A new optocoupler from Fairchild lets you easily isolate digital communication lines two at a time.

The wide range of easy-to-use wireless OEM products simplifies communications, but not every design needs an RF link, regardless of what your marketing people tell you.

If you must upgrade a design to include a USB connection for a Human Interface Device (HID), take a look at Silicon Labs, which now offers new bridge chips that easily provide a USB interface for UART-based devices.

Two-way radio communications might seem obsolete in the world of Twitter, email, and WiFi hot spots. But in an emergency, you'll find volunteer ham-radio operators often provide equipment and non-commercial communications that save lives. The ham-radio community has grown since the FCC eliminated a Morse-code requirement and the amateur-radio service welcomes new members who have a variety of interests, from emergency preparedness and communications, to designing and building equipment. When all else fails, radio can get through.