RoHS changes the parts you buy

"Europe's Restriction on the use of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) act and the initiative on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) are driving companies to design and manufacture products in an environmentally friendly manner so fewer hazardous substances end up polluting the air and water. But the laws are also proving to be a costly and burdensome pain in the neck for the supply chain and for purchasers. Besides banning lead, RoHS outlaws mercury, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated bipheyls, and polybrominated diphenyl ethers. However, lead is the mostly widely used of those materials in electronics. It is used in many components and in solder that attaches parts to printed circuit boards. Finding alternatives to lead and the other banned substances is only half the battle. Companies will have to show that they comply with RoHS. However, eight months before the RoHS deadline, the European Union (EU) has not said what kind of documentation will be needed. It is possible that the EU will not offer any specifics." Source: purchasing.com