Olin Lathrop

2,424 reputation

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bio	website	embedinc.com/olin
	location	Littleton, Massachusetts
	age	56
visits	member for	7 months
	seen	8 hours ago
stats	profile views	8

Electrical engineering consultant specializing in microcontrollers and the circuitry around them. Master of engineering in EE from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1980.

We are certified Microchip design partners, and have been in the top catagory consistantly since around 2000. Various free downloads related to developing PIC firmware and other things are available at http://www.embedinc.com/pic/dload.htm.

	2,424 reputation	bio	website	embedinc.com/olin	visits	member for	7 months
314 badges		location	Littleton, Massachusetts		seen	8 hours ago

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Dec 13	comment	Are there any exceptions to the layer principle? @Mr.W: I grew up in New England with "winter jackets" in the winter, although none of them were down. As I said, I find the windbreaker over wool sweater more comfortable and certainly more versatile. Of course that is a personal preference. I only wore a down jacket briefly once. While very nice and warm, it also felt "puffy", but the real problem was that I got hot in it after just hiking up a moderate hill. Then I had a all or nothing problem. Layers would have been nicer, as I could have removed just part of the insulation.
Dec 11	comment	Are Ice grips worth buying Would these things be acceptable to wear indoors on some floor types? If so what types? Or, do you always take them off on entering and put them back on when leaving? How much of a hassle is that if you're carrying a bag of groceries, for example?
Dec 11	comment	Should I always take a hard hat if I go scrambling? Everything is a tradeoff, so never does any harm is just plain wrong. The "harm" in this case includes extra bulk and weight to carry, additional fatigued caused by that, less enjoyment due to shlepping the helmet and possibly wearing it if you don't like helmets, etc. The real question is whether those "harms" are worth it, which I'm not addressing. My point is that knee jerk "always do ..." answers without any discussion of the downside are wrong or misleading at best, this one being no exception.
Dec 9	comment	What is a good tool for minor trail maintenance while hiking? @Russell: Bow saws are definitely more effective than those little folding saws, but I wouldn't want to take a bow saw if I mostly wanted to hike and maybe do a little casual maintenence. The folding saw can be folded and stowed, but a bow saw is a fairly large item, even if light for its size and capabilities.
Dec 8	comment	What is a good tool for minor trail maintenance while hiking? @Mr.W: I saw the serrated edge in the picture and took it to be a saw. I didn't even notice it was billed as a machete until you mentioned it and I went back and looked. You are right, my experience is in temperate forests and I've never used a machete and I've never seen one used by anyone else in many hours of trail work here in New England with many groups. As a saw, that thing looks like a toy, but I have no opinion on its machete aspect.
Dec 7	comment	What is a good tool for minor trail maintenance while hiking? @Mr.W: I've done a lot of trail work, and have never seen anyone wear eye protection. I wear glasses most of the time, so that gives me some protection I suppose, but my purpose in wearing them is to see better. In wet weather, I wear contacts when doing trail work. I have never felt I needed deliberate eye protection.
Dec 7	comment	What is a good tool for minor trail maintenance while hiking? @whats: That looks like a toy. From the picture, it looks anything that can cut you can get with a small pair of clippers.
Dec 6	comment	Apart from down, is there any outdoor material that should not be stored stuffed? I don't get the part about electric cables should not be tightly wrapped. What exactly do you think the harm of that is?
Dec 6	comment	What is the true risk of suffocation from different combustion sources in a tent? (CO2, CO) @Steed: Like I said, I'm not going to run a stove or a fuel-based lantern in a tent. That a just plain bad idea. Cooking doubly so due to the residual food smell attracting bears. I went into more detail about lighting because this could be acceptable in some cases, like a single candle carefully held.
Dec 3	comment	Are there significant behaviour differences among bear species to adopt different safety rules? When you climb up a tree to get away, a black bear will climb up after you whereas a grizzly will wrap its forelegs around the trunk and pull it up by its roots.
Dec 1	comment	Performance of fur garments? Many furs are still in use today by cats, bears, wolves, musk oxen, etc. Some of these are regularly exposed to cold and wind and the population is still there, so they musk work pretty well.
Nov 29	comment	Is there a large difference in WFA (Wilderness First Aid) programs? I've only taken a SOLO class, and thought it was well done and useful to me. I have no experience with the others, so can't compare.
Nov 29	comment	Preferred way to wrap someone with Hypothermia? There are local organzations that offer wilderness first aid and related courses too. For example, SOLO in New Hampshire is one such organization I have taken courses from.
Nov 14	comment	Does eating snow help dehydration? Actually the most common cause of colored snow is algae, not bacteria. However, your point remains. Ingesting the algae can be bad.
Nov 14	comment	Does eating snow help dehydration? Yeah, without being able to look at the original report, I am skeptical that they actually died of eating snow. What other factors were envolved? How do we know that eating snow was a contibuting factor, let alone the main cause? What was the actual cause of death? Was there a control in the same conditions where some ate snow and some didn't? Were these people already hypothermic? Would they likely have died anyway from other causes, like freezing to death?
Nov 13	comment	Tips for hunting nocturnal deer You could appreciate them in their own right being a part of the nature around your house instead of blasting away. Just a thought.
Nov 10	comment	What lower temperature limit should I look for in sleeping bag for the Appalachian Trail? You said northbound, but also that you plan to do half the trail. It is therefore unclear where you will start, since it can be anywhere in the southern half. I would give different advice for doing the northern half starting in May than what Russell said for the starting at the southern end.
Nov 8	comment	What characteristics should I look for in a good torch/flashlight? I don't understand how getting a flashlight will keep cyclists and campers from blinding you all the time. It seems you want them to get the flashlight.
Nov 8	comment	Trekking Pole Length No, I was just making a flip comment related to Abe's answer that your legs should be long enough to reach the ground. I personally don't like carrying things in my hands and don't use poles, so can't offer any personal experience.
Nov 7	comment	Trekking Pole Length To paraphrase Abe Lincoln, trekking poles should be long enough to reach the ground.