Charter Communications seems to be pulling some sort of crap with their DNS servers. While working on a new project our friend Billy Hoffman, discovered that Charter was reporting absolutely every domain as resolving. They do offer a solution by providing an opt-out cookie, which isn’t useful at all if you’re not using a web browser… and I’m guessing most of Charter’s subscribers aren’t looking for a bastardized version of the net. We’ve seen recently that messing with DNS like this can actually open up new security holes.
Misc Hacks4117 Articles
Human Sync Optical Tachometer
[Jared] sent in this optical tachometer by [Mike Freeman]. The write-up and code requires a free registration, but if you’ve got a use for it, it’s probably worth the hassle. The zip archive includes a nice writeup in PDF format, and the code needed for the pic controller. The tach was built specifically for model helicopters. The user looks through the viewfinder and adjusts the pot on the side until the spinning helicopter blade visually stops turning.
The Future Of The Internet And How To Stop It
Yes, even we were getting tired of that Indiana Jones marathon on TV. So, we ventured online to find something entirely too geeky for a Sunday afternoon. The Future of the Internet and How to Stop It is a presentation Harvard Law School professor Jonathan Zittrain gave at Princeton near the end of March.
He begins by covering early 20th century “sterile” technology like tabulation machines that were rented by the census bureau. The machines didn’t encourage any sort of innovation. Next he talks about “generative” technology like the internet and modern OSes where anyone can build whatever they want. The final step is the more recent move to what he calls “tethered” technology. These are the systems with upgradeable firmware where devices can ship with unfinished features and remove features after the consumer has already purchased the device. He uses the iPhone as an example of this walled garden that could hurt innovation. Watch the video for his thoughts on this new world and how he thinks it could be fixed.
Kernel Driver For The PIC18F4550 Microcontroller
[Pziz] wrote in with one of his projects. He created a linux kernel driver for the PIC 18F*55* series based on some available development tools. Continue reading for his (slightly edited) writeup.
Continue reading “Kernel Driver For The PIC18F4550 Microcontroller”
DIY Dynomometer
A Dynomometer measures actual horsepower and torque output at the wheels of a vehicle. Aside from racing, it’s long been the way to test out engine modifications. [Steve] built his own. It uses a Basic stamp for data acquistion, and a custom machined drum for the physical interface.
Long Range R/C On 868Mhz
Been looking for some extra range for your R/C projects? [Tron]’s managed to control his planes from 9.8Km using this kit at 868Mhz. I don’t know if I’d have the patience to fly the plane for that long, but this beats the pants off of just about everyone else home R/C gear.
Mechanical White Board
[Romado12187] just posted a walkthrough of his mechanical dry erase board project on Instructables. It was on display in the Microsoft booth last weekend at Maker Faire. Unlike [sprite_tm]’s version we covered earlier, this one is built more like a traditional pin plotter. The construction was done entirely in [Romado12187]’s dorm room and uses plywood and PVC pipes for the majority of the frame. The mechanical components were purchased from SDP/SI and the controller hardware are Phidgets. He included a joystick, but it also has a C# command line program for control. [Romado12187]’s write up also has a lot of improvements to help make your first attempt better than his; buying a premounted board and being very exact in calculating motor power are recommended. Catch a video of the plotter in action after the jump.
