John Keller
Editor in Chief
Welcome to the redesigned Military & Aerospace Electronics magazine, a new, fresh look and feel for 2005 that promises to improve navigation through the magazine, make browsing the magazine faster and easier, and provide graphical consistency not only through the magazine, but also throughout the other print and digital offerings of the Military & Aerospace Electronics franchise.
Although this issue marks the first of many changes at Military & Aerospace Electronics, the qualities that lie at the core of our technology coverage remain the same commitment to quality and depth, a balanced viewpoint, the opportunity for many different opinions, and when necessary, a taste of controversy.
Likewise, many of the subjects central to Military & Aerospace Electronics and its readers will continue over the long term - software operating systems as well as design and development tools, integrated circuits, RF and microwave equipment and components, embedded computing and board products, power electronics, and optoelectronics. This magazine also retains its strong emphasis on issues surrounding smart systems design with commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components and subsystems.
Yet changing times call for changing approaches. We have added new sections to the magazine to reflect the latest technology and design trends, as well as to provide readers with even more in-depth information, perspectives, and commentary on a monthly basis.
The redesign of Military & Aerospace Electronics magazine starts right where you are, on page one, and reflects one of the most significant changes to the magazine. Henceforth, Military & Aerospace Electronics is the magazine of transformation in electronic and optical technology. That means our magazine is committed not only to covering mil-spec, rugged, high-reliability, and COTS design, but also to covering the enabling technologies transforming the U.S. military toward data-networked forces that are smaller, lighter, faster, and more deadly than they have ever been before.
Transformational military forces, in the end, have to do with instantaneous situational awareness and shared knowledge - of the current and historic battlefield situation, of the status of friendly and enemy forces, of the logistical picture of the battlefield, and perhaps most important, of the most likely moves the enemy will make in the future.
The chief enabling capabilities of transformational military forces are wired, wireless, and optical communications, real-time networked and distributed computing, a broad range of electronic and optical sensors on land, at sea, in the air, and in space, and rugged data devices that soldiers in the field can use to gain access to this ever-broadening and ever-updating wealth of knowledge.
Underlying these transformational military capabilities are microprocessors, digital signal processors, field-programmable gate arrays, solid-state memory devices, printed circuit boards, rugged portable and wearable computers, lightweight graphical displays, RF and microwave circuitry, advanced antennas, test and measurement equipment, electronic and optical connectors, power control and conditioning devices, and more.
The first additional section to the magazine, starting with this issue, is called Mil-Aero Voices, which is an in-depth question-and-answer interview with one of the leading experts on military technology, research and development, weapons procurement, and defense policy from government or industry. Compiling this section will be Military & Aerospace Electronics Executive Editor John McHale, who will alternate the section every other month with John Rhea’s familiar Report From Washington.
The second new department is the Opinion section, which will contain our familiar industry viewpoint essay, letters to the editor, other commentary that reflects contemporary trends, and the continuation of the editor’s Trends column from page one. Essentially we are placing our opinion and commentary in one easy-to-find place in the magazine.
The Optoelectronics Watch section henceforth will have a technology column written by influential industry experts, and the column will have a black and red logo for easy recognition. Optoelectronics is crucial to the military and involves the tight blending of electronic and optical technologies, an approach that offers speed, efficiency, and security.
Not everything in the magazine is changing, however. Military & Aerospace Electronics maintains the sections that readers have come to know and rely on, such as the Special Report in-depth technology feature that revolves around specific applications, the Technology Focus that revolves around specific enabling technologies, Product Applications that highlights some of the month’s most influential design case studies, and our comprehensive and growing New Products section to keep designers abreast of the most useful products coming out of industry.
Page one of the magazine also has a newly designed name flag for a fresh, compact look, as well as a new logo for this Trends column that I will continue to write each month. As always, the most important technology news of the month frames the opening page.
Moving inside the magazine, the reader now can expect color-coded sections to ease navigation throughout, and a streamlined table of contents running down one column of page three to increase the space for monthly technology news stories that we present to readers. Each section now has its own unique color scheme to ease and speed navigation through the magazine. The news section is royal blue, news in-brief is brown, Optoelectronics Watch is Navy blue, Homeland Security Focus is khaki, Mil-Aero voices is teal, John Rhea’s Report from Washington is midnight blue and Army green, Special Report is black and red, Technology Focus is Army green, and New Products is green teal.
Other changes involve the In Brief section of small news stories, which will be part of the news section, rather than a stand-alone section. In addition our Product Applications section will have headers in red type to quickly identify the kind of product under discussion, and similarly the New Products Section will have blue headers identifying the product category for quick and easy navigation.
We certainly hope these changes make Military & Aerospace Electronics an even more vital information source for you and your colleagues. Please contact me by e-mail if you have further suggestions, at [email protected].
