upgrade gaui 500x to DJI NAZA stabilization project

Because the DJI NAZA multirotor stabilization unit ships in a box with no instructions. And when you eventually do find the NAZA PDF instructions on how to configure the NAZA for your quadcopter you find that only page 7 discusses the actual installation of the hardware. So here is some guidance.

My 500X was purchased ARTF with a JR radio and the 334 stabilizer (with the 334 stabilization disabled and a warning not to use it!?) In other words, a 500X out of the box is a manual-fly-only type of thing. You can do it, but for video I wanted better stabilization.

The “open box” photo of what you get with the NAZA followed by before and after shots of the installation. Note that it isn’t complete yet as it comes with pre-tinned connections for power but no connectors and I need to order those or splice into an existing line. See more notes after the gallery.

On the JR receiver, to fit the wires that shipped with the RAZA I had to cut off and dremel-smooth the “L” extensions on the bottom of the connectors to make them fit in the RJ receiver. And I only had to modify the one end (obviously) Just be careful the orientation is correct. I should probably buy another receiver for the Spektrum but that isn’t in the budget right now.

David – Like a Boss

David Stagg – the last hour of the last day and he is still teaching. That’s class.

Here is the recommendation for David that I wrote on his LinkedIn:

“David is ambitious, talented, smart as all get out, and most importantly a HARD WORKER. He understood that hard work was needed to take care of our clients when he joined Schipul as a graphic artist. And it didn’t take us long to see his leadership potential and he was quickly promoted to manager, and then creative director.

If David says it’s going to get done, it will get done. A strength that I greatly appreciated as a CEO who travels a lot. I didn’t have to call and check, if David was on it, David was on it and it got done.

David has skillfully managed a team of up to 10 people at a time handling 60 to 70 projects and ongoing support call-ins from over 400 clients. To do this he motivates his people, he listens to them, and wears many hats. He also believes in processes improvement and was instrumental in implementing our CRM system to improve customer satisfaction.

David has guided the look and feel of the “Schipul” and the “Tendenci” brands during his tenure here working closely with our communications department. He fights for the brand as a great brand advocate should. Yet also realizes that this is a business and sometimes compromise is required.

From 2010 to 2011 our company grew profitably over 20% to over 3M in revenue. Without the strong leadership and focus of David and his team’s productivity this would not have been possible. Growth required the entire company functioning as one unit, but without any one part it would not have been possible. David was a huge part of the solution that led us to a successful year.

David is a strong leader who realizes it takes a team to achieve success. He knows that clients are part of that team. And that true leadership is to engage the stakeholders, to work with and guide and train to produce the best results for the client and for the bottom line both. Not an easy task. David can do it.

I strongly recommend David Stagg. If you need further information feel free to contact me directly for a personal reference for David. ~Ed” February 17, 2012

vision matters

Having a vision for a company matters. There has been a direct correlation at Schipul between having a clear vision that I can articulate and being profitable.

I can’t fully explain it.

We have to believe in something. Feel free to hold me accountable as well. My company vision is

“To connect and organize the world’s people. Do good.”

The vision and mission are the job of the leader. This is not something you can delegate to a committee.

The photo above if of a local entrepreneur who runs The Black Sheep Agency PR Firm in Houston. (We had to tip the waiter extra so we could write on the napkin…)

GM fixes it – “defined benefit plans” put the obligation on some random person in the future

A bold step for GM fixing legacy pension obligations.

It boils down to this – “defined benefit plans” put the obligation on some random person in the future. “Defined contributions”, even with partial matching percentages from corporations (funded AT THAT TIME) is the only logical solution.

The hybrid “let’s keep some defined benefit and have this portion be “defined” contribution” is just wishful thinking from a bygone era. The irony being that the majority of wealth is controlled by the Boomers, who are both the investors demanding the return on the investment and at the same time demanding the correction in unfunded pensions.

Or to put it another way, if you give people free money they will take it. You can’t “earn” a defined benefit. You can only “earn” a defined contribution. Even if matched. And when the company can’t sustain it, suddenly the taxpayer is on the hook? Baroo?

it’s half-time America. and our second half is about to begin

it’s halftime in America too…