On 28/05/09 21:00, Alan Grimes wrote: > Link wrote: >> Here are some ideas for features that I had, that you may or may not be >> interested in. I thought I'd let you know anyway :). > >> 1. Field lines indicating the magnetic flux around inductors. Similar to >> the animated wires indicating current flow, animated field lines could >> show the changing magnetic fields around inductors. > > Before that we need transformers; 'nuff said. > I guess we do.
>> 2. Tooltips on components. For example, a capacitor's tooltip could show >> the charge stored on it, and a resistive component could show the power >> it dissipates. > > The engine does a lot of weird linear algebra stuff, there doesn't seem > to be a variable for flux or charge... Computing power draw seems rather > straightforward though... > Isn't the charge on a capacitor just C*V? The voltage is already calculated and the capacitance is a user-defined value. >> 4. A "show power pins" option on opamps similar to the "show body pin" >> on MOSFETs. Using the power pins, one could select the minimum and >> maximum values of an opamp's output. > > That completely changes the nature of the device. It goes from being an > idealized linear device to being a nonlinear device which becomes a good > deal more complex on the implementation side. =\ It is definitely on the > todo list though. > I didn't know that about the current opamp. In any case, a realistic opamp model is a must-have for me! >> 5. Hidden wires or net ports. When you have more than a handful of >> components, it can get extremely tricky to see different wires. A simple >> solution would be "net ports" like gEDA's gschem has. Place a net port >> on one pin, and another with the same identifier on another, and the >> pins act as if they're connected by a wire, though none is drawn. > > Now that's a good one... > :) >> 6. Transformers/mutual inductors, Zeners, regulators and other >> components commonly found in real-life circuits that KTL lacks. Big one, >> I know, but it would make KTechlab a lot better! > > You can use the existing diode part as a zener (when it works.) =P > I see. You'd need a separate model if you implemented idea #8, though; reverse-biasing a normal diode to its breakdown voltage IRL would be a bad thing. >> 7. Enhanced potentiometers: log/antilog pots, and the ability to set the >> fader position as a percentage in the properties window. > > Yeah, the slider needs to be longer to permit more precise setting... > Don't forget the percentage entry, though. Also, it would help if potentiometer/variable resistor tooltips showed the resistance at the current position. >> 8. Overload indicators: if a component is subject to more >> voltage/current/power than it is supposed to handle, it could display a >> warning signal, informing the user to change the parameters or supplies. >> This also involves addition of polar capacitors, capacitor voltage >> ratings, resistor wattage ratings, and so on, but those values need not >> be used by the actual simulator (i.e. a .25W resistor dissipating 1W >> would still work, but would display a warning sign, as would a polar >> capacitor that's reverse-biased), so it shouldn't be /that/ difficult to >> implement. > > Yeah, I had something similar in mind, the bigger problem is that we > need to completely overhaul the entire component library cuz the current > one is unmaintainable long-term. > > Right now I'm just fixing bugs and trying to get the code to a state > where it's feasible to implement such radical changes. > I was never under the impression it would be done any time soon. Unfortunate as it may be, even for an end-user it is often noticeable that KTL doesn't work perfectly. On a totally unrelated note, if you're looking for more devs, I _may_ be able to help out in a few months when my exams are finished. I'm not making any promises yet, but once I get enough time and peace of mind, KTechlab is a project I'd love to help with. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Register Now for Creativity and Technology (CaT), June 3rd, NYC. CaT is a gathering of tech-side developers & brand creativity professionals. Meet the minds behind Google Creative Lab, Visual Complexity, Processing, & iPhoneDevCamp as they present alongside digital heavyweights like Barbarian Group, R/GA, & Big Spaceship. http://p.sf.net/sfu/creativitycat-com _______________________________________________ Ktechlab-devel mailing list Ktechlab-devel@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/ktechlab-devel
