Stickers - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / testgear

author: jjoonathan
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2023, 07:54:16 pm
content: In a month I'll be headed to a company event where everyone has an identical new company laptop. I need stickers to distinguish mine. Usually I get stickers at trade shows, but that won't work in time. Any ideas where to look / who to ask for test equipment company stickers?

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2023, 08:04:10 pm
content: A quick squirt of aerosol spray paint works well to identify your own equipment.

author: jjoonathan
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2023, 08:08:36 pm
content: Sure, as does tape, acrylic, or permanent marker. I asked for stickers becauseI want stickers.

author: themadhippy
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2023, 08:39:22 pm
content: make your own,find the image you want and print it on sticky labels

author: TimFox
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2023, 08:58:36 pm
content: My usual source for printable self-adhesive labels is Averyhttps://www.avery.com/category/shape/all/They are readily available in the US at Staples, Office Depot, etc.

author: jjoonathan
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2023, 09:06:53 pm
content: I don't want stickersthatmuch. Never mind!

author: TimFox
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2023, 09:10:12 pm
content: Then use colored duct tape.(Single sheets of Avery labels should be available at a decent office-supply store.)

author: jjoonathan
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 06, 2023, 09:13:54 pm
content: Yep.

author: coromonadalix
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2023, 01:30:57 am
content: i had a lappy in the past, custom painted ----- high gloss white piano finish with an red eagle on it, for sure youll never have problems to identify it

author: Neomys Sapiens
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2023, 05:26:18 am
content: Just get a selection of scary warning labels in one of the small formats from any of your local or nation-wide industrial safety suppliers (lab safety...).

author: mwb1100
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2023, 08:10:06 am
content: Perfect for someone who follows EEVBlog:Warranty Void if RemovedOf course, being someone who has absolute plonk artistic creativity (really - I have trouble besting a kindergartner with my stick figures), I'd probably just end up printing my name on a Brother label maker tape and calling it good.

author: gslick
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2023, 06:24:11 pm
content: Quote from: tautech on October 06, 2023, 08:04:10 pmDon't you have some Siglent stickers you could send them?

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2023, 06:40:44 pm
content: Quote from: gslick on October 07, 2023, 06:24:11 pmNo branded ones, only vinyl overlays around the inputs for some models that hide full disassembly screws underneath.OTOH I use our company vinyl stickers on everything I need identify when doing exhibitions and such.

author: JoeRoy
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 07, 2023, 06:49:07 pm
content: ENGRAVE your name, this is the only solution. People do that on company instruments to avoid others taking your

author: pdenisowski
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2023, 10:48:19 am
content: Quote from: jjoonathan on October 06, 2023, 07:54:16 pmAfter being in test and measurement for almost 30 years, I've seen all sorts of T&M "swag" (including things like wine cups and comic books) but I can't recall ever seeing anyone offering stickers (magnets, yes, but not stickers).

author: Fungus
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2023, 11:41:55 am
content: Any print shop should be able to print you some stickers for cheap.There's plenty of online print shops, too. I use Vistaprint, I don't know if they're the best but they've always done a decent job.

author: KungFuJosh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2023, 03:07:49 pm
content: Quote from: Fungus on October 08, 2023, 11:41:55 amVistaprint is definitely not the best, but they're decent, and usually competitive. GotPrint.com and CatPrint.com are both better.

author: Hexley
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2023, 03:54:24 pm
content: Quote from: jjoonathan on October 06, 2023, 07:54:16 pmTwo thoughts:Buy some Koni shock absorbers or Cibie driving lights for your car. Then plonk the accompanying sticker on your laptop. Or buy a Yeti thermal coffee cup if you want a really expensive sticker that comes with a free cup.Just put a Post-It note on your laptop, with the text "crashes when hot". That works really well at discouraging folks from borrowing gear, or so I have found in the past.

author: DavidAlfa
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2023, 06:12:03 pm
content: Small marking somewhereOr a distinctive sticker:

author: KungFuJosh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2023, 06:50:54 pm
content: This is the most interesting thread right now. I think that means it's time for Siglent to release some new firmwares.

author: jjoonathan
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2023, 06:57:35 pm
content: Hah, that's a good one! Yep, I have some shiny tape that will solve the identification problem, but I'm a little surprised by striking out on the sticker fishing expedition. It might just be a HW/SW culture difference because yeah, now that you mention it I'm not sure I've seen many free-floating HW company stickers either. In SW land, it seems like every damn company is keen to exploit the phenomenon where well-placed sticker piles spontaneously migrate onto laptops. In both of the companies I previously worked for, marketing tagged me before every engineering gathering to shepherd the sticker pile. One time they sprang for sparkly stickers and 5 years later I was still seeing those things on random laptops at conferences half a world away, lol. Protip: you need a cardboard or plastic box as a diffusion barrier so that they diffuse onto laptops and not the surface the sticker pile is placed on.Speaking of Warranty Void stickers, I've built up a cache but I am reserving those for my personal laptop. It's due for a refresh but I haven't actually pulled the trigger yet.

author: ebastler
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2023, 07:11:34 pm
content: Quote from: jjoonathan on October 08, 2023, 06:57:35 pmImpressive collection! My favorite is the nicely self-referential one from Agilent: "VOID IF BROKEN".

author: mwb1100
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2023, 07:33:40 pm
content: Quote from: jjoonathan on October 08, 2023, 06:57:35 pmI thought the Amazon link I posted was pretty expensive at $23 for 100. But it looks like your collection probably cost a few 10's of thousands!

author: slugrustle
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2023, 08:16:59 pm
content: My favorite thing about this thread is the following:Reply #2Quote from: jjoonathan on October 06, 2023, 08:08:36 pmReply #5Quote from: jjoonathan on October 06, 2023, 09:06:53 pm

author: jjoonathan
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2023, 08:38:48 pm
content: I tried to pre-empt the helpful suggestions by mentioning plans B, C, and D but in true engineer fashion nobody was deterredstill, thanks, they were fun anywayIf someone really wants to help with sticker engineering, I am in the market for a better vinyl cutter than my Silhouette Cameo. I use it to cut front panel stickers, but the registration drifts by ~.5mm after 20 holes or so, and that's too much for keypads. I can make it work by piling up guide blocks to keep the cutting platform straight, but that is extremely awkward. If anyone here is familiar with the drift characteristics of newer cutter/plotters in the sub-$1k price class, I'd love to hear!EDIT: I had better not rely on subtext here: yes, I have considered using the Cameo to print and cut laptop stickers. It is precisely because I am very familiar with this workflow -- and the effort required -- that I don't want to use it for NASCAR laptop. I'm going with my original plan B, some lovely shiny tape, but the warning labels gave plan B a run for its money

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2023, 08:49:08 pm
content: Could it be just a print scaling error ?Like when we print a PCB layout can you adjust the printer output scaling to correct it ?

author: slugrustle
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2023, 09:18:45 pm
content: I'm still not clear on whether or not you want stickers, and if you want stickers, to what extent.

author: jjoonathan
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 08, 2023, 09:24:39 pm
content: I was fishing for "give us your address, we'll send stickers" forms / contacts. I think the conclusion we came to was that this just isn't "a thing" in the hardware world. Ah well.---------------------The Silhouette Cameo is actually very good at calibrating out location/scale. The software prints out registration marks on the perimeter of the design and the cameo scans them. It will easily hit 0.2mm accuracy (qualitatively: good enough for keypad) if your design is simple (say, a single block). The problem is that repeated back and forth tracking of the rollers causes the print mat to slowly wander (maybe by .1 degrees at every reversal or something) until it is out of registration. I know of two ways around this. I can partition the cuts into multiple cut files, each of which acquires a fresh calibration. Unfortunately, at only a few key holes per file, these files are obnoxious to make and obnoxious to run. My other strategy is to pile up weights and 1-2-3 blocks to keep the mat from rotating. This works even better, but it's a big obnoxious setup every time.Online sticker shops usually either have tolerances so sloppy they make my cameo's default run look like a star performer or they have minimum order pricing that could buy me an entire new plotter in the next price class up, lol. That's why for now I put up with obnoxious solution #2 (books, weights, and 1-2-3 blocks). Hope springs eternal, though, and my plotter is 2 generations old. Maybe one of the new ones is better?

author: pdenisowski
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 09, 2023, 07:26:35 am
content: Quote from: jjoonathan on October 08, 2023, 09:24:39 pmFairIf I had R&S stickers, I would gladly send you some.

author: rvalente
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 09, 2023, 11:47:03 am
content: I guess you have a dymo or label printer somewhere, just put your name on the top, done

author: ebastler
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: October 09, 2023, 11:55:43 am
content: Quote from: rvalente on October 09, 2023, 11:47:03 amNot cool...

author: jjoonathan
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: October 09, 2023, 06:03:35 pm
content: Haha it might be a bit plain but it's easy and it works. I did exactly that for a while until one day bad sleep settings on the last gen of our company laptops made them wake up in laptop bags and cooked a big brown skidmark right across my name. I think that problem is fixed, but I still reach for other solutions first