Author: Eliot

1332 Articles

Best Of The Rest

May 30, 2008 by 5 Comments


Here are some more stories from yesterday that we found interesting:

See an interesting project? Please send us your tips!

Porting CHDK To New Cameras

May 27, 2008 by 9 Comments


While researching the CHDK How-To, we came across the team’s instructions for porting the firmware to entirely new cameras. In theory, CHDK should work on any Canon running the DIGIC II or III processor since most of them are running the same VxWorks OS. A dump of the camera’s firmware is required before porting work can begin. On some cameras, the firmware was retrieved using software, but others required a hardware route. Pictured above is a Canon A610 that’s slowly flashing out every bit of its firmware using the built in LED. The photodiode is hooked up to a soundcard where the entire bitstream is recorded. It takes 1-7 hours to read the entire firmware. Once the sound file has been captured, it’s reverted to the original bytes and can then be decompiled with something like IDApro.

Wireless Hacking With The OLPC XO

May 27, 2008 by 10 Comments


Not even a week ago we asked what we should do with our OLPC XO. InformIT’s [Seth Fogie] has written a great two part article that covers turning it into a hacker toolkit. Part one is an overview of the OLPC, how to upgrade it, and do some usability tweaks. Part two covers installing Nessus, Metasploit, and doing some wireless sniffing. We’ll be building our own little green monster based on this and let you know how it goes.

[via Slashdot]

Beverage Hacks

May 26, 2008 by 9 Comments


It’s Memorial Day in the US, so we thought we’d put together a collection of links we’ve covered in the past that might help you celebrate.

The Apu 3000 is one of the finer examples of drug use leading to carpentry. It’s a 4 gallon frozen margarita machine built out of a garbage disposal. A new garbage disposal. We don’t have the time here to speculate on what sort chemical dangers you may expose yourself to by constructing this though.

Continuing the trend of throwing horsepower at problems is the gas powered blender. It’s good for people that love a refreshing beverage while inhaling the fumes of 2-stroke engines.

We’ve covered a couple peltier based cooling projects in the past too. The first was a can cooler for the desktop. The second involved snaking a CAT5 cable across the yard to power a mug.

Back in 2005, Hackaday regular [evan] sent in his BASIC Stamp controlled kegerator. It’s very reliable and way cheaper than a commercial unit.

We’re closing on a sad note: It seems the instructions for making Guinness beersicles have fallen offline, again. From what we remember, you throw the can in the freezer till it reaches a thick slush stage. Then, release the gas so it forms a head in the can. Pierce the bottom of the can and insert the stick. Return the can to the freezer and let it freeze solid.

The Chief Cook Robot

May 24, 2008 by 8 Comments


We feel the need to apologize immediately for the use of Yakkity Sax in the preceding video and recommend you watch the longer, yak free, video below. It shows researchers at the Learning Algorithms and Systems Laboratory teaching a robot how to make a ham and cheese omelet. Each working area and food item is labeled with a machine recognizable tag. The researcher demonstrates the task by guiding the robot’s hand. The robot combines multiple demonstrations to generalize the skill. It can then adapt the learned skill to the specific task. You can see this in the video when the robot adjusts to the location of the bowl and cutting board when they’re moved around. Teaching through demonstration would make the use of robotics much easier for the general population.

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Biggest Drawing In The World Created With GPS

May 24, 2008 by 44 Comments


UPDATE: The text: “This is fictional work. DHL did not transport the GPS at any time” has been added to the bottom of the page since the original posting.

Artist [Erik Nordenankar] has created the Biggest Drawing In The World. At least that’s what his URL says. He used the movement of a GPS device to create a giant single line self portrait on the globe. His Pelican case containing four large batteries and the GPS data logger was handed off DHL with very specific travel instructions for its 55 day journey. It’s a pretty amazing feat, but we really wish the case had managed to make the trip without the close watch shown in the video.

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