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What's in Your Toolbox?
Embedded Geek asks: "I am a software developer with access to (conservatively) $100K worth of emulators, protocol analyzers, and debugging equipment at work. Nevertheless, as in every lab since Frankenstein's, I can never find a meter or screwdriver when I need one - and God help you if you need electrical tape! Over the years I have accumulated a personal toolkit to fill the gaps between what my employer provides and what I need to get my job done. In addition to the basics (a meter, screwdrivers, cable ties, boxcutter, extra power cables, duct tape) I have a number of oddball items that have come in handy (serial cable gender changers & converters, a dental mirror, dental picks). I'm curious what other items slashdotters doing hardware/software development have found useful that their bosses never provide. What about those in the IT/support world?"
What are you, some kind of terrorist?
Beauty is in the eye of the beerholder.
Gender changers are a useful tool in your shop? What kinds of problems do you run into that you gotta go whacking off body parts of sticking new ones on with super glue?
Reminds me a little bit of a Neil Gaiman short story. Guy develops a pill to cure some disease but it has an odd side effect, it can change your sex. Society began to use the drug recreationally.
My employment contract. It's the most useful thing in a politically charged environment.
If tits were wings it'd be flying around.
Lots and lots of bits, half 0's and half 1's.
I have no use for bytes or words, they just take up too much room in my special carryng case (my bit bucket). Besides I can assemble any byte or word that I desire with just a little work and it really cuts down on inventory.
A spatula, a stack of hamburger wrappers, and a grill scraper. You want fries with that?
Sssssh, don't tell them... just post the highest modded comments again and watch your karma soar! :-p
Like this:
- A screwdriver with #2 Phillips, flat and assorted Torx bits
- A small set of little-tiny screw drivers for laptops
- A penlight
- A telescoping mirror
- A telescoping magnetic pickup or grabber
- A big (40+) CD case to carry all your utility software
- A couple of blank floppies
- A '98 boot diskette (for machines that won't boot off CD-ROM for whatever reason)
- Spare IDE/FDD cables
- Spare SCSI cables and terminators
- Spare Cat-5 cables of various lengths including one short cross-over and a couple of inline couplers so you can daisy-chain them
And if you still have room: a mini-hub, spare NIC, spare video-card, HDD for imaging, laptop with PCMCIA nic and modem
Enjoy!
Percussive maintenance - 'nough said.
...delivering the occasional baby...
All my money went to Nigeria and all I got was this lousy sig. . .
One future, two choices. Oppose them or let them destroy us.
...delivering the occasional baby...
... finishing off the occasional roach ...
A lineman's handset, preferably obtained in the traditional way.
Traditional, eh? That does mean out of the back of the telephone company truck, right?
Since I work with some embedded stuff as well, it has happened that my pocket knife have come in handy (some people actually fasten those screws at the end of the com-ports I need access to in order to speak to the equipment).. But it depends on what you do (well, I have also used a multimeter once, but only because I had no lightbulb and two pieces of wire handy).
If you need more tools than that, you can't possibly call yourself a software developer.
Besides, the ultimate toolchest has been discussed at slashdot before. But anyway, here is my suggestion (but for software developers):
A hammer.
Rather then carry around one tool to solve each problem, it's much simpler to carry around a hammer and treat all problems as nails.
"Can of worms? The can is open... the worms are everywhere."
Don't force it, get a bigger hammer.
"Understand you're having a little Jimmy Page trouble."
The most important thing to have in your toolbox is a large, stuffed, pink bunny.
Carry it around everywhere at work. Converse with it regularly. Get its opinion on other peoples' technical problems. Make your co-workers greet the rabbit whenever they greet you.
This should keep people from calling you unless it's REALLY an emergency.
Most people here would buy the $50 mouse that lasts for years instead of the $5 mouse that lasts 6 months, yes?
You must not have kids. I pick up a couple of cheap mice and keyboards at every computer show.
Hell, my boys have been known to break *HAMMERS*! As my eight year old says, "It's not that hard, you just have to whack it on concrete a few times".