Nonfiction

“Substitute 'damn' every time you're inclined to write 'very;' your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be.”

― Mark Twain 

The Phone Rings -- It's War (Published as Bei Anruf Krieg)

My recollection of Army duty during the Cold War in Germany, 1983 - 1986. The Cold War was an strange time, and over there we lived with one foot in the gasthaus, and one foot on the battlefield, trained to roll out and fight the Soviets and their Warsaw Pact allies. My English text is here, and the link to the online article in Spiegel Geschichte is here. 

Survival on the Dirty Battlefield (Published as Überleben auf dem schmutzigen Schlachtfeld)

A recollection of Cold War experiences in the infantry under the threat of Soviet chemical weapons in Europe, and how my battalion used Soviet tactics to turn the tables on Special Forces troops in an exercise. My English text is here, and the link to the online article in Spiegel Geschichte is here. 

1965 Corvair Monza Convertible (Published as Der amerikanischen Käfer [The American "Bug"])

My story of restoring a '65 Chevrolet Corvair Monza and how much fun it was to drive it around. Published in Spiegel's Altmetall (Old Metal) section. I lost my English original, but the article is still online. 

400 Years of Barbecue (Published as Viel Rauch um Fleisch [A Lot of Smoke Around Meat])

The article covers the 400-year-old tradition of American barbecue: slow cooking meat with wood smoke.  The first American colony was established in Jamestown, Virginia in 1607, and the first mention of barbecue was in 1610. The colonists quickly learned from the natives how to smoke meat over hardwood, slow cooking to tenderize the toughest cuts. My English text is here, and the link to the online article in Spiegel Geschichte is here. 

Capitol on Fire (Published as Hauptstadt in Flammen)

The article is my recollections of the 1968 riots in Washington as events unfolded less than fourteen miles from my home. My English text is here, and the link to the online article in Spiegel Geschichte is here. 

Mathematical Modeling of Solder Paste Stenciling for Process Control

A conference paper presented at Surface Mount International. This technical paper covers the steps taken to make a mathematical model of solder paste stenciling and how that model was used to reduce the variability of printed paste deposits by selecting the best combination of stencil printer settings: squeegee pressure, squeegee speed, and separation speed. While stencil design drove the volume of deposited solder paste, printer settings were found to have a statistically significant effect on the standard deviation of the volume of deposited brick of solder paste. From this, a programmed spreadsheet was developed as a tool to determine optimal printer settings. This method was confirmed twice with tests and works well in conjunction with inline automated optical inspection of stenciled solder paste. 

Jumping to Box Build

Article from Assembly magazine that talks about how a contract manufacturer makes the transition from manufacturing components and subassemblies to building and testing completed end items that can be shipped directly to the end user. The focus is on electronics manufacturing and the transition from just stuffing circuit boards to manufacturing the final product.

Designing Maximum Density SMT for Military Projects

Article from Surface Mount Technology magazine. It describes the process for designing a pocket-sized tactical computer for a DoD customer, using evolving technology components as they come to market, as well as advanced circuit board techniques to pack maximum function into minimal space. Several design and manufacturing problems were encountered and solved in the process of making the customer's wish list into a live, workable product.

Caught in the Middle!

Article from Assembly magazine that addresses how a contract manufacturer can be caught between customer requirements and what suppliers will and won't provide. It contains advice on how a contract manufacturer can handle less-than-cooperative directed sources for parts, discrepant customer-consigned parts, and obsolete parts.

Managing Wash Lines by Statistical Process Control

A conference paper presented at Surface Mount International. This technical paper addresses how statistical process control made wash lines more efficient, avoiding defects and unscheduled downtime. The first-year savings in chemical costs alone was 24%, or some $54,000.  The paper addresses how measuring soils load and putting it under SPC allowed for dumping wash baths only when necessary and avoiding white residue defects. FMEA methods were applied to the process to develop a troubleshooting guide, keying on the cause-and-effect relationships of the factors tracked by SPC.

Beginning Nonfiction and Freelance Writing

A half-day writing workshop conducted for the Tampa Writer's Alliance. This is a primer to walk beginning writers through the steps of querying editors, composing and organizing articles, style guides, and manuscript formats. The article also addresses how to use editorial calendars, Writers Market, and working with editors.