Q Has Nothing On Naomi Wu

We’re not so much fans of James Bond as we are of Q, the hacker who supplies him with such wonderful things. There is a challenger to Q’s crown, [Naomi Wu] — code name [SexyCyborg] — built an epic gadget called the Pi Palette which hides a Linux laptop inside of a cosmetics case.

You can see the covert mode of the Pi Palette below. It resembles a clamshell cosmetics case with the makeup and applicator in the base and a mirror on the underside of the flip-up lid. The mirror hides an LCD screen in the portrait orientation, as well as a Raspberry Pi 3 running Kali Linux.

The base of the case includes a portable battery beneath the wireless keyboard/touchpad — both of which are revealed when the cosmetics tray is removed. An inductive charger is connected to the battery and [Naomi] built a base station which the Pi Palette sits in for wireless charging.

She envisions this as a covert penetration testing. For that, the Pi Palette needs the ability to put the WiFi dongle into promiscuous mode. She wired in a dual dip-switch package and really went the extra mile to design it into the case. The fit and finish of that switch is just one tiny detail the illustrates the care taken with the entire project. With such a beautiful final project it’s no wonder she took to the streets to show it off. Check that out, as well as the build process, in the video after the break.

We covered this one in a Hackaday Links post back in December. [Naomi] was a bit baffled to see our coverage of the ugly Pi laptop last night when Pi Palette didn’t get a standalone feature. We think she’s right, it’s a brilliant concept and she nailed the fabrication so we’re happy to take the time now to celebrate her work. Well done!

185 thoughts on “Q Has Nothing On Naomi Wu

    1. The title says “Q has nothing on” and then her name. Deja Q was the first TNG I saw in my mortal life, it’s the one where Q suddenly appeared with …nothing on. So, yeah.

  1. s/ugly/ghetto/
    FTFY. Remember that we can also do things like that because we choose to. Then if we didn’t enter a hack in any beauty pageants, it’s nice to not be judged as such.

    At any rate, this is vereh nice; boku bonus points for stealth.

      1. I guess that depends on where you hang out :) My pseudo-pizzabox laptop has 8 usb ports because I found all the pairs and soldered ports onto bare sections of the board or carved holes for them in the bottom half-shell’s plastic. It is _very_ ghetto. I might even show&tell after I get the bare PCI-E x16 slot situated for the mandatory eGPU

      1. Her stuff is awesome, but I take her less seriously since the time she told me women can’t communicate effectively without emoji.

        Gender doesn’t effect intelligence. -1 for being sexist.

        1. Well, in the shape of the distributions for math and spatial reasoning is certainly does. But we can’t talk about that. +1 for denying the truth in order to get laid.

          1. You’re right about the statistics, of course, but modern progressiveness demands we ignore them because they’re skewed by… patriarchy or something.

            Regardless, it’s less about denying the truth and more about denying excuses. Using gender as an excuse for being incoherent is unacceptable. When I graduated, the STEM honors society officers were all women except for myself and one other. Our president and vice president were very articulate women, and were perfectly capable of making a point in writing without having to put emoji claps between every word, and didn’t use gender as an excuse, unlike Naomi Wu.

          2. I talk about spatial skills a lot. Mine are terrible so it’s something I work quite hard on. Flying drones and locksport have helped a bit but I still get turned around/backwards in CAD and one of the reasons I am still stuck in TinkerCAD. I made a little game for kids: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1600732 I don’t think it’s useful to say “girls can’t because spatial skills” because studies have shown then can be brought up to the same level with practice. Not discussing them as something we can work on earlier in a kids life is also not helpful.

          3. Naomi Wu: The distribution I have seen – from re-sampling of multiple studies of school age kids – show there is no limit on female versus male for math and spatial, but the curves are shaped quite differently with 1 girl and 10 boys at some more difficult level and 1 to 100 for some higher difficulty, etc. The point being that one should not be surprised if there is a woman who is much better than all the men in some group, and one should also not be surprised if there are 100 men in some field for every woman. Assuming the surveys mean something.

            One also has to assume there is a good reason and a benefit to having some sort of parity among the sexes in these fields. Does pushing into STEM help with this perceived problem? There is certainly a lot of pushing. There is a radio PSA running now in which girls clap and sing a song about bits and microchips. Would boys EVER do that? would hacker girls? Honestly, I don’t know. I had students who would, but they were not necessarily in science classes voluntarily.

            Anyway, I’m not suggesting that any particular woman is not great at math or spacial reasoning. It is just statistics, which always requires a large ensemble, and only gives hints.

    1. Harsh! I’ve seen her post way more videos than I ever have. A good video usually has a script. If it seems fake its probably because shes NOT an actress.

      (she also reads hackaday and I have a crush, as we probably all do.)

      1. I think there’s more to it than that. If you look at Laura Kampf, Jeri Ellsworth, or Simone Giertz work on something, you can tell they know how to use a hacksaw. Naomi… ehh… it looks like it’s the first time she’s ever even touched one.

        1. Yeah sometimes. But why does that matter? Do you have to have a certain number of “hacksaw hours” before you are allowed q post on HAD? No! The fact is, she posts videos of her ACTUALLY building, troubleshooting and sometimes screwing up. On occasion she’ll even say “it’s my first time trying this so..”
          She is a learner and a doer. No one is an expert at everything
          But at least she is teaching herself new skills as she goes.

          1. You over focused on the hacksaw. It’s everything she does. She looks like she’s just repeating what she saw someone else do just before the camera started rolling. I get it, you fan boys think that you’ll get laid if you stick up for a youtuber with big boobies. I’m just calling it as I see it. I have nothing against her being female or being a beginner, but it just seems like she’s more interested in the attention she gets fleecing people out of their time so she can get youtube bucks, and people are bending over backwards to give it to her. You can enjoy her videos, I don’t mind. They’re just not for me. Sorry for having an opinion.

    2. While reading John’s comment, I get a very strong “sexist troll pretending to be casually concerned” vibe. Maybe I’m wrong, but it seems really gatekeeping and fake.

          1. Perhaps. In a good part of the world it is evolving to embrace female slavery and summary executions on street corners, or back yard hangings if the sex slaves are costing too much to feed.

        1. Your imagination of who I am is very different from reality. I see that you take issue with the word gatekeeping. What alternate word would you choose for when someone tries to decide who is a “real” member of a certain group, and accepts or rejects them based on whatever attributes they choose?

          Or was your mocking of the word itself a feint, and you’re actually trying to invalidate the existence of this behavior at all (a difficult feat when it’s happening right in front of you, in these comments).

          +1 for corruption signal. “Virtue signal?” Is that from 4chan or the_donald? You want to MAGA but your boy just wants to golf.

          1. No, you’re right. I was totally “gatekeeping.” Though I didn’t know what that meant until this post explaining it. I’ve grown, perhaps overly, sceptical of poseurs who just try to make internet bucks while providing nothing of worth. This overproduced video of someone fumbling through the motions in a super clean workshop set off my poseur alarms. I have nothing against her gender or being a beginner, but if you stop looking at her boobs long enough to see what’s going on here, something seems amiss. Maybe you like “reality” (read fake and scripted) television. I don’t. Enjoy it to your heart’s content. I’ll go watch something else.

    3. Most contributors just take pictures of various parts of their DIY build. I used to to do the same. Then of course “I bet some guy made it for her and she’s just holding it up”. So I had to shoot video even though I’m not really totally comfortable with speaking English on camera. so I keep the cameras running from start to finish on the entire project and still there’s nitpicking.

      I don’t do anything beyond the skill level of a middle schooler in a decent makerspace, there’s no reason any adult woman would need to fake any of this. How on earth do you fake solder something anyway and why would you? It’s easier to learn to actually do it.

      I’ve come to the conclusion that the insecure people who consider me a trespasser, need to believe that I’m fake a whole lot more than I need for them to believe I’m not. Whatever helps you sleep at night.

      1. @Naomi

        Much respect from your skill, you shouldn’t undermine them, you should trust them and grow them, you have potential and something that lacks a lot of makers, creativity.

        Sadly, is only about to be insecure or not, is about “were we come from”, people grown up in the ’90 experienced internet without a lot of women , the suspicion is still there, I guess . I’m not justifying it, you have the right to be yourself, and please , be it , we need women in technologies, without the fear to be attractive or not, we need them because we need new point of view on technologies , we need different experiences.

        Great build of yours, are you planning to slim it down using a Rasperry Pi Zero (W)?

      2. “I’ve come to the conclusion that the insecure people who consider me a trespasser, need to believe that I’m fake a whole lot more than I need for them to believe I’m not.”
        Awesomely well put!

        1. Yah, think that’s what it’s all about, insecurity…

          As I remember it, in the 90s there were large majority of men on the internet, there were “no women on the internet” jokes, but it was in more of a “ha ha, look at us bunch of lonely geeks” tone. Then in the early 2000s, it turned toxic, I think this was due to there now being a helluva lot of adolescent boys now on the internet, and those who remained immature into their 20s and 30s, all being incredibly insecure about their manhood. Then it just festered, the jokes got nastier, and unbelievably, still today we get these snipes.

          1. I think it is simpler. What passes for humor in popular media has become just saying mean, hateful, and stupid things. There is no “fun” in the funny. The general discourse among the young has followed, and will get worse. See Snoop’s latest for example.

          2. When home computer magazines came along, it was obviously a male domain, but there seemed to be some effort for the language to be inclusive of women, though I don’t know if that was the writers or the editors. Men were lusting after the technology, they didn’t need other lures. The one exception was the Tri-Tek inc ads (they sold parts to hobbyists), they featured a cartoon woman in skimpy clothes named “Ampl’Anny.

            It was only as home computers moved out into the larger world that half naked women were draped over computers.

            It did seem similar online until things exploded. It may or may not reflect a different mindset, but there were self limits. Once the online world stopped be a subset of society, it did come to reflect society, sexism and all.

            Michael

      3. Ignore the haters. Just keep doing what you love.

        Your skill honestly does NOT matter one bit, as long as you are enjoying what you do. Putting things on YouTube is just a bonus (although I know it must be nicer when everybody goes “Wow, that is cool”.) Consider compliments from others a nice extra, but never make that the reason that you do what you do.

        I have a master’s degree in electrical engineering. I freely admit that I am **NOT** a “maker,” so in that sense you are better than I am. I actually design chips for a living. The big difference between us is that I have great skills, but I only want to use them if somebody is paying me. I honestly find maker-style projects cool, but I cannot find the will to make myself work on things like that after a long day of doing pretty much the same thing and getting paid for it.

        Good luck, have fun, and ignore the jealous guys who have to spew venom.

      4. Well said Naomi.

        Don’t let certain people turn this into something that it’s not, how you dress and look is entirely secondary to the person you are (…and what you make!).

        I’m sure I’m not the only one reading through this thread thinking that as a happily married family man who’s not interested in crushing on anyone let alone someone on the other side of the planet I’d love to see more videos coming out of your makerspace.

        My only c&c on the device: you need to work on your cover story – go out with only one eye all done up and then stand around for ages while you do the other ;-)

      5. Naomi – ignore the bozofied haters, they’re just jealous of your talent and celebrity. For some reason some ppl aren’t happy unless they are stepping on other ppl’s heads. I’ve followed your projects from Hack-a-day to thingiverse and I’ve nothing but respect for you. You show ppl that learning electronics and making can be great fun. Keep up the great work and can’t wait to see your next project.

        Chief

      6. please keep doing what you’re doing. my daughter is a fan. i’m a fan. lots of people are. anyone who can’t keep their jealousy or doubts to themselves is just insecure and i hope you can discard their influence, they’re not worth your consideration.

  2. Putting a Pi inside a plastic case is not even remotely innovative and it is exactly like her to throw a hissy fit that she didn’t get her own special coverage. Lady, you did something 10,000 people before you have done. Stop demanding attention for it.

    If she didn’t have barbie-like proportions, nobody would be paying her a SINGLE second of attention because she’s doing stuff that in any hackerspace would barely earn more than a “oh, that’s cool” if a guy were doing it.

    1. she does seem to have this problem, usually against MAKE for not including her

      there are tons of people who don’t get covered even with some good projects…so for her to complain about it is pretty dumb and i do wish she’d stop doing that.

      about her body, yeah she’s not the first thing that comes to mind when you think hacker/diy but she is actually doing it so you do have to give her credit for the things she does however more or less innovative people think they are.

      1. I think it’s at least understandable to be *surprised* for a moment to discover that someone doesn’t match your built-in hacker/techie image. The next step is to accept that and update your preconceptions. The third step is to realize that the reason you’re surprised is because women get pushed out of tech due to fighting uphill against all the surprise and disbelief generated by the fact that they aren’t in tech as much because they get pushed out due to the surprise and disbelief that they aren’t in tech as much.

        How the heck do you break that loop? By not telling other people what to do, how to look, how to act. Hacking is not a club, we don’t need gatekeepers.

      2. Yeah the MAKE ear sh has.. I get you. But I get her too. It’s frustrating because she has had actual potential articles returned due to her appearance in photos or the concept of the build.

        Perhaps we need a pervy makers community?

          1. Make: is just a corporate shill/shell anyway. No loss on your part, Naomi. Keep on tinkering :) I do like the access to dip switches and the case came out great.
            On a side note: maybe it’s time to get a new handle. Sexy Cyborg is so 90s “I watched Hackers and have Voodoo People burned to CDr”and draws the wrong kind of attention to someone that can obviously execute a project. It is similar to Bill Nye’s thong_scientist handle that he ditched ;) Just a small critique that has nothing to do with your project.
            Take care and keep up the good work!

    2. Hmm..
      Yes. Many people have come up with shittacular boxes for their Pi.
      This is rather unique. Has a very specific theme. Utilizes interesting methods to hide the fact it’s a computing device (like the two way mirror screen).
      Essentially, STFU.

    1. Oh, hold on. You want to discuss comment moderation on Hackaday? Alright. Here we go. This is (your) comment, posted seven minutes after the post went live. Keep in mind comments here are sorted chronologically, so this would have been the first piece of shit everyone has to swallow:

      > She is also carrying enough silicon to build an IBM System/360 mainframe, is that an 4RU or a 6RU?

      That’s your ‘truth’. There’s no added value in this deleted comment, and I’d like to keep things at least marginally on track here. The comments section is still filled with people giving a shit by saying how little they give a shit that a woman built something, but at least we don’t have a jackass saying, ‘OMG boobs’ at the top of the page.

      You deserve shame.

      1. I have to say I really appreciate the willingness of moderators/authors in the past couple years to wade into this river of crap. I know the easy path is to just quietly delete the worst comments and hope the rest don’t get too crazy, but I appreciate that Hackaday still feels more like a group of real people with opinions that a faceless corp that paints on a PR image.

        1. Read again. The comment was about me caring not having to put up with your shit.
          What does clothes have to do with anything? You seem confused and don’t make any sense.

        1. Yes perhaps you should, I was talking about the element that chips are based on, hence the reference to computer hardware. You know, the stuff cyborgs enhance themselves with. Feel free to be stupid but do keep in mind that it is your problem, not mine.

          1. Meanwhile back in the land of normal people with real lives the adults are laughing at how puerile B is. Mate around my area the females get a lot of respect, because they wear the same clothes as everyone else and have real skills, such as avionics.

          2. Puerile? You bust into the comment section criticizing someone for their looks, and then you turn around and call _me_ puerile? That’s entertaining, but it doesn’t help your case much.

            On top of that, apparently I live in a land of abnormal people, where the fact that someone dresses differently is not considered a reason to disrespect them. I find it odd that you’re proud of apportioning respect based on clothing choices, but there it is. Maybe the next word you should look up is ‘parochial’. Keep a mirror handy.

          3. You are just shitty because your bullshit SJW strategy fell right on it’s face when I pointed out how irrelevant it is, so you are puerile, and a slow learner. If you read my original snark it is not critical of a person’s looks, but what they did to themselves, the hack. I don’t have to respect any form of body hack, or fashion, these are subjective matters and not a question of rights. I’d joke as much about some guys really bad tattoo.

          4. Ahh, so, Dan, you *were* commenting on her bodily appearance originally. Maybe if you had better articulated that you don’t care for aesthetic body modification in general rather than remarking on the amount of silicon(e) Naomi specifically possesses your comment wouldn’t have been received so poorly.

            Even better, perhaps if you had chosen to comment on the actual project described in the article rather than expressing your completely irrelevant opinion about what someone else does with their own body you might have made a meaningful contribution to the principle subject at hand. Or, you could have not said anything at all, and then at least people wouldn’t feel compelled to try to help you learn something about acting like a decent person. That would have been a fine choice, too.

            But no, you chose to spout a completely irrelevant opinion that–though you are entitled to possess it–does nothing but add to the mountain of sexist BS that women have to experience on a daily basis, especially among ‘nerdy’ pursuits. And before you say it, your opinion may not have been sexist per se, assuming you would be equally contemptuous of a guy getting equivalent enhancement, but when you come out with it as you did it becomes one with the systematic sexism that pervades so much of our culture, especially among the nerdy set.

            So sure, you’re entitled to your opinion, but that doesn’t mean that your opinion or the way that you express it doesn’t make you sexist and/or a jerk.

          5. No, I was using deliberate innuendo to bring out the inner SJW in Brian in order to prove that they told a blatant lie about censoring posts. It worked.

          6. If publicly demonstrating what an idiot you are is the requisite qualification then perhaps I am, but most people could easily do the same, given your idiocy is so blatant.

          7. Wow, so now we learn that judging someone by the content of their character is a “bullshit SJW strategy”. And here I thought the SJW thing was all about identity politics.

            Ah well, you learn something new from Dan in every post. I can’t wait for the next one. I mean, I’m sure there will be a next one, because aside from being proud of judging people on their looks, it’s also clear that Dan couldn’t stop digging if you took away the shovel.

            Come on Dan, let’s have it, your public awaits…

          8. Your looks, if you made them, i.e. they are a hack or fashion, speaks volumes about your mind. The fact that you can’t tell the difference between that and anything else just shows what a simpleton you are. It is no different from a middle aged guy integrating a red convertible sports car into his “look”, people have every right to point out the obvious conclusions to be drawn from observing that expression of his mind.

            See how it works now? Or do I have to dismiss you of as either completely retarded or totally dishonest?

          9. So in Dan’s “looks that invite public moral judgement” list, women with cosmetic surgery (or maybe even women who don’t dress like the guys and aren’t skilled in avionics, that point isn’t yet clarified) have been joined by guys with bad tattoos (my local public pool would drive you crazy) and now middle aged men with red convertibles.

            This is getting serious, folks! I haven’t made the list yet, but if he keeps playing Battleship like this I’m sure he’ll get me sooner or later. I could lose a few pounds; maybe you could work with that?

            > do I have to dismiss you of as either completely retarded or totally dishonest?

            Now here’s another head scratcher. Is both an option? Maybe you could try both? Or you could drop the personal attacks and actually make a coherent argument. I guess you’re pretty well invested in the current line of attack, though. So carry on. I’m excited to see what you come up with for the next instalment.

            Oh I know; you could go after Dolly Parton! That’d be great! Her Imagination Library is nothing next to the moral outrage of her cosmetic surgery, am I right? Dan? Let’s have that pronouncement from on high. Books for almost a million kids a month is nothing next to breast augmentation, right Dan? You know you want to have your say. Don’t hold it in now, that’s not good for you!

          10. The fact that you need to put words in my mouth demonstrates how dishonest you are and how weak you know your arguments are, not that they are a true argument in the formal sense given that when viewed in abstraction they are incoherent. Yes how ironic that you would suggest that I have failed to present a coherent argument, when you diverge your arguments after every few sentences in the most manic and schizoid way.

            I’ll give you a simple example of what I do think (so you can quote me without your typical deceit), I do not judge you for needing glasses, or for being so ugly, but that hair cut of yours is 100% your responsibility. All conscious acts are a form of communication (what sort of fool would deny that, your sort?) yet you seem to insist on inflicting a simplistic rule on other people that in it’s essence denies them the right of reply to such communications.

            So no you are not “right”, you are a shallow fool who acts as if they were programmed and have no deeper understanding of what they insist on inflicting on others.

            Why would I joke about Dolly Parton when she has already told all the best jokes about herself? Do you now see what a shallow and simplistic fool you are now having laboured over your “killer argument and example” only for it become irrelevant?

            The only thing you have convinced me of is that you are a genuine idiot, who lacks integrity, with a grossly over-inflated assessment of your own intelligence. You have been programmed, but like a stupid little robot you don’t actually have any insight into the rules your follow and try to impose on every other human. The fact that you then try and make them fit to each and every person and scenario you encounter, without the requisite insight, just makes you an obnoxious pest, not some form of hero.

          11. > Why would I joke about Dolly Parton when she has already told all the best jokes about herself?

            Who said anything about joking? You’ve proudly, repeatedly proclaimed that you judge people based on their appearance. I argue in favour of judging people by what they do, and that this doesn’t include judging them by the irrelevant details of what they do to their own appearance. Clearly, we’ll have diverging opinions then on Parton, no? Or are you just going to deflect again, and call me more names?

            Yours truly,
            Shallow Fool / Genuine Idiot etc etc.

            xoxo

          12. You are pathetic, you lack the intellectual courage and integrity to acknowledge the point I have made and it is pretty obvious that you do now get the point if the best you can do is to deploy such lame diversionary tactics.

            You can and should differentiate between what was given to a person by nature and what they made themselves into. Not just their looks, but sounds and even their smells etc. Everything that is you that you created is your responsibility and you should be judge by it.

            Perhaps I should give you an example that is in exactly the same category, yet so different that it breaks you our of your programming?

            If I have malodorous body odour due to disease you should not judge me, but if I am a troll and decide to wear a cadaverine and putrescine based perfume to a funeral you have every right to judge me for that deliberate act of communication, particularly if I have profited from doing so.

          13. More of this name calling please, Dan. It really shows you to your best advantage.

            So yeah, after all these tries you finally managed to construct a situation where someone could reasonably be morally judged for something they’ve done to themselves. But you’ve still failed; a person carrying that smell around in an open jar would be no better, so the fact that they splashed it on themselves is incidental to the question of why what they’re doing is offensive. It’s the intentional smell, not the fact that they’re wearing it.

            Hey, I’l comp you one here, since you can’t seem to make your own argument. Someone who wears a bathing suit (and smells fine) to a traditional funeral is earning a judgin’. That’s a disrespectful thing to do, profit or no. Does that help?

            On the flip side, you still refuse to respond with some sort of explanation of how Parton’s cosmetic surgery should matter. Among other body modifications, I understand that she seriously ramped up her cup size for publicity and personal profit. And yet, she also does a huge amount of charitable work. Discuss.

            Or just call me more names. I’m entertained either way.

          14. You just validated my use of the LABELS I have categorised your commentary with because you still don’t demonstrate an appreciation (or acknowledgement) of the PRINCIPLE that is ILLUSTRATED by my EXAMPLES.

            I already told you what I know of Parton, the facts, so I see no reason to consider your divergent argument, furthermore it is your argument and not demonstrated to parallel any observation of mine.

            If you consider this dialogue to be nothing more than a means of deriving some form of perverse pleasure, rather than the pursuit of the truth, then you are indeed nothing more than a troll and nobody is obliged to respect you.

          15. I’m a troll? Now that hurts. But wait, if that’s true why are you responding to me? What’s the first rule of dealing with trolls, Dan? Could this mean that you actually *do* respect me? Is that what you’re saying? Oh, I’m touched! What a moment we’re sharing here, just you and I, with nobody else bothering to read any of this anymore. You’ve made me so happy this day! I’m positively blushing!

            Your assertion that you’ve said all you know of Parton fools nobody, Dan. Or it wouldn’t if anyone read this. Just google her; the first things you’ll learn is that she’s a country music singer, she’s famous for her cosmetic surgery, and she’s an exceptionally generous philanthropist. The only reason you can’t acknowledge that combination in a single individual is because it blows such a huge hole in your unwavering commitment to judging people by their chosen appearance.

            Here’s a label for you, Dan. You’re a small-minded prude. That’s pretty clearly demonstrated in this subthread, but luckily for you it won’t be read by anyone. Maybe next time you should try to not dig yourself such a big ugly hole.

          16. Well I am actually responding to your other facet, the gormless idiot. What I know of Parton came from her own mouth and I think she has a great sense of humour, it is just a dam shame you don’t get the point I made and why your childish little attempt at a “chess move” is so irrelevant, but I am sure (now) that others did.

          17. Naomi Wu – has breast augmentation, probably gets some publicity from it.

            Dan: “Not worthy of any respect because she doesn’t dress like the guys and has no skills in avionics.”

            Dolly Parton – has breast augmentation, definitely gets publicity and money from it. Shares her money generously.

            Dan: “She’s got a great sense of humour, and unlike everyone else I talk about, I refuse to comment on her appearance.”

            You know Dan, I’ve been accusing you of being extremely superficial, but I’m starting to think there’s something deeper going on in your strange little noggin. I’m almost scared to delve into it, though. Almost.

          18. One you misquoted me again, no surprise there otherwise you wouldn’t be able to delude yourself that you had a valid point.

            As for Parton (who is a nobody in most of the world) she jokes about her own appearance better than I ever could.

            I already pointed that out, and that folks is why I am convinced that “B” has “shit for brains”, and or is simply trolling.

            The bottom line is this, you “B” are getting so repetitive that there is no new information in your dialogue, you are less useful than even a random number generator.

        2. Oh, goodness… on further inspection, it looks as though Dan made a clever joke about the bulk of this hack – comparing the R-Pi to a mainframe… and then he got skewered for what everyone else was thinking.

          1. If that’s the case, he could have said something like ‘I was actually trying to make a joke about X, but I realize now that what I said came out as sexist BS. Regardless of my intentions, I apologize for what I said and will try to be more mindful of the effect my words will have on other people whose experience differs from mine–particularly women like Naomi, who are constantly on the receiving end of sexist BS from other people in the tech/maker community.”

            But Dan hasn’t said anything at all like that, has he?

            So taking his initial comment as reported by Brian at face value, and looking at the comments that Dan has made since then, I think it’s fair to interpret the comment as the sexist BS it appears to be. Of course we’re all human here (setting aside the “cyborg” bits for the moment), and make mistakes, so if Dan wants to own up to what he said and demonstrate some attempt at learning a lesson about how to not act like a sexist pig–intentionally or not–I encourage him to do so.

          2. Yeah they are carrying on as if I pointed out that somebody was a narcissistic exhibitionist that monetised their body modifications via YouTube, perhaps I should have. That would have been the truth too.

          3. ….aaaaand my generous interpretation was proven false. Bummer. this was just trolls building windmills for white-knights to tilt at. Thank you Dulcinea for your above average hack, and the drama that followed.

          1. It is not a protest about censorship, it is an exercise in proving that certain people, who hold themselves up to be better than others, are really pathological liars.

          1. Dan here is really brave, taking the hits and making himself look like some kind of insufferable prick, all in the name of uncovering the Big Conspiracy in the Hackaday Comments Section. Do I smell a Pulitzer? Wait, no, that’s just a rotten mind.

          1. BTW that is the sort of body hack that I do consider worthy of respect, and I have no idea what sort of gonads the members of the research team have either, because it really doesn’t matter to me.

          2. Hey everyone, look! Dan just erased his earlier sexist comments by proclaiming some OTHER hack valid of HIS blessed approval, and the absolute madman went one step further and claimed that the gender of the people involved Did Not Matter To Him. Can we get a standing ovation?

          3. You don’t cope well with being wrong do you.

            I think you will find that none of my comments are actually sexist at all. Try quoting me in context and see if you can find proof that I would treat a person differently based on their sex specifically. And if you jump at what you think is the first most obvious example prepare to be made to look like an idiot (not that doing that would be difficult).

          4. @oodain: Ah, but that’s what makes Dan so enjoyable to interact with. He’s so superficial and judgemental, but he completely loses it when criticized. Stay calm, point out his ridiculous attempts at justifying himself, and enjoy the show! It’s not like he can stop himself from responding.

          5. You can’t judge people for hereditary reasons, even their status of “Prince”, but the fact that you insist on remaining a shallow fool is entirely your responsibility.

          6. Here’s a tip, Dan. If someone calls you a prince among men, they never, ever mean to literally proclaim a belief in your royal lineage. Is that a lesson you can follow, I wonder? Maybe even generalize a bit? Let’s find out…

            “You’re a lion among men, Dan. A real gem of a human being.”

          7. Here is a tip, if you lecture me about standards don’t be surprised if I rub your nose in the fact that you exhibit double standards, even if they are subliminal choices in your selection of phrases.

            As for your assessment of me, it will never matter regardless of what it is.

    1. It’s unusual, but a little body-filling primer to catch the layering and some rose-gold foil and it would look close enough to a random high-end product to pass casual inspection.

      As it stands, if someone were to catch a glimpse of the eyeshadow palette cover, they would believe that it’s makeup.

    1. OK. Stupid question, but since you are using an external WiFi adapter, why not go for a Pi zero? Those things are a LOT smaller, and, while you would need a USB hub, some of those are pretty darned tiny once you remove the case.

      Not criticizing — cool build, I was just wondering.

  3. Some were called out misogyny here for mention Naomi’s …cleavage, that’s unfair:

    http://www.atimes.com/article/meet-chinas-sexycyborg-goddess-geeks
    Q: You call yourself SexyCyborg. Would you get implants to become an actual cyborg?
    N: I carry around 1,600cc of breast implants and it took me three painful surgeries to get there.

    She uses sex to sell and does have breast implants to that effect, so comment is fair game. Apart from that, she’s cute and builds stuff, more power to her, but let’s not be PC mealy mouths, ok?

    1. Are you really going to target a woman based on her choices of her own body? Who cares that she got implants. That doesn’t do a single thing to change the fact that she did a hack that was worthy of an article. Next time we have a hack by a guy are we going to bash him for his decision to dye his hair or some other inconsequential detail? The point is that the referenced comments added NOTHING to the article’s context.

      Attacking a woman for her body choices is a horrible thing to do. It matters not at all if the facts are true, they simply don’t matter.

    2. There are a lot of guys that read here that will bend over backwards to assault you for logical conclusions that go against their “goddess.” They all secretly hope to have sex with her, and so they can’t understand that equality means not giving special treatment or considerations. I smelled a poseur and got called sexist. She’s clearly in this for attention and money, but to say the emperor has no clothes will get you beheaded by the white knights. Just FYI.

      1. There are a lot of guys that read HAD who can separate their libido from their maker mind. They are the ones who look at two pi laptop projects and think that the well designed and built one deserves at least as much attention. They literally don’t care that it’s a woman who made it. They especially don’t care that the woman has made choices about her own body. Those are not important to the hack and the article is about the hack, so that is all that is important.

        The “logic” that you have spouted has been one sided and assumes your viewpoint is the only one that matters, that is why many people have disagreed with you. You’ve called her a pouser, other people have defended that she’s working in a second language and not an expert. You then say that your arguments were just an example, but you failed to provide any more.

        I honestly don’t care if she’s “fake” (in any sense of the word). Because the hack is very elegant and deserves the attention of HAD. I know very little about her, except that she’s faced a lot of horrible backlash from every maker site she’s been featured on, not because of her projects, but because of HER.

        I apologize if you unfairly got swept up in being called sexist, but I do contend that you were not following “logical conclusions” without any biases, you’ve already shown your side and unwillingness to listen to the others and that is what is causing the negative attention you’re receiving, not the unchecked libido of other HAD readers.

        1. See, white knight right here. Swinging away at my neck. If a man made a video this fake and then got featured on the front page, he’d be torn to shreds. Somehow equality in the mind of the white knight means that women are always beyond criticism. Tell me the logic in that.

      2. > She’s clearly in this for attention and money

        Pretty sure she enjoys attention, or else she’s some impressive sort of masochist. Where’s the money come from though, Youtube? Given what I’ve seen of Dave Jones’ earnings, that seems unlikely. I just looked for a Patreon and didn’t find one.

        And if she is in it for money, is that somehow unacceptable in the HaD community? Amateurs only need apply?

        Yeah there’s a ton of white knighting going on, and it seems to me that the creepy fantasy stuff leaking out in this thread is more damaging to female participation in hacking/making communities than the prudish attacks.

        What I’m curious about though is what triggers you poseur sense. I don’t find anything I’ve seen to be not genuine. Highly exhibitionist, sure, but is that what you’re complaining about? If not, what makes you feel she’s faking interest in the stuff she does?

        1. Finally a sane person I can talk to.

          In my experience, people who are beginners produce works that look like they are made by beginners. Poor cutting skills result in crooked cuts. Inept 3d skills result in ill fitting prints. Poor soldering skills result in poor solder joints, etc. You don’t do work as we see in the video and end up with a finished product that looks like the object we see in the beginning of the film. The soldering iron tip is too big, the iron is too hot, and yet everything is perfect in the end. Also, the workspace is far too clean. Makers are not particularly clean during a project. Stuff gets strewn around and things sit while not being worked on. Perhaps she has OCD, but so do I, and I never have stuff that neat and tidy. A good example of this is the Kreuig coffee maker turned into a robotic hand. https://youtu.be/Uem9YfT63ys

          Maybe she’s the exception to the rule, but the exception does not define the rule, thus my suspicion that someone else is doing most of the work and is working in conjunction with a pretty face in order to make money via YouTube. She seems to be in this for the money and attention, while the person who is often holding the camera yet never mentioned is probably doing all of the work. She seems to read from a script, but the best makers I’ve seen make mistakes on camera and then fix the problem on camera as well, instead of cutting out the corrections.

          I could be wrong, but that isn’t usually the case. Am I arrogant? It has been said before, so I don’t dismiss that idea, but I’m usually right. So I trust myself more than people who seem to be biased by sexual attraction.

          In the end, I’m offended by someone pretending to be a maker when in reality, they’re just trying to get internet cash. That’s not what making is about. You make stuff because it makes you happy, bit because it brings you fame. If you can make money, that’s icing on the cake.

          1. > thus my suspicion that someone else is doing most of the work and is working in conjunction with a pretty face in order to make money via YouTube

            This again? Scroll up to where she posted a screen grab of her YouTube earnings. Cross reference them with David Jones’ EEVBlog video where he talks about his earnings. There is literally zero evidence that this money-making claim makes any sense. I’m sure she’d make good money from Patreon, and I don’t think she’s on there. I take that as positive evidence that the “she’s out to make money” line is invalid. I presume she has a day job, because this clearly isn’t paying the rent.

            I bet you’re right that there’s someone behind the camera, but that doesn’t mean necessarily that they’re pulling all the strings in some nefarious, greedy plot. I know the closest I’d be willing to get to Youtube would be silently running a camera for someone else, and I doubt I’m a rarity in the hacking community. Would you be more comfortable in front of the camera, or behind it? I’m sure you at least understand the silent, behind-the-camera type of people, no?

            And somewhere in this thread she posted a link to this photo series: http://imgur.com/a/X85wY

            Does that seem like a money grab to you? To me it looks like a basically good person who happens to also be a self-promoting extrovert. The tactile 3D printed character chits look like a good idea, and giving kids callipers is great.

            Clearly the fact that she’s also an exhibitionist gets a lot of people either drooling or clenching. I wish the first group would grow up and the second would get over themselves. She’s an outlier on the scale of women in tech, but wow are the reactions she gets ever a vivid demonstration of why so many women aren’t interested in getting near the field.

    1. Personally, I agree with her. Make did a conference in China, not a SINGLE woman and only 3 Asians were involved as speakers. They claimed they couldn’t find any local makers to speak, but MANY Chinese makers pointed out that they applied. This was systematic racism and should be pointed out and shamed.

          1. I said information on the people who applied. Do you not have any? Why are Chinese men left out of your graphic? In your tweet you said “racist” as well. Are Chinese men not Chinese?

        1. I’d actually point you to Naomi’s twitter, she did a very good job documenting the facts of the matter. She’s been fighting for women in tech for quite a while, and her fight isn’t very “popular” with some people. She’s not just fighting for herself either,check out http://makezine.com/2015/09/15/prosthetic-arm-amputee-mad-max-cosplay/ which wasn’t placed in the magazine itself because of midriff, or @bindismalls whose crime is making cosplay. You can’t just refuse to do research and act like you have the high ground, tech is hostile to women, and only vigilance and acceptance will ever change that.

    2. I get it John & M.M.- but you are connecting me with people that despise me and everything I do because I’m willing to earn my place if I’m told how. Look around a little- I engage, I ask to have things I don’t understand explained to me, I am open to being wrong- the people you are thinking of aren’t willing to do this. With you, me or anyone else.

      Read this, if you still think I’m in the wrong to simply ask them, DM me on Twitter and explain your point of view to me and I will listen. Fair enough?

      http://imgur.com/lHZQ5ov

      1. Personally I think that is a very reasonable thing to ask. Asking to have the line drawn in the sand so they cannot retreat from it any more is fine. Considering everything I understand about this situation (Make, their location, the attitudes of people in that area, your appearance, and your behavior), I really doubt this is racism. Considering your “out there in your face” attitude, I bet this is far more based in religion and culture. People in the West are often very uncomfortable around nudity. Make and Maker Faires are designed to be family oriented things, and in the West that means children not seeing boobs. Personally, I’m extremely liberal, and I don’t care what you do and believe no one should fear the human body, but in the subconscious minds of people who grew up surrounded by Christianity, your blinking LCD bra makes them uncomfortable. They’re afraid that if you show up in something like that, MANY people are going to start complaining and preventing their children from attending future events. You shouldn’t change to make others happy, but why not afford that same courtesy to them? If they don’t want people walking around half naked, be ok with that instead of calling them racist or sexist. The real maker thing to do is to organize your own event with like minded people. Then everyone is happy. You don’t need them to be successful. You do you.

        Of course, as you say, if they don’t tell us why you were excluded, we can’t know the real problem or how to fix it. You have a good point there. Racism?… I guess it’s possible, but I strongly doubt that’s what it is. There are a lot of people of color showcased on Make, particularly Asians. Same thing goes for women. I doubt their heads are exploding simply because you’re both.

        1. I absolutely agree John- most of my clothing has no business in Make and I’d never think of asking it. What got me blacklisted from the Shenzhen Maker Faire is I emailed Make and then when they would not respond I posted this: http://pastebin.com/Z9eP9ShE

          When Thais invited me to their Mini Maker Faire this is how I dressed- http://imgur.com/a/X85wY I checked with them in advance, and if this was still too much for Western families I’d absolutely wear whatever they asked without complaint.

          We don’t know what the issue is- but that’s on them for not saying so but still going on and on about “inclusion and diversity”. If Make wants to focus on Americans that’s totally fine and their business, then they should say so and not pretend otherwise.

          I get that there are people who stomp their feet and want people to change to suit them, I know people look at me and think “well I bet this girl is full of herself and entitled”. I’m from a very working class family but for my English study I’d be on the factory line with half my high school classmates. I’m the last person to think I’m owed anything. I’ve gotten 1000x more than I could have ever expected a few years ago. Everything I have ever wrote has been one thing- give me a fair shot to meet whatever the requirement is. And if I miss that mark that’s on me.

  4. As with many of these designs, getting everything in such a small case is an accomplishement. Bravo. Sadly, it’s not for me, and not just because of the makeup disguise.
    With all small designs, I contemplate using that tiny keyboard for more than a few minutes at a time, with arthritic fingers, and think: “nope”

    A version of the ugly Pi laptop, with a 60% mechanical keyboard, would lose the “covert” factor but would also be much easier to use. Judging by this design, if [Naomi Wu] made a case for that, it would look professional enough to end up on Kickstarter.

    1. Is this the Pi laptop you’re talking about? I haven’t played with one, is the keyboard terrible? https://www.sparkfun.com/products/13897

      I used mechanical keyboards starting around 1990 with a Northgate Omnikey Ultra, didn’t know it was anything special back then of course (was just a kid, and most computer keyboards were clicky). All I knew is that I didn’t like typing on the soft touch keyboards! The short-travel laptop style keyboards are a usable compromise because hitting the bottom of the keystroke happens so soon, it’s almost like they’re not mushy :)

      1. Actually, I was referring to the Ugly Pi Laptop, mentioned in the article: http://hackaday.com/2017/03/11/an-ugly-but-functional-pi-laptop/
        For appearance and sheer “wow” factor, Naomi wins – no problem. I can even see why she asked about the lack of coverage of her version. If her version just had a better, larger keyboard I’d pay money for it [disguised as a book? Box of art crayons?]
        I’m trying to design a small terminal myself, based on 60% keyboard and “stretched bar” LCD. Every setback helps me appreciate those who create something that actually works.

    1. It’s a first prototype. There is some limit to miniaturization without going overboard, but I think with such an excellent proof-of-concept built it can definitely be slimmed down if she were to work on another revision.

      I’m quite happy with it just as is. Pi Palette certainly has more polish than 99% of my projects.

  5. I watch too much TV. After watching all the supermodel hacker/tech experts on crime shows do fictional stuff on fictional systems that make no sense, watching Naomi was very cool. She is clearly very smart, very interested in tech and doing creative stuff with it, and very, VERY beautiful. Hope she keeps at it and appreciates her fans!! Fuck the haters!! Love to see Naomi do a TED talk. She could encourage other women and/or break the stereotypes we dumbass men have in our heads. Thanks Naomi!!!

  6. She is pretty, smart, and does stuff herself. What’s not to like?

    I’d rather watch her present her work on TV, than some idiotic shows about bridal dresses, midgets, and what some “celebrity’s” dog ate for breakfast.

    Well done Naomi.

  7. Sorry for ticking you off, Ms. (Mrs.?) Wu. For the record, I would’ve been happy getting stuffed into a Links post myself (TBH, it’s kind of what I expected, actually).

    1. Not ticked off at all. It’s a fair point. I code under a male pseudonym and it’s great. I know that 100% of the feedback I get is just about the quality of my code. No one says “it sucks” because they are uncomfortable with how I look. No one says “best code ever” because of how I look either which is just as important. If I got a simple text link under my male pseudonym I’d know it was just the code being judged.

      But as a woman with basic, self-taught hardware skills, you have crippling impostor syndrome from half the people telling you “you suck”, some even less credible people saying you’re “the best thing ever”, a ton of women to learn from who have kept their heads down for years, never spoken up and been neglected for it saying “don’t do what I did!”. You end up doubting everything and looking like a bitch when you ask “What can do differently?” which is all I have ever done.

      So yup- I’d love being able to get a text link and know that it only reflected my project. But no one can look at even this heavily moderated comments section and think that even 50% of the time that’s the only thing being judged. I didn’t make a public issue of it with HaD. I sent an email and asked if it was an oversight. If they said no I would not have said a word because HaD has always been professional with me and I trust their judgment. There’s a high standard for features, most of my projects don’t nearly meet it, this one did.

      1. Yet HAD claims to not moderate their comments, but Dan proved that to be a lie. How can you claim heavily moderated comments while appealing to a source that claims no moderation?

  8. I think it’s a pretty sweet build. I like making things small and hidden, and this is a great example of prototyping. The thing that really got me in the video though, was the ides of prototyping on the lid of a plastic bin, brilliant! All the components could go into the bin and have parts sit on top or hand from the inside of the container to protect it all. I’ve got to try to remember that trick, I think that will come in super handy!

  9. Naomi Wu (@RealSexyCyborg)
    After watching a couple of your videos, I gotta say haters gotta hate. You’re a maker after my own heart. Your workspace looks like mine, and you’re doing interesting stuff with real skills.

    Please keep up the good work, as it’s inspiring to I’m sure more than just me.

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