September 1959 Popular Electronics
Table of Contents
Wax nostalgic about and learn from the history of early electronics. See articles
from
Popular Electronics,
published October 1954 - April 1985. All copyrights are hereby acknowledged.
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Transistors were still
relatively new when these cartoons were published in 1959. Most people had never seen a transistor, much less
handled one.
Enjoy.
See all articles from Popular
Electronics.Special Report on How NOT to Use Transistors Courtesy of General Transistor Corp.
We've all heard how sturdy and indestructible the transistor
is ... but nothing is perfect. Any qualified engineer, equipped with the proper educational background can, with a
little ingenuity, reduce the transistor to a midget jellyfish. The accompanying quips are by no means
all-inclusive, but they will start you on your way to becoming a big transistor user.
- Ignore the published ratings and exceed them. You'll have a real "hot" transistor - for a moment or two.
- make contact is switched around. This may cause immediate ruin.
- Twist and yank the leads excessively when you install the transistor. If you listen closely you will hear
the snap.
- If the transistor does not fit into the equipment properly, put a screwdriver on the case and hammer it into
place.
- Overheat the leads with a big soldering iron. Leads are going out of style anyway.
- In order to burn out the transistor thoroughly, be sure there is leakage to the power line in the soldering
iron.
Posted 3/20/2012
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