Suggestions for TV B Gone Instructions

[Chuckz]

I built the TV B Gone. I have a few suggestions to make the instructions better.

I happened to grab the right resistor the first time. When you have multiple parts of the same type, please make an extra step and differentiate the ones that appear to be duplicate. In this case, I grabbed the resistor with the red stripe first. People to new projects like me tend to rush forward because we're not experts.

The other mistake I did was solder the capacitor close to the board which didn't leave me room to bend it horizontal with the board which was the second step. I think that if it was specified before then I would have not made this mistake. I'm okay with this but the instructions probably need two specifications added to avoid these problems.

TV B Gone 011.jpg (161.91 KiB) Viewed 1258 times

I happened to install my I.C. while I was on a rug so there might be a static electricity issue. My TV B Gone works but it doesn't seem that LG TV's are on the list. I happened to turn off the LG TV in our house twice but they were the only times so I'm going to see if replacing the I.C. will make things better but I presume since our LG is a newer TV, it isn't on the list.

The other thing I did was add solder to the top and bottom of the board for the IR LEDs because I thought that would make the parts more rugged.

I would like to know where I can buy the board vice in the instructions because I've been using hands with allegator clips. I would like it if Adafruit sold them because I would probably buy two.

I took this picture on a lapdesk.

[adafruit]

thanks for the notes

we carry panavise's in the shop here
http://www.adafruit.com/category/8

[Agent24]

When you have multiple parts of the same type, please make an extra step and differentiate the ones that appear to be duplicate. In this case, I grabbed the resistor with the red stripe first. People to new projects like me tend to rush forward because we're not experts.

The other mistake I did was solder the capacitor close to the board which didn't leave me room to bend it horizontal with the board which was the second step. I think that if it was specified before then I would have not made this mistake.

I happened to install my I.C. while I was on a rug so there might be a static electricity issue. My TV B Gone works but it doesn't seem that LG TV's are on the list. I happened to turn off the LG TV in our house twice but they were the only times so I'm going to see if replacing the I.C. will make things better but I presume since our LG is a newer TV, it isn't on the list.

I have some suggestions for you too. Now don't take this the wrong way, I am only trying to be helpful and honest here.

1) Resistors are different, that is a fact. The TV-B-Gone is a very easy kit as it only contains 2 or 3 resistors but even so you shouldn't rely on things like 'the one with the red stripe'

Find a copy of a resistor chart somewhere (Google images is a great place to start) and learn how to read the codes correctly. You can download programs that do it for you but even better is if you can memorize the colours\numbers and then you can identify any resistor at any time.

You can also use your multimeter to check the resistor's actual values against the parts list. This is all good learning experience


2) If you're not an expert you should not rush anything! Experts are the only ones who are allowed to rush anything and even then it's not really the best idea. You will not get a prize for rushing faster than everyone else. Take it slow and steady. You will make less mistakes (see point 3) I know getting a new kit is fun but having it work first time is a lot more fun than trying to fix mistakes instead.


3) Take your time, (as in point 2) and read the documentation through before you start. That way you can identify potential problem areas etc. If you had done this you probably wouldn't have made the mistake with the capacitor.


4) Installing your IC on a rug is again not the best idea. Follow basic ESD precautions and you'll have much less trouble. It's not so much that you're likely to damage the parts (although it's possible) it's that you then get more doubt and uncertainty as to if the part is in fact OK or not. During any troubleshooting, you want as little doubt and uncertainty as possible. Knowing that you installed your parts following proper procedure eliminates this problem.