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24 DESIGN007 MAGAZINE I JULY 2021 tie it all together. In this edition of Design007 Magazine, we are exploring advice from the experts. As I was pondering some of the things that I've learned or wished that I had learned along the way, the story of Bert Christman came to mind. What I find so captivating about him is that he was willing to put every- thing on the line in order to improve his abili- ties in producing a better product. I am not at all suggesting volunteering for hazardous duty pay to improve our DDR routing skills, but his story does serve as an inspiration as to how committed a person can be in improving their skills and abilities. I just wish that I had learned this lesson a lot ear- lier in my career so I would have had more time to put it into practice. Maybe I might have learned a few other skills in my profes- sional journey as well. In fact, if I had a time machine, here are a few other pieces of advice that as a designer I would have liked to have known earlier too. It's 'Circuit Board Design,' Not 'Place and Route Design' When I was first starting out in PCB layout, I was fascinated by placing parts and rout- ing nets on the screen as any new designer is. Soon I came to understand many of the nuances of PCB layout, and how the different spacing rules applied in the art of place and route. But I also made a lot of mistakes that could have been avoided if I had only grasped the concept that I was actually designing a "circuit board" as opposed to simply perform- ing place and route. I remember not under- standing—and therefore ignoring—some of the early signal integrity problems that were being discussed around me. ese included topics such as broadside coupling and signal return paths, all of which were important to what I was doing. ankfully, my work was monitored by senior designers, and I don't believe that I caused any serious damage. But if I could, I would sit the younger version of me down and explain that layout is an all- encompassing process that begins with the schematic, and not when you start throwing parts on the screen. Board Integrity Starts With Library Integrity Like a lot of designers eager to get rolling on their first layouts, I was happy to grab any old part out of a library and throw it into the design. What I didn't fully realize at the time, though, was how essential a properly built PCB foot- print is to the manufacturing process, and that real-life components would eventually have to be soldered to these land patterns. I shudder to think of how many times I may have swapped an anode for a cathode in some of my first layouts. ankfully, this lack of attention to detail didn't seem to result in too many actual problems, although I do remember having to go back and make a few corrections here and there. But again, with the Wayback Machine dialed into my earliest days of PCB layout, I would explain to my younger self the entire concept of circuit board manufacturing from start to finish. I would then explain how manu- facturing relates to design and the importance of choosing the right footprints for the parts in the BOM. I would make sure my younger self understood the critical importance of dimen- sionally accurate footprints and land patterns, emphasizing that even one incorrect pad size could put the whole design in jeopardy of failing. I just wish that I had learned this lesson a lot earlier in my career so I would have had more time to put it into practice.