From: John Eagan <76130.2225@CompuServe.COM>
Subject: Re: TECH: U of I Powerglove Update 6-9-92
Date: 11 Jun 92 12:36:03 EDT



jlb31348@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (Jim Brain) writes:

>  <stuff deleted>
>The board will take 3-4 weeks to lay out. It was started last Monday.
>The board will take 3-4 weeks to produce. Each board will cost ~$10.00
>The board will require 1-2 weeks to stuff and solder. That costs ~$60.00
>
>That means that in 6 to 9 weeks from today, I will mail these things out
>IF:
>
>I need at least 50 people that will commit to buying one by the time the
>boards finish the 2nd phase. If not, then this will cease to be a
>project because I do not have the $3000.00 it will take to stuff and
>solder the boards.
>What we are going to do if collect the money 2 weeks before P-day, and
>hand that money over to the company that makes the boards after they
>send us the  stuff.  That way, none is out money for more than 3 weeks,
>and I can give the people what they want.  Unfortunately, the cost looks
>like it will be in the $85.00 range, which is $10 over what I said would
>be the top end. Costs come way down if we go to 100 units, but I am not
>sure I can sell that many. I would like to, since the board price falls
>to $5.00 and the $60.00 will fall to $55.00 opr $50.00, but I just don't
>know.  

Let's review a couple of specifics there..

>The board will require 1-2 weeks to stuff and solder. That costs ~$60.00
    (...and....)
>.....If not, then this will cease to be a project because I do not have
>the $3000.00 it will take to stuff and solder the boards.

Forgive me if I'm suggesting the painfully obvious here and you've already
considered and dismissed this, but I can't help but give you the benefit
of the doubt here, having read your descriptions of your situation (trying
to design this thing and write software, along with school, finals,
etc..).  This may be a classic case of being up to your ass in alligators
and forgetting you wanted to drain the swamp. :-)

What's wrong with a kit??

>From your previous posts, it doesn't appear that you're doing this out of
a desire to be an OEM, but rather for the sake of experimentation and
development. Of course, if that's in your future goals, this effort is
certainly a good training project. But your idea as stated before was
simply to get this thing out there to get people working with it, right?

You say it will cost $60/board to stuff and solder, and you don't have the
$3000 for stuffing and soldering. You then have to sit down and assemble
50 of these babies.

Suggestion; forget all that. Get the boards printed. Buy the components.
Blast any EPROMs involved. Get boxes with holes in the right places, get
the hardware to screw it all together. Make up an instruction packet; a
few photocopied sheets with schematic, parts list, component layout, and
doo doo doo and da da da and whatever da hell else ya wanna throw in
dere...  Toss the components in a static bag; toss the hardware in
another bag, throw component bag, hardware bag, box, connectors, and
instructions in a box. Slap on mailing labels, load up the car, head to
UPS, wave bye-bye, and call it macaroni.

You'll save a bunch of your time that would be better used in other ways,
you'll save some money that would be better applied to your little
non-profit VR development effort, and be able to even lower the price a
couple bucks. You don't have to scrape up $3000 by scrambling to collect
advance orders before you can go ahead.

All the end user needs to do is be able to solder, put the pieces in the
right places, and understand the hazards of ESD. Anybody who can't
comprehend the latter two doesn't have any business playing with this
anyway, and if you don't trust yourself to solder up a board without it
coming out looking like it's been through a fire, big deal. You can
surely  find a friend who can do it well, to do it for you. This isn't a
major job; an offer of dinner and a chance to play around with your system
when it's up and running should do it.

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*VR section leader                                   -me         *
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