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Is this a Protoboard? - Movie Screenshot — Parallax Forums

Is this a Protoboard? - Movie Screenshot

CassLanCassLan Posts: 586
edited 2010-03-11 23:21 in Propeller 1
I love finding parallax products in movies, is this a hacked up Propeller Protoboard?

Rick

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Comments

  • Graham StablerGraham Stabler Posts: 2,510
    edited 2009-12-05 20:16
    Really looks like it, which film?
  • MagIO2MagIO2 Posts: 2,243
    edited 2009-12-05 20:17
    Shouldn't you continue with your editor instead of watching movies??? ;o)
  • JonnyMacJonnyMac Posts: 9,208
    edited 2009-12-05 20:20
    Hey, hey, hey, now... please don't discourage anyone from watching movies. In fact, watch more -- and tell your friends to do the same!
  • Beau SchwabeBeau Schwabe Posts: 6,568
    edited 2009-12-05 20:33
    At least I believe that is a 'Basic Stamp II Rev A' board in the background (out of focus).

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    Beau Schwabe

    IC Layout Engineer
    Parallax, Inc.
    BS2REVA.JPG
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  • Oldbitcollector (Jeff)Oldbitcollector (Jeff) Posts: 8,091
    edited 2009-12-05 20:38
    Nah.. Gotta be a protoboard.. You can see where the surface mount caps were next to the regulators and the
    three pin power servo connection. Looks like they cut off the area where the Propplug would have been.

    OBC

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    Post Edited (Oldbitcollector) : 12/5/2009 8:45:54 PM GMT
    32212-L.jpg
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  • Graham StablerGraham Stabler Posts: 2,510
    edited 2009-12-05 20:41
    OBC, look in the background there is another board, the one that Beau shows.

    Graham

    p.s. you should really give that board a dust Beau! [noparse];)[/noparse]
  • Beau SchwabeBeau Schwabe Posts: 6,568
    edited 2009-12-05 20:41
    Oldbitcollector,

    I also agree that it is a partial protoboard in the gripper-hand, but look further into the picture at what's on the desktop... I think that may be a 'Basic Stamp II Rev A' board.

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    Beau Schwabe

    IC Layout Engineer
    Parallax, Inc.
  • Oldbitcollector (Jeff)Oldbitcollector (Jeff) Posts: 8,091
    edited 2009-12-05 20:44
    wow! missed that!

    What movie was this?

    OBC

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  • CassLanCassLan Posts: 586
    edited 2009-12-05 20:53
    Haha, wow I love this forum, you all jumped on it.

    Its called "law abiding citizen" and its within the first 20 seconds of the movie.

    Good Catch Beau!! I totally missed that

    Rick

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    ·
  • Graham StablerGraham Stabler Posts: 2,510
    edited 2009-12-05 20:54
    I've seen the trailers, well I have to see it now! [noparse]:)[/noparse]

    But won't ask how you got the frame [noparse];)[/noparse]
  • Roger LeeRoger Lee Posts: 339
    edited 2009-12-05 20:55
    to the right of the stamp board (just a corner showing), another protoboard?
  • Graham StablerGraham Stabler Posts: 2,510
    edited 2009-12-05 21:02
    It's the right colour but I don't think even CSI can find out from this frame [noparse]:)[/noparse]
  • Beau SchwabeBeau Schwabe Posts: 6,568
    edited 2009-12-05 21:15
    Graham Stabler,


    "But won't ask how you got the frame [noparse];)[/noparse]" - I have a friend who is a movie critic and gets raw film cuts way before the movie ever comes out, but usually they come with some sort of watermark at the bottom of the video every few minutes.

    Anyway, it wouldn't surprise me if CassLan also had a movie connection along those lines.

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    Beau Schwabe

    IC Layout Engineer
    Parallax, Inc.
  • JonnyMacJonnyMac Posts: 9,208
    edited 2009-12-05 21:25
    Being in SAG I get "screener" DVDs prior to the SAG award voting season -- they, too, are similarly watermarked. That said, award season is a few months out, so I'm with Beau on how CassLan may have acquired the ability to grab a frame.
  • Graham StablerGraham Stabler Posts: 2,510
    edited 2009-12-05 21:25
    Beau Schwabe,

    And they are probably not supposed to show them around to others, but like I say I'm not asking! Give me an hour I can get the same frame, but in that case I'm not saying [noparse];)[/noparse]

    Graham
  • CassLanCassLan Posts: 586
    edited 2009-12-05 21:34
    Aren't we getting off topic guys! [noparse]:)[/noparse]
    But you know those "for screening purposes only" messages don't stay on for the entire movie.

    Is there a list of all the propeller gear used as props in movies?

    Rick

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    ·
  • JonnyMacJonnyMac Posts: 9,208
    edited 2009-12-05 21:43
    You'd have to compile the list by watch movies/television -- prop folks don't often reveal what they use to create props with; you know, "trade secret" sort of stuff.
  • CassLanCassLan Posts: 586
    edited 2009-12-05 21:59
    JonnyMac,
    Yeah, I meant like the propeller for prop sake, not to like control the servos in a mechanical robot or something.

    MagIO,
    I will post a cool video tommorow of my progress [noparse]:)[/noparse]

    Rick

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    ·
  • whickerwhicker Posts: 749
    edited 2009-12-06 02:25
    This movie looks like it is extremely bitter.

    Plus, I'm sick of seeing the hobby stuff I use, turned into bombs and other Smile on TV and movies. It seems like if a circuit board is exposed instead of encased in a soft plastic "bar of soap" consumer product package it's obviously dangerous. Or rather, complicated looking equals dangerous, better ask weird questions about motivation and tip off the authorities (oh yeah, he's weird, he has all sorts of stuff taken apart laying around. I think he's up to something, he'd rather do that than go out socializing).
  • Oldbitcollector (Jeff)Oldbitcollector (Jeff) Posts: 8,091
    edited 2009-12-06 02:46
    This is the second time that I've seen Parallax stuff (specifically Protoboards) used as bomb-control type devices in movies.

    It's hard enough to travel with my Prop stuff without someone thinking they saw it on TV as a bomb. [noparse]:)[/noparse]

    OBC

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  • HollyMinkowskiHollyMinkowski Posts: 1,398
    edited 2009-12-06 03:10
    A distant relative who is in the industry told me lots of props are brought in
    by tech members of the crews....mostly ham radio type guys. That is probably
    how they came up with something like a protoboard.

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  • AlsowolfmanAlsowolfman Posts: 65
    edited 2009-12-06 03:55
    i hope that this is the result of them typing "circuit board prop" into google [noparse]:)[/noparse]

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  • BaggersBaggers Posts: 3,019
    edited 2009-12-06 10:40
    It's funny how although the board has been broken, it's not unusable, as surely it's had the prop ( tiny square in the middle ) carefully cut out, ( see straight line cut ) to be used for something else [noparse]:D[/noparse] by the props guy ( no pun intended... no really... oh ok, maybe slighly intended lol )

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  • jazzedjazzed Posts: 11,803
    edited 2009-12-06 10:46
    Baggers said...
    ... as surely it's had the prop ( tiny square in the middle ) carefully cut out ...
    That's what I thought too. I have a board very similar to the one shown because of cutting out the prop.
  • Toby SeckshundToby Seckshund Posts: 2,027
    edited 2009-12-06 11:05
    It goes, without saying, doesn't it. AN AVR is plenty good enough for being splattered.

    Whilst we are talking about it, does anybody know how they get all the numbers and arrows to be in the right places on an exploded diagram ?? Frame rate would have to be quite high.

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  • BaggersBaggers Posts: 3,019
    edited 2009-12-06 13:13
    So although it looked like a sacrilege, having a chopped protoboard, it's most likely lovingly been put to use elsewhere [noparse]:D[/noparse] lol

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  • localrogerlocalroger Posts: 3,452
    edited 2009-12-06 14:00
    It's clearly the leftover bit from making a Protoboard Nano.
  • Oldbitcollector (Jeff)Oldbitcollector (Jeff) Posts: 8,091
    edited 2009-12-06 17:13
    Posting links to my website are NOT going to make me feel better about this.

    Why can't the Propeller be used in movies like Short Circuit or Electric Dreams?

    Why does it always have to be a detonation device?

    OBC

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  • JonnyMacJonnyMac Posts: 9,208
    edited 2009-12-06 18:33
    If I have my way you'll get your wish, Jeff. I've been showing my friends in the business the Propeller and have a couple folks -- like Disneyland -- pretty excited about what it can do with some relatively simple programming. Disneyland, for example, uses a lot of custom SX-stuff for miscellaneous DMX512 apps, but they always have to turn to me for the programming. I showed them my DMX IO board (get yours from Gadget Gangster!) and the code and they were very happy. My contact said to me, "Well, I know PBASIC, I learned SX/B... I guess it's time to learn Spin."
  • localrogerlocalroger Posts: 3,452
    edited 2009-12-06 20:04
    Um, Jeff -- maybe because Short Circuit and Electric Dreams were made before Parallax was even founded?

    Part of the answer to your lament is found if you ask how many bare circuit boards you ever see in movies. Given how technology works, seeing a circuit board as a prop is about like seeing a human bone; it means that something is probably very, very wrong. You don't generally take machines apart and expose their innards because they're working properly. Consider the movie Brainstorm, also from that era, in which the one soldering scene involves Christopher Walken disabling the part of the brainstorm machine that will make him have a heart attack himself if he monitors the death tape.

    It reminds me a bit of a profile I saw a long time ago of a minor actor who had had hundreds of roles and a strong career, but nearly always as cast members named "heavy #3" or "lead thug." Turns out you couldn't watch five random episodes of 1970's era TV action/adventure without seeing the guy, but that's what he did and he did it very well. Asked about the number of pictures of him floating around wearing shiny suits and Nazi uniforms, he shrugged and said it paid the bills.

    I don't take anything negative away from the Prop's occasional cameo as a bomb fuse. (In this particular case, you'd never even know a prop was involved unless you were familiar with the Protoboard, since the prop itself has been cut off.) What I do take from it is that Hollywood props and FX people are using the chip, most likely because it does let them quickly field engineer things that have to do complex one-off functions reliably. It's a perfect example of the kind of thing the P8X32A was meant for, and I'd bet it's just a matter of time before you see them on Mythbusters.
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