When the MSAFluids Remote multitouch App was rejected, a developer found a way to get virtually the same effect using a safari App. They’re using the TUIO protocol to get the desired remote control. This opens up the door to extending Applications through the browser as well. While this probably wouldn’t allow you to utilize the other sensor inputs from your device, like accelerometer data, it will allow for fast prototyping of applications that don’t need that.
Recycling is great. We’ve seen a pretty hard push in that direction recently. We like the fact that our modifying of hardware is generally saving it from the dump. Keep in mind, that just using old hardware can be advantageous too. We don’t always need the new shiny thing, maybe we’re fine with what we’ve got. That is exactly what lastyearsmodel.org is about. You can join their facebook group and even get stickers for your old devices.
Sometimes we forget just how useful magnets can be. Sure, we use them in some projects, but usually we just pull them apart for our amusement. Evil mad scientist laboratories reminds us that they can be useful tools. They’ve made a list of 17 uses of magnets. We’re also reminded that magnets can be dangerous. What else can you think of?
Browsing around today, this project caught our eye. Mainly due to the visual similarity to, well, personal massagers. As it turns out, it’s a home made studio condenser microphone. We would generally prefer to link directly to his personal page, that has a slightly more in dept write up, but it has popups and pop unders, so enter at your own risk. Generally condenser mics require phantom power to make the magic happen, but he has included a circuit to run them off of 9v batteries. We’ve done condenser mics before, but this seems a bit quicker and dirtier.
Electrosthetics has taken it upon themselves to open up and explore the insides of a Phillips AmbX system. The unit is supposed to help immerse you in your video games by adding ambient lighting, vibration, and wind. They got the starter kit, which is missing some bits. Interestingly they found that the hardware was not hampered in any way. You could plug in fans and such and, in theory, build the larger kit. There are lots of pics of the various pieces for you to look at. They note that the hardware all seems decent, but it’s the software that really causes issue. On their Vista64 dual core machine, the software was eating up an entire core to do ambient lighting.
[Mike] has posted an instructable on making cool looking PCBs. He does it a little differently than we do. He uses soda cans for the stencils and combines the solder mas and silk screen steps. Also, a bit of extra cooking gives him this cool gradient of color. He has managed to get some really fine etching. It isn’t as fine as a laser etching, but this should be able to handle the smallest stuff you can throw at it. We’re a bit curious what exactly he’s building. There’s a color picture after the break to show you what we mean.
Ugobe has officially filed bankruptcy. This is bad news for Pleo. That lovable little dino bot is no longer being produced. If you’ve got one you might want to refrain from hacking, just in case it’s worth something one day. As the point out at Engadget, another toy company might buy up the rights, but we doubt it. At roughly $250 per unit, these things probably weren’t flying off the shelves.
When [Epokh] sent in this Wii controlled segway style bot, we remembered a post a few months ago where someone made a balancing bot, but hadn’t completed the Wii code. Well, [Epokh] is going to show you how to implement the Wii controls with the Lego NXT system. He’s found the links to all the software you need and broken down the configuration step by step. He’s beenbusy lately, let’s hope he keeps it up.
