Installation costs 9 Mbyte or 16 Mbyte.
TI still uses it's own ugly 640*480 interface.
The interface wasn't able to start Adobe's Acrobat
for the datasheets, but the leaflet in the CD-ROM
has a note saying:
When installing on either Windows '95, Windows 3x
or Windows NT 3.5x, if you do not have Adobe Acrobat
installed and you do not install the software,
unsatisfactory results may occur.
I prefer to use Acrobat 2.x since it's much faster
than 3.x, perhaps TI's interface only wants to work
with Acrobat 3.x...
I haven't checked it...
TI's interface doesn't allow cutting and pasting any data.
Score: 60%
Looking on the CD-ROM surface learns that it seems to be filled
for about 66%.
When looking in the main directory:
Then a window without a question and no helpdesk to call...
But a lot of buttons and possibilities...
Ok close does the trick... Pfoeh...
Ok, video for windows needs to be installed now.
Or do I already have the newest version? How do I know?
Which version are they planning to install?
Let's ask the program to find out and hope it's
intelligent enough not to overwrite a newer version. ;-)
Ok, it's installing version 1.1 but which release?
Now we'll have to restart windows, so don't smoke
during the intermission. Popcorn can be had at the
counter...
--Saving this review temporarily--
Wasn't necessary, the 'restart windows button'
didn't work anyway...
Ok, starting up the program. Impressive logo
turning around, but all in a window of 640x480 which
kills the effect at 800x600 (Yes call me old fashioned,
I still have 800x600). The window can't be enlarged...
Ah well, we'll continue...
It's very clear now, that we have to do with a proprietary
interface which may not be really ugly, but which is
probably reinventing the wheel again...
For options with the user window:
And below the user window a kind of toolbar:
Strange place for 'Help' and 'Exit' etc. Didn't Windows
have standard ways to handle menu options? Wasn't
the advantage of a GUI, that all programs behaved
similar so that you only had to learn one kind of interface? ;-)
Now we'll choose 'Important Message' since it seems to
be important...
Of course it turns out to be completely unimportant and just the
dribble the corporate lawyers always want to annoy us with...
Ok, looking for the back key. The designers obviously
don't know the WWW or MS's help pages...
Ok, the Home option will do...
(On lower levels there does appear a back button I saw
later in the help file.)
Now going to the real stuff: Product Information.
Not their complete oeuvre is on the CD-ROM unfortunately,
so lets pick my favorite subject: UART's (called data
transmission products, yes I have some experience...)
Indeed!
But when clicking the subsection UART, I get the message:
CAT Msg: Error From "SQLConnect"
etc.
Probably I did made a mistake earlier on during installation.
Well I'm tired, so let's call it a day...
By the way the sticker on the cellophane of the CD-ROM
mentioned: Important, this version of the Info Navigator
will not operate under Windows NT(tm)
(Easy to archieve of course, cellophane wrappers.)
But luckely the stickers can be easily removed and
transfered to the CD-ROM box.
Perhaps I'll try the CD-ROM again tomorrow, but then
I'll go via the file manager directly to the directories
that contain the .pdf files. ;-)
--Next day--
The CD-ROM appears to have 650 PDF files, which
use up 194 Mbyte of space. Some of these files
contain packages information but most contain
chip information. Some are very bad (and slow to load)
pixel scans of databooks, but most are just good PDF
documents. An easy way to find the datasheet you
want isn't available. Perhaps it's much easier to visit
TI's WWW site when you're looking for information on
only a few chips.
The PDF file names on their site are the same as on
the CD-ROM, so you can use the WWW-site to locate
the correct PDF filename and use the file from the CD-ROM.
DSP reference CD-ROM available now
Electronic Engineering Times magazine and TI have developed a DSP reference
CD for engineers, engineering managers, and others wanting to learn about
digital signal processing and TMS320 DSPs.
The CD uses video, animation, DSP-related articles from EE Times, and
general tutorial articles to show the theory and implementation of DSPs. It
covers a wide range of information on concepts, reference material, and
executive overviews, including current applications, a primer on the
basics, a DSP market overview, and a discussion of the future of DSP.
To receive an order form for the CD, point your web browser to
http://techweb.cmp.com/eet/cdrom or look for advertisements in issues of
EE Times. US pricing is $19.95, plus shipping and handling.
Digital Signal Processing:
A Multimedia Reference Guide
Table of Contents Outline [Image]
1. Introduction - Video Overview of Digital Signal Processing
2. General Background Section On DSPs
* The Importance of DSP
* Role of DSP
* Applications
* DSP Market
* Future of DSP
3. TI DSP Section
* About Texas Instruments
* About TI DSPs
* TI DSP Solution Strategy
4. Reference Information
* DSP Concepts
+ Introduction
+ The five senses of the computer
+ DSP primer
* References
+ Third-party products
+ Technical documents
+ Software files
The Digital Signal Processing CD-ROM is produced by EE Times in
cooperation with Texas Instruments.
Order form (GIF 8Kb)
|
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