Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site fortune.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!cca!decvax!harpo!seismo!hao!hplabs!hpda!fortune!wall From: wall@fortune.UUCP Newsgroups: net.micro Subject: Portables on Airplanes Message-ID: <1100@fortune.UUCP> Date: Wed, 8-Jun-83 14:00:13 EDT Article-I.D.: fortune.1100 Posted: Wed Jun 8 14:00:13 1983 Date-Received: Sat, 11-Jun-83 13:05:30 EDT Organization: Fortune Systems, San Carlos, CA Lines: 24 A friend of mine is one of the designers of the new Gavilan Portable computer (3 1/4 inch floppy, 64k ram, touch mouse, 300 baud modem, completely battery powered, and only weighs 9 pounds) anyway, I know that they are trying to get their unit approved for airplanes by the FAA. The problem is that the FAA doesn't know what to do about the portable computers. They admit that there is a level of radiated emmissions that would be acceptable on airplanes, but they don't know what it is. Some of the FAA officials are even saying that it will be up to the indivigual airlines to specify the limits. The airlines are saying that they don't understand the question. Unfortunately, knowing federal agencies, the FAA will want to establish their own limits, and their own testing agencies, their own enforcement,.... it will never end. The funny thing is that most all battery powered CMOS computers that use LCD displays have very little radiated noise due to slow rise times and slow clocks. It will be nice when some standards are established, but untill then.... !fortune!wall P.S. I understand that the HP is allowed due to some very heavy political action by David Packard when he was Secretary of Defense to get that inclusion in the FAA guidelines.