Fresh hacks every day
Teaching kids to solder using kits is a fun time, but most of these beginner kits are a bit mundane. Not this one, it's a solar-powered monster project. The components and their wiring connections are printed on a sheet of paper along with a background for that particular monster. The base of the paper is glued to a block of wood and at each solder junction there's a copper nail. This way the kids … [Read more...]
We see Arduino boards used in a lot of projects but we've never thought of using one as a USB crossover cable. That's basically what [Jack the Vendicator] did to get his broken laptop running. When his video card stopped working he found himself unable to access the laptop. Newer machines don't have a serial connector, which could have been used for a serial terminal, so he was at a bit of a loss … [Read more...]
The folks at [gadget gangster] have been working on an excellent set of tutorials for getting started with the Propeller chip itself, the open-source Propeller Platform Modules and the Spin programming language that's used to control things. All of the basics and a growing selection of more advanced topics are covered in gorgeous detail, with most of the tutorials containing helpful photographs … [Read more...]
For his wedding [Dave] wanted to have a photo booth but the $1k rental price was really getting him down. Instead, he decided to build his own. This cost less money and he gets to keep the booth once the festivities have concluded. He started by designing the assembly in Sketchup, taking into consideration the portability requirements that allow this to fit through doorways. What he came up with … [Read more...]
One of the bulbs in the dome light of [Pete's] car burnt out. These were a bit hard to get at for replacement so he thought he'd try something that would last longer, and have no problem standing up to the vibrations that go along with automotive electronics. But plug-in LED replacements cost more money than he was willing to spend. Luckily there was a dollar store next door to the auto part … [Read more...]
There's the quiet serenity of paddling through the backwoods in a canoe, and then there's this. It's a lawnmower motor powered canoe that comes complete with steering wheel, throttle, and a stereo system. To keep the craft balanced the driver rides in the front seat while the motor is hanging off the stern of the boat. The biggest trick is not swamping the thing while getting the motor running, … [Read more...]
We have decided that C.E.S. just really isn't as much of a hacker mecca as we would have wished. Sure there were brilliantly shining walls of new 3d televisions and cellphones and camcorders as far as the eye could see, but there was mainly just tons of marketing for very little innovation, and much less hacker-centric gear than we had hoped. We had fun and tried to keep things interesting, but … [Read more...]
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