Monday, December 29, 2014

Understanding the JAMMA PCB and Edge Connector Pinout

First, here is a little history behind the meaning of the acronym, JAMMA.
Back in the dark ages of the Golden Era of arcade video games (1984 and earlier), game manufacturers operated in exclusive little domains where they designed game components in a way that best served their own interests.
Consequently, they each had their own proprietary circuit boards, power supplies, and wiring harnesses. There was essentially no interchangeability of components between one manufacturer's game cabinet and a game cabinet made by someone else. Thanks to the Japanese, around 1985, all of that exclusivity was soundly laid to rest. The Japan Amusement Machinery Manufacturers Association (JAMMA) created some industry standards, particularly for the design of game printed circuit boards (PCBs).
And, things forever changed.
The most important and influential of these new standards was the PCB standard pinout.

Any game PCB complying with that pinout standard is what we now call a JAMMA board.
You can see the JAMMA logo stamped close to the pinout section of a JAMMA board.

Almost all JAMMA boards sport that logo.
The wiring that connects the game's components - monitor, power supply, control panel, speaker, etc. - to the PCB is called a JAMMA wiring harness.
The wiring harness 56-pin edge connector seats onto the PCB's pinout fingers. There are many JAMMA terms that we have come to hear and use frequently - JAMMA board, JAMMA harness, JAMMA edge connector, JAMMA cabinet, and so on.

At the root of their meaning is nothing more than the concept of PCB interchangeability between cabinets of different manufacturers. And, it is the JAMMA standard PCB pinout (charted below) that has made it all possible. The following JAMMA pinout chart is basically a map of the JAMMA wiring harness 56-pin edge connector.

When properly seated onto the PCB, the connectors of the edge connector will align with the pinout fingers of the PCB, and your game will play. When you tire of a game, you can plug-and-play the JAMMA PCB for your next favorite game.
Plug-and-play simply means to unplug the edge connector from one PCB, and plug it onto another PCB.
And, that process of plug-and-play can continue on and on, because there are now 1,000's of JAMMA game PCBs that you can play in your JAMMA cabinet. Thank you, Japan. JAMMA PINOUT CHART Solder Side - Alpha Characters - 28 Pins - A-Z, a-f The solder side is the bottom side of the PCB.

It is the side where the soldered connections of parts are exposed to view. Few, if any, parts are located on the solder side.

The solder side pinout is identified with alpha characters.

Parts Side - Numeric Characters - 28 Pins - 1-28 The parts side is the top side of the PCB.
It is the side where the parts are located. The parts side pinout is identified with numeric characters. Usually, the PCB is printed and the edge connector is embossed with the alpha and numeric characters.

GROUND - A, 1 GROUND - B, 2 +5VDC - C, 3 +5VDC - D, 4 -5VDC - E, 5 +12VDC - F, 6 KEY SLOT - H, 7 COIN COUNTER #2 - J COIN COUNTER #1 - 8 LOCK OUT COIL #2 - K LOCK OUT COIL #1 - 9 SPEAKER (-) - L SPEAKER (+) - 10 N/C - M N/C - 11 VIDEO GREEN - N VIDEO RED - 12 VIDEO SYNC - P VIDEO BLUE - 13 SERVICE SWITCH - R VIDEO GROUND - 14 TILT (SLAM) SWITCH - S TEST SWITCH - 15 COIN SWITCH #2 - T COIN SWITCH #1 - 16 PLAYER 2 - START - U PLAYER 1 - START - 17 PLAYER 2 - UP - V PLAYER 1 - UP - 18 PLAYER 2 - DOWN - W PLAYER 1 - DOWN - 19 PLAYER 2 - LEFT - X PLAYER 1 - LEFT - 20 PLAYER 2 - RIGHT - Y PLAYER 1 - RIGHT - 21 PLAYER 2 - BUTTON 1 - Z PLAYER 1 - BUTTON 1 - 22 PLAYER 2 - BUTTON 2 - a PLAYER 1 - BUTTON 2 - 23 PLAYER 2 - BUTTON 3 - b PLAYER 1 - BUTTON 3 - 24 N/C - c N/C - 25 N/C - d N/C - 26 GROUND - e GROUND - 27 GROUND -f GROUND - 28 Understanding the JAMMA Pinout Chart: N/C - No connection.
Key Slot - A keyed slot which aligns with a leave-out in the pinout section of the PCB.
This safety feature is provided to assure that the Power Section seats at the correct end of the pinout section. If the edge connector is reversed, and the Power Section is seated at the opposite or incorrect end, irreparable damaged can occur to the PCB.
If the key has been removed from the edge connector, then mark the connector as to the "Parts Side" to help assure correct seating.

Power Section - Pins A-F, 1-6, e, f, 27, 28 Video Section - Pins N, P, 13-15 Coin Section - Pins J, K, T, 8, 9, 16 Controller (Joystick) Section - Pins V-Y, 18-21 Pushbutton Switch Section - Pins Z-B, 22-24

Classic Children's Stories For Boys And Girls

Classic Children's Stories Delight Young Boys and Girls Alike There's almost nothing better for young people than getting the opportunity to read some of the classic children's stories.
Stories from Dr.
Seuss have been captivating kids for decades.
Give your child or a child in your life the gift of imagination by presenting them with the classic children's tales that you grew up on as well.

Classic children's tales have been sparking the imaginations of youngsters for generations.

There are classic tales made for kids of any age, and those who can't read yet still delight in being told age-old tales and nursery rhymes that have been around for centuries.

If you are looking for children's books for boys there are a number of different ways you can go. If the boy you are buying for is very much into sports, then a tale about their favorite game is a great way to capture their interest. There are even stories about individual players meant just for children that can help give them a greater appreciation of the game at hand. Boys who just love trucks and trains and things that move would probably really enjoy a book at their age level about their favorite large equipment. You can even find educational materials featuring their favorites that can help them count or learn the alphabet! As boys get older they can progress into stories featuring classic characters like Where the Wild Things Are and The Cat in the Hat.
Learning to read can be very fun with these classic stories meant for both boys and girls.
Zoo animals are another favorite of both boys and girls that can teach them all about their favorite animals and how they live.
Funny tales featuring animal characters have always been a hit, even with older audiences. Finding children's books for girls can be a lot of fun, especially if you look at the classics.

Older girls will love the Ramona Quimby series, or even the Little House series that we all grew up with.

If your girl has a special interest or animal they love then finding a book that features her favorite thing is a good choice.
There are many books featuring girls as main characters that are great ways to get a little girl engaged in a story.

Fairy tales are always a good bet and there are many that are edited just for young children so they can enjoy the classic tales and the morals that came along with them!

Sunday, December 28, 2014

The Benefits of Online Degrees

Studying for a formal degree or qualification is part of a continuous learning process and helps people keep up to date with the considerable progress that is being made around the world.

Colleges and universities continually review their courses to update existing content and include new subjects for students to choose and learn from.
One of the benefits of online degrees is that they are well placed to accommodate the number of changes that are being seen in standard subjects like business strategy, medicine and management courses.
The most common and frequently chosen online courses are business, medicine, law and technology.
Online degrees are also very beneficial for career professionals who want to progress in their careers or even consider a career change but are unable to do so without a degree qualification.

The virtual medium offers a significant amount of flexibility to individuals who want to gain educational qualifications but are hard pressed for time and may be unable to travel due to work commitments. It is important if you decide that you want to study for an online degree that you look for a track record of high quality and standards of education, as some critics of education institutes that offer online degrees take the view that they cannot provide a degree equivalent to that provided by a regular college education. In reality, the accreditation is of the curriculum offered and not the college, and if online courses use an accredited curriculum the content that they offer is comparable to regular colleges.

The one vital difference between online degrees and regular classes however is that professors can make classroom interactions lively and engaging.
Whilst this obviously cannot be achieved in the same measure in a virtual classroom it is possible to set up online discussion groups to engage in virtual debates, which can often become one of the highlights of the course as well. The commitment needed for an online degree, and therefore the passion needed to achieve the qualification, should be much higher, as there is no regular time set aside for study.

There are course deadlines, and the ability to manage a daily or weekly schedule is often left solely to the student, although more recently advice with scheduling has become a feature of online courses as well.

If you think that you may want to transfer or switch to a college at a future date, you should also check that any points or credits earned in virtual education are treated on a par with regular colleges before you start your course.
Online education is definitely cheaper and more affordable but the flip side is that you are unlikely to find any scholarships or grants to help you with the costs.

You will need a computer and a reliable and relatively fast Internet connection if you decide to study for online degrees but above all else you need to be wholly committed to succeed.
In general, if you give proper thought and consideration to the benefits of online degrees and any perceived limitations as part of your decision making process, choosing the right online degree will be easy.

Keep Kids in a Positive Attitude Mode

Kids do have bad days just like adults.

They just do not have the copying skills to get themselves out of their distress.
Accept the fact that your kid may be having a bad day and their behaviors are going to give you a clue to this fact.
As parents we need to take the time to distract them from the thing that is hard for them, even if you do not have a clue what it is they are dealing with at that moment.

There are days when the parents cause the kids distress. You may discover that they are mad at you and want you to go away for a while. It could be you are mad at them for misbehaving. What ever the reason, it is important to teach the kids how to cope and develop a positive attitude toward their life in general. There are three things I do when my kids have a negative attitude.
I do not recommend number three; however, I will tell you it works almost every time.
1) Put happy music in the stereo and have it playing throughout the house quietly. 2) Tell them what makes you happy about having them as your kid and how much they are loved. 3) Bake their favorite cupcakes and offer them a cupcake with a glass of milk if they sit down with you around the kitchen table for "fun talk".

If they reject your attempts in making them feel better, leave them alone. They may be figuring out a way to get themselves out of the bad attitude.
It is easier with younger kids, I know a four year girl who gets caught up in crying when she is upset with her sister. She will not stop crying and it makes it impossible for everyone around her.

I tell the mom to distract her from what caused her to start this spiral. At times, kids need adults to distract them to bring them out of their distress issue.

Kids have bad days and need to be taught how to turn those days around.

You need to think what brings you out of a negative event and put it on a kids level.

Some other suggestion you may need in your hip pocket to help your kids.
1. Take a surprised walk with your kids.

Walking in the fresh air makes everyone feel good and it is good for the brain 2.

Read your child their favorite book 3.

Put on music and start dancing with them 4.
Call grandma and/or grandpa and let the grandparents show them unconditional love 5.

Invite one of their favorite friends over or go to a park to play 6. Be creative with crafts It is best to not let the negative days lie there without paying attention to them.
This is not the time to punish your kids by putting them in time out or sending them to their room. It is the responsibility of each parent to teach their kids copying skills that will sustain them all through their lives.

How To Make An App: Beginner's Tips

How do you know when you have a great idea? How rich would you be if you had a nickel for every single time you heard "I have a great idea for an application?" Well, creating an app can be difficult for some and maybe easier for others.

Most applications are made for mobile phones so that users can organize and simplify their materials. This guide will walk you step-by-step to bringing your idea of an app to a reality.

Your first step is to join an app development program.

The majority of the time, this costs, and is rarely free. Owning a Mac Computer helps, also.
You will need to make yourself a non-disclosure agreement.
Contractors using your app will need to sign this agreement. This puts an official stamp on your idea for other individuals or companies to note that you are a professional, with an original idea that cannot be copy-righted. What creativity can you bring to the table? Designing an application is not similar to starting a business.
You will play all roles for yourself: manager, developer, designer, and marketer. Taking time to check which skills are within your ability will save you a ton of time and energy in the initial process.

Software development is not for certain people. A mental and physical checklist you should familiarize yourself with is: marketing research, outlining application functions, graphic design, promotion and marketing, and programming. For the areas you feel you will need a little extra help in, or that you may not have the adequate knowledge in, hire a professional. There is nothing wrong with being safe than sorry.

What problem(s) does your application solve? Are there any products that work to serve as the same purpose yours does? What makes your app stand out from the others? What can you bring to the table with this feature? These are all questions you need to have answered for the user/reader of your creation.

Make sure you determine who will use your app.

Make it target-able to all ages and backgrounds as much as you can.
As for design, you will need to sketch out your idea beforehand, obviously.
Use easy internet or software tools for your concept.

Try to get started with a simple program like Photoshop for the final design.

If you are not good at this, hiring someone will be best. After programming the app, submit your idea to the app store on the network it is apart of (Android, Apple, etc.
).

Promote your application whole-heartedly to make sure all users have a chance to experience first-hand to see how amazing it is.

Children With a Behavior Problem

Children with a behavior problem will experience frustration, anger and low self esteem. They will be frustrated with trying to achieve but things not going their way so they may lash out,throw objects or shout sometimes at people or children.
As a child career we need to work with parents to help achieve the best for their child to ensure that the behavior is at hand and does not get to bad resulting in being removed from the setting.
This is very rare but in serious cases may be a result as the safety of all children needs to be taken into consideration.

A meeting would be advised with a child with a behavior problem with the keyworker (or their main career in the setting), the behavior coordinator of the setting and the parents so that a plan can be put together to help the child achieve as best they can and that the behavior is being dealt with from all involved the same so that it is consistent.
This plan should then be put into place both at home and in the care giving setting.
Not all child adapt well to discipline and you may find that alterations maybe need to the way that discipline given and it maybe that you need to try many different things before the correct response from the child is achieved all changes and methods should be discussed with the parent before you carry them out and vice versa.

All parties must understand that their best interests are the child and team work is needed by all involved but also that opinions and concerns are important to.

Saturday, December 27, 2014

Wooden Educational Toys Finer Points

Wooden educational toys compared to modern toys are high-quality and also highly durable.

Plastic and electronic toys may have gained immense popularity, but wooden educational toys have problem-solving skills and hand-eye coordination and advanced reasoning skills that tease the intellect.

There are wooden educational toys for all ages.

They can amuse a child during a journey.

These toys are high quality, the safest, and most adorable learning tools. Wooden crafted educational toys created mostly by hand and have a bigger value, both in price and worth due to the craftsmanship and skill.
These educational toys are solid colorful structures that make great companions for infants.

Materials used to make our toys are safe, natural, and nontoxic.

They develop their lateral thinking skills.
They are soft and colorful. There is no question on the safety and durability and it's ability to arouse the senses and curiosity.
These toys also arouse the strategic part of the brain and use their imagination.
It is an enjoyable experience and love what they are learning.

There is a sense of accomplishment and a positive challenge.

An open-ended toy will grow with your child.
These toys appeal to all of the senses.
The key difference is the child's learning and development along with interacting with the toy.
Children learn life skills and love of learning.

One web site that has great examples of these toys is There you will see the best examples of wooden educational toys.

You will see an array of toys that are fun and will teach different motor skills.