Bootstrapping Android Development: A Survival Guide

September 4, 2025 by Maya Posch 26 Comments

Developing Android applications seems like it should be fairly straightforward if you believe the glossy marketing by Google and others. It’s certainly possible to just follow the well-trodden path, use existing templates and example code – or even use one of those WYSIWYG app generators – to create something passable that should work okay for a range of common applications. That’s a far cry from learning general Android development, of course.

The process has changed somewhat over the years, especially with the big move from the Eclipse-based IDE with the Android Development Tools (ADT) plugin, to today’s Jetbrains IntelliJ IDEA-based Android Studio. It’s fortunately still possible to download just the command-line tools to obtain the SDK components without needing the Google-blessed IDE. Using the CLI tools it’s not only possible to use your preferred code editor, but also integrate with IDEs that provide an alternate Android development path, such as Qt with its Qt Creator IDE.

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The Nintendo Famicom Reimagined As A 2003-era Family Computer

September 3, 2025 by Maya Posch 4 Comments

If there’s one certainty in life, it is that Nintendo Famicom and similar NES clone consoles are quite literally everywhere. What’s less expected is that they were used for a half-serious attempt at making an educational family computer in the early 2000s. This is however what [Nicole Branagan] tripped over at the online Goodwill store, in the form of a European market Famiclone that was still in its original box. Naturally this demanded an up-close investigation and teardown.

The system itself comes in the form of a keyboard that seems to have been used for a range of similar devices based on cut-outs for what looks like some kind of alarm clock on the top left side and a patched over hatch on the rear. Inside are the typical epoxied-over chips, but based on some scattered hints it likely uses a V.R. Technology’s VTxx-series Famiclone. The manufacturer or further products by them will sadly remain unknown for now.

While there’s a cartridge slot that uses the provided 48-in-1 cartridge – with RAM-banked 32 kB of SRAM for Family BASIC – its compatibility with Famicom software is somewhat spotty due to the remapped keys and no ability to save, but you can use it to play the usual array of Famicom/NES games as with the typical cartridge-slot equipped Famiclone. Whether the provided custom software really elevates this Famiclone that much is debatable, but it sure is a fascinating entry.

The Sense And Nonsense Of Virtual Power Plants

September 2, 2025 by Maya Posch 33 Comments

Over the past decades power grids have undergone a transformation towards smaller and more intermittent generators – primarily in the form of wind and solar generators – as well as smaller grid-connected batteries. This poses a significant problem when it comes to grid management, as this relies on careful management of supply and demand. Quite recently the term Virtual Power Plant (VPP) was coined to describe these aggregations of disparate resources into something that at least superficially can be treated more or less as a regular dispatchable power plant, capable of increasing and reducing output as required.

Although not actual singular power plants, by purportedly making a VPP act like one, the claim is that this provides the benefits of large plants such as gas-fired turbines at a fraction of a cost, and with significant more redundancy as the failure of a singular generator or battery is easily compensated for within the system.

The question is thus whether this premise truly holds up, or whether there are hidden costs that the marketing glosses over.

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Remembering The Intel Compute Stick

September 2, 2025 by Maya Posch 29 Comments

Over the years Intel has introduced a number of new computer form factors that either became a hit, fizzled out, or moved on to live a more quiet life. The New Unit of Computing (NUC) decidedly became a hit with so-called Mini PCs now everywhere, while the Intel Compute Stick has been largely forgotten. In a recent video by the [Action Retro] one such Compute Stick is poked at, specifically the last model released by Intel in the form of the 2016-era STK1AW32SC, featuring a quad-core Intel Atom x5-Z8330 SoC, 2 GB of RAM and 32 GB eMMC storage.

As the name suggests, this form factor is very stick-like, with a design that makes it easy to just plug it into the HDMI port of a display, making it a snap to add a computer to any TV or such without taking up a considerable amount of space. Although Intel didn’t make more of them after this model, it could be argued that devices like the Chromecast dongle follow the same general concept, and manufacturers like MeLe are still making new PCs in this form factor today.

In the video this 2016-era Compute Stick is put through its paces, wiping the Windows 10 installation that was still on it from the last time it was used, and an installation of Haiku was attempted which unfortunately failed to see the eMMC storage. Worse was the current Ubuntu, which saw its installer simply freeze up, but MX Linux saved the day, providing a very usable Linux desktop experience including the watching of YouTube content and network streaming of Steam games.

Although dissed as ‘e-waste’ by many today, if anything this video shows that these little sticks are still very capable computers in 2025.

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NASA Seeks Volunteers To Track Artemis II Mission

September 1, 2025 by Maya Posch 27 Comments

As NASA’s Artemis program trundles onwards at the blazing pace of a disused and very rusty crawler-transporter, the next mission on the list is gradually coming into focus. This will be the first crewed mission — a flyby of the Moon following in the footsteps of 1968’s Apollo 8 mission. As part of this effort, NASA is looking for volunteers who will passively track the Orion capsule and its crew of four as it makes its way around the Moon during its 10-day mission before returning to Earth. Details can be found here.

This follows on a similar initiative during the Artemis I mission, when participants passively tracked the radio signals from the capsule. For this upcoming mission NASA is looking for Doppler shift measurements on the Orion S-band (2200-2290 MHz) return link carrier signals, with the objective being to achieve and maintain a carrier lock.

Currently penciled in for a highly tentative April 2026, the Artemis II mission would fly on the same SLS Block 1 rocket configuration that launched the first mission, targeting a multi-trans-lunar injection (MTLI) profile to get to the Moon using a free return trajectory. The crew will check out the new life support system prior to starting the MTLI burns.

Because Artemis II will be on a free return trajectory it will not be orbiting the Moon, unlike Apollo 8’s crew who made ten lunar orbits. Incidentally, Apollo 8’s crew included James Lovell, who’d go on to fly the world-famous Apollo 13 mission. Hopefully the Artemis astronauts will be spared that level of in-space excitement.

NASA Is Taking Suggestions For Raising Swift’s Orbit

August 31, 2025 by Maya Posch 43 Comments

Launched in 2004, the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory – formerly the Swift Gamma-Ray Burst Explorer – has been dutifully studying gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) during its two-year mission, before moving on to a more general space observation role during its ongoing mission. Unfortunately, the observatory is in LEO, at an altitude of around 370 km. The natural orbital decay combined with increased solar activity now threatens to end Swift’s mission, unless NASA can find someone who can boost its orbit.

Using Swift as a testbed for commercial orbit-boosting technologies, NASA is working with a number of companies to investigate options. One of these is the SSPICY demonstration of in-orbit inspection technology by Starfish Space that’s part of an existing Phase III program.

Although currently no option has been selected and Swift is still at risk of re-entering Earth’s atmosphere within the near future, there seems to be at least a glimmer of hope that this process can be reverted, and a perfectly fine triple-telescope space observatory can keep doing science for many years to come. Along the way it may also provide a blueprint for how to do the same with other LEO assets that are at risk of meeting a fiery demise.

Does It Make Sense To Upgrade A Prusa MK4S To A Core One?

August 30, 2025 by Maya Posch 7 Comments

One of the interesting things about Prusa’s FDM 3D printers is the availability of official upgrade kits, which allow you to combine bits off an older machine with those of the target machine to ideally save some money and not have an old machine gathering dust after the upgrade. While for a bedslinger-to-bedslinger upgrade this can make a lot of sense, the bedslinger to CoreXY Core One upgrade path is a bit more drastic. Recently the [Aurora Tech] channel had a look at which upgrade path makes the most sense, and in which scenario.

A big part of the comparison is the time and money spent compared to the print result, as you have effectively four options. Either you stick with the MK4S, get the DIY Core One (~8 hours of assembly time), get the pre-assembled Core One (more $$), or get the upgrade kit (also ~8 hours). There’s also the fifth option of getting the enclosure for the MK4S, but it costs about as much as the upgrade kit, so that doesn’t make a lot of logical sense.

In terms of print quality, it’s undeniable that the CoreXY motion system provides better results, with less ringing and better quality with tall prints, but unless you’re printing more than basic PLA and PETG, or care a lot about the faster print speeds of the CoreXY machine with large prints, the fully enclosed Core One is a bit overkill and sticking with the bedslinger may be the better choice.

The long and short of it is that you have look at each option and consider what works best for your needs and your wallet.

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