‘Twas the podcast before Christmas, and all through the house, the best hacks of the week are dancing around Elliot and Tom’s heads like sugar-plums. Whatever that means.

Before settling their brains in for a long winter’s nap, they’ll talk about the open source software podcast that now calls Hackaday home, the latest firmware developments for Google’s Stadia controller, high-definition cat videos from space, and upgrades for the surprisingly old-school battery tech that powers the Toyota Prius.

Out on the lawn, expect a clatter about the the state-of-the-art in DIY camera technology, the acoustic properties of hot chocolate, and a storage media from the 1990s that even Al Williams had never heard of.

Finally, after tearing open the shutters and throwing up the sash, the episode wraps up with a discussion about wiring techniques that let you leave the soldering iron at home, and the newest chapter in the long history of transferring data via parachute. Miniature sleigh and eight tiny reindeer sold separately.

Download the gift you really want this year: this week’s podcast in DRM-free MP3.

Episode 249 Show Notes:

News:

• TWiT – Show Changes and Cancellations
• FLOSS Weekly Episode 762: Spilling The Tea

What’s that Sound?

• This week’s sound was a Rubiks Cube! Congratulations to [Daddy Long Legs from SF!].
• Towards The Perfect Coin Flip: The NIST Randomness Beacon
• https://beacon.nist.gov/beacon/2.0/chain/2/pulse/600657

Interesting Hacks of the Week:

• Reverse-Engineering The Stadia Controller Bluetooth Switching Procedure
  • Stadia Says Goodbye With Bluetooth And Crap Game
• The Dark Side Of Hacking XMas Lights, Literally
• NASA’s Tech Demo Streams First Video From Deep Space Via Laser
  • Psyche
• Old Prius Gets Upgraded Batteries
• Multi-View Wire Art Meets Generative AI
• Raspberry Pi Zero Powers Custom Camera Platform
  • CinePi Project Promises Open Source Movie Making

Quick Hacks:

• Elliot’s Picks:
  • Up Close And Personal With A MEMS Microphone
  • Arduino Measures Remaining Battery Power With Zero Components, No I/O Pin
  • The Hot Chocolate Effect Explained
• Tom’s Picks:
  • Storage Media Forgotten
  • How A LEGO Set Is Born
  • The Small And Silly Synth Now Even Smaller (But Just As Silly)

Can’t-Miss Articles:

• Ask Hackaday: What Do You Do When You Can’t Solder?
• Parachute Drops Are Still A Viable Solution For Data Recovery From High Altitude Missions
  • SpaceX Joins In The Long History Of Catching Stuff From Space
  • GitHub – Repository for the SuperBIT Data Recovery System