IDC (Re: Archive 5945C)

Jay> Sellam wrote... Jay> IDC = Insulation Displacement Connector Jay> look at the way the ribbon cable attaches to the connector and Jay> the name will make sense. Note that IDC does not refer to the Jay> type of connector, rather, how the cable connects to that Jay> connector. I have seen DB25, Edge card, Berg, all different Jay> types of connectors that are IDC. Jay> I once ran across an article stating the "expected life" of IDC Jay> ribbon cable connections. It was suprisingly low, like 64 Jay> connect/disconnect lifespan. That's about 63 more than I would expect. Those things really are not meant to be reused. There's an analogous technology in connectors for printed circuit boards. Those are "press fit" connectors -- the pins have springy sides that wedge into the plated through holes. Backplane connectors are often done that way, and larger connectors in general in these modern surface-mount days because they avoid a through-hole soldering step. But again, the assumption is that you install those exactly once. paul