Follow-up: Hacking OnStar

March 16, 2010 by James Munns 22 Comments

Reader [regulatre] has provided us with his furthering of hacking the OnStar system in GM cars. Previously, we wrote about some initial attempts to gain access to the system that OnStar uses to monitor and control cars called GMLAN. [regulatre] has managed to create an adapter between the GMLAN connector and a standard OBD2 plug, which should allow a number of standard readers to be able to retrieve data.

This method details using a bluetooth OBD2 reader, and passing the data onto a linux machine. It looks as though the writer of this method is looking to integrate OnStar reading and writing into an Android App which currently is an OBD monitor.

We love seeing follow-ups like this, because it puts everyone one step closer to full control of closed devices. As always, let us know if you take any of this in a new direction.

Antique Jukebox Audio Streamer

February 5, 2010 by James Munns 11 Comments

Reader [Jimmy] sent us some info about his recently completed antique radio to audio streamer conversion. The electronics from the original radio were too far gone to repair, but he took the time to pull apart modern components to provide a polished looking finished project without losing the antique feel. We like it, but we are just suckers for that old time look. Check out his blog for more photos.

Leapfrog Didj: Followup

February 3, 2010 by James Munns 25 Comments

Yesterday we mentioned the Woot! sale of the Didj, and we had some comments and emails from readers who had purchased one. We couldn’t resist either, and ordered a couple to take apart and modify. We will probably be following the work laid out by [Claude Schwarz], who seems to be one of the leading hackers on the scene. [Claude] has done some work in porting the GP2x libraries to the Didj, which gives a tremendous head start to anyone looking to have a working game system any time soon. There will also be a build log for everyone to follow along at home, and contribute what you want and have, as well as a follow up How-To when a working system is attained. Happy Hacking, everyone.

Minneapolis Hackerspace: Twin Cities Maker

February 2, 2010 by James Munns 13 Comments

After announcing the grand opening of a St. Louis Hackerspace, we received a tip that another group of our readers had an event coming up. Twin City Maker of the Minneapolis/St.Paul area are hosting a Maker Faire and art show next weekend. Unfortunately, we don’t have any writers in that neck of the woods, so there wont be an official Hack a Day presence, but we are sure all of you who make it out there will do us proud. Take pictures, wont you?

The Minne-Faire will be located at:

Hack Factory
3119 E 26th St. Minneapolis, MN 55406

Mini Maker Faire 2-6 PM
Art Show & Party 7-11 PM

Leapfrog Didj: Handheld Linux On The Cheap

February 1, 2010 by James Munns 64 Comments

Today our good friends over at Woot! are selling the Leapfrog Didj, a low cost educational toy aimed at little kids. Lucky for hackers out there, the Didj is actually a linux device, and gaining serial console access is as easy as soldering two wires. The documentation out there is a little outdated, with a number of broken links and stale wikis, but $25 for a portable linux device is a hard deal to beat. A list of sites which might be helpful are listed after the break, as well as the hardware specs of the Didj.

Let us know if you have played around with hacking the Didj before, and if you have any tips for other readers. Don’t forget to tell us what you do with the Didj as well!

Thanks to [Mark] for the tips and the hardware details.

Continue reading “Leapfrog Didj: Handheld Linux On The Cheap” →

St. Louis Hackerspace: Arch Reactor

January 26, 2010 by James Munns 22 Comments

Here at HackaDay, we are always a fan of a group of hackers coming together to create a place to share ideas, tools, parts, and stories. A group from St. Louis called Arch Reactor have managed to secure a new location, and are having their grand opening this Saturday. From 4-10pm on the 30th, they will be hosting an open house, and showing off both the area as well as some personal projects. We plan on being there to cover it, as well as support a hackerspace that is close to home for a couple of us.

They are located on the second floor of:

904 Cherokee St.
St Louis, MO 63118

and feel free to check out their location page, as well as their main web site.

Edit: Thanks to [kamikazejoe] from the Arch Reactor forums for pointing out the logo issue. Whoops.

Hack Together A Coffee Roaster

January 22, 2010 by James Munns 14 Comments

For most people, making coffee entails taking a couple scoops out of a can of pre-ground coffee, adding water, and pressing “Go” on the drip machine. To others coffee brewing is an artform, and want as much control over the process as possible. For those without an overflowing bank account for a home roasting machine, Evil Mad Scientist Labs have put together a general guide for throwing together a Coffee Bean Roaster and cooler (which is apparently just as important as roasting) from a low cost hot air popcorn popper. The home roasting scene is even big enough to warrant its own Wikipedia page, which also mentions using a popcorn popper as a bean roaster.

The guide includes some great simple circuit diagrams to keep in mind when hacking your own, as well as a good explanation why you shouldn’t just clip out the heating coil for cooling mode.