Stephen St. Amant, PC/104 Consortium President
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Predictions: Spring 2020
The thing about predictions, particularly in tech, is that when you’re wrong, you can lose a lot of money, and you can look foolish while you’re at it. In 2007, the then-CEO of Microsoft, Steve Ballmer, laughed at Apple’s newly-announced iPhone. “Five hundred dollars?! Fully subsidized with a plan? … That is the most expensive [...]
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PC/104: Who and why?
Admission: PC/104 is not a flashy name.
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PC/104 and the Rogers Adoption Curve
I’m certain that there were some project managers in the early 1990s who were hesitant to design with PC/104. “We’ll stick to the older, proven specifications, thank you very much.” Thankfully, there were plenty of early adopters – engineers and designers who saw the value of a stackable architecture, the elimination of the backplane, and [...]
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PC/104: The small form factor doing big things
Writing about PC/104 can be challenging: If you’re just talking about the form factor, there’s not a whole lot of new material to cover. In fact, if you’re reading this in a printed magazine, it’s likely that you already know about PC/104. But for the sake of those who don’t know – if you’re a [...]
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PC/104: the smart play
"It just doesn't go out of style." Is the blue blazer timeless? That's what I hear. What about PC/104? Absolutely. In the embedded market space, longevity is key. Embedded systems go through rigorous testing and qualification; the systems need to...
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What's the latest?
What's notable at our member companies? Well, quite a bit! I asked our members to contribute some news blurbs, and here's what filled my inbox. As always, I encourage you to visit our member-company websites and to stop by their booths at the many trad...
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PC/104: A fresh look in its 25th year
Let's take a moment to recall the significance of 1987 - thirty years ago. You may immediately think, "Yes. 1987. A fantastic year for the birth of tennis stars: Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic, Maria Sharapova, Ana Ivanovic, and Sara Errani were all born in '87." But I imagine your second thought is about PC/104, right? Well, it could be if you know your PC/104 history: 1987 marks the year that Ampro introduced the Little Board/PC single-board computer - one of the earliest seeds of the PC/104 ecosystem. Early collaborators such as Real Time Devices (now RTD Embedded Technologies) and Diamond Systems began developing compatible products as interest grew in the modular building block concept. By 1989, an innovative plug-in mezzanine concept was introduced; it was perhaps the first look at a stackable bus structure that could eliminate the need for a backplane. As the form and function of the 3.775-inch by 3.550-inch stackable PC architecture began to take shape, Ampro made the industry-changing decision to spin its proprietary form factor into an open standard. In 1992, twelve trailblazing companies would join together to establish the PC/104 specification and the consortium that bears its name. Stackable expansion buses, corner mounting holes, and a compact footprint proved to be a winning combination which quickly found popularity among embedded system designers. (Note: Many thanks to Rick Lehrbaum for his previous publications chronicling the early history of PC/104.)
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A go-to embedded solution
There was a time when I watched the cooking competition television show "Chopped" somewhat regularly. It's an intense ingredients-based culinary challenge that pushes chefs to their limits under strict time constraints. Amidst the nearly endless food combinations available to the contestants, it seems as though every episode I watched included one person (and sometimes two or three) who used mascarpone cheese. Often in the dessert round, the chef's storytelling voiceover (dripping with tension) would recount, "I ran to the pantry. I grabbed the mascarpone ... "
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PC/104 a presence at Embedded World 2016
PC/104 had a strong showing at the recent Embedded World 2016 trade show in Nuremberg, Germany. Slick PC/104 demonstrations showed robust graphics processing, industrial Internet of Things (IoT) gateways, innovative Ethernet switches, ARM/FPGA combinat...
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PC/104 architecture: module, company, and marketplace compatibility
The physical benefits of the PC/104 architecture are promoted often. If you are a frequent PC/104 and Small Form Factors reader, then you know these benefits well: rugged stackable bus connectors, a small footprint with corner mounting holes, commercia...
Stephen St. Amant, PC/104 Consortium President
Stephen St. Amant, PC/104 Consortium President
Stephen St. Amant, PC/104 Consortium President
Stephen St. Amant, PC/104 Consortium President- 1
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