameras. The illumination is provided with LEDs so no heat - as the projection is over a short distance there is no need for megga watt projection bulbs.

A fairly simple picture build of the necessary furniture on each wall/colour scheme/flooring can show/convince the customer to buy.

Market? Furniture shops/ interior designers/Kitchen designers/garden designers etc.

Edited by - rickharris on 14/08/2007 10:56:22

 

[manuka]

Rick- I sense you're a Google &quot;Sketch Up&quot; user!? This 3D program (free) has been a visualisation sensation &amp; appeals to almost all skill levels. Even Buckminster Fuller would be impressed. Check =&gt;<A href='http://www.sketchup.com ' Target=_Blank>External Web Link</a> Stan

 

[Rickharris]

Yes we use it at school - even the youngest kids rapidly get into it and can produce the most amazing results - Needs a suitable output device though to produce finished product - Rapid prototyper based on a glue gun? Education is another niche market with little money and a great need.

 

[Dippy]

You've been hijacked kandiman.
Looks like this is reverting to the usual 'Get it off my chest' thread.

 

[Rickharris]

Not at all Dippy - Just pointing out the issues - I have in different forms tried to tap into the abilities, skills and knowledge of forums before - Knowledge is easy whilst there is interest (but if you don't own the idea then interest wanes) - but beyond that is very difficult.