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Electronic Toolbox News

Electronic Toolbox Version 14 now available

The next version of Electronic Toolbox is available.

Version 14 contains a lot of internal rewriting with improvements, new features and of course fixes.

The biggest challenge however was to keep that version backward compatible. I had to drop iOS 10 support but was able to keep the new version compatible down to iOS 11. This meant that I had to test the App on four different iOS Versions on several different devices. Unfortunately this took quite some time and I would have rather spent that time into additional features but I hope this effort will be appreciated.

And, even if you can’t update to the new version, you will benefit from the database update because I was able to keep that backward compatible even to older App versions.

Nevertheless, I am happy that all items I had on my list for this update made it to the AppStore. The update will be released during the next days.

Version 14 includes the following changes:

NEW:

  • Further iOS 14 improvements
  • For the calculation Tools, it is now possible to save calculations under a name and reload them later
  • New Lumen Tool to convert between Lumen and Watts
  • New Photo MOS Relay Tool
  • New Relay driver Tool for designing Relay driver circuits
  • New Legacy Computer Socket Section with pin-outs for C64, Vic/VC20, C128
  • Teensy 4.0 and 4.1 support added
  • Support for Arduino Uno WiFi REV 2
  • Adafruit Playground Express added
  • A few new Op-Amps have been added
  • Further improvements in the ESP32 Tool
  • New ESP8266 Tool

CHANGES AND IMPROVEMENTS:

There are many changes in the Make section. This section is now more file centric and has received a new File Manager Tool. From here, you can now open all Projects, Circuits, PDFs and so on. You can copy, rename, delete, print and export files from here as well.

BUGFIXES:

  • Fixes in the Voltage Regulator and constant Current Tools
  • Small changes in the Active Filter calculation Tool
  • Fixes in Tubes Tool
  • In the SamacSys Component search Tool, you can now Bookmark components for later reference from the Bookmarks Tool

Please: If you like my App, please write a review or, in case of problems or suggestions, please use the Support button under Settings inside the App.

Thanks for your fantastic feedback which helped to continuously improve this App.

Stay safe and healthy!

Best regards,

Marcus…


Categories
Electronic Toolbox News RF-Toolbox News

Electronic Toolbox Version 13 released

Electronic Toolbox Version 13 released

Finally, Version 13 of Electronic Toolbox and RF Toolbox have been released. 

With version 13, a lot of changes have been implemented. Several additional parts have been re-coded in Swift 5.0. Along with this, version 13 focuses on improved export capabilities and improved displaying of circuit diagrams inside Tools.

These are the changes of Version 13 in detail:

Additional iOS 13 compatibility

  • a new File and PDF Viewer has been implemented
  • iOS 13 page sheets are now supported
  • and several additional changes to support iOS 13 have been implemented
  • The minimal iOS Version requirement is now 10

Bug fixes

  • Bug fixes in the C-Plate tool
  • Bug fix of the Components tool which could only opened once
  • Due to the new PDF Reader, data-sheets will now rotate correctly
  • Printing from inside the Database tools (e.g. Transistors) now work correctly
  • A bug which prevents to import Online projects was fixed (basically an iOS 13 bug)

SamacSys tool

I found that this tool was underestimated in the past. It is indeed a very powerful tool to find information like specs, data sheet and pin-outs of literally any component. The tool is now called Comp. Search to better suit to it’s purpose.
 
I have also implemented some improvements to this tool.

 

Attenuator tool

This tool now also calculates backwards based on the selected E-Series

Tables tool

  • 3D Printing Filament types added
  •  Power over Ethernet POW Classes added

Circuits diagrams in tools

One of the larger improvements is the use of the internal Circuit drawing feature for the tool diagrams. This way, the circuits (e.g. for the OpAmp Tool) benefit from the following improvements:

  • Improved drawing quality
  • Resistors will now either be displayed in Zig-Zag US or IEEE Style (depending on the country setting)
  • Where possible, the circuits now show the calculated component values inside the diagram
  • All tools now offer Printing and PDF Exporting which also includes the circuit diagram

Circuit Editor

  • New Setting: “Adjust board to fit” under (File -> Board settings) allows to change the board size to fit the whole circuit so you don’t have to move components around if the board is too small.
  • Circuits can now also be printed
  • It is now possible to save circuits as PDF or sent them as circuit file via Email from inside the Circuit Editor

Improved File Viewer, Print and export capabilities

Either from inside the tools or from inside the File Viewer, content like the Tool results can now be exported as PDF as local file or printed

Other improvements

  • A new Tool SMPS for calculating Flyback Transformers for Switched Mode Power Supplies as been added
  • Several images have been re-created in higher quality
  • The Formulas tool has also been improved

In case of questions, issues or suggestions, please use the Support button inside the App of the Form on the website.

Thank you so much for your support.

Please let others know if you like this App to keep it going.

Thank you so much!

Best Regards,

Marcus


Categories
Electronic Toolbox News

Electronic Toolbox for iOS Version 12.3.2 available

A new update 12.3.2 for Electronic Toolbox for iOS is available.

This update is basically a maintenance update with a few new features. More is about to come in the next months.

Here is, what has changed:

  • New Tool Regulators was added
  • Raspberry Pi 4 now supported
  • Fixed a capacitor tool bug
  • Fixed a bug which might have crashed the App in the Two-Tone Tool
  • Several changes in preparation for iOS 13

As usual, some additional minor requests have been implemented and some bugs were fixed.

Thank you so much for your support.

Please let others know if you like this App to keep it going.

Thank you so much!

Best Regards,
Marcus…


Categories
App News - General News about my Apps Electronic Toolbox News

Electronic Toolbox for iOS Update 12.2 available

The first update of the new year, which is now available, contains some features several users have asked me for:

New ESP32 Tool

The App now contains a quick reference for ESP32 Boards of Espressif including specification, data-sheet access and background information.

■ New Stock / Inventory Tool

The Make section now contains a new Stock / Inventory tool which can be used to maintain your local component Inventory.

Several people asked for such a feature. I tried to implement this feature in a way that I can maintain my own stock and I am now using this tool for quite some time. However, some of you might have additional / different requirements. Please feel free to let me know if you need some changes or improvements.

■ New SamacSys / ECAD Models Tool

I am very proud to announce the new ECAD Models Tool which is powered by SamacSys. SamacSys is leader in providing Schematic Symbols, PCB Footprint and 3D models for almost any available component.

You can now use the ECAD Models Tool whenever you are looking for Details, including Data-sheet or Pinout for any component. Just check it out!

■ Source Code for Projects

You can now even add and edit the Source-Code files for your projects.

■ New Two-Tone Tool

Even though not just dealing with plain Two Tones, this new Tool allows to generate audio codes of a variety of different standards like CTCSS, DTMF, SelCall etc. There are already 11 different Standards supported. Let me know if you need more. I am happy to add them via Data Update.

■ Other changes

As usual, some additional minor requests have been implemented and some bugs were fixed.

The windows project editor will be updated soon to also support Source-code for Projects and the other new features of Electronic Toolbox.

Thank you for your great suggestions and your overwhelming support!

Best regards,

Marcus


Categories
App News - General News about my Apps Electronic Toolbox News

Electronic Toolbox for iOS Update 12.1.1 available

Electronic Toolbox for iOS Update 12.1.1 is the last update for this year.

It add some requested features to the Circuit Drawing Tool:

  • Crystal Component
  • Raspberry Pi board
  • Arduino Uno board

Even though it was previously already possible to draw a Raspberry Pi or Arduino using the general IC component, you can now add these Boards much easier with all available Pins in the circuit drawing Tool.

In addition, for the other Tools, there are some major database updates with new and requested components and some fixes.

A new data-update also updates the included Italian Translation (Thank you Riccardo!!).

Unfortunately, I had to take out Octopart because they suddenly started asking for up to US$500 to continue to use them. This is silly because some of you may have never heard of Octopart and it was probably good advertising for them and they even get their money from their contracted distributors. However, there are many alternatives and I am already working on integrating another alternative. Meanwhile, you can still use the RS Component browser which offers even more accurate and current component information and datasheets.

This was an exciting year and there were 7 App Updates and 12 Data Updates with several improvements based on your requests.

Thank you so much for your support.

Please let others know if you like this App to keep it going.

Thank you so much!

All the best for 2019!

Best Regards,
Marcus…


Categories
Electronic Toolbox News RF-Toolbox News

Version 12.0.6. of Electronic Toolbox fixes a problem with downloading Online Projects – UPDATE

Sorry, there was an issue when downloading online Projects with Electronic Toolbox for iOS (thanks again for reporting this Claude!).

This issue has now been fixed with Update 12.0.6.

That version also includes some additional minor improvements.

How do you like the new Windows Project Editor ? Two users already sent me their project files, created with this new App. I will add these projects soon to the Online Projects.

Best regards,

Marcus

UPDATE: If you are still experiencing an issue downloading an Online Project, please delete the App from your device and re-install the App from the App Store.…


Categories
App News - General News about my Apps Electronic Toolbox News RF-Toolbox News

It’s finally there: The Windows Electronic Project Editor

Some years ago, a user of my Electronic Toolbox asked me to add a Circuit drawing Tool. I was first a bit reluctant for this idea and didn’t believe that an iPad (not talking about an iPhone) is the ideal device for drawing Circuits. The lack of space (even on an iPad Pro) and the lack of a mouse with it’s pointer, hover and right-click possibilities will make it hard to draw Circuits on an iOS Device, even when using the Apple Pencil.

However, over time, more and more people asked for this so I started developing a Circuit Drawing Tool for my Apps. After several months of development time I found some of my assumptions confirmed but also found the Drawing Tool is better than anticipated. I finally ended up using it quite a lot for quick and simple drawings.

The Circuit Drawing Tool as well as the Project Tool have been improved over time. The Drawing Tool now Synchronizes Components seamlessly, in the Background with more than one Circuit and there is now a Cross Reference and Order List Tool and it is possibility to order Components directly from RS-Components.

Due to these improvements, I was using my Tools more and more often also realized that started missing a mouse for drawing and a larger screen.

That’s why I started developing the Windows Electronic Project Editor early 2018 and now, after 10 Months it’s finally available.

My goal was to have a Project Editor that is fully compatible with the iOS Project Tool of Electronic Toolbox and RF-Toolbox. Now it is possible to start a Project on the iPad and continue on a PC (or vice verse).

I intentionally developed this Electronic Project Editor as Windows Desktop App and not as so called Universal Windows App (UWP) or Mac App. The reason is, Universal Apps are basically Tablet Apps which can run on Desktop PCs, feel a bit like Desktop Apps but have a lot of limitations like limited Mouse support and the restriction on a single window. And regarding a Mac App, even though I have a fantastic 5K 27″ iMac and a MacBook Pro 2018 (which I think is the best Laptop available today), I am maintaining all my Electronic Files, Research and Software on my PC. The same is true for all my HAM Radio activities. I assume, with legitimate and honorable exceptions, most people are doing the same so I didn’t consider a MacOs App.

So for all of you, having the same demand for a PC Circuit Drawing Tool and Project Editor, please have a look to:

http://electronic-toolbox.com/electronic-project-editor

or the online manual:

http://go-to.me/projectedit-manual

or even the Windows Store:

https://www.microsoft.com/store/apps/9PDMN194448Q

 

 …


Categories
Electronic Toolbox News

New version 12.0.3 and new Sample Projects

Version 12.0.3 contains the following changes:

  • Component Synchronization of multiple Circuits
  • Synchronization now happens automatically and seamlessly in the background
  • iCloud Drive support has been improved
  • A bug, causing duplicate file names has been fixed
  • The Circuit Editor now supports US Symbol Style (can be changed in board settings)
  • A new universal IC Symbol allows to draw ANY possible Chip variant with any number of Pins and Pin names

Today, I have also released a new Data Update. Once loaded, the “Online Projects” button will link to the new Online Projects website.

The old Online Project section had some issues from time to time and will be discontinued in a few days. The new site should now be much more stable.

I did use this opportunity also to update many Sample Projects and even to add some more. These projects are now using the new capabilities introduced with version 12.0.3 and also requires this version to load correctly.

This update is also a preparation of another exciting App coming soon which now has been submitted for Review.

I will announce more, once the App passes the review process so please stay tuned.

Thanks for your great support and fantastic reviews!

Best regards,

Marcus…


Categories
Electronic Toolbox News RF-Toolbox News

New Version 12 available

A new Version 12 is available for Electronic Toolbox and RF-Toolbox for iOS.

This version is just a small maintenance update which fixes a few very minor iPhone XR/XS/Max and iOS 12 issues.

Along with this update, I fixed a few minor additional issues that have been reported recently and I updated a few databases.

But there are exciting additional news coming soon!

Just a bit more coding and testing by myself and my dear Beta testers and something really exciting will be available to everybody.

I will reveal more, once there is something to show so please stay tuned.

Best regards,

Marcus

 …


Categories
App News - General News about my Apps Electronic Toolbox News RF-Toolbox News

New Version 11.30

The new iOS App Update 11.30 has just been released for Electronic Toolbox. RF- Toolbox and the Android/Windows versions will follow soon.

This Update contains the following changes and improvements:

Bug Fixes:

  • Missing Image (e.g. DB9 Female to RJ45 in Sockets -Cable connections) fixed
  • Wrong color assignment (e.g. in Tables -Cable Colors -Fiber Optic Cable) fixed.
  • In Circuit Editor, using the Trashcan Icon to delete files is now working

The following tools have been redesigned (Electronic Toolbox):

  • Arduino
  • Raspberry Pi
  • Beagle
  • TI LaunchPad

The following tools have been added in Electronic- and RF-Toobox:

  • Colors (for Color conversion between different standards)

The following tools have been added in Electronic Toolbox:

  • NanoPi
  • Orange Pi
  • Banana Pi
  • ODROID
  • Cubieboard
  • SparkFun

These Tools now contain more than 170 Boards, including offline quick reference, online access to data-sheets and images, all with seamless integration to the Project Tool.

PLEASE NOTE (iOS): All new Tools will always be appended at the end of the list. This way, you can easily see what’s new and this will also not mess up your customization. However, if you like to get all Tools sorted in the right (pre-defined) order, just head to the Organizer (Settings -> organizer) tap on the Action button […] at the top and select “Reset to defaults”.

I really appreciate your enthusiasm and contribution to my App.

Thank you so much!

Best regards,

Marcus…


Categories
Electronic Toolbox News

New Version 11.20 (Electronic Toolbox and RF-Toolbox for iOS)

The new Update 11.20 of Electronic Toolbox and RF-Toolbox for iOS has been released.

This Update contains the following fixes and improvements:

  • Improved behavior in slow network conditions while checking for updates
  • Support for the new iOS 11 File Sharer for Circuit Diagrams
  • Improvements for the iPhone X
  • TIP102, LM13700 and other components added (Electronic Toolbox only)
  • New setting for even smaller Icons
  • Improved Circuit Editor
  • Corrections and additions to some component databases
  • Changes, necessary for iOS 11.3

Some people reported issued in poor network situations where the App doesn’t start quickly or appear to not start at all. This was due to the included update check which had a very long timeout. This has now been improved by reducing the timeout values and by reducing the number of checks.

Besides the changes and improvements listed above, there were again many changes “under the hood” so chances are that these changes may cause some new bugs, even though this update has been tested by Beta Users (Thank you!!!) for several weeks. If you are experiencing bugs, please contact me so I can fix them.

Thank you!

Best Regards,

Marcus…


Categories
Electronic Toolbox News

Update 11.10.4

Fortunately, only a few bugs have been reported and an update is already available now which fixes the following bugs:

■ Cross Reference Tool now working correct
■ Circuit Editor save changes bug fixed
■ Some minor UI bugs fixed

Another bug which caused some Arduino board Details not to be displayed correctly has already been fixed by a Data update.

Thanks again for your great support!

Please don’t forget to rate the app (again if possible) which really helps to keep up.

Or, in case, let me know if you may find a bug.

Happy Holidays and all the best,

Marcus…


Categories
App News - General News about my Apps Electronic Toolbox News

New Version 11.10.3

This Update is a new Major Release that includes many changes, improvements and enhancements listed further below.

Due to the huge Installation base of this App, I decided to perform a so called “Phased Release” on the Apple App Store which means that the App will be rolled out slowly over the next seven days but should be finished until next Friday December 15th. So if you don’t see this update, please be patient.

The manual has already been updated and I would recommend having a look to it so get an overview of the many new smaller and larger features.

 

Dear User, I like to thank you again for all your support, suggestion and positive criticism.

I am happy to be able to address the most received suggestions and requests with this update. I am especially proud to be able to add the Order list feature and integrate the Product Browser from RS Components to this version. Not only that I am personally ordering my parts from RS Components,  me and RS Components we are working together for several years now and the ultimate goal was always to include their products to this App.

For this, I had to rewrite and touch major parts of the App and to rewrite the whole Project section which took quite some time.

Even though this update has been tested by many users (thank you!), we may have overseen some bugs.

Please let me know as soon as you can in case you may find a bug because I want to fix it. I am prepared to send out another update before the App Store closes over the holidays in case this would be necessary.

Otherwise I will continue working on the next update.

Thanks again and to all of you who are celebrating Christmas, have a Merry Christmas and all the Best for 2018!

Marcus

 

CHANGES OF VERSION 11.10.3:

■ Improvements:

Several Tools have been improved, based on your suggestions. For instance, the db Tool can now convert values in any direction between dBm, dBW, Vrms, Vpeak, Vpp, dBV, DBmV etc.) and also displays the Formulas used for the calculation.

■ Bugfixes:

A few Bugs have been fixed such as the Float bug in the Number System Tool and some others.

■ New Tools:

A new Cross Reference Tool has been added which contains a database of more than 55000 Semiconductors. This tool can be used to lookup replacement parts.

■ New Make Feature:

The Majority of changes took place to the Projects section of the App. The former Projects Tool is now part or a new Make Section of the App which add the following features:

  • The Circuit Editor can now be started from this Page
  • A new RS Product Browser can be used to find and even order Components or to look up details, specifications and datasheets
  • A new Octopart Browser can also be used to lookup components and datasheets.
  • Components can be Bookmarked and will end up in a new Bookmark list
  • The new Document viewer, which is used for the two new Component Browsers but also for viewing the internal Datasheets and documents, can now be used to store documents local, inside the App by adding these Documents to your Library. The new Library Tool can then be used to view these Documents offline.
  • Finally, there is now an Order list Tool, requested by so many of you for a long time. You can now Create orders by either manually adding Parts to it or create an Order list automatically from any Project. An Order List can be exported, printed or conveniently be sent to RS Components so with just a few steps you can get your parts delivered the other day.

■ Rewritten Project Tool:

The Projects Tool itself, which is now called My Projects has also been improved:

  • Components, Images, Circuits, Diagrams, Notes and Links are now again separated on different Pages. This makes it easier to maintain larger Projects with many Components or Documents.
  • I have removed the possible number of Notes down to two. One on the Main Project Page and another Detail Note. From your feedback, a main and one Detail Note seemed to be more than enough as both can contain an unlimited number of lines.
  • Notes can now contain Attributes like Bold, Italic etc.
  • The Components view has completely been revised. It is now easier to Jump to a corresponding Tool or to find and add Manufacturer Name and MPN using either the RS Product Browser or Octopart.

Categories
Electronic Toolbox News

New Update 11.0.1

The new Update is available. This is mainly a maintenance update. Another feature update will follow shortly.

This update contains the following changes:

  • iPhone X support
  • iOS 9.x, 10.x and 11.x support
  • New Tool: Current Divider
  • Voltage Divider improvements
  • The db Tool now displays correct Unit prefixes
  • Complex numbers will now displayed without unit prefix
  • Improved US and EU Cable length Tool
  • Transparent Keyboard bar bug fixed
  • Improved Amplifier Tool with 3500+ additional Hybrid ICs
  • Fixed bug in Projects where Octopart Browser didn’t find some Components
  • Tesla Coil calculation Too now works in both directions for Inductance and number of Turns

Please let me know if you may find a bug, I would like to fix it.

Please let others know if you like this App to keep it going.

Thank you so much!

Best Regards,
Marcus…


Categories
App News - General News about my Apps Electronic Toolbox News

New Data Update

First of all, many thanks for your Feedback and suggestions.

It’s quite exciting to see how many users are working with my App and found it useful sometimes on a daily basis.

While working on the new App Version, I finished a (quite huge) Data Update. So if you download that Data Update, please be patient as it may take some time. It will be included in the next App Version but you don’t need to wait for that so just go to settings and hit Check for data update to download that update.

The Update contains the following changes:

  • Fixed Datasheet for the 40162 (was showing the 4016 DS)
  • Various Arduino Boards added (including Teensy, Adafruit)
  • Several Arduino Pinouts added / updated (Thanks for your help!)
  • Several Tubes added / updated such as the ECC81/82/83, 12AT7, 12AU7, 12AX7, 6146x, QQE06/40, QE06/50 aka 807
  • New Memories Section for the ICs tool with PROMs, EPROMs, EEPROMs etc
  • Some Sockets added/updated
  • Additional minor changes to other databases

Most of this is based on your suggestions and requests. Some users also send me some Datasheets and lists. Many many thanks! I really appreciate.

Best Regards,
Marcus…


Categories
Electronic Toolbox News

THANK YOU!

2016 has been an incredible year for Electronic Toolbox and RF-Toolbox.

Now – requested by many users – a “real” Manual is available. Parts of the App have been ported to Apple’s new development language Swift. Major parts have been completely rewritten for a tighter integration of the Tools and Projects and best of all – also requested by many users – it is now possible to draw circuits from inside the App.

Based on this foundation, many new features and improvements are now possible and will follow the next months of 2017.

I am happy to be able to offer this all for free to existing users without adding those features via In-App-Purchases and I hope I will be able to continue this way even though it’s getting harder.

You can support my work by writing an App Review, rating my App and let others know about it.

I know that most of you already did and so I like to say a BIG THANK YOU for supporting me throughout the year.

It means a lot to me.

You are the reason why this App exists and continuously improves.

To you and your families Merry Christmas and all the best for 2017.

Thank you!

Marcus…


Categories
App News - General News about my Apps Electronic Toolbox News RF-Toolbox News

New Version 1st of December – Manual available

First of all, thanks for your feedback regarding the Manual. Sorry if I can’t get back to all of you individually.

The Manual

Your feedback was quite different. Some of you prefer a separate online manual, some strongly voted for an offline manual since they use the App often when no or just poor internet connection is available. I now hope I will be able to address both of you. An online manual is now available which will cover basic usage of the App. It even contains some movies which would otherwise blow up the size of the App and it is even available as PDF even for printing (of course the movies will get lost then). Based on your feedback, most people trying to get used with the App and trying to learn how to use it prefer either an online or printed manual so they can read it side by side while trying the App.

On the other hand, I left all Help Texts of the individual Tools still available offline so they can still be opened from inside the App using the (i) button. I think that’s a good compromise and will allow me to add the improvements I wanted to introduce.

If you want to have a look already, here is the link to the english Manual which is almost finished: http://go-to.me/etb-manual. The German version will hopefully follow soon.

Now the good news:

Version 10 of Electronic Toolbox and RF-Toolbox will be available Thursday, December 1st – finally !

There was a lot of work to do for me but I am happy that it’s finally finished now.

Besides many other fixes, improvements and changes (see further below), there are the following highlights:

■ A Circuit Diagram Editor

Yes, indeed, you can now draw your own Circuits from inside the Project Tool. Even though I personally prefer to draw my circuits using PC Software (Eagle or DesignSpark PCB), many of you have asked for such a feature. It is currently quite limited (about 75 components) and lacks a few features I had to postpone for a later update (e.g. block selection with copy/paste and a few more components) but it’s working and most testers found it quite usable.

The Circuit Editor also contains a Sync feature which Synchronizes the Components with the Component list of the Project. This way, the Component list of the Project will be maintained automatically.

■ Project improvements

As Projects now play an even bigger role, I added several improvements. There is now an even better integration between the Tools and Projects. You can now jump back from a Component to the corresponding Tools. For instance, for a Resistor Component entry, you can directly jump to the Resistor Tool so see the color coding for that particular Resistor.

You can now search for (or manually add) a Manufacturer Part Number for Components. This way, I was also able to add a Datasheet Browser to search for millions of Datasheets. For instance, if you add an NE555 Timer Component to a Project, you can Browse for the MPN and select the NE555 from Texas Instruments. Next you can tap on Datasheet and will get the TI Datasheet for the NE555 which can also be added to the same Project as attached Document.

Also, the “Add to Project” feature has been improved further to allow to add the results of a Tool to be used for a Project.

■ Identifying Components

Several users asked me for a possibility to identify Components. Exactly this is the purpose of a new Tool. Here you can browse for a particular component (e.g. Electrolyt Capacitor) and will get some background information as well as pictures of various variants of Electrolyt Capacitors. But it is also possible the other way round, to browse pictures of components for identifying an available Component.

The database currently contains more than 100 Components and I am happy to add more upon request. So if you ran across a certain Component (given that it is not too exotic) which is not included, please feel free to send me the picture so I can add it – even if you don’t know what it is. Maybe I can figure it out.

 

Furthermore, the following changes were implemented:

■ The Sound Generator now allows to select the output device.

Sound can now be forced to the Speaker or can be sent to BlueTooth headsets etc.

■ The unfortunate Formula bug has been fixed
■ Several iOS 10 adaptions were implemented
■ The 3D-Viewer bug was fixed
■ Projects can now be shared via Email
■ 2-Digit SMD Codes were added

Electronic Toolbox:

■ Added Tool: TI LaunchPad
■ Added Tool: Audio Amplifier (1500+ Hybrid amplifiers with circuit diagram)

And finally, the aforementioned Manual has been integrated.

 

All for Free

As you know, I am no fan of In-App Purchases if they can be prevented so all of the above will be for free to all existing users.

I am considering a price increase as all developments, especially the Circuit Editor, required several month development time but again, existing users will get everything for free.

So, like always, as all your great reviews will disappear once the new version is out, please amend your review or add a new one to support me.

Thank you so much!

Best Regards,

Marcus…


Categories
Electronic Toolbox News

Question

As you know, I am working on the new update for quite some time now. I am getting close but ran into the following question for you:

For some of my other Apps, I have mad a change to the Info Pages (the ones that will be displayed when hitting the (i) button in the top right corner). Instead of maintaining these texts individually for each App screen, I put all together to a ‘real’ manual. For the other Apps, some users asked for that. They said that it would be easier for them to look up this manual on another screen (PC or Mac) while working with the App so they can see both side by side. Of course it is still possible to see the corresponding chapter of this manual when hitting the (i) button but there are some pros and cons of both approaches:

  • The current solution is available offline from inside the App whereas the manual solution will always need an internet connection even though it can still be used along with the (i) button
  • The manual solution can be updated and maintained quicker and easier
  • In order to get a complete overview and learn how to use the App in general, the manual solution is better
  • The manual solution also provides the possibility to create a PDF which could also be printed
  • The manual solution is even available without the App as regular website
  • The manual solution is better readable and can contain images and even movies

So there are quite a few advantages of the manual solution which is why users of the other Apps (NetworkToolbox and SmartSDR) appreciate this approach. As it is not possible to offer both solution and since it is quite some work to do to for this change, I would like to ask you for your opinion.

To have a look yourself, here is the NetworkToolbox Manual: http://go-to.me/nettb-manual and the SmartSDR Manual : http://go-to.me/smartsdr-manual

In NetworkToolbox, when hitting the (i) button, you will directly see the corresponding chapter inside the App.

So please let me know your thoughts. Ideally, please use the support button inside my App for your feedback.

Thank you!

Best Regards,
Marcus…


Categories
App News - General News about my Apps Electronic Toolbox News

New Data Update – Happy Birthday Raspberry Pi – New Raspberry Pi 3

A new data update 9.03. is available for Electronic Toolbox.
raspi-3
The Raspberry Pi foundation announced their 4th Birthday today and brought out their new Raspberry Pi 3 which uses a faster 64 Bit 1.2GHz CPU and comes with WiFi and Bluetooth LE.

This deserves a data update for Electronic Toolbox which is now available with the following changes and additions:

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  • Raspberry Pi 3 added
  • AN1431T and M Variable output shunt regulator added
  • new Arduino Pro Mini with ATmega328 added
  • TMP35,36 and 37 Low Voltage Temperature Sensor added
  • Arduino SparkFun added
  • USB Type C added
  • Several other database updates and corrections are included

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I hope to be able to release the next App update soon as well, so stay tuned.

Best Regards,

Marcus…


Categories
Electronic Toolbox News RF-Toolbox News

New Data Update 9.02

A new data update 9.02. is available for Electronic Toolbox and RF-Toolbox.

This update contains the following changes and additions:

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  • Additional Coax Types (Belden)
  • Mini-DIN Sockets added
  • HAM Radio RIG Socket Pinouts
  • Aviation Pinouts
  • Additional data and information for the packages tool
  • The Tubes had lost their Pinout images for some reason. They are now back, sorry.
  • Quite a few amendments and corrections for the existing databases

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A next App update is also already done and will be available soon.

Meanwhile, I’d like to thank you for your tremendous support.

I wish you and your Families a Merry Christmas and all the Best for 2016!

Best Regards,

Marcus

P.S. Many thanks for your feedback regarding my Windows Project editor. Thanks also for submitting your Projects. I hope I will be able to upload your Projects to the Online Projects soon.…


Categories
App News - General News about my Apps Electronic Toolbox News RF-Toolbox News

Updated Project Editor

prj-editor-v16

 

Thanks for your feedback to the Project Editor.

I have just created a small Project Editor update 1.06 with the following changes:

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  • The recently introduced additional Components are now also available in the Project Editor
  • When selecting a Component, the Component symbol will now be displayed
  • The sample Project file and the few Sample Documents (including the two 3D objects) are now installed in the Project Document Directory in two separate Directories
  • The download and the code is now code-signed so you will no longer get scary warning errors when installing
  • The installation program is now an InstallShield .EXE file rather than a Microsoft MSI File
  • The Installer should now also install the .NET framework, if not already installed

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Based on your feedback, I am a little surprised that almost nobody is using iCloud Drive to synchronize Projects between your Windows PC and the Apps. I personally found it the ideal way to share Projects not just between the Windows PC and my Apple Devices but also between my iPads and iPhones and even between Electronic Toolbox and RF-Toolbox. Especially when using the Project Editor, it makes much sense to work with iCloud Drive.

The other options (DropBox, iTunes, email) are still possible but I found that too cumbersome and time consuming.

Don’t be scared, if you don’t like to synchronize your Photos or Keychain by using iCloud (like myself). You really don’t have to, when using iCloud Drive along with Electronic Toolbox or RF-Toolbox. You can use it solely to Synchronize your Projects files if you like.

All information, how to download Project Editor, how install and use it and even how to configure iCloud Drive can still be found on this page:

http://electronic-toolbox.com/project-editor-beta

I still appreciate your valuable feedback about the project Editor.

I am currently finalizing the next update of Electronic Toolbox which will be sent to Apple in a few days.

Thanks for your support.

Best Regards,

Marcus…


Categories
App News - General News about my Apps Electronic Toolbox News RF-Toolbox News

New Versions 9 of Electronic Toolbox and RF-Toolbox available now

The new versions of Electronic Toolbox and RF-Toolbox are available now.

These new App versions contain new tools, many feature improvements and of course some bug fixes.

A Optocoupler, Packages, Microstrip Mitre and PLL Loop Filter tool has been added. The App are now not just compatible to iOS 9 but also support the new iOS 9 features like Multitasking and Split View.

Also some great feature improvements have been implemented like the possibility to jump to the particular component from inside the component databases (e.g. from a suggested compatible/replacement component) or from inside the Project tool to lookup component pinouts or datasheets for components you are using in a project.

To read more about what’s new, just head to the what’s new page.


iPhone-1-e


Categories
App News - General News about my Apps Electronic Toolbox News RF-Toolbox News

Announcements

Some news and announcements regarding Electronic Toolbox and RF-Toolbox:

New Facebook page

Electronic and RF-Toolbox now have a dedicated Facebook Page.

The address is: https://www.facebook.com/electronictoolbox

Some users encouraged me to setup a Facebook page so that it is now easier to stay informed.

Windows Project Editor

As mentioned earlier, I developed a Windows Project Editor. This piece of software was basically developed for myself to create and edit projects on my Windows PC rather than breaking my fingers on the touch screen of my iPad or iPhone.

I thought that I should share this software with you rather then using it just for myself so I invited some of you for testing. The feedback I received from most testers (thank you!) was that the Project Editor is at least “usable” and doesn’t contain any major bugs that prevent it from using. So instead of finalizing this software I decided to release it to you so you no longer need to wait but please keep in mind, it is still beta. I will continue to work on this software once my next App Updates have been rolled out (see below).

You will find more information and the download link for the Project Editor here.

I am still interested in your feedback.

Next App Versions

Even though I sent out some Data updates, you may wonder when next next App updates will be available. I made the following decision:

Rather than releasing a new big update for both Apps, I will release smaller updates during the next weeks and months.

I already finished some very interesting new features, improvements and tools and am still working on some more. Some still need to be finalized and tested, some are already ready to be rolled out.

Instead of waiting until everything is completed, I decided to release Electronic Toolbox and RF-Toolbox in smaller pieces always whenever something can be rolled out. A few weeks later, I will then release a next version with some more features and so on.

The advantage is, that you, as a user, can benefit from the new features sooner. Also, I can directly and faster respond to possible bugs which can then be fixed immediately in the following release.

Disadvantage is, this is causing a little bit more overhead to me as every App Store roll-out is causing extra preparation and effort (sometimes debates with Apple if they claim the App doesn’t comply to a certain App Store guideline rule as happened lately).

Second, and to be honest that was so far one of my most important reasons for bigger updates, I will loose all your great App Store reviews with every update and I don’t want to push you too often to update your review on the App Store. These reviews are very important for the success of any App.

However, I think you will definitely benefit from smaller updates and so I will give it a try.

So during the next months, you can expect many updates with many new features and improvements.

I am really interested about your feedback.

Will keep you updated,

Best Regards,

Marcus…


Categories
App News - General News about my Apps Electronic Toolbox News RF-Toolbox News

New data update available

A new data update 8.10. is available for Electronic Toolbox and RF-Toolbox.

In this update I added the recently introduced BeagleBone Green board. This is a very nice addition to the BeagleBone family as it is available for a much lower price as it lacks of a few features such as a Audio and Video output which is often not needed for projects and made the other boards quite expensive.

Some other changes are some additions and corrections in the ICs section and I also added Copper Current Carrying figures to the AWD tool.

I also added several new Component types for the Project section of the App.

Upon request (many thanks!) I also added a CTCSS / NAC conversion table to the Tables Tool.

In addition, this update also contains many changes which are needed for the upcoming release I am currently working on. Hopefully I can finish it soon but there is still some coding work to do. I will keep you updated here.

The same update is available for both, Electronic Toolbox and RF-Toolbox.

Regarding your mails

I would like to mention something else here as well. I am receiving quite a few mails per day from you. Some mails with questions about certain features. Some mails with suggestions and some even with bug reports (fortunately not too many) and some even with general questions of various Electronic subjects not even related to Electronic Toolbox.

Every single mail is greatly appreciated. I am happy even to help in non App related Electronic questions as this may result in an additional idea for my Apps. I am glad anyway to communicate with people sharing the same enthusiasm to Electronics than I do.

However, sometimes when I am responding to mails I found that the sender’s email address does not exist (maybe due to a typo) or somebody – for whatever reason – doesn’t receive my answer mails. This happened recently with a Gentlemen called Pierre. He was using the form on the Website to ask his questions and tried a couple of times. I also responded a couple of times even from different mail accounts just in case. It still seems he didn’t receive my mails.

I am working through my mails every day, even on weekends and when on holidays. I am responding to and answering every single mail. Sometimes it takes a bit longer and sometimes I am quick (e.g. in case of bug reports). But everybody will for sure receive an answer.

So in case one of you didn’t hear back, please think twice if you may have used the form and probably entered a wrong email address or if my response ended up in your spam folder.

The email address issue could be prevented if you would use the support button inside the app by the way.

Its frustrating for both of us. For me after writing a long response and getting an email error or another email wondering why I didn’t respond. Or for you if you think why I am not responding.

But fortunately, this doesn’t happen too often but it happens and that was why I though I should mention this here.

Now getting back to my development work for the next update.

Thanks for your great support and your kind App Store reviews!

Best Regards,

Marcus…


Categories
Electronic Toolbox News RF-Toolbox News

Windows Project Editor – Anybody interested ?

While maintaining the projects you sent me (again many thanks!) I found it a bit cumbersome to edit the projects in my App, even on an iPad. This is basically because I am used to enter larger amounts of texts on a regular keyboard and also because I have most of the files that I like to attach to projects on my PC (yes, not my Mac).

I am happy, to carry the projects around with my iPad and even make some changes and additions but for the majority of work I like to use my PC or Mac.

For this reason, I developed a small Windows Program which can read, write and edit Electronic (and RF-) Toolbox Project files (.etb4prj).

So far, this program is really Beta and definitely contains some bugs but I am working with this software for quite some time now.

Here is a screen shot of the current version:

project-edit

So I am wondering if anybody else is interested in this program. Again, it is only available for Windows and should run on Windows 7 and newer.

If you are interested, just let me know by using the “Support” Button inside Electronic Toolbox or RF-Toolbox and you will receive the Beta Version.

Looking forward to your feedback.

Best Regards,
Marcus…


Categories
Electronic Toolbox News ETB App Internal

New data update, new projects and iOS 9

As you may have seen already, a new data update is available and I added some new online projects.

Data update

This data update 8.8 contains the following changes:

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  • 6510 CPU added
  • SJA1000 added
  • LM336Z5 (Programmable Shunt Regulator) added
  • Adjustments to the Circuit Symbols
  • Additions and corrections to the FET database
  • Arduino Nano V2.x and V3.x differences covered
  • A few formulas updated
  • Some Translations added/corrected

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New Online Projects

Right after sending out my last news blog post, I received some projects from you. Many thanks!

After adding the 9V Colpitts Oscillator some days ago, I just added the following user projects:

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  • A Micro-M Solar charger from Clemente
  • A NE555 On-Off Switch from Karsten
  • A Short wave receiver from Mike (who also submitted the Collpits Oscillator)

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To all of you, again many thanks for sharing these projects with other users.

I hope these good examples now encourage more users to send me more of their projects.

Please contact me in case of questions.

iOS 9

I guess some of you have seen the exciting Apple WWDC event yesterday. If not, you can still watch the Keynote from here.

It’s exciting to see how many new and great features like new Multitasking capabilities, the new Keyboard features and Touchpad to move the cursor and other great things are about to come with the next iOS version.

This really shows that Apple won’t stop to further improve something we all already don’t want to miss anymore. It’s also good to see that Apple now concentrates on many small and useful features as well as stability and speed rather than mainly UI design. It is also good to know that all devices that currently run iOS 8 will be supported so everybody will be able to update to iOS 9.

I could not wait to run iOS 9 on some of my test devices and it’s really great – already.

The best news however is, that Electronic Toolbox as well as RF-Toolbox already run on iOS 9 without any issue and they even benefit and can use some of the new features.

Of course will I also integrate some new features of iOS 9 directly into my Apps but first and before I will finish the version I am currently working on.

I will keep you updated,

Many thanks to all users and supporters!

Thanks for your reviews!

Best regards,
Marcus…