After receiving a Marconi from [Admiral Aaron Ravensdale] informing us of the completion of an exquisite steampunk laptop, we were simply delighted. [The Admiral]’s computational device, or Uhlian Calculator as is the preferred nomenclature, is a remarkable combination of design and function suitable for any remarkable gentleman bent on the domination of the fast approaching electrical frontier.
[Ravensdale]’s new steampunk laptop is built off his first laptop, an old Toshiba Satellite 1100. Not a speed demon by any means, but the quality of this build is phenomenal. The hinged keyboard tilts up into an ergonomic position when the laptop is opened, reveling a set of six LED jewels for the power, battery, and hard drive lights. To the left and right of the screen, a pair of miniature brass horns contain a set of stereo speakers.
The keyboard is an awesome modification of the stock keyboard very reminiscent of [Admiral Ravensdale]’s previous keyboard steampunkification.
[The Admiral] put up an Instructable going through the many hours he put into this fine piece of craftsmanship. There’s also a video showing the keyboard lifting mechanism and skeleton key power switch available after the break.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVe5tcg1tyI&w=470]
The brass horn speakers are incredible
One can only presume that the “preferred nomenclature” for the display device built into the lid is “magic mirror”. Is there a better name for such a display device?
this is beautiful and so followed through, so why use leds instead of tiny lightbulbs?
Longevity? While power consumption in minimal, this is a battery powered device, to conserve battery power? AFAIK the steampunk fashion doesn’t require putting up with the drawbacks of some old technology
It’s already massive and probably unpleasant to use, why go half-way?
Steampunk might be cool if people actually, you know, used _steam_. And other antiquated technologies. There’s an opportunity for real creativity and innovation here, but people are content to glue a bunch of brass shit to a piece of consumer hardware. It’s all way too superficial.
check out crabfu’s steam robots. Fun stuff.
The crabfu robots look awesome. IMHO, that’s what ‘steampunk’ should be.
What craftsmanship! What delightful absurdity!
Love it.
Whoa exposed motherboard under the keyboard – probably would have put a custom cut plate under there in case of cola incidents.
Thanks for the nice words…
If everyone has further questions to my laptop, let me know and use the telegram function on my website
Admiral Aaron Ravensdale
Be sure to let us know when this gets used as a movie prop. :-)
Looked away when I recognized Windows Explorer. Y U NO Linux?
Wow! Just wow! Here in Germany there was the Wave Gotik Meeting in Leipzig last weekend. Lots and lots of incredible Steampunks and Steampunky-Makers.
I really WANT to like this, and the craftsmanship is fantastic, but for some reason I don’t like it. Not sure why.
I do like those speakers though.
Yeah I have one of these steampunk computers. It runs windows 3.0
Windows 3.0 is fitting for steampunk. I believe it was released at the beginning of the Industrial age.
The sort of laptop every DIY related club secretary needs to drag to the meetings. Arrive a tad late and dramatically ready it for use, especially deploying those speakers. Love those speakers. Personally I would have went for lighter finish on the wood.
r_d, if you actually make something steam powered, there’s also a large, often unmovable heating device to create the steam, plus a tank to store the water. Not to mention that steam, in general, is VERY dangerous to work with.
So yeah, you go ahead and make that steam-powered device.
well, yeah, its a pain, but I’d like to see it! Also, Crabfu has done some miniature steam powered setups that were pretty cool.
I’m not suggesting that anyone build a steam-powered laptop. The idea of a ‘steampunk’ laptop is silly to begin with, because you’re always going to be falling back on a ton of modern technology.
Hell, even if he modded in some incandescent bulbs, that’d earn him just a little credit. Preferably, though, you’d opt to build like a little analytical/difference engine or something. With brass cogs and whatnot. Or a Tesla coil. Or something like the telegraph sounder that von Slatt made. Anything that actually does something with the parts you used.
And I’m not trying to diminish this guy’s work. It’s really neat, and I’m sure it took a lot of effort to complete with that level of polish. I just don’t think it’s appropriate for HaD and it’s not something I’m particularly interested in.
Explain steampunk. ;) http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=2198
yay for questionable content. Yeah, defining steampunk is difficult. I’m the kind of person that will go nuts if you make something functionally steampunk. I’ll also ignore you if you’re hot gluing gears to things.
> After receiving a Marconi from [Admiral Aaron Ravensdale]
Ok, someone help me out, what the hell is a Marconi (as used in the context above)?
Scratch that, on re-reading, the “Admiral” part makes it obvious.
Uhlscher Kalkulator xD
I’m pissing my pants here! For those of you who don’t speak German, which might very well be the majority: He’s making a very good job of mocking a politician well known for his nonsense talk about the internet. And I somehow doubt Google will translate his blog post too well.
I personally don’t really like steampunk and it’s aesthetics. But I have respect for his craftsmanship. That looks well done indeed!
Herr Admiral, ich salutiere vor Ihnen!
Thanks Hattori Hanzo,
You find the real content!
It is already translated but nobody use the british flag in the upper right corner to switch the content into englisch on my website…
Admiral Aaron Ravensdale
Very nice one. I’m able to speek german too, so I read your original text. I nearly fell of the chair, laughing.
Herr Admiral, ich gratuliere.
(Ich habs schon mehrfach gelesen bei clockworker,konnte aber bisher nirgens sagen dass es mir sehr gefallen hat.)
Ich bin ein ihrer fans. Mit freundlichen grüßen, ihr Teck-Freak.
VERY cool, well done, it looks professionally made
Now just get it running linux ;-)
Belive me I try it several times with different distributoins always the grapic don’t work right… the newest Ubuntu Version works well but is too hard for the CPU and needs too long for everything…