url stringlengths 37 208 | title stringlengths 4 148 | author stringclasses 173 values | publish_date stringclasses 1 value | categories listlengths 0 12 | tags listlengths 0 27 | featured_image stringlengths 0 272 | content stringlengths 0 56.1k | comments_count int64 0 900 | scraped_comments_count int64 0 50 | comments listlengths 0 50 | scraped_at float64 1.76B 1.76B |
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https://hackaday.com/2009/10/04/a-bright-way-to-cycle/ | A Bright Way To Cycle | Jake W | [
"Transportation Hacks",
"Wearable Hacks"
] | [
"bicycle",
"brushes",
"dean",
"neon",
"nuit blanche",
"transformer"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQrNmnU8kJk]
Want to be visible when cycling at night? [Neon Dean] came up with this possible solution, which he cruised
on at Nuit Blanche
. Its a bicycle
with neon lights
mounted on every surface possible. [Dean], who gave a similar treatment to his car, explained how it worked. All of the tubes take their power from a 12VDC battery
he carries in a fanny pack
. 12V is a far too low voltage to power the tubes, so
a step up transformer
is used to bring that number way up. [Dean] also decided to install a neon tube on each wheel. In order to deliver power to them, he mounted a rotor on each wheel, with two conductive tracks running close to the edge of each rotor. Two strips of steel act as brushes (in a manner similar to
those on slot cars
), and deliver the stepped-up power to the tubes. One creative, but perhaps not so bright, idea is [Dean]’s neon tube helmet. | 19 | 19 | [
{
"comment_id": "98755",
"author": "Jesus",
"timestamp": "2009-10-04T19:10:26",
"content": "His head-mounted neon looks like an @.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "98758",
"author": "Maj",
"timestamp": "2009-10-04T19:31:32",
"content"... | 1,760,377,576.027268 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/04/cn-tower-synced-with-techno/ | CN Tower Synced With Techno | Jake W | [
"LED Hacks",
"Wireless Hacks"
] | [
"cn",
"led",
"music",
"nuit blanche",
"synched",
"techno"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idC8lyuBVHQ]
As
part of Nuit Blanche
, Toronto’s annual community art event, the CN Tower’s lighting system got put to some creative use. Installed 2 years ago, the RGB LED-based system is composed of
1330 individually addressable lights
lining the glass elevator shafts. It costs just under $1000 to run almost every evening for a month.
Named ‘Bright Lights Big City’
(not to be confused with the book, movie, or song of the same name), this project was coordinated by [
Ryan Stec
]. The lights on
the tallest freestanding structure
in North America were animated
to CIUT 89.5 FM
for the entire night. This innovative solution allowed one to appreciate the light show from almost anywhere in the city with access to a radio. | 17 | 17 | [
{
"comment_id": "98754",
"author": "Colin",
"timestamp": "2009-10-04T19:10:17",
"content": "Only Toronto could make something potentially neat that boring.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "98759",
"author": "dj",
"timestamp": "2009-10-04T... | 1,760,377,576.308425 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/04/toronto-embraces-4-letter-words/ | Toronto Embraces 4-letter Words | Jake W | [
"classic hacks",
"News"
] | [
"4 letter word machine",
"beautiful light",
"neon",
"nuit blanche",
"therrien",
"toronto"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQVycsOFSlc]
This year was not the first in which
the City Hall of Toronto
was
lit up in a unique way
. However, it was the first time that the government building was used to project 4-letter words. Brainchild of [D.A. Therrien], the
4LWM
represents something that he imagined for a long time. [Therrien] built the huge sign in Scottsdale, Arizona, where he displayed it over the waterfront. He was later commisioned to bring the sign to Toronto
for Nuit Blanche
after making some adaptations (due to weather differences). The sign is composed of
4 huge 16-segment displays
. Each segment is made of many
neon light modules
. This configuration makes it less noticable if one such module fails. The sign is controlled below from a computer, which allows it to display text and simple animations. It’s the first in
a series of installations dubbed “Beautiful Light”
by [Therrien]. Despite the name, no inappropriate language was displayed on the sign. | 12 | 12 | [
{
"comment_id": "98745",
"author": "Spork",
"timestamp": "2009-10-04T18:24:40",
"content": "“lighten up”… really?How about “not the first time city hall was LIT up in a unique way”?First comment.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "98749",
"auth... | 1,760,377,576.262505 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/04/rgb-laser/ | RGB Laser | Jakob Griffith | [
"Laser Hacks"
] | [
"blu-ray",
"galvo scanner",
"laser",
"red green blue",
"spirograph"
] | Last month we had the pleasure of bringing you [FireMyLaser’s] green laser spirograph. Just green is great for a while, but why not add red and blue for a full spectrum of color! [c4r0] steps in at this point to bring us his
red green blue laser
.
(Editor’s note: the old forum doesn’t seem to exist in 2023, but
the project moved here
. Thanks, [Rolson]!)
He dug around
inside Blu-ray
players and DVD drives until he had a collection of lasers, refractors, and other filters that fit his needs. With some careful toothpick alignment and glue, his setup was complete.
But then he went further by modified his galvo scanner to accept the RGB laser; requiring a custom circuit board and new software, both available on his site. The original is in Polish, but Google does a
decent translation
. Check after the jump for a video.
[youtube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ma29VCX2T8g%5D
Last month we had the pleasure of bringing you [FireMyLaser’s] green laser spirograph. Just green is great for a while, but why not add red and blue for a full spectrum of color! [c4r0] steps in this point to bring us his red green blue laser. He dug around inside Blu-ray players and DVD drives until he had a collection of lasers, retractors, and other filters that fit his needs. With some careful toothpick alignment and glue, his setup was complete.
But then he went further by modified his galvo scanner to accept the RGB laser; requiring a custom circuit board and new software, both available on his site. The original is in Polish, but Google does a decent translation. | 22 | 22 | [
{
"comment_id": "98704",
"author": "M4CGYV3R",
"timestamp": "2009-10-04T14:07:51",
"content": "That’s pretty neat. Seems like a lot of work to save not much money.How do you say “Translated articles suck” in Polish?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id"... | 1,760,377,575.971394 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/03/google-wave-breaks-the-email-mold/ | Google Wave Breaks The Email Mold | Mike Szczys | [
"HackIt"
] | [
"collaborative",
"email",
"google wave",
"invite",
"preview"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6pgxLaDdQw]
By now you’ve probably heard something about
Google Wave
which saw a private preview release last week. The video above is an eight minute overview of the core functionality that the Wave offers. Wave development was based on the premise that email, invented 40 years ago, has not kept pace with our working needs as a technological society. Wave looks to improve on the email model by combining real time chat features, in line conversations, and web tools like document sharing and real-time translation.
The team here at Hack a Day uses a collaborative effort to bring you the best hacks we can find. To do so, we use a combination of email, instant messaging, document sharing, IRC, and old-fashioned conference calling. We’re waiting patiently for our invitation and although
we’ve been skeptical of some past Google offerings
, we hope the advertised features of Google Wave will allow us to improve our team coverage for the benefit of our readers.
Are you already using Google Wave? Please share your experiences with us in the comments. | 68 | 50 | [
{
"comment_id": "98513",
"author": "hpux735",
"timestamp": "2009-10-03T23:09:27",
"content": "A friend of mine got an original invite, and he kindly sent me one from it. I haven’t gotten it yet, though. So, I can tell you that process takes f-o-r-e-v-e-r. But from what I saw it looked pretty bare... | 1,760,377,576.3899 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/03/quoth-the-raven-hack-some-more/ | Quoth The Raven: Hack Some More | Mike Szczys | [
"Robots Hacks"
] | [
"animatronics",
"fiberglass",
"halloween",
"raven",
"robot",
"servo"
] | There are people who buy a cheap sack of candy and dutifully answer the door on Halloween. Then there are people like [Peter] who spend the whole year planning for the next year’s Hollywood-style front yard theatrics.
He added an animatronic raven to his show a few years back. It has been wildly popular and it’s not hard to see why. The bird is well engineered, well built, and the performance is very realistic. [Peter], who is an FX supervisor in the film industry, has posted a
build log
that takes us through step by step. This creepy performer can move its head up and down, side-to-side, and even rotate at the neck. This all happens while the beak synchronizes with talking. We marvel at the precision machining that was done to make the frame facilitate movement.
The body itself is made of fiberglass covered with feathers. [Peter] covered the completed mechanics with clay in order to sculpt the final body shape. This was used as the mold by covering it with fiberglass release and then fiberglass fabric. This process produced a very light weight and accurate shell with a minimum of effort; something we’ll keep in mind for future projects.
Take a look at a bit of video after the break. You
can see the whole show
from past years over at [Peter’s] site. We’ll be doing a couple of follow-ups covering his animatronic skeleton (the raven’s partner in crime) as well as the interface he uses to control and sync the voices to stay tuned!
[vimeo=http://www.vimeo.com/6874783] | 7 | 7 | [
{
"comment_id": "98493",
"author": "Spork",
"timestamp": "2009-10-03T22:14:42",
"content": "Wow, that’s really well done. I won’t be building anything for Halloween, but I’d be impressed to see something like that on a front lawn.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
... | 1,760,377,575.796848 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/02/halloween-prop-portable-black-light/ | Halloween Prop: Portable Black Light | Caleb Kraft | [
"home hacks",
"Wearable Hacks"
] | [
"halloween",
"inverter",
"light"
] | [Joshua] wrote in to show us this great Halloween tip. He wanted to take his 4 foot long black light along with him on Halloween. You can buy portable versions, but he realized he had enough parts laying around to
slap together a portable one
himself. He pulled the inverter from a scanner light and wired it up to a couple of 9 volt batteries. Knowing he would probably need a fresh set during the night, he actually wired in some extras with a switch to control which was powering the unit. We know this isn’t the best solution, but you could probably toss this together in just a few minutes. | 6 | 6 | [
{
"comment_id": "98171",
"author": "emilio",
"timestamp": "2009-10-02T17:09:09",
"content": "great quick n’ dirty hack, especially sourcing the inverter!if someone has more forewarning, 1W UV LEDs are now available for reasonable prices. they’re not super efficient with their wavelength output – a ... | 1,760,377,576.070487 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/02/arduino-dmx-controller/ | Arduino DMX Controller | Caleb Kraft | [
"Arduino Hacks"
] | [
"arduino",
"dmx",
"halloween",
"strobe"
] | This
Arduino powered DMX controller
came along at just the right time. We had
shown you a project
earlier that involved the DMX system and several commenters remarked on the price to get into DMX hardware. If you happen to have an Arduino around, you can build a DMX controller. He found a schematic for a
DMX driver
, and built some custom code to control it all. You can download his code on the project site. | 10 | 10 | [
{
"comment_id": "98166",
"author": "jai",
"timestamp": "2009-10-02T17:01:30",
"content": "But where are all the DIY DMX receivers?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "98175",
"author": "SSP",
"timestamp": "2009-10-02T17:23:45",
"content"... | 1,760,377,576.117683 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/02/clock-knock-block-full-of-puns/ | Clock Knock Block Full Of Puns | Mike Szczys | [
"Arduino Hacks",
"cnc hacks",
"Robots Hacks"
] | [
"arduino",
"clock",
"knock block",
"mahogany",
"piezo",
"pun",
"solenoid",
"wood block"
] | This
Clock Knock Block has a bit of everything
; milling, Arduino, sensing, solenoids, and plenty of dirty puns. Just knock on the box or on the table right next to it and the time of day will be played back to you in a series of crisp, clean knocks. A big part of the fun here is that
the box is a musical instrument
.
If you take a look inside you’ll find an Arduino, a piezo sensor, a solenoid, and a nine-volt battery. The piezo sensor detects your knocking as an input. It can even listen to and repeat back a series of your knocks. The Arduino actuates the solenoid, which strikes the wooden enclosure, producing the knocking sound.
We’ve embedded a video of this
useless machine
after the break (that’s where all the puns are). One note for your own build; this box is made out of mahogany and because it is used as a resonance chamber, this may not work as well if it isn’t milled from a piece of quality lumber.
[vimeo=http://www.vimeo.com/6713094] | 17 | 17 | [
{
"comment_id": "98137",
"author": "Caleb Kraft",
"timestamp": "2009-10-02T15:07:34",
"content": "gotta love puns.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "98145",
"author": "Justin",
"timestamp": "2009-10-02T15:44:24",
"content": "Who made t... | 1,760,377,575.911001 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/02/smd-led-matrix/ | SMD LED Matrix | Jakob Griffith | [
"LED Hacks"
] | [
"display",
"led",
"matrix",
"smd"
] | Everyone loves a good LED matrix hack, and we’ve seen our
fair share
, but never a 16 by 24 hand soldered SMD one. [bear24rw] and his team needed a project reflecting the interests of one of his classes, being an EE major, an
LED matrix
was just the ticket. Based on
this instructable
, he was able to cobble together a driver board; the code however was unacceptable, and he came up with a double buffer array solution. You can grab the eagle file and source code
here
, while you’re at it check out a quick video after the break.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOljZt9pW5g&feature=player_embedded] | 17 | 15 | [
{
"comment_id": "98115",
"author": "Adam",
"timestamp": "2009-10-02T14:07:49",
"content": "Nice one John and Max. Up on had again!UC!",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "98124",
"author": "bluecon",
"timestamp": "2009-10-02T14:24:59",
"c... | 1,760,377,575.857184 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/02/hacker-rewarded-for-creating-electricity/ | Hacker Rewarded For Creating Electricity | Mike Szczys | [
"green hacks"
] | [
"african leadership academy",
"malawi",
"ted",
"wind generator",
"windmill"
] | [garhol] tipped us off about a self-taught hacker who brought a little light to his tiny home. [
William Kamkwamba
] dropped out of school because his family lacked the $80 per year for tuition. At the age of 14 he read books from the library and gained the knowledge he needed to built a 12 watt wind generator from junk parts. Wow!
We’re pretty used to hearing about creative people who end up
getting punished for their hacks
. Fortunately he has been rewarded for his brilliance. He’s now studying at the
African Leadership Academy
in Johannesburg with a well-deserved scholarship.
His story comes to the surface now because
a book about his experiences
has just been released. We need more people like this, and they should be rewarded for their efforts like he has been. We’ve put the book on our hold list at our Public Library and can’t wait to gain some knowledge from [William’s] experiences.
Check out his short talk at the TED conference, embedded after the break.
[ted id=153]
[via
BBC news
] | 60 | 50 | [
{
"comment_id": "98108",
"author": "duncant20196",
"timestamp": "2009-10-02T13:40:32",
"content": "That’s awesome, coming from very little and coming up with so much. He mentioned building another one for the irrigation for the crops, is there anywhere to donate to that for him?",
"parent_id": n... | 1,760,377,576.478789 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/01/machining-gets-wet-and-wild/ | Machining Gets Wet And Wild | Devlin Thyne | [
"cnc hacks",
"Misc Hacks"
] | [
"cnc",
"electroetching",
"electromachining",
"machining"
] | [Tyler] has had his
electrochemical machining hack
up for a while now. His final version uses a pump to move electrolyte out through the etching head and onto the workpiece. This keeps fresh electrolyte in the etching region and clears out the insoluble material. We see how this could be attached to a CNC system and used to etch PCBs without the use of a
special inkjet printer
,
toner transfer
, or
laser etching machine
.
[thanks Ian] | 24 | 24 | [
{
"comment_id": "97973",
"author": "YAY",
"timestamp": "2009-10-01T22:12:37",
"content": "oh by the way – cool. i really find this interesting.h3x – i love you, Rbz.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97977",
"author": "amishx64@gmail.com",
... | 1,760,377,576.701597 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/01/power-generating-backpack/ | Power Generating Backpack | Caleb Kraft | [
"green hacks",
"Tool Hacks",
"Wearable Hacks"
] | [
"generator",
"military"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UL_CUbN9F7E]
In the military, you have to carry tons of stuff. This is something we hear and see all the time. They are always trying to come up with ways to reduce the weight or quantity of the things that you bring into the field. This
power generating backpack
harnesses the natural up and down motion of your steps to produce power. This could reduce the amount of batteries carried into the field greatly. That’s what they say anyway, how many batteries do soldiers normally carry around? Aside from that point, we think it is pretty cool. We could see using this to keep our cell phone or GPS charged on long hiking and camping trips. You could also
build something of your own
to work similarly. | 28 | 28 | [
{
"comment_id": "97951",
"author": "Renée",
"timestamp": "2009-10-01T21:09:42",
"content": "As a former soldier I’ll chime in…The answer is TONS!!!!!!!!!! Batteries are actually a serious issue in the military. GPS takes them, night vision takes them, radio’s take them, etc etc.You need to have powe... | 1,760,377,577.046649 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/01/tv-hack-bypasses-hdcp/ | TV Hack Bypasses HDCP | Phil Burgess | [
"home entertainment hacks",
"Video Hacks"
] | [
"encryption",
"fair use",
"hdcp",
"hdmi",
"hdtv",
"tv"
] | Reader [GRitchie] wrote in with an
interesting find in his new TV set
: with just some minor soldering it was possible to tap into an unencrypted hi-def video stream.
HDCP (High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection), used by Blu-Ray players and cable or satellite receivers, normally ensures a DRM-protected link between the device and a compatible display. Any properly-licensed device that forwards HDCP content (such as an HDMI switch box) is expected to provide encrypted output; those that don’t may get blacklisted by the system and become expensive paperweights. It’s something of an annoyance for users who feel this oversteps fair use applications such as time-shifting.
[GRitchie] found that his new TV with “InstaPort” Fast HDMI Switching didn’t perform this re-encryption step between the set’s internal switcher and the next stage in decoding. Soldering just eight wires directly from the switching chip’s output to an HDMI cable provided an unencrypted output that could then be received by a PC for later replay.
What’s not clear at this point is whether the capability is peculiar to just this one make and model, or applies to anything with the new Fast HDMI Switching. If the latter, it will be interesting to see how this plays out…nearly
all
of the major HDTV manufacturers are evaluating InstaPort for new sets, which would make any attempt at HDCP blacklisting awkward, to say the least. | 64 | 50 | [
{
"comment_id": "97927",
"author": "Hackius",
"timestamp": "2009-10-01T20:13:11",
"content": "I hate to tell you but there’s a huge selection of devices that strip DHCP from the stream mainly targeted at gamers that want complex setups involving game consoles. DHCP gets in the way of that and it nev... | 1,760,377,576.791294 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/01/see-through-walls-via-wireless-network/ | See Through Walls Via Wireless Network | Caleb Kraft | [
"Security Hacks",
"Wireless Hacks"
] | [
"snooping",
"wireless",
"xray"
] | Researchers at the University of Utah have been able to
detect movement in a room based on variations in wireless signals
. Accurate to about a meter, they are using a 34 node wireless network to do their sensing. As a person moves, they change the signals, and can therefore be detected. They state one possible application being rescue workers deploying multiple wireless nodes around a building to find people located inside.
[via
Gizmodo
] | 22 | 22 | [
{
"comment_id": "97901",
"author": "Blizzarddemon",
"timestamp": "2009-10-01T18:53:32",
"content": "fascinating, this is like the keyboard burst frequency detection that was use to dump keystrokes, cept controlling wifi to do something like infrared.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"rep... | 1,760,377,576.93114 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/01/skip-vegas-with-this-bs-slot-machine/ | Skip Vegas With This BS Slot Machine | Mike Szczys | [
"Toy Hacks"
] | [
"bs2",
"homework board",
"oled",
"slot machine"
] | We caught a glimpse of this
Basic Stamp 2 controlled electronic slot machine
on YouTube. We’re very grateful that [Mike Donahue] was willing to share more about his project with us.
He uses tactile switches instead of dropping coins in a slot, and a lever-style switch sets the one-armed bandit in motion. The action is displayed on a
1.5″ µOLED-128-G1 screen
that has its own controller (which explains how this operates so well with the relatively slow BS2). For realism there’s some pretty good sound effects provided by a piezo speaker. We’ll look at the code, graphics, and some video after the break.
The connections are quite simple and [Mike] has built the project on the Basic Stamp 2 Homework Board. The display is addressed through two serial lines and a reset pin.
He generated the graphics using MSpaint, creating three full screen images that rarely change. The icons for the spinning dials are much smaller and overlayed on top of the larger images. Three of these icons are stored next to each other in memory. That way, a pointer can be advanced and the next image will start to scroll in, resembling a spinning cylinder.
Here’s a bit larger version
of the schematic and images if you need it.
This makes for a fun toy and it’s quite well executed. If you’re interested in taking a look under the hood,
here’s a copy of the source code
.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3BAeWJwGdE] | 11 | 11 | [
{
"comment_id": "97878",
"author": "strider_mt2k",
"timestamp": "2009-10-01T17:25:45",
"content": "Careful dude.You’re going to have some Senior Citizen or another parking themselves in front of that thing and then good luck getting rid of ’em.I just hope for your sake the buffet is half decent beca... | 1,760,377,576.982854 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/01/microsoft-unveils-open-source-multi-core-os/ | Microsoft Unveils Open Source Multi Core OS | Caleb Kraft | [
"computer hacks",
"Misc Hacks"
] | [
"linux",
"microsoft",
"operating system",
"os",
"windows"
] | A new operating system, code named
Barrelfish is being developed by Microsoft research
labs and ETH Zurich in Switzerland. This operating system is being built with multi core operations foremost in priority. It is supposed to be extremely scalable and able to function on a very wide range of hardware. You can download the current snapshot of it on their site and dig into the source code, released under a
3-clause BSD style license
. If you would like to learn the primary differences between this OS and Windows or Linux, you can read
this PDF
.
[via
Engadget
] | 62 | 50 | [
{
"comment_id": "97850",
"author": "strider_mt2k",
"timestamp": "2009-10-01T16:22:33",
"content": "I eagerly await the catch.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97856",
"author": "24601",
"timestamp": "2009-10-01T16:28:50",
"content": "... | 1,760,377,576.874744 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/01/coil-gun-speed-meter/ | Coil Gun Speed Meter | Caleb Kraft | [
"classic hacks",
"Misc Hacks"
] | [
"coil gun",
"high voltage"
] | One of the best parts of building a coil gun is seeing just how fast you can get that slug to move through the air. [Daniel] built
this speed meter
to be able to see exactly that. It is comprised of two optical sensors, one at each end of a barrel. As the projectile passes them, its speed is calculated using an Atmega16. Since the distance between the sensors is pre determined, its only some simple math to figure out the speed of an object passing between them. The result is then displayed on a nice looking blue LCD.
If the blue accent lighting and acrylic stylings look familiar, that’s because we’ve seen [Daniel] before. He’s the one that built the
portable coil pistol
.
[via
HackedGadgets
] | 28 | 28 | [
{
"comment_id": "97833",
"author": "sansan",
"timestamp": "2009-10-01T15:33:23",
"content": "Why are guns so important to HackDay? I know people will argue that it is a toy. Try to explain this idea to an officer through airport security. May be a toy, but has a strong subliminal purpose in the back... | 1,760,377,577.110343 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/01/solar-tracking-without-overkill/ | Solar Tracking, Without Overkill | Caleb Kraft | [
"Arduino Hacks",
"Robots Hacks",
"Solar Hacks"
] | [
"arduino",
"B.E.A.M.",
"phototropic",
"solar"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATnnMFO60y8]
We saw this
pretty smooth solar tracker
run by an Arduino. There aren’t many details, but we can see that it works well, and is in fact, run by an Arduino. We knew if we posted this that people would be commenting that the Arduino is overkill. We agree. So this post is to ask, how would you do it? Give us links to the more efficient designs you have come up with. It doesn’t have to be a fully documented project, a schematic will do. We would probably go with something like a
phototropic suspended bicore
for simplicity and low power consumption.
[via
littlebirceo
] | 56 | 50 | [
{
"comment_id": "97814",
"author": "jeff-o",
"timestamp": "2009-10-01T14:07:35",
"content": "Two parallel light sensors each mounted at the end of a tube. An analog comparator driving a motor. The voltage on each sensor is compared and the motor turns in one direction or the other until the voltag... | 1,760,377,577.409609 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/01/homemade-bokode/ | Homemade Bokode | Jakob Griffith | [
"Misc Hacks",
"Security Hacks"
] | [
"barcode",
"Bokode",
"homemade"
] | [vimeo
http://vimeo.com/6803291%5D
We’ve recently been getting a lot of new comments on our
Bokode post
from a while back, and with good reason. [M@] has managed to find a way to replicate
Bokode at home
, using $0 worth of equipment (before the price of microprint). To accomplish Bokode at home, it seems all you need is and old webcam lens assembly and an LED. Of course the his version is not as thin as a regular barcode so it probably wont be replacing anything in the near future, but the concept of from MIT to home within such a short period of time is amazing. | 11 | 11 | [
{
"comment_id": "97813",
"author": "Hackius",
"timestamp": "2009-10-01T14:01:34",
"content": "70$ to make the microprintyeeeouch!",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97819",
"author": "medix",
"timestamp": "2009-10-01T14:22:36",
"content... | 1,760,377,577.457746 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/30/farm-hacking-7-amazing-corn-mazes/ | Farm Hacking: 7 Amazing Corn Mazes | Mike Szczys | [
"gps hacks"
] | [
"corn maze",
"farm",
"gps",
"halloween",
"mower"
] | If there’s one thing we’ve got a LOT of here in America, it’s corn. In the past few years Corn Mazes have become a wildly popular fall activity for all ages. We’ve enjoyed many ourselves and part of what we like about them is that they’re a hack. Whether made by the farmer down the road or a professional company most now use GPS to ensure a fun, challenging, and cool looking corn maze.
We spoke with [Scott Skelly] who owns
Corn Mazes America
, read the interview after the break.
[digg=http://digg.com/arts_culture/Farm_hacking_7_amazing_corn_mazes]When [Scott] originally started building corn mazes they were using a grid system to layout the mazes without GPS. He knew there was a better way and started looking into some solutions. He spent quite a bit of time looking for software and talking to developers about how to meet his needs. In the end, he designed his own system using both commercial and freely available software, getting everything to talk to each other for his final product. Here’s one of his designs from 2006 at
his own farm
in Wisconsin:
A maze starts as nothing more than a large field of corn. The design is created using a computer, then translated into GPS coordinates by fitting it into a field whose outline coordinates were previously captured on foot. Once the field coordinates are reconciled with the map design the data is used in one of two ways; the routes can be made by tilling under a path when the corn is very young, or more commonly it is cut lawn-mower-style when the corn is anywhere from knee-high to full grown. This corn-meets-satellite hack makes for a whole lot of fun!
We’ve collected 7 more of our favorite corn maze aerial pictures and posted them after the break. When you’ve finished building your
zombie escaping from the grave
load up the family and visit your local maize maze.
2008 Sever’s Corn Maze
, Shakopee, MN
2002 Fairwyn Farms, Burlington, WI (photo:
cornfieldmaze.com
)
2009 Tom’s Maze
, Germantown, OH
2004 Liberty Corn Maze
, Liberty, MO
2009 Jonamac Orchard
, Malta, IL
2005 Larson’s Farm Market Maze
, New Milford, CT
2007 Uncle Shuck’s
, Dawsonville, GA | 33 | 33 | [
{
"comment_id": "97693",
"author": "monkeyslayer56",
"timestamp": "2009-09-30T20:22:15",
"content": "im not much of one for corn mazes but i like that guys laptop holder :)",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97702",
"author": "Doug",
"times... | 1,760,377,577.190804 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/30/dean-kamens-prosthetic-arm/ | Dean Kamen’s Prosthetic Arm | Caleb Kraft | [
"Medical Hacks",
"Robots Hacks"
] | [
"amputee",
"dean kamen",
"prosthetic"
] | 60 minutes has covered
[Dean Kamen]’s modular robotic arm
. This thing is light weight, adjustable for different body frame sizes, modular, and eventually thought controlled. The system is currently functioning quite well, as you can see in the video. Current testers are controlling it with buttons under their toes, but the thought control is in the later stages of development. Sounds like science fiction right? You can see a monkey using a thought controlled arm to
feed itself grapes
, though we don’t think it is [Dean]’s arm.
Another cool feature of this arm is the fact that it changes its grip on your body depending on how much weight you are lifting. Lift something heavy and it grips harder. Though it has a lot of the same information, there is a little bit of different footage in
[Dean]’s TED talk
about the arm.
It seems to us, with microcontrollers becoming so cheap and accessible that we should be seeing more home made contraptions in this area. Are any of you working with prosthetics? | 26 | 26 | [
{
"comment_id": "97671",
"author": "emperor",
"timestamp": "2009-09-30T19:02:04",
"content": "i worked a floor above that place on a separate project @ DEKA this summer. cool stuff indeed-Dane",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97674",
"author"... | 1,760,377,577.520731 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/30/multi-camera-rig-makes-trees-say-cheese/ | Multi-camera Rig Makes Trees Say Cheese | Mike Szczys | [
"digital cameras hacks"
] | [
"camera",
"gyroscope",
"national geographic",
"nick nichols",
"npr",
"redwood",
"rig"
] | [Nick Nichols] set out to take a photograph of a full redwood tree. Here’s the catch, these redwoods are over 300 feet tall and they’re not just standing in the middle of a vast desert. If the photo is taken from a distance, you will only capture the top part of these majestic beauties. How can you take the shot from close up? Build a custom rig to take multiple shots and stitch them together for a composite photo.
[Nichols] built the rig to hold three cameras focused to the left, middle, and right of the tree. The frame includes a gyroscope to keep the cameras steady. By lowering the cameras from the top to the bottom of the redwood they were able to capture 84 pictures to assemble the final shot. The result is featured in the
October edition of National Geographic magazine
. We’ve included the final picture and embedded a video of the rig in action after the break.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9LHjV48e9s]
[digg=http://digg.com/hardware/Multi_camera_rig_makes_trees_say_cheese][via
NPR
]
[Thanks Kent] | 42 | 42 | [
{
"comment_id": "97660",
"author": "Caleb Kraft",
"timestamp": "2009-09-30T18:22:51",
"content": "We just got this issue. My wife was quick to point out how much paper they used to show the full tree.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97663",
... | 1,760,377,577.601938 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/30/arduino-powered-singing-table/ | Arduino Powered Singing Table | Caleb Kraft | [
"Arduino Hacks"
] | [
"arduino",
"food",
"lazy susan",
"mit"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vc4PSgXDp64]
This
musical Lazy Susan, or “Crazy Adam”
was brought to us by students from MIT. It basically plays [Soul II Soul]’s “Back to Life” as it turns. In their words: “Through the interaction with the Singing Lazy Susan, we found the eating patterns and behaviors unique to each person, which reflect our personalities and interests. The dining experience expands to a new domain.” Are we the only ones who think this is silly? Not only is an Arduino overkill for this, how does this help reflect our personalities and interests? We know, someone will say that art doesn’t need to make sense, but this would just get annoying really fast. Good job coming up with an idea and making it happen. Please don’t bring that to our next office party. It is also worth noting that
musical Lazy Susans
aren’t exactly a new idea. | 23 | 23 | [
{
"comment_id": "97612",
"author": "The Moogle",
"timestamp": "2009-09-30T15:06:19",
"content": "just add a Ethernet shield and make it twitter when you rotate your food lol",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97617",
"author": "Steve",
"tim... | 1,760,377,577.824206 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/30/pick-and-place-lego-prototyping/ | Pick-and-place Lego Prototyping | Mike Szczys | [
"Robots Hacks"
] | [
"arm",
"cnc",
"lego",
"rapid prototyping",
"robot"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ps59Hj9RIG0]
[Ned] tipped us off about his project for a class at Carnegie Mellon. Utilizing a Denso 6-AOF robotic arm they have built a
rapid prototyping machine that uses Lego
as the building material.
LDraw
, the open standard Lego CAD program, is used to build a model which is then translated into
MATLAB
files that the robotic arm can use for placement commands. Right now pieces need to be placed on a template for the robot to find and pick up.
It’s great that Lego pieces are used because they are readily available and inexpensive, but this type of precision robot makes the project unattainable for most tinkerers. Still, the concept is interesting and we could see an end goal being a more widely available machine. It’s not too much of a leap to image a
RepRap
type machine that takes internal measurements of a circuit board and the components, calculates inside case dimensions, then builds a prototype enclosure from common Lego pieces. | 11 | 11 | [
{
"comment_id": "97594",
"author": "bbot",
"timestamp": "2009-09-30T14:19:14",
"content": "College students love kludging things together in matlab.The machine vision bit is pretty neat, but if this is sped up by eight times, then it must be pretty damn slow in real time.Also would have liked to see... | 1,760,377,577.871751 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/30/laser-triggered-photography/ | Laser Triggered Photography | Jakob Griffith | [
"digital cameras hacks",
"Laser Hacks"
] | [
"camera",
"chdk",
"high speed",
"laser",
"motion",
"photography",
"sound",
"trigger"
] | Popped balloons or bullets fired into apples, anyone can photograph with a quick
sound based camera rig
. Lasers have been used forever in
motion detection
. And even door bell chimes have been used before for
remote camera shutter releases
. No, [SaskView] wanted to go further and created his
Laser Triggered High-Speed Photography setup
, to photograph (of all things) milk splashes. We liked the simplicity of the project however; requiring no programmed microchips or overly complicated circuitry – rather he took a quick trip to the local dollar shop, used the amazing
CHDK firmware
, and he produced perfect results every time.
[Update: CHDK, not CHKD firmware. My mind must be
elsewhere
. Thanks jbot and agent smith] | 9 | 9 | [
{
"comment_id": "97598",
"author": "markii",
"timestamp": "2009-09-30T14:27:25",
"content": "hey, this is better than those two toy-cars-crash-arduino-triggered-photography-switch from week ago :)",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97600",
"aut... | 1,760,377,577.703488 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/29/batcave-style-entrance-on-a-budget/ | Batcave-style Entrance (on A Budget) | Jake W | [
"home hacks",
"Security Hacks"
] | [
"batman",
"bookcase",
"motor",
"secret"
] | Want to enter your hidden lair in style? Well [Jimmy] simply wanted to
create a cool prop
for his school’s homecoming dance. This project includes some obvious
inspiration from Wayne Manor
. [Jimmy] wired up
the automated entrance
with a 12VDC motor. In order for it to be able to push the door , the motor had to be attached to a gearbox, which directly powered a wheel. Current consumption issues were solved by using a wall-wart. Because a real bookshelf would still be too heavy, [Jimmy] dressed up a regular door with
some patterned wallpaper
to give it the right look. Coupled with a
Shakespearean bust concealing the button
, and some other cosmetic touches, this project was sure to impress any student who knew its secret. | 8 | 8 | [
{
"comment_id": "97465",
"author": "sly",
"timestamp": "2009-09-30T01:25:29",
"content": "looks like a garage door opener to me… to the megashop! there are projects to be constructed!",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97470",
"author": "dan po... | 1,760,377,577.652886 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/29/build-a-google-style-panorama-rig-for-300/ | Build A Google-style Panorama Rig For $300 | Phil Burgess | [
"classic hacks",
"digital cameras hacks",
"gps hacks",
"Transportation Hacks"
] | [
"camera",
"georeferencing",
"geotagging",
"google",
"panorama",
"panoramic",
"photography",
"street view"
] | As part of a “disruptive technologies” course at the United States Military Academy, [Roy D. Ragsdale] produced a working prototype of a Google Street View-like system called PhotoTrail. Like its corporate-backed inspiration, the system captures georeferenced 360-degree
panoramas
that can be viewed interactively in a web browser…but at a hardware cost of only around $300. [Ragsdale’s] prototype is based entirely on consumer-grade off-the-shelf components and open source software, all tied together by the yin and yang of DIY: foam core board and a few Python scripts.
This article from IEEE Spectrum magazine
provides some background on the selection of parts and construction of the system, including a hardware shopping list and a list of links to all of the open source packages used.
The PhotoTrail prototype is surprisingly small and lightweight. A vehicle isn’t even required; the camera array can be carried overhead by a single person, making it possible to capture remote locations. But [Roy] expects future revisions to be even smaller and less obtrusive, perhaps mounted to a headband. Mount Everest awaits! | 24 | 23 | [
{
"comment_id": "97452",
"author": "mike",
"timestamp": "2009-09-30T00:36:33",
"content": "FIRST!!!",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97457",
"author": "Frankly Crafty",
"timestamp": "2009-09-30T00:56:31",
"content": "I wonder if using... | 1,760,377,577.764114 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/29/jet-powered-hijinks/ | Jet Powered Hijinks | Caleb Kraft | [
"Misc Hacks",
"Transportation Hacks"
] | [
"carousel",
"jet",
"rocket"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjS8btFb9RA]
This
jet powered carousel
is brought to you by the
Madagascar Institute
. They convene, or collide, to create large scale art, sculptures, and rides. This one seems to fit the last definition. The two gentlemen are strapped to a jet powered carousel. It actually looks pretty fun, but we would have been needing some fresh shorts after the jet bursts into flames near the end. He didn’t seem too concerned, he wasn’t screaming and flailing his arms at least. | 21 | 21 | [
{
"comment_id": "97412",
"author": "Frollard",
"timestamp": "2009-09-29T21:58:58",
"content": "hxxp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTeevHnWmNQhow about we embed the one that ISNT destroyed and garbage encoded…",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97413",
... | 1,760,377,578.1891 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/29/how-to-generate-font-and-picture-header-files/ | How To Generate Font And Picture Header Files | Mike Szczys | [
"Tool Hacks"
] | [
"AVR",
"bmp",
"convert",
"font",
"header file",
"lcd"
] | Displaying custom fonts or images on an LCD screen using a microcontroller usually requires quite a bit of work. We’ve used some readily available tools to make this a bit easier for your next project. Our python script will convert BMP files into a header file ready for use with AVR microcontrollers. We’ll walk you through it after the break.
For this tutorial we will be using the
GNU Image Manipulation Program
in conjunction with
Python
. We are working on an Ubuntu 9.04 system but because these are cross-platform tools you should be able to do this on any OS.
What the script does:
The Python script takes one or more 1-bit color palette indexed
BMP images
, cuts out the header and any unused column data, and outputs a header file with the information stored in a one dimensional array in PROGMEM. This data can then be read out of the array and manipulated in the AVR code for use in whatever format you need for your display. This can be used for generating fonts, or converting larger images.
Generate the BMP files:
Open the GIMP and create a new file with the dimensions that you require. Height is up to you, but the width should be in multiples of 8 to correspond to the 8-bit wide storage scheme. In this case, we’re interested in generating a set of fonts that will display in a 24×30 pixel area.
Using the font tool, select your desired font and add your character. Adjust the size and location until if fills the canvas. You should make sure that the Antialiasing checkbox of the font tool is not selected.
BMP files are saved from bottom to top,
we need to invert the image for our purposes
. Do this by clicking the Image menu, go to Transform, and select “Flip Vertically”. We also need to make this an indexed image. To do so, click on the Image menu at the top, go to Mode and select “Indexed…”. From this menu, choose “Use black and white(1-bit) palette”. Now save the file as a BMP image. In our case, we saved it as 4.bmp. Repeat this for each character you wish to include in your new font header file.
Use the script:
Download our
bmp2header.py file
.
$ python bmp2header.py *.bmp
Please enter how many bytes (8-bits) wide
the image data needs to be:
3
Generating header file with a byte width of: 3 bytes
Successfully generated: my_header.h
Run the file, with your BMP images as the command line arguments. You will be asked to input the desired column width for the images. Our example image is 24 pixels wide so we want header data to be 3 bytes wide (24-pixels/8-bits = 3 bytes). You can see from the output that my_header.h was successfully created by the script.
Here are the contents of that file (in this case, data for the ‘4’ character):
#include <avr/pgmspace.h>
static const char PROGMEM my_header[]={
//4
0x1f, 0x00, 0x00,
0x3f, 0x80, 0x00,
0x3f, 0x80, 0x00,
0x3f, 0x80, 0x00,
0x3f, 0x80, 0x00,
0x3f, 0x80, 0x00,
0x3f, 0x80, 0x00,
0x3f, 0x80, 0x00,
0x3f, 0x80, 0x00,
0x3f, 0x80, 0x00,
0x3f, 0x80, 0x00,
0x3f, 0x80, 0x00,
0x3f, 0x80, 0x00,
0x3f, 0x80, 0x00,
0x3f, 0x80, 0x00,
0x3f, 0x80, 0x00,
0x3f, 0x80, 0x00,
0x3f, 0x81, 0xfc,
0x3f, 0x81, 0xfc,
0x3f, 0x81, 0xfc,
0x3f, 0xff, 0xfc,
0x3f, 0xff, 0xfc,
0x3f, 0xff, 0xfc,
0x3f, 0xff, 0xfc,
0x00, 0x01, 0xfc,
0x00, 0x01, 0xfc,
0x00, 0x01, 0xfc,
0x00, 0x01, 0xfc,
0x00, 0x01, 0xfc,
0x00, 0x01, 0xfc
};
In the header file, each BMP that is processed by the script will have its filename appended as a comment before the HEX output. Our data for 4.bmp is displayed in 3 columns of bytes with 30 rows. This matches up with the 24×30 aspect ratio we were looking for. If you have an output much larger than this, you either didn’t used a 1-bit indexed image, or something when wrong when the script asked you to input your column width.
Accessing data from the header file:
Covering how to use this header data is beyond the scope of this tutorial. Below is the code we used to write to the display in the image at the top of this article. Our screen is written to by declaring the area we want to write to, then sending a stream of bit data for that area. We provide this for reference purposes only:
#include my_header.h
void Other_Num(unsigned char num, unsigned char x, unsigned char y)
{
//Setup screen area for writing:
LCD_Out(0x2A, 1);
LCD_Out(x, 0);
LCD_Out(x+23, 0);
LCD_Out(0x2B, 1);
LCD_Out(y, 0);
LCD_Out(y+29, 0);
LCD_Out(0x2C, 1);
unsigned char temp;
for (unsigned char i=0; i<90; i++) //Read one column of char at a time
{
temp = pgm_read_byte((char *)((int)my_header + (i + (90*num)))); //Get column from progmem
for (unsigned char k=0; k<8; k++)
{
if (temp & 1<<(7-k)) LCD_Out(blue, 0);
else LCD_Out(white, 0);
}
}
}
Conclusion
Using this method make generating font sets quit a bit easier. We were able to generate five different numeric sets (0-9) in about 45 mintues. We hope this helps with your next project. Don’t forget to include pictures of your new fonts in the comments. | 19 | 19 | [
{
"comment_id": "97385",
"author": "Jon",
"timestamp": "2009-09-29T20:56:34",
"content": "Just curious, does anyone use the GIMP option to export C code/headers? If so, what are your thoughts on these two methods?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id":... | 1,760,377,578.004467 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/29/noise-box-synth-lays-down-some-beats/ | Noise Box Synth Lays Down Some Beats | Mike Szczys | [
"Arduino Hacks",
"digital audio hacks"
] | [
"arduino",
"noise box",
"synthesizer"
] | [Tim] sent us his Noise Box Synth. The
box is a sixteen step synthesizer
that can generate sine, square, triangle, and sawtooth waves as well as a collection of sound effects (video after the break). The hardware is simple; an Arduino, four potentiometers, four buttons, a switch, a speaker, and some LEDs. This was a gift for a three-year-old but we’d be just as happy unwrapping it ourselves. We didn’t find a schematic but all of the connections and hardware can be extrapolated from the
source code
.
Arduino sometimes gets a bad name around here. This project, [Tim’s] first that uses Arduino, proves that the accessibility of the platform makes it possible to jump directly into the deep end. Catch the video after the break.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIgjR_NYKVg] | 16 | 16 | [
{
"comment_id": "97363",
"author": "Anaon",
"timestamp": "2009-09-29T19:59:33",
"content": "That’s…interesting. For the non-musically inclined would someone mind explaining what the purpose of this device is? It seemed to just make rhythmic beeps and boops then at the end it sounded like the sound F... | 1,760,377,578.132665 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/29/connect-a-ps2-keyboard-to-a-microcontroller/ | Connect A PS/2 Keyboard To A Microcontroller | Caleb Kraft | [
"Tool Hacks"
] | [
"interrupts",
"keyboard",
"microcontroller"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfIiLE0BhE8]
The guys at Nerdkits have put together
this tutorial on connecting a PS/2 keyboard to a microcontroller
. Though this tutorial is written for one of the kits they sell, you should be able to apply this to pretty much any microcontroller. It is also a lesson in using interrupts instead of polling. They have several pre built examples ready to download as well as source code for the basic setup.
[via
HackedGadgets
] | 10 | 10 | [
{
"comment_id": "97331",
"author": "biozz",
"timestamp": "2009-09-29T18:07:11",
"content": "is it really that hard to do it? i never found any need for a tutorial on this XD",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97336",
"author": "stealthmonkey",
... | 1,760,377,578.373721 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/29/make-an-arduino-talk-to-you/ | Make An Arduino Talk To You | Mike Szczys | [
"Arduino Hacks",
"digital audio hacks"
] | [
"apple II",
"arduino",
"cantarino",
"daisy bell",
"hal 9000",
"phonemes",
"speech synthesis"
] | One of the highlights from the
Music Hack Day
in Berlin was the Arduino singing “Daisy Bell”. If you don’t know, this is
an homage
to the HAL 9000 in the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey; an artificial intelligence that was taught the song in its first steps toward self awareness culminating in an attempt to kill its masters.
It’s unlikely an Arduino will every make it to the point of attempted homicide but with the available code you can find out. Sample code and an explanation of
human synthesis is now available through the Cantarino project
. The project facilitates the use of
phonemes
from the SAM Apple II synthesizer to build wave forms that make up recognizable speech on the Arduino platform. The code illustrates how to select and link together speech sounds from the library. Check out the video after the break and then get to work on your own speech synthesis. We’re waiting for someone to put together the
theme song from the 1980’s Transformers
cartoon. Good luck!
[vimeo=http://vimeo.com/5577046]
[picture:
jeanbaptistparis
] | 27 | 27 | [
{
"comment_id": "97317",
"author": "Entropia",
"timestamp": "2009-09-29T17:13:31",
"content": "Yeah, nice proof-of-concept but the sound quality is just disgusting and I couldn’t make out a single word.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97318",
... | 1,760,377,578.260486 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/29/ball-catching-bot/ | Ball Catching Bot | Caleb Kraft | [
"Robots Hacks"
] | [
"catch",
"industrial",
"tennis ball"
] | [vimeo=http://vimeo.com/6793708]
Who needs a
robot that can catch a tennis ball
? We do. What would we do with it? Probably just throw tennis balls at it, that’s the only use we can think of. The work of University students in Kunzelsau and Vienna, it is actually a prototype for new transport systems for industrial robots. Though they don’t list any specific instances where this is a practical method of transport, we think maybe a tennis ball factory would be a good place to start. We can also envision a robot baseball league between this bot and the
extremely dexterous
ones we’ve covered before.
[via
BotJunkie
] | 11 | 11 | [
{
"comment_id": "97311",
"author": "M",
"timestamp": "2009-09-29T16:24:44",
"content": "This may be a good goalkeeper..",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97335",
"author": "David",
"timestamp": "2009-09-29T18:14:09",
"content": "Next a... | 1,760,377,578.325195 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/29/touchscreen-picture-frame/ | Touchscreen Picture Frame | Mike Szczys | [
"Arduino Hacks",
"digital cameras hacks"
] | [
"arduino",
"AVR",
"display",
"pic",
"picture frame",
"qvga",
"sd",
"touchscreen"
] | Circuit Ideas Design has posted a
digital picture frame project
based on their 240×320 16-bit color QVGA display. We made
our own digital frame
from a smaller screen a while back and this is pretty much the same implementation except with a larger screen and built around the AVR family of microcontrollers rather than PIC controllers.
The thing that piqued our curiosity was the five icons silk screened on one end of the display. That’s right, this is a touch screen. The board also has a built in SD slot and a bit of flexibility for connecting to a microcontroller. It can be controlled from a 40-pin header, or from headers that are designed to work as an Arduino shield. We’d love to get our hands on one but we were unable to figure out what currency the list price was in. Has anyone used this board yet? | 9 | 9 | [
{
"comment_id": "97297",
"author": "Ben Ryves",
"timestamp": "2009-09-29T15:14:28",
"content": "Given that the site appears to be in Thai, I assume the currency is baht; 1550 baht = £28.95 or $46.13 (US).",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97298",
... | 1,760,377,578.522548 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/29/add-ir-control-to-your-wifi-router/ | Add IR Control To Your WiFi Router | Mike Szczys | [
"Wireless Hacks"
] | [
"boxee",
"htpc",
"infrared",
"linksys",
"receiver",
"remote",
"router",
"Tomato",
"wrt54g"
] | [Craig] wanted to use
Boxee
on his TV but his computer was in a different room. He rigged up a rather
dubious method of delivering the A/V signal
(this is a hack in the most guttural sense). More interesting to us is
his solution for a remote control
interface. We’re familiar with building
USB connected infrared receivers
but [Craig] decided to patch one into the serial connection on his Linksys WRT54G router.
Surprisingly there’s a lot of space in the router case to add more electronics. He connected a 7805 voltage regulator to the 12v supply for the router and used it to power an IR receiver module and an ATmega328. Because the serial port of the router needs 3.3v he uses a zener diode and resistor to drop the communications voltage. By loading
Tomato
as the router firmware the remote control signals can be communicated back to a python script running on the host machine.
We do have a few opinions about possible improvements. The use of an ATmega328 is about 30kB worth of overkill. We know that
software-based usb infrared receivers
run on under 2 kilobytes of programming space. Also, the IR receiver module used (TSOP1738) is obsolete. In this case, we might recommend the TSOP34138. By changing to this part and using a low-power AVR you should be able to run off of the router’s 3.3v regulated supply. This would get rid of the additional regulator and prevent adding even more heat inside the router chassis.
But hardware selection arguments aside, we love the creativity of this solution. Nice work! | 6 | 6 | [
{
"comment_id": "97280",
"author": "jan",
"timestamp": "2009-09-29T14:07:30",
"content": "neat!",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97283",
"author": "monkeyslayer56",
"timestamp": "2009-09-29T14:11:41",
"content": "nice hack. whats next... | 1,760,377,578.563912 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/29/psp-go-gets-butchered-teardown/ | PSP Go Gets Butchered (teardown) | Jake W | [
"handhelds hacks",
"PSP Hacks"
] | [
"Go",
"ifixit",
"psp",
"teardown"
] | Not due to be released until the beginning of October,
a PSP Go
demo unit (shipped to G4TV) has already earned itself a
teardown from [iFixit]
. Among
what was discovered
:
– Once a few screws are removed, the battery is user replaceable (as-in: no soldering iron required)
– Wireless connectivity is only supplied through a 802.11b chip (no update to ‘n’, or even ‘g’, by Sony)
– Almost all chips are EMI-shielded (making them a bit more annoying to get to)
With a
cheaper version of the PS3
ready to hit shelves, one can only wonder whether the relatively high price tag on this new PSP is worth it.
Update:
It seems as though no party involved wanted the info leaked this early, which explains why the video
and picture gallaries
(up courtesy of Google) have been removed.
Update 2:
The article (linked above)
and video
are now available.
An explanation
on why Sony had them remove the items for quite some time (plus
some repair manuals
) was posted by iFixit. | 20 | 20 | [
{
"comment_id": "97270",
"author": "sly",
"timestamp": "2009-09-29T13:28:09",
"content": "GO!… no wait…",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97274",
"author": "Ted",
"timestamp": "2009-09-29T13:39:38",
"content": "Only 802.11b? Remember t... | 1,760,377,578.699372 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/28/internal-wireless-headphones/ | Internal Wireless Headphones | James Munns | [
"computer hacks",
"Wireless Hacks"
] | [
"900mhz",
"drive",
"floppy",
"headphones",
"wireless"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upYgHgMgTpk&hl=en&fs=1&]
Wireless headphones can be a wonderful way to help
clear up the clutter
inherent in most desktop PC systems. However, after plugging a wall wart in, and the headphone jack into the computer, the number of wires used has actually doubled. After [Parker] found an old set of
JVC 900 Mhz
wireless headphones (and a generic 900MHz transmitter), he cracked open the case to see what he could do with them. Realizing that the transmitter used a 12V DC source, he powered it with an
unused floppy connector
(which provides +12V, +5V, and two ground lines). He also wired the audio-in line directly onto his sound card headers rather than feeding out a headphone jack to the back. He then wrapped the whole thing in plastic to prevent unwanted shorting and placed it back in his PC, leaving him with a very functional wireless system. Detailed photos after the break. | 42 | 42 | [
{
"comment_id": "97183",
"author": "Skitchin",
"timestamp": "2009-09-29T01:46:41",
"content": "Very practical! Reminds me of what I did to my PC – I fit two playstation controller adapters into a 5 1/2″ slot cover. Unrelated, is that a Dell? I think I had that same tower rigged as a server, hehe, ri... | 1,760,377,578.641684 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/28/gameboy-color-boot-rom/ | Gameboy Color Boot ROM | Jakob Griffith | [
"handhelds hacks",
"Nintendo Game Boy Hacks"
] | [
"boot",
"color",
"gameboy",
"rom"
] | It’s only been a week since the
Super Gameboy’s boot ROM
was dumped by [Costis] and he’s already at it again. This time he’s managed to grab the
Gameboy Color’s boot ROM
. He found the newer Gameboy Color’s hardware is able to cope with a clock speed up to 100MHz, so the original clock increase trick he used on the Super Gameboy wouldn’t work again.
Instead he discovered a quick disconnection of clock and power before 0xFF50 would make the Gameboy jump to a random area within the ROM. Then it was only a matter of entropy, luck, and some special NOP instructions until eventually he had the boot ROM. Keep up the good work [Costis]. | 33 | 32 | [
{
"comment_id": "97168",
"author": "gman",
"timestamp": "2009-09-29T00:50:22",
"content": "who would have this much time on their hands? what is the point of this?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97173",
"author": "Hiroe",
"timestamp": "... | 1,760,377,578.768951 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/28/the-incredible-breakfast-machine/ | The Incredible Breakfast Machine | Matt Schulz | [
"home hacks",
"Misc Hacks"
] | [
"breakfast",
"coffee",
"eggs",
"jamming",
"platform21",
"rube goldberg",
"toast"
] | A lot of us skip breakfast in the morning, be it because we don’t have time to make something, don’t have the patience, or for some other reason. Yuri Suzuki and Masa Kimura are aiming to make your breakfast a little easier, a little quicker, and a lot more interesting.
Their latest project
is a Rube Goldberg-like machine that does everything from fry your eggs to brew your coffee. The coolest part about this project is it was built with the help of the public. The two designers put out an open invitation for people to come help in constructing the device at Platform21, a publicly accessible design forum in Amsterdam. Now if someone would tie this into an alarm clock, we could all wake up to the smell of toast and coffee instead of the super loud
140db alarm clock
or the confusing (albeit effective)
wake up machine
. | 11 | 11 | [
{
"comment_id": "97157",
"author": "Somebody",
"timestamp": "2009-09-28T23:48:31",
"content": "It’s only good if it shoots you in the arm at the end.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97161",
"author": "D",
"timestamp": "2009-09-29T00:05:4... | 1,760,377,578.814542 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/28/pinch-control2-laser-drawing/ | Pinch Control2: Laser Drawing | Caleb Kraft | [
"Arduino Hacks",
"Wearable Hacks"
] | [
"flex",
"laser",
"pinch",
"pressure"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uXIqQxarYI]
[
atduskgreg
] posted this cool looking rig. That’s a batting glove, chopped up and equipped with a flex sensor and a pressure sensor. The end goal was to
create a new method of drawing
. You can see he’s interfaced with the servos decently. It seems fairly responsive and intuitive. Looking at his results though, make us wonder if all that effort was worth it. We would probably apply this rig to some kind of animatronics. | 4 | 4 | [
{
"comment_id": "97146",
"author": "Adam Ziegler",
"timestamp": "2009-09-28T22:48:08",
"content": "I appreciate this, but I would like to see some photos the demonstrate the level of control he has over the device. The video gives me an idea… but is there enough control to produce simple shapes?",
... | 1,760,377,578.91158 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/28/halloween-props-dmx-controlled-skeleton/ | Halloween Props: DMX Controlled Skeleton | Caleb Kraft | [
"home hacks",
"Robots Hacks"
] | [
"dmx",
"halloween",
"scary"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9TSbxErzhkI]
[scarylady] has
posted this video about her setup
. The skeleton was rigged up to a rotating base with a single pneumatic solenoid to jostle it. She then goes on to show how she has it all connected to her computer with an explanation of the software setup. Though some of us might feel she could have accomplished very
similar results
with a simple oscillating fan, this is a decent intro to
DMX
.
We also had several people submit this fantastic list of Halloween projects,
The Halloween monster list
. There is enough information there to keep you busy for quite a while. We were going to list our favorites, but there are so many fantastic ones, we think you should just go look at them all. Remember to send us more of your projects. | 12 | 12 | [
{
"comment_id": "97132",
"author": "pRtkL xLr8r",
"timestamp": "2009-09-28T21:24:45",
"content": "…and where do we find this Halloween monster list?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97133",
"author": "thethirdmoose",
"timestamp": "2009-09... | 1,760,377,578.953117 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/28/tool-tip-microcontroller-timer-calculator/ | Tool Tip: Microcontroller Timer Calculator | Mike Szczys | [
"Tool Hacks"
] | [
"AVR",
"calculator",
"interrupt",
"microcontroller",
"overflow",
"pic",
"timer"
] | In life and embedded systems timing is everything. Give [Frank’s]
web-based timer calculator
a try. Set your system clock resolution (in hertz making sure you account for any system clock divider), select your timer resolution and prescaler, then calculate based on desired ticks, overflows, or real time. He’s built this with the AVR chips in mind but it should be handy for any family of microcontrollers.
Of course none of this is rocket science, but if you’re trying to use one timer for two differently synchronized events this can save you a lot of trial and error time. | 11 | 11 | [
{
"comment_id": "97118",
"author": "thethirdmoose",
"timestamp": "2009-09-28T20:32:27",
"content": "This is one of those simple things that’s incredibly useful. Calculating timer constants by hand is a real pain – half the time you end up dividing something where you should have multiplied, or you f... | 1,760,377,578.872791 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/28/pong-on-your-wrist/ | Pong On Your Wrist | Mike Szczys | [
"Wearable Hacks"
] | [
"clock",
"cnc",
"milling",
"msp430",
"oled",
"pong",
"ti",
"watch",
"wristwatch"
] | [John] wanted to take a
pong clock
and put it in a wristwatch form factor. Take an afternoon and pour over his
detailed build logs
. This multi-year project is done with meticulous cleanliness that makes us jealous. He’s milled the case and buttons himself, achieving a professional look that equals or surpasses the quality of some commercially available “gaming” watches. The project centers around an OLED display driven by a
TI MSP430F2013
processor. Don’t miss the video after the break covering prototyping, PCB work, case milling, and the watch in action. Currently, this is the third generation of development but with a project this exciting, are you ever really finished?
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdPAzvWQBCI]
[Thanks Chris] | 25 | 25 | [
{
"comment_id": "97093",
"author": "Kyle",
"timestamp": "2009-09-28T19:05:04",
"content": "Commander Keen is back!",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97096",
"author": "walt",
"timestamp": "2009-09-28T19:17:22",
"content": "wow. this du... | 1,760,377,579.013983 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/28/capacitive-buttons-control-all-life/ | Capacitive Buttons Control All Life | Mike Szczys | [
"classic hacks",
"home entertainment hacks"
] | [
"3310",
"capacitive sensor",
"conways game of life",
"nokia",
"pic",
"qt100a"
] | Projects involving Conway’s Game of Life
and utilizing a
Nokia 3310 screen
are quite popular with electronics hobbyists. [Droky] put these two together and went one step further by adding
capacitive sensors to control the Game of Life
. His work is a great example of how to use the Atmel QTouch capacitive sensor (
QT100a datasheet
). This chip does the heavy lifting that we’ve seen in
other touch sensitive solutions
. It operates from 2V-5.5V, requires only three capacitors and a resistor, has a one pin active high output, and sells for around $1 in low quantities. One thing [Droky] overlooked in his board layout is the ground pad on the bottom of the WSON6 chip. He was able to make it work by masking the trace that runs under the chip but you will want to alter the layout in your own designs.
If you’ve used the QT100a before we’d like to hear about your experience, and find out if button debounce handling is necessary with this chip. Let us know in the comments. You can see a video of it in action after the break.
[vimeo=http://vimeo.com/6791696] | 7 | 7 | [
{
"comment_id": "97089",
"author": "_matt",
"timestamp": "2009-09-28T18:45:02",
"content": "Powered by 5vsb, this thing would be an awesome circuit for a power button.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97103",
"author": "jproach",
"timesta... | 1,760,377,579.10267 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/28/omnizero-9-multi-format-biped/ | OmniZero.9 Multi Format Biped | Caleb Kraft | [
"Robots Hacks"
] | [
"biped",
"robo one",
"robot"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqnxt9vGAmE]
There are so many biped bots circulating the web that we tend to overlook them. This one caught our eye this morning due to its interesting ability to change its layout. Named
OmniZero.9
, this biped can drive on 4 wheels like a car, walk like a biped, and even carry a person. While it certainly doesn’t look like the most comfortable mode of transportation, it looks less awkward than some of the
latest “innovations”
coming from big names.
[via
GetRobo
] | 14 | 14 | [
{
"comment_id": "97039",
"author": "Ben Keller",
"timestamp": "2009-09-28T14:29:30",
"content": "Wow, there really is more than meets the eye to that robot.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "97041",
"author": "maxpowa",
"timestamp": "2009-... | 1,760,377,579.226269 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/28/open-source-weapon-makes-you-puke/ | Open Source Weapon Makes You Puke | Devlin Thyne | [
"Arduino Hacks",
"home hacks",
"LED Hacks",
"News"
] | [
"arduino",
"led",
"non-lethal weapon",
"open source",
"rave",
"vomit",
"weapon"
] | [
Limor
] of
Adafruit Industries
and the
Ice Tube Clock
has made her own
open source non-lethal weapon
: The Bedazzler. After attending a conference by the DHS where she saw the big-budget Dazzler, she decided to make her own. Thirty-six LEDs, six switching FETs, a
Boarduino
, and a former flashlight later, the Bedazzler makes a better rave toy than a weapon. It doesn’t work as-is, but we figure it will only be a matter of time before someone hacks this to make people… umm hack. See the video after the break.
[youtube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qE-I2VMGOJA%5D | 44 | 44 | [
{
"comment_id": "97026",
"author": "PocketBrain",
"timestamp": "2009-09-28T13:20:48",
"content": "Should that be “Bedazzler” or “Beta Dazzler?”Also, don’t try this in public; it might give people with epilepsy a bit of trouble.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
... | 1,760,377,579.511085 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/27/homemade-uav/ | Homemade UAV | Gerrit Coetzee | [
"Robots Hacks",
"Transportation Hacks"
] | [
"airplane",
"controll",
"ham",
"remote",
"terrence",
"uav",
"unmanned airal vehicle"
] | [Terence Bordelon] sent in
his impressive UAV (Unmanned Arial Vehicle)
. The hack is a culmination of his other projects. It can be turned to fully automatic at the flip of a switch. It will fly itself to gps way points, land, and take off. The UAV has a range of 100km thanks to his home built
RF Unit
which runs on ham bands. The brains of the setup is his custom
IMU
(Inertial Measurement Unit). The unit is controlled by his
ground station
which either allows him to fly it normally or toggle through the various modes. [Terrence] is also a game developer and has worked on many popular titles such as Zoo Tycoon 2 and Ratchet and Clank. | 48 | 48 | [
{
"comment_id": "96942",
"author": "Ohear",
"timestamp": "2009-09-28T01:07:29",
"content": "The Department of Homeland Security must be thrilled.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96943",
"author": "RazorConcepts",
"timestamp": "2009-09-28... | 1,760,377,579.375569 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/27/word-clock-tell-the-time-with-words/ | Word Clock: Tell The Time With Words | Gerrit Coetzee | [
"home hacks"
] | [
"clock",
"instructable",
"led",
"microcontroller",
"pic",
"word"
] | [drj113] posts his
cool word clock
. After seeing a similar clock on an industrial design website, he set out to make his own version. He made custom pcbs with the
toner-etch
method. The front is a solid piece of copper clad board and the light shines through the etched areas. It’s powered by a PIC microcontroller and uses approximately 120 ultra bright LEDs. [drj113] has all of the circuit board diagrams, silkscreens, etch negatives, and code on the intructable so you can build your own. | 24 | 24 | [
{
"comment_id": "96916",
"author": "alex",
"timestamp": "2009-09-27T22:26:01",
"content": "NICE!that is theqlocktwo. it was recently featured on engadget and many design blogs. i wanted to make one but never got around to it. nice job, drj, for acting so quickly.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth"... | 1,760,377,579.436996 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/27/unhackable-netbooks-given-to-students/ | Unhackable Netbooks Given To Students | Caleb Kraft | [
"Security Hacks"
] | [
"Australia",
"netbook",
"unhackable",
"windows 7"
] | Where would be the best place to test out an unhackable netbook? The NSW
department of education in Australia thinks that college is perfect
. They plan on distributing netbooks, preloaded with Windows 7,and iTunes. They also have bios level tracking and security, allowing them to be remotely shut down on command. With 20,000 of these in circulation, we would think that we’ll see someone proving the “unhackable” statement wrong. We can only hope.
[via
slashdot
] | 285 | 50 | [
{
"comment_id": "96803",
"author": "Hackius",
"timestamp": "2009-09-27T14:48:00",
"content": "What’s the point of these unhackable netbooks",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96804",
"author": "Misfitsman805",
"timestamp": "2009-09-27T14:53... | 1,760,377,579.676817 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/26/open-garage-door-indicator/ | Open Garage Door Indicator | Jakob Griffith | [
"home hacks",
"LED Hacks"
] | [
"closed",
"garage door",
"indicator",
"open",
"simple",
"switch"
] | How many times has this one happened to you? Just coming home from work, you walk in from the garage, settle down, and pick up the newspaper. But wait, did you remember to shut the garage door?
Presenting the
open garage door indicator
. [xjc2010] chose the simplest circuit possible, using only a switch to turn on and off the setup, an LED acting as the signal, and a transformer/resistor combo to drop the voltage to an acceptable LED friendly 2.8 volts. We don’t like how he strung wire all over his house to place the beacon, and would have preferred something
wireless
in one way
or another
, but for under 6 bucks this gets the job done quickly and cheaply. Now if only we could get it to remind us if we turned off the oven while on vacation.
[thanks Craig] | 49 | 48 | [
{
"comment_id": "96730",
"author": "sean",
"timestamp": "2009-09-27T01:22:29",
"content": "either way, its good for a prototype, and if he wants to make it look nicer he can make it wireless",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96732",
"author": ... | 1,760,377,581.522093 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/26/frankenstein-has-a-thing-for-coin-op/ | Frankenstein Has A Thing For Coin-op | Mike Szczys | [
"home entertainment hacks"
] | [
"cabinet",
"frankenstein",
"mame",
"steam punk"
] | The amount of detail [Doug] put into his
Dr. Frankenstein MAME cabinet
is outrageous! Usually we’re more interested in the guts, but in this case the real story is the cabinet itself. Painted to resemble weathered metal, the effect of dripping water is visible on every rivet. There are illuminated portals on either side: one shows the monster, the other shows the bride and the good doctor. Sprinkled throughout the case are analog dials, lamps, and other laboratory bits. [Doug] tops off the design by concealing the power switch inside a book of Frankenstein’s lab notes which is tucked away behind the door beneath the controls. A lovely build for a creepy house.
[via
Boing Boing
and
Steam Punk Workshop
]
Related:
Cocktail Cabinet
,
Mini Mame | 18 | 18 | [
{
"comment_id": "96713",
"author": "OrderZero",
"timestamp": "2009-09-26T22:10:58",
"content": "That is truly alot of detail when you look at the wood model compared to the finished that’s just amazing 0.oLooking at his profile it says 9 & 1/2 fingered mad scientist is it true he lost part of his fi... | 1,760,377,581.296569 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/26/avr-dragon-wiring-alternative/ | AVR Dragon Wiring Alternative | Mike Szczys | [
"Tool Hacks"
] | [
"Atmel",
"AVR",
"dragon",
"dragon rider",
"hvsp",
"isp",
"jumper",
"socket",
"zif"
] | We love our
AVR Dragon
programmer. It is a small board with a lot of functionality: in-circuit serial programming, JTAG, debug wire, and high voltage serial programming. Unfortunately, out of the box it is not quite ready for action. The Dragon ships with an unpopulated prototyping area and missing a pin header for the HVSP. For most people this means soldering on pin headers and a ZIF socket then jumpering between the various programming headers and the header for the socket. Tired of working with jumper wires, [Jussi] designed
a small PCB to make the connections
(original link
in Finnish
).
Above you can see the Dragon as it ships, with pin headers and ZIF socket added, and with jumper wires for prototyping. It’s easy to see why there is demand for an alternative. We have a
Dragon Rider 500 prototyping board
that we use with our Dragon, but [Jussi] feels that board is a bit too much for him.
His design uses header sockets to make the connections between pin headers on the AVR Dragon’s prototyping area. It also connects a crystal and has a jumper for selecting USB power. This solution requires a different adapter board for each different size of chip (8-pin, 20-pin, 28-pin, etc) and doesn’t facilitate connecting external circuits. But if you just need to program a lot of chips, this reduces the setup time to mere seconds. | 23 | 21 | [
{
"comment_id": "96662",
"author": "jan",
"timestamp": "2009-09-26T16:48:22",
"content": "why do you refer yourself as we? i mean this is ridiculous, come on",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96678",
"author": "mars",
"timestamp": "2009-09... | 1,760,377,581.642952 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/26/halloween-prop-the-ground-breaker/ | Halloween Prop: The Ground-breaker | Caleb Kraft | [
"Robots Hacks"
] | [
"halloween",
"pneumatic",
"scary"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=46RycwjIvs8]
[casafear1] has put out
this video detailing how to build the “ground-breaker”
, a zombie escaping from the grave. It is a simple frame for the arms and shoulders, with a couple pneumatic pistons to make it jerk as though it were pulling itself from the grave. He goes into a decent amount of detail explaining the physical construction, offering several tips to prolong the life of this prop. Unfortunately, he doesn’t enlighten us as to his control scheme. Is it manually controlled? Is it automated? Does it get activated by passers by or is it always going?
Last year, we posted most of the Halloween projects
after Halloween
. This year we would like to try to get you those ideas and inspiration far enough ahead of time to help you put them to use. Send us your favorite Halloween projects so we can get them published.
[via
Makezine
] | 28 | 28 | [
{
"comment_id": "96651",
"author": "nope",
"timestamp": "2009-09-26T15:16:07",
"content": "That wont scare the children. Put a crying witch in your yard and even the grownups, the men at least, wont go anywhere near your lawn. I wouldn’t.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
... | 1,760,377,581.835184 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/25/sli-anytime-anywhere/ | SLI Anytime Anywhere | Jakob Griffith | [
"computer hacks",
"Peripherals Hacks"
] | [
"any",
"chipset",
"motherboard",
"sli",
"xdevs"
] | SLI
, for those who don’t know, is the process of taking two
Nvidia graphics cards
and allowing them to work in parallel to render to a single monitor. In theory this doubles the power, getting more FPS for video games. Great right? Except due to encryption, only a limited amount of motherboards can actually support SLI.
That is,
until now
. Russian hackers at xDevs discovered that the newer encryption is based around string identifiers. This can be modified within the operating system itself, so in theory any motherboard could work. Be wary, this could brick your system; but if successful, you’ll have more power without shelling out for an officially SLI supported motherboard. | 37 | 37 | [
{
"comment_id": "96572",
"author": "Paul",
"timestamp": "2009-09-26T02:17:08",
"content": "thats awesome, except I own an ATI board with crossfire =P",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96574",
"author": "tjhooker",
"timestamp": "2009-09-26T... | 1,760,377,581.369329 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/25/140-db-alarm-clock-hack/ | 140 Db Alarm Clock Hack | Caleb Kraft | [
"home hacks"
] | [
"alarm",
"car horn",
"clock"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zEH5GxPNO8]
This
silly little video
caught our attention. It is an alarm clock, hacked with two amazingly loud car horns. They are using a laptop power brick to push the two external car horns. The horns are triggered by a relay wired to the internal speaker of the alarm clock. This is a super quick project that could be done, not only to help yourself, but it is the perfect amount of effort for a prank. We bet you guys could probably wire one of these up and hide the horns in only a few minutes. If you are having problems waking up, you might also want to check out some of
the other
alarm hacks
we’ve seen.
[via
gizmodo
] | 37 | 37 | [
{
"comment_id": "96524",
"author": "Taylor",
"timestamp": "2009-09-25T22:40:56",
"content": "fuckn kipkay…",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96525",
"author": "rasz",
"timestamp": "2009-09-25T22:41:11",
"content": "its the same guy tha... | 1,760,377,581.778122 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/25/arduino-thermoscanner/ | Arduino Thermoscanner | Caleb Kraft | [
"Arduino Hacks"
] | [
"arduino",
"Thermal",
"thermo"
] | [Steve] sent in a tip to show us his
Thermography scanner
. Constructed from an Arduino, two servos, a thermal sensor and a little bit of code, it is fairly simple. The results aren’t groundbreaking. You can see his examples are fairly low resolution and took about 30 seconds to capture. It isn’t bad for a quick project though. The source code is available on his site. | 25 | 25 | [
{
"comment_id": "96500",
"author": "TheBadWolf",
"timestamp": "2009-09-25T21:52:26",
"content": "nice proof of concept,what about a rotating thermal sensor,kinda POV but reverse,anyone dare?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96515",
"author": ... | 1,760,377,581.436384 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/25/radio-controlled-beetle-flight-footage/ | Radio Controlled Beetle Flight Footage | Mike Szczys | [
"News",
"Robots Hacks"
] | [
"beetle",
"cyborg",
"darpa",
"implant",
"insect",
"rc",
"robot"
] | Earlier this year we were amazed when University of California researchers
controlled a beetle via electrical implants
. The video available at the time of the original report showed beetles tethered in place while electrical stimuli was applied via the chip. New
video of free flight
is has now been posted. Although the motion is rather sporadic, it is obvious that simple commands to start flight, stop flight, and turn left or right are having their intended effect. Check out this cyborg action after the break. Is
DARPA
one step closer to unleashing legions of insect warriors on unsuspecting masses?
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAeV96bTRiI]
[via
Popular Science
] | 33 | 33 | [
{
"comment_id": "96477",
"author": "Gilliam",
"timestamp": "2009-09-25T20:41:19",
"content": "Beetle latches onto curtains in protest of its remote control.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96488",
"author": "Leb",
"timestamp": "2009-09-2... | 1,760,377,581.583965 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/25/eee-pc-bios-resurrection/ | Eee PC Bios Resurrection | Mike Szczys | [
"Repair Hacks"
] | [
"bios",
"desolder",
"eee pc",
"flash",
"repair",
"solder"
] | Hot on the heels of our post about
reading passwords from EEPROM
, [n0th1n6] tipped us off about a similar hack used to resurrect an Eee PC from a bad bios flash. After discovering that a factory repair for a dead bios costs about $200, [CutenaCute_7]
took on the challenge herself
. She disassembled the computer and desoldered the bios chip from the board. After writing a program to flash the chip using C#, she temporarily soldered jumpers to make sure the flash worked. Looks like this is a zero cost hack, plus the time savings from not having to ship her computer somewhere. Bravo. | 22 | 22 | [
{
"comment_id": "96476",
"author": "Matt",
"timestamp": "2009-09-25T20:36:52",
"content": "That should be an SPI flash part. While the soldering is impressive, there may have been an easier way as SPI is typically in circuit programmable.http://www.dediprog.com/SPI-flash-in-circuit-programming/SF100... | 1,760,377,582.107553 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/25/google-to-trolls-flame-on/ | Google To Trolls: Please Flame EVERY Web Site | Mike Szczys | [
"HackIt"
] | [
"google",
"sidewiki",
"toolbar",
"Utopernet"
] | Google has unveiled
their latest web app
. It’s called Google Sidewiki and makes it easy to “Contribute helpful information to any webpage”. We’re not quite so sure. If you have the
Google Toolbar
installed on your browser,
Sidewiki
allows you to open a side-panel, add your comments about the page, and read the comments of others.
In a Utopian Internet (Utopernet?) the world’s most predominant experts on all subjects would be browsing websites dropping off clairvoyant nuggets of wisdom like Greek oracles. In reality, letting anyone add to any web page does not equate to instant insight. We’re all familiar with long comment threads and forum posts that contain very low percentages of useful information.
Google considered this “white noise” as a possible problem and implemented a ranking system for which comments are displayed first. This raises another flag, will this become a type of advertising? At some point in the future will comments linking to other pages be ranked based not only on popularity, but on a kickback to
the Big G
in return for increased exposure?
There is also the consideration that web pages might not like what comments are being left in Sidewiki. We’ve noticed that emails referencing the
Labor Movement
often have link advertisements in Gmail about how to prevent Unionization. What would the Sidewiki for pages covering controversial topics such as religion, sexual persuasion, and abortion look like?
We will admit this is a well intentioned idea with a lot of potential. But everything depends on how well it is executed. | 35 | 35 | [
{
"comment_id": "96439",
"author": "troll",
"timestamp": "2009-09-25T18:15:41",
"content": "yay! :)",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96440",
"author": "Entropia",
"timestamp": "2009-09-25T18:18:53",
"content": "I here by coin another ... | 1,760,377,581.711467 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/25/with-zipit-who-needs-a-netbook/ | With Zipit, Who Needs A Netbook? | Mike Szczys | [
"handhelds hacks",
"Linux Hacks"
] | [
"flash",
"fluxbox",
"linux",
"microsd",
"mouse",
"zipit"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_LrI2g2VT8]
[Hunter Davis] keeps rolling out the hacks for the Zipit. In the past he showed us
how to run DOSbox
, and then how to get
NES emulation working
on this tiny device. Now he’s got Linux kernel 2.6.29 running Fluxbox with mouse (newly added), audio, and WiFi functionality. Follow his
step-by-step flashing instructions
to load the kernel into the Zipit. Once flashed, a partitioned microSD card servers as the filesystem and
swap
.
Who needs a 10.1 inch screen or an Atom processor when you can get this 2.8″ QVGA beauty with an
XScale processor
for around $40?
[Thanks Matt] | 88 | 50 | [
{
"comment_id": "96426",
"author": "paul",
"timestamp": "2009-09-25T17:16:02",
"content": "i want one now :)",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96428",
"author": "LateBlt",
"timestamp": "2009-09-25T17:32:40",
"content": "Is releasing al... | 1,760,377,582.309159 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/25/tear-your-imacs-insides-out/ | Tear Your IMac’s Insides Out | Mike Szczys | [
"Mac Hacks"
] | [
"apple",
"arctic silver",
"g5",
"hdd",
"heat",
"imac",
"sata"
] | Saying that [Ian] had some overheating issues with his iMac G5 would be an understatement. After losing three hard drives due to heat he decided to do something about it. The first step was replacing the thermal paste with
Arctic Silver
. The solution for the hard drive was a little more unorthodox.
[Ian] picked up a
320GB Western Digital Caviar Blue
drive because of its very low noise rating. He used rubber grommets to mount it outside the case and ran SATA data and power extension cables through a quarter inch hole to the motherboard. He mentioned to us that the cutout seen above the drive is from a previous mod.
This certainly will fix an overheating problem but it doesn’t do much for the sexy style we’re accustomed to with Apple hardware. | 28 | 28 | [
{
"comment_id": "96405",
"author": "McSquid",
"timestamp": "2009-09-25T14:20:21",
"content": "Unfortunately overheating and breaking doesn’t do much for the sexy factor either. nice fix.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96407",
"author": "Cu... | 1,760,377,581.946174 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/24/junk-bots-win-awards-in-vietnam/ | Junk Bots Win Awards In Vietnam | Caleb Kraft | [
"Robots Hacks"
] | [
"junk",
"vientamese",
"vietnam"
] | In a national competition for creativeness in children, junk bots have reigned supreme. Pictured above is a detail from one of
[Vu Van Thankg]’s junk bots
. Created entirely from parts pulled from the trash, this thing has 11 motors which supposedly allow full arm and hand control. We know you’ll be upset at how little information there is, but the pictures alone show so much. Just look at the rig he put together for this arm. If that isn’t inspiring, we don’t know what is.
[via
BoingBoing
] | 25 | 25 | [
{
"comment_id": "96283",
"author": "walt",
"timestamp": "2009-09-24T18:28:16",
"content": "that’s an impressive junk bot!",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96288",
"author": "Godi",
"timestamp": "2009-09-24T18:39:27",
"content": "Pure ... | 1,760,377,582.505583 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/24/edison-cylinder-recordings-need-more-cowbell/ | Edison Cylinder Recordings Need More Cowbell | Mike Szczys | [
"home entertainment hacks"
] | [
"analog",
"edison cylinder",
"needle",
"phono",
"record",
"sousa",
"wax"
] | [Norman] spent three years developing and building his own
Edison cylinder phonograph with electric pickup
. We’re glad he did, and that he shared it with the world because the product is a thing of beauty. Every part is clean and precise with plenty of room for adjustments to accommodate differences in media. He’s reused the head from a VCR and attached it to a CNC machined polypropylene mandrel. The needle is interfaced with the cylinder via a delicate passively driven carriage. This consists of an aluminum rod with the cartridge at one end, and two wheels at the other. The wheels travel along a precision rod, propelled by the needle tracking the groove in the wax. Wonderful!
We’ve embedded a video of the device playing a recording of Sousa’s
El Capitan
from the late 19th century. Although familiar with these cylinder recordings, we were surprised by how little recording space there is available on one.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXohldXo7AI] | 21 | 21 | [
{
"comment_id": "96271",
"author": "eyrieowl",
"timestamp": "2009-09-24T17:14:20",
"content": "for those who haven’t seen this before:http://cylinders.library.ucsb.edu/",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96272",
"author": "monkeyslayer56",
... | 1,760,377,582.371475 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/24/steal-the-administrator-password-from-an-eeprom/ | Steal The Administrator Password From An EEPROM | Mike Szczys | [
"Security Hacks"
] | [
"administrator",
"AVR",
"eeprom",
"password",
"serial"
] | Did you forget your hardware-based password and now you’re locked out? If it’s an IBM ThinkPad you may be in luck but it involves a bit more than just removing the backup battery. SoDoItYourself has an article detailing the
retrieval of password data from an EEPROM
.
The process is a fun one. Disassemble your laptop. Build a serial interface and solder it to the
EEPROM chip
where the password is stored. Connect this interface to a second computer and use it to dump the data into a file. Download a special program to decipher the dump file and dig through the hex code looking for something that resembles the password. Reassemble your laptop and hope that it worked.
We know that most people won’t be in a position to need a ThinkPad administrator password, but there must be other situations in which
reading data off of an EEPROM comes in handy
. What have you used this method for? | 43 | 42 | [
{
"comment_id": "96265",
"author": "Jed",
"timestamp": "2009-09-24T16:22:01",
"content": "Getting the HDD Key off an Xbox motherboard so I could replace the hard drive",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96267",
"author": "Sean",
"timestamp"... | 1,760,377,582.58496 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/24/twitter-talking-fish-and-more/ | Twitter, Talking Fish, And More | Jakob Griffith | [
"digital audio hacks",
"News",
"Toy Hacks"
] | [
"big mouth billy bass",
"mbed",
"microcontroller",
"twitter"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6kECR7T4LY&feature=player_embedded]
[Dan Ros] and the mbed team sent in their hack of a
twitter talking Big Mouth Billy Bass
. Originally the hack simply had an mbed micrcontroller and an SD card with some wav files allowing Billy to say classic quotes. Wanting to go further however, they used the mbed’s HTTPClient library to grab Twitter updates, and then have Billy say them out loud! Check out some other cool projects the mbed team has in the
cookbook
.
But wait, whats an mbed? We didn’t have a clue either!
Some researched reveals it is a
powerful new microcontroller
and prototyping board. With some features such as direct ethernet and USB connections right on the chip, as well as PWM, serial, analog,
and more
. What really stoked us is how it acts much like a USB thumb drive. Drag and drop your binary files, and it’s programmed! The only downside, at $100 it can be a bit more of an investment compared to an
Arduino
PIC. Could this be the next big prototyping tool that beats all others? Lets hear it in the comments!
[Update: The mbed can be had for a limited time pre-order price of $60 not $100 – Thanks Dan and the mbed team!] | 29 | 29 | [
{
"comment_id": "96244",
"author": "spathi",
"timestamp": "2009-09-24T14:46:22",
"content": "this made my day ! :>",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96245",
"author": "parag0n",
"timestamp": "2009-09-24T15:02:40",
"content": "I’ve been... | 1,760,377,582.757677 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/23/vintage-hack-game-boy-camera/ | Vintage Hack – Game Boy Camera | James Munns | [
"digital cameras hacks",
"handhelds hacks",
"Nintendo Game Boy Hacks"
] | [
"Atmel",
"camera",
"game boy",
"robot",
"serial",
"vision"
] | Back in 2005, a member of a French robotics team named [Laurent] wrote a wonderful
how-to
that we somehow missed on using the
Game Boy Camera
as a vision device for a robot. The images above are actual shots from his project. The Game Boy Camera features a stunning 128×123 pixel resolution in a gorgeous 4 color gray-scale palette. Possibly the most attractive feature of this hack is that it is still possible to get a hold of
these cameras
for under ten dollars on ebay.
He connected the camera sensor to an Atmel AT90S4433 using a combination of digital and analog signals, and then used the microcontroller to echo the data back to his PC. His write up includes schematics for wiring up the sensor/microcontroller, the datasheet for the sensor, his C code for the whole project, and an easy to read pin out of the GBC connector. Although his project simply offloaded the image to a computer, it would be entirely possible to have the microcontroller respond to the image or simply just log and store it. It would also be just as easy to replace his Atmel chip with
your
own
favorite
microcontroller, as long as it has a couple Digital I/O ports and at least one Analog port (or an external analog to digital converter).
UPDATE: Good catch r4v5, it would require an ADC, not a DAC. | 33 | 33 | [
{
"comment_id": "96149",
"author": "r4v5",
"timestamp": "2009-09-24T02:29:37",
"content": "Wouldn’t you need an external ADC, not a DAC, to digitize the analog signal?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96150",
"author": "69Arduino69",
"tim... | 1,760,377,582.443395 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/23/custom-shortcuts-from-firefox-address-bar/ | Custom Shortcuts From Firefox Address Bar | Mike Szczys | [
"firefox hacks"
] | [
"bookmark",
"firefox",
"shortcut"
] | We picked up a great
Firefox bookmark tip
from [Colin]. He wanted an easier way to look up bug numbers on the launchpad bug tracker. Because the url is always the same with the bug number at the end of the address, he replaced the final portion of the url with %s. Now, when he types the keyword followed by the bug number in the address bar the bug page loads right up.
We don’t do all that many bug searches but it’s immediately obvious that this can be useful in a lot of ways. In the photo above you can see we’ve set up a shortcut to the tag pages for
hackaday.com
. Now we just type “hack” with the tag we want after it. Add this to your bookmarks and try typing “hack firefox” into the address bar. | 23 | 23 | [
{
"comment_id": "96085",
"author": "Adam",
"timestamp": "2009-09-23T20:15:33",
"content": "You can also right click on any search box in Firefix and choose Add a Keyword For This Search, and it will do the same thing.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_i... | 1,760,377,582.643626 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/23/ben-heck-gets-sloppy-and-we-love-it/ | Ben Heck Gets Sloppy And We Love It | Caleb Kraft | [
"classic hacks",
"home entertainment hacks",
"Xbox Hacks"
] | [
"ben heck",
"xbox"
] | [Ben Heck] is a name synonymous with game system hacking. His projects have been seen and praised by people all over the world for both their quality and their ingenuity. He’s so good, in fact, that many of his projects have gone far beyond what we typically think of as hacking. They look and feel like commercial products. While that is a fantastic accomplishment, we have a soft spot for seeing stuff that is truly hacked. This lasted job he did is a great example. The controller needed to work using a single hand,
so he hacked it
. He was in a hurry, so it didn’t get his usual professional finish. We kind of like it that way. This one handed controller mod can be seen in action after the break.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bh0TXFY-ccU] | 18 | 18 | [
{
"comment_id": "96071",
"author": "Odin84gk",
"timestamp": "2009-09-23T19:17:25",
"content": "Haha! He is wearing socks and loafers!…….…Ouch! You certainly put me in my spot.Nice hack.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96079",
"author": "mari... | 1,760,377,582.698298 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/23/rcdc-dc-motor-control-via-servo-signals/ | RCDC: DC Motor Control Via Servo Signals | Caleb Kraft | [
"Tool Hacks"
] | [
"dc motor",
"rc",
"servo"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2Hn8No5oFQ]
[Spikenzie] has put together this
nice kit for controlling a DC motor with RC servo signals
. He’s using a PIC12F629 to convert the signal to PWM. As you can see in the video above, it seems to work quite well. It is in a neat and tidy package and available as a kit. We have to admit though, what caught our eye was
the prototype
. Even though it is a kit for sale, it looks as though they plan on releasing the PCB files and code. | 15 | 15 | [
{
"comment_id": "96060",
"author": "Hackius",
"timestamp": "2009-09-23T18:12:13",
"content": "I’m thunderstruck by this project.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96062",
"author": "dmitryg",
"timestamp": "2009-09-23T18:19:56",
"conten... | 1,760,377,582.804768 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/23/arduino-human-synthesizer/ | Arduino-human Synthesizer | Jake W | [
"Arduino Hacks",
"digital audio hacks"
] | [
"arduino",
"bare",
"conductive",
"mega",
"synth",
"synthesizer"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IObPkUFq0hg]
(Thanks to [Aaron] for the tip) As a promo for [
Calvin Harris
], some of the creative minds at Sony Music have put together
an Arduino-based sythesizer
composed of 15 bikini clad babes. By analyzing which circuits are closed,
the Arduino Mega is able
to tell a sequencer which sample to play. The only innovation happens to be that the circuits are painted onto the aforementioned girls with a conductive body
paint known as Bare
.
Developed by students at the
Royal College of Art
, the paint is not available for purchase, but they are willing to mix a batch up for art installations or performances. Technical stats (such as resistance) have not been released, but for a washable paint it seems to be performing quite well.
How was the whole project set up? The video below reveals all:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=up1wraRnriI] | 45 | 45 | [
{
"comment_id": "96032",
"author": "The_Evil_Machinist",
"timestamp": "2009-09-23T17:04:54",
"content": "1st",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96037",
"author": "monkeyslayer56",
"timestamp": "2009-09-23T17:18:29",
"content": "arduino!... | 1,760,377,582.884596 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/23/berlin-hack-day/ | Berlin Hack Day | Jakob Griffith | [
"digital audio hacks",
"News"
] | [
"arduino",
"berlin",
"citysounds.fm",
"hack day",
"iloveacid",
"maschinefighter",
"music",
"sound",
"tracks on a map",
"xylobot"
] | [vimeo
http://vimeo.com/6668819%5D
This past weekend, Berlin played host to
Music Hack Day
– an event where attendants built and tested hacks, contraptions, and software all dealing with sound, music, or the distribution thereof.
Some of the hacks
are simply mind blowing to see built in only a day or two. Like the location based
CitySounds.fm
or
Tracks on a Map
– mapping out where your music is from. Or the music based games and composition tools,
iLoveAcid squencer
and
MaschineFighter
– adding some crazy fun to MIDI.
Oh, we almost forgot, we can’t go an entire post without mentioning something Arduino; named
Xylobot
– a set of servos powered by Arduino, tapping out rhythm on a xylophone (video above). Another Hack Day is planned so keep an eye out.
[Thanks robb] | 10 | 10 | [
{
"comment_id": "96029",
"author": "chicosoft",
"timestamp": "2009-09-23T16:49:06",
"content": "so cool",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96059",
"author": "Jas",
"timestamp": "2009-09-23T18:09:03",
"content": "That’s a glockenspiel, n... | 1,760,377,583.009997 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/23/universal-cc/ | Universal Credit Card In The Palm Of Your Hand | Mike Szczys | [
"classic hacks",
"lockpicking hacks",
"Security Hacks"
] | [
"ATmega168",
"AVR",
"credit card",
"electromagnet",
"magnetic card",
"spoofer"
] | Do you remember the magnetic card spoofer in Terminator 2? It was a bit farfetched because apparently the device could be swiped through a reader and magically come up with working account numbers and pin numbers. We’re getting close to that kind of magic with [Jaroslaw’s]
card spoofer that is button-programmable
.
Building off of a project that allows
spoofing via an iPod and electromagnet
, [Jaroslaw] wanted something that doesn’t require a computer to put together the card code. He accomplished this by interfacing a 16-button keyboard and a character LCD with an AVR ATmega168 microcontroller. Card codes can be entered with the buttons and verified on the LCD. Of course this is still dependent on you knowing the code in the first place.
As you know, credit cards use this technology. We don’t think Walmart is going to be OK with you pulling this out in the checkout line, not to mention local
five-oh
. This technology is also used for building access in Universities, businesses, and hotels. If used in conjunction with some other
spy technology
you’ll be on your way to becoming a secret-agent-man. | 38 | 38 | [
{
"comment_id": "96006",
"author": "dbear",
"timestamp": "2009-09-23T15:10:45",
"content": "Needs to be installed in an old cell phone case for stealth.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "96008",
"author": "monkeyslayer56",
"timestamp": "20... | 1,760,377,583.479861 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/23/hacking-usb-serial-port-adapters/ | Hacking USB Serial Port Adapters | Caleb Kraft | [
"classic hacks",
"Tool Hacks"
] | [
"microcontroller",
"serial",
"usb"
] | The folks at Openschemes.com have written up an article on how to
convert a USB serial port adapter to a low voltage serial interface
for interfacing with microcontrollers. Though you can always just buy one, this is a fairly quick and cheap solution, especially if you are in a pinch or don’t have access to a retailer. The specific models you should watch for, are the ones with two chips, a microcontroller and a line translater.They go through the process of finding exactly where to patch in to add an extra interface. It only takes a couple wires and you are ready to go.
Not only can you use this as your serial connection to another microcontroller, but you can actually take control of the one on the board itself. If you load it with the drivers from TI, you gain access to the flash memory and can do whatever you want. They don’t go into much detail here though, stating that they’ll write another article on that.
We thought this little bugger looked familiar so we went digging through our archives. Sure enough, we found this system
in action back in January of 2008
.
[via
Hacked Gadgets
] | 16 | 16 | [
{
"comment_id": "95989",
"author": "3riX",
"timestamp": "2009-09-23T14:09:23",
"content": "“are the two chip ones.”LOL",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "95990",
"author": "Caleb Kraft",
"timestamp": "2009-09-23T14:12:37",
"content": "@... | 1,760,377,583.211522 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/22/photographic-key-duplication/ | Photographic Key Duplication | Mike Szczys | [
"lockpicking hacks",
"Security Hacks"
] | [
"bitting",
"key",
"lock",
"picking",
"SneaKey",
"ucsd"
] | [Ben] and his associates over at the University of California at San Diego came up with a way to
duplicate keys using a picture of them
. They developed an algorithm that uses measurements from known key blanks to extrapolate the
bitting code
. Because the software is measuring multiple points it can correct the perspective of the photo when the key is not photographed on a flat surface, but from an angle.
They went so far as to test with cell phone cameras and using a telephoto lens from 195 feet away. In most cases, correct keys were produced within four guesses. Don’t miss their
wonderful writeup
(PDF) detailing how key bitting works, traditional
covert duplication methods
, and all the details of their process. The lack of available code prevents us all from playing secret agent (or felon) with this idea but [Ben] did mention that if there is sufficient interest he might release it.
Lock bumping
showed us how weak our security is, but this is a bit scary.
[Thanks Mike] | 49 | 48 | [
{
"comment_id": "95826",
"author": "Dan",
"timestamp": "2009-09-22T21:12:18",
"content": "I once had a car key snap in half when I was pretty far from home. After going to numerous locksmiths I finally came to one where the guy just looked at the key and made a new one free hand.The key he made actu... | 1,760,377,583.158056 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/22/seawater-cooled-data-centers/ | Seawater Cooled Data Centers | Mike Szczys | [
"green hacks"
] | [
"apocalypse",
"cooling",
"data center",
"oceanwater"
] | Remember
Mauritius
from High School geography? We didn’t either, but apparently it’s a small island nation east of the southern tip of Africa. It seems they are trying to develop an industry in
eco-friendly data centers
. The plan is to use a pipeline to gather cold water from the ocean, run it two miles to the island, and use it as inexpensive cooling. Because rooms packed with servers generate copious amounts of heat it’s easy to see how this can reduce the cost of maintaining a data center.
The thing that struck us here is, how eco-friendly is this? The article mentions that this technology is fairly mature and is already used in several places. With that in mind, isn’t this just another way to raise the temperature of the oceans, or does the environmental savings of not using electricity or gas to produce the cooling offset this?
[Thanks Vesanies] | 89 | 50 | [
{
"comment_id": "95803",
"author": "James",
"timestamp": "2009-09-22T20:14:10",
"content": "I’d have to run a few calcs but I’m fairly sure that the damage done by warming the ocean directly versus normal AC-induced carbon production is quite compellingly small.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth":... | 1,760,377,583.405836 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/22/new-wii-drive-hardware-emulation/ | New Wii Drive Hardware Emulation | Mike Szczys | [
"Linux Hacks",
"Nintendo Wii Hacks"
] | [
"arm9",
"emulator",
"sd",
"usb",
"wii",
"wode"
] | The Wii-Optical-Drive-Emulator (WODE) makes it possible to load Wii and GameCube ISO files from an SD card or USB storage device. This hack uses the ribbon cable for the optical drive to connect to the Wii, requiring no soldering. The WODE is based on an ARM9 processor, runs Linux, and features a backlit LCD screen and 4-way center click joystick. Storage can be hot plugged and then an ISO selected using the stick and LCD display. Selected ISO files appear in the game channel as if an original disc had just been inserted into the drive.
The developers claim that a Wii firmware upgrade will not be able to lock out the WODE. There is also a second ribbon-cable connector to use as a pass-through, giving the option to keep the optical drive hooked up if you so desire. Now the race is on for a replacement case that can house all of this new hardware and still look nice like the original. We wouldn’t be surprised to see a homebrew channel program that allows ISO selection without having to walk over to the console.
The
original report (in dutch) is a dead link
so here’s the
Google cache copy translated
. These links came via the
translated Tweakers article
(here’s the
original Dutch
). Video after the break.
Don’t pirate video games!
[Thanks Roy]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9yE33RIGwtM] | 45 | 44 | [
{
"comment_id": "95774",
"author": "Eric",
"timestamp": "2009-09-22T19:13:56",
"content": "This is most definitely one of the cooler hacks I’ve seen so far.Bonus: not arduino related in any way, w00t.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "95776",
... | 1,760,377,583.562429 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/22/ti-lashes-out-at-their-biggest-fans/ | TI Lashes Out At Their Biggest Fans | Caleb Kraft | [
"News",
"Security Hacks"
] | [
"calculator",
"dmca",
"texas instruments",
"united TI"
] | Texas Instruments has issued a DMCA notice
to United TI, a group of enthusiasts. They had been cracking the keys that sign the operating system binaries in an attempt to gain access and possibly expand on the features. This seems, at least a little counter productive to us. Texas Instruments doesn’t sell the operating system separately do they? These people were buying their product and expanding on it. There is no difference in their income, except possibly a gain as people flock to the one they can modify. Maybe they are charging more for an expanded feature set that is crippled in the OS.
[via
slashdot
] | 44 | 43 | [
{
"comment_id": "95758",
"author": "shazzner",
"timestamp": "2009-09-22T18:10:35",
"content": "Most of DMCAs are due diligence unfortunately, doesn’t make the laws any less ridiculous.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "95761",
"author": "jaded... | 1,760,377,583.743747 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/22/barcode-scanner-in-processing/ | Barcode Scanner In Processing | James Munns | [
"Peripherals Hacks"
] | [
"barcode",
"code 128",
"processing",
"scanner"
] | Reader [Nikolaus] decided that instead of using an
existing
image based
bar code decoder
, he would
write his own
. Using the
Processing language
he created a scanner that parsed the black and white pattern when a bar code was centered on the image. His code then parsed that data and compared it with the initializing character to provide a reference. Currently his scanner supports three character sets of the
Code 128 encoding
, and
provided his complete code
so that others could add as they see fit. He admits that the code is a bit messy due to the lengthy character tables, but very straight forward. | 3 | 3 | [
{
"comment_id": "95762",
"author": "Taek",
"timestamp": "2009-09-22T18:32:00",
"content": "What hardware does this use to do the scanning?.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "95768",
"author": "offy",
"timestamp": "2009-09-22T18:40:50",
... | 1,760,377,583.663177 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/22/cheap-yaris-cabin-filter/ | Cheap Yaris Cabin Filter | Jakob Griffith | [
"Misc Hacks"
] | [
"cabin filter",
"cheap",
"jake",
"yaris"
] | [Jake] never ceases to amaze with his inventions, from his
Powered respirator
to his
Steampunk LCD
and
more
. Today he proves that not every hack has to be an amazing one requiring hundreds of hours, tons of soldering, and an Arduino. Instead, he was tired of being charged $50 for a
$5 cabin air filter
. With a quick squeeze he had access to the filter bay. It was only a matter of finding a similar filter at a home improvement store and then using a scrap wood jig, he could cut and glue his own filter. It’s stuff like this that tends to make us think, what else are we getting ripped off on? | 22 | 22 | [
{
"comment_id": "95731",
"author": "ch0psh0p",
"timestamp": "2009-09-22T16:18:13",
"content": "Why bother wasting an hour of your time if you can buy an aftermarket for 16 bucks?http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/raframecatalog.php?carcode=1433327&parttype=6832&a=FRc1433327k1271491",
"parent_id": n... | 1,760,377,583.625114 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/22/introduction-to-ftdi-bitbang-mode/ | Introduction To FTDI Bitbang Mode | Phil Burgess | [
"classic hacks",
"Featured",
"how-to",
"LED Hacks"
] | [
"bit bang",
"bitbang",
"centronics",
"ftdi",
"parallel",
"rs232",
"serial",
"usb"
] | It was an interface that launched a thousand hacks. Near trivial to program, enough I/O lines for useful work, and sufficiently fast for a multitude of applications:
homebrew logic analyzers
,
chip programmers
,
LCD interfaces
and
LED light shows
, to name a few.
Today the parallel printer port is on the brink of extinction (and good riddance, some would say). Largely rendered obsolete by USB, few (if any) new peripherals even include a parallel connector, and today’s shrinking computers — nettops, netbooks, media center PCs — wouldn’t have space for it anyway. That’s great for tidy desks, but not so good if you enjoyed the dirt-cheap hacks that the legacy parallel port made possible.
Fear not, for there’s a viable USB alternative that can resurrect many of these classic hacks! And if you’ve done much work with Arduino, there’s a good chance it’s already lurking in your parts drawer.
A recurring element among many recent hacks is the use of an Arduino or other USB-connected microcontroller as an intermediary between a PC and an external circuit. Code running on the microcontroller will poll some sensor to detect a change (for example, an empty coffee pot), then send a message over USB to a host PC where another program then acts on it (updating a web page to tell the world there’s no coffee). This is a reasonable approach, the parts are affordable and simple to program, but for many projects we can get by with just half the code, complexity and expense…and some folks will be thrilled to hear,
no Arduino!
When the microcontroller on an Arduino board talks to a host PC over USB, all of the heavy lifting of USB communication is done by a separate chip: the FTDI FT232R USB to serial UART interface. This allows code on both the host and microcontroller to use much simpler asynchronous serial communication. As a size- and cost-cutting measure, some Arduino variants place this chip on a separate board to be attached only when programming the microcontroller, allowing it to be re-used for the next project.
This default USB-to-serial mode of the FT232R is what usually draws all the attention and gets all the girls. An alternate mode, less talked about but no less useful, is
bitbang mode.
This gives us independent software control of up to eight I/O lines, similar to the classic parallel port or the digital I/O lines of a microcontroller.
Acquiring the Hardware
If one isn’t already in your stash, FT232R breakout boards are easy to come by. Any shop that carries the Arduino Pro or LilyPad, or some of the bargain-priced Arduino derivatives (e.g. Boarduino), will also offer a programming cable that breaks out four of the FT232R I/O lines:
Above: The SparkFun FTDI Basic Breakout board (around $14) is surrounded by the FTDI TTL-232R converter cable (around $20). Both break out four data lines that can be used for general-purpose I/O.
Four data lines may seem constraining, but for many tasks this is sufficient; projects using SPI communication, shift registers and port expanders will be well served. If you need the full complement of I/O lines, more sophisticated breakout boards are available:
Above: just a few of the available full breakout boards. Clockwise from top: SparkFun Breakout Board for FT232RL (around $15), Modern Device USB-BUB ($12), DLP Design DLP-USB232R ($18) and DLP-USB1232H ($25), and FTDI’s own FT4232HQ Mini Module ($30). The latter two are based on more capable chips, the FT2232H and FT4232H, backwardly compatible but with additional features far exceeding the scope of this article.
Setting Up for Development
Another encouraging aspect of the FTDI interface is cross-platform software support; the same hacks can be created whether you’re using Windows, Linux or Mac OS X. Two software components are required to begin development: a
device driver,
which operates behind the scenes to handle all the low-level USB communication, and an
API library,
which is linked with your own code and forwards requests to the driver. Complicating matters slightly, there are two different APIs to choose from, and the setup process is a little different for each OS.
FTDI’s own API is called
D2XX.
This library is proprietary and closed source, but they do not charge for its use, even in commercial situations. An alternate API,
libftdi,
is community-developed and fully open source. This library has similar capabilities, but different function names and syntaxes. Conversion between the two APIs is very straightforward, and we’ll provide an example for each.
Windows users:
if you’ve used Arduino before, the necessary driver is already installed. Otherwise,
download and extract the latest Windows driver from the FTDI web site
. When first connecting an FTDI cable or breakout board, use the Found New Hardware Wizard to locate and install the driver. If you want to use the D2XX library, the header and object files are included in the driver folder. This is the easier option. If you’d prefer the open source libftdi, you’ll need to download and install the both the
libusb-win32 device driver and source code
, then
download and build libftdi
.
Linux users:
most current Linux distributions already have the necessary driver present as a kernel module. The D2XX library for Linux can be
downloaded from the FTDI driver page
, but
libftdi
is easier to install: simply locate libftdi-dev in your favorite package manager and have it take care of the dependencies when installing. In either case, FTDI programs for Linux need to be run as root, e.g.
sudo ./hello-ftdi
Mac OS X users:
download the D2XX library from the FTDI download page
. The included ReadMe file will explain how to install this library. If you’d prefer to use libftdi, download the source for
libusb
(legacy 0.1.12 version) and
libftdi
from their respective sites, then use the following commands in a Terminal window to build and install each of the two libraries:
./configure
make
sudo make install
If you’ve used Arduino in the past or have the FTDI Virtual Com Port (VCP) driver installed for any other reason, this needs to be disabled before bitbang mode will work on the Mac; the two cannot coexist. In a Terminal window, type:
sudo kextunload /System/Library/Extensions/FTDIUSBSerialDriver.kext
To restore the driver and resume using Arduino or other FTDI serial devices:
sudo kextload /System/Library/Extensions/FTDIUSBSerialDriver.kext
Other operating systems:
drivers for several other platforms are available. Please see the
FTDI drivers page
for details and links.
Most of the FTDI sample code is written in C, and that’s what we’ll use here. Bindings for other languages are available on the FTDI web site.
Hello World: Flash an LED
The standard introductory program for nearly every microcontroller is the LED flasher, so let’s give that a try. You’ll need an FTDI cable or any of the breakout boards, one LED and a 220 Ohm resistor.
Connect the resistor to either leg of the LED, but keep note of which leg is the positive (anode) side. Then insert the LED/resistor pair into the socket on the end of the FTDI cable as shown below, with the negative leg connected to the GND line (the black wire on the FTDI cable) and the positive leg to the CTS line (brown wire).
Here’s the C source code, using the libftdi API. If you plan on using D2XX, have a look at the second listing a bit later; the relationship between functions should be fairly obvious.
/* hello-ftdi.c: flash LED connected between CTS and GND.
This example uses the libftdi API.
Minimal error checking; written for brevity, not durability. */
#include <stdio.h>
#include <ftdi.h>
#define LED 0x08 /* CTS (brown wire on FTDI cable) */
int main()
{
unsigned char c = 0;
struct ftdi_context ftdic;
/* Initialize context for subsequent function calls */
ftdi_init(&ftdic);
/* Open FTDI device based on FT232R vendor & product IDs */
if(ftdi_usb_open(&ftdic, 0x0403, 0x6001) < 0) {
puts("Can't open device");
return 1;
}
/* Enable bitbang mode with a single output line */
ftdi_enable_bitbang(&ftdic, LED);
/* Endless loop: invert LED state, write output, pause 1 second */
for(;;) {
c ^= LED;
ftdi_write_data(&ftdic, &c, 1);
sleep(1);
}
}
If the program successfully compiles (all of the required headers and libraries in the appropriate locations, and properly linked with our own code), the LED should flash slowly.
The code is largely self-explanatory, but there are a couple of points worth highlighting:
Note the second parameter to ftdi_enable_bitbang(). This is an 8-bit mask indicating which lines should be outputs (bit set) vs. inputs (bit clear). As we’re only using a single output line (CTS in this case), we set just the one bit corresponding to that line (0x08). For additional outputs, we can OR the bit values together. The bitbang I/O pin mappings aren’t defined in either API’s header, so you might find it helpful to keep around a header such as this:
#define PIN_TX 0x01 /* Orange wire on FTDI cable */
#define PIX_RX 0x02 /* Yellow */
#define PIN_RTS 0x04 /* Green */
#define PIN_CTS 0x08 /* Brown */
#define PIN_DTR 0x10
#define PIN_DSR 0x20
#define PIN_DCD 0x40
#define PIN_RI 0x80
Notice that the second parameter to ftdi_write_data() is a
pointer
to an 8-bit variable. The function normally expects an array (and the second example will demonstrate this), but for this simple case only one value is required. When issuing a single byte like this, remember to always pass by reference (a pointer), not a numeric constant. The last parameter to the function is the number of bytes.
The value(s) passed to ftdi_write_data() indicate the desired state of the output lines: a set bit indicates a logic high state (3.3 or 5 volts, depending on the FTDI adapter used), and a clear bit indicates logic low (0 volts). The mapping of bits to I/O pins is exactly the same as for ftdi_enable_bitbang(), so the prior #defines may be helpful in that regard.
More Bells and Whistles
There are many project ideas that only occasionally need to toggle an I/O line: ring a bell when a web counter increments, flash a light when email arrives, send a Tweet when the cat uses the litter box. The code for such tasks will often be just as simple as the example above. But when communicating with more complex devices and protocols, this byte-at-a-time approach becomes very inefficient. Every call to ftdi_write_data(), even a single byte, issues a USB transaction that will be padded to a multiple of 64 bytes, and there can be latencies of a full millisecond or more before this request is actually sent down the wire. To efficiently send complex data streams, it’s necessary to pass an entire array to the ftdi_write_data() function.
Bitbang mode operates very differently than the chip’s default serial UART mode. In the serial configuration, one simply calls fwrite() to issue a block of data to the serial port, and the chip manages all the details of the transmission protocol: word length, start, stop and parity bits, and toggling the logic state of the TX line at the required baud rate. In Bitbang mode there is no implied protocol; this is raw access to the data lines, and we must take care to construct a meaningful signal ourselves, essentially creating an
image map
of the data lines over time:
Suppose we want to communicate with a device that uses the SPI protocol (Serial Peripheral Interface, also sometimes called Microwire, synchronous serial or three- or four-wire serial, depending on the implementation). The required output would resemble the waveform in the illustration above: one output line provides a clock signal, another represents the data bits (in sync with the clock), and a third issues an end-of-data latch signal. If sending 8 bits of data, our output array would need to be twice that size (to represent the high and low state of each clock tick), plus two additional bytes for the latch high/low at the end. 8 * 2 + 2 = 18 bytes in the output array (possibly a few extra bytes, if a specific device requires a short delay before the latch signal).
SPI might be too esoteric for an introductory article; not everyone will have the right components around. Instead, let’s make something visually gratifying: we’ll drive a group of LEDs using pulse width modulation. This is of dubious utility but it’s flashy and hints at the speed and fine control that’s possible using this port.
The hardware setup is similar to the first example, but repeated four times: four LEDs, four 220 Omh resistors (we’re limiting it to four in order to work with the FTDI cable or SparkFun Basic Breakout, but it’s easily expandable to eight with the other boards). The negative legs are all connected in common to the GND line (black wire on the FTDI cable), while the positive legs are connected to CTS, TX, RX and RTS (brown, orange, yellow and green wires, respectively). The SparkFun Basic Breakout has DTR in place of RTS for the last pin, but the example code will work the same with either one…we’ll explain how shortly.
Here’s how the components look on a breadboard. Notice that the +5V line (red wire on FTDI cable) is skipped:
And here’s the source code, using the D2XX API. Adapting this to libftdi is straightforward; see the first example for the different syntaxes.
/* pwmchase.c: 8-bit PWM on 4 LEDs using FTDI cable or breakout.
This example uses the D2XX API.
Minimal error checking; written for brevity, not durability. */
#include <stdio.h>
#include <string.h>
#include <math.h>
#include <ftd2xx.h>
#define LED1 0x08 /* CTS (brown wire on FTDI cable) */
#define LED2 0x01 /* TX (orange) */
#define LED3 0x02 /* RX (yellow) */
#define LED4 0x14 /* RTS (green on FTDI) + DTR (on SparkFun breakout) */
int main()
{
int i,n;
unsigned char data[255 * 256];
FT_HANDLE handle;
DWORD bytes;
/* Generate data for a single PWM 'throb' cycle */
memset(data, 0, sizeof(data));
for(i=1; i<128; i++) {
/* Apply gamma correction to PWM brightness */
n = (int)(pow((double)i / 127.0, 2.5) * 255.0);
memset(&data[i * 255], LED1, n); /* Ramp up */
memset(&data[(256 - i) * 255], LED1, n); /* Ramp down */
}
/* Copy data from first LED to others, offset as appropriate */
n = sizeof(data) / 4;
for(i=0; i<sizeof(data); i++)
{
if(data[i] & LED1) {
data[(i + n ) % sizeof(data)] |= LED2;
data[(i + n * 2) % sizeof(data)] |= LED3;
data[(i + n * 3) % sizeof(data)] |= LED4;
}
}
/* Initialize, open device, set bitbang mode w/5 outputs */
if(FT_Open(0, &handle) != FT_OK) {
puts("Can't open device");
return 1;
}
FT_SetBitMode(handle, LED1 | LED2 | LED3 | LED4, 1);
FT_SetBaudRate(handle, 9600); /* Actually 9600 * 16 */
/* Endless loop: dump precomputed PWM data to the device */
for(;;) FT_Write(handle, &data, (DWORD)sizeof(data), &bytes);
}
When successfully compiled and run, the LEDs should slowly pulsate in a repeating “chaser” cycle. There are some notable differences from the first example:
LED4 is defined by two bits, a logical OR of both RTS and DTR, and the two bits are always toggled in unison. This isn’t a mandatory requirement, it simply makes the program compatible with different hardware: the FTDI cable and the SparkFun Basic Breakout use a different signal on the last pin, and toggling both bits makes it work the same regardless.
The baud rate is explicitly set to 9600 bps (bitbang mode will actually run at 16 times the baud rate). This is so the PWM speed will be the same whether using libftdi or D2XX. The former library normally initializes the port to 9600 baud by default, while the latter API (used here) opens the port at maximum speed and we need to slow it down to match. In practice, at maximum speed we’re able to get about 650,000 8-bit samples per second out this port.
In Mac OS X 10.6, you may find it necessary to pass the -m32 flag to gcc in order to compile and link with the D2XX library. And Windows programmers using Cygwin may need some additional header files:
#include <stdarg.h>
#include <windef.h>
#include <winnt.h>
#include <winbase.h>
Pulse width modulation makes for a nice visual demonstration of speed but unfortunately can’t really be put to serious use. In addition to the previously-mentioned I/O latency, other devices may be sharing the USB bus, and the sum total is that we can’t count on this technique to behave deterministically nor in realtime. PWM with an LED looks just fine to the eye…the timing is close enough…but trying to PWM-drive a servo is out of the question. For a synchronous serial protocol such as SPI, where a clock signal accompanies each data bit, this method works perfectly, and hopefully that can be demonstrated in a follow-up article.
Not a Panacea
FTDI bitbang mode comes in handy for many projects, but it’s not a solution to every problem. There are many situations where a microcontroller is still preferable:
For extended standalone use, it’s a no-brainer: a microcontroller board costs less than a fancy meal and runs for days on a 9-volt battery. Only when a project is going to involve a full-on PC anyway should bitbang mode be considered.
If a task involves basic analog-to-digital conversion, you’re almost certainly better off using a USB-connected microcontroller with built-in ADC. It’s just less hassle than the alternative.
For tasks that require continual high-speed polling of a sensor, bitbang mode will needlessly gobble USB bandwidth and CPU cycles. Most microcontrollers have an interrupt-on-change feature that avoids polling entirely, using resources only when a change actually occurs.
We hope this introduction has planted the seeds of new hacks in your mind, or will breathe new life into forgotten classic parallel port hacks. To dig deeper, the
FTDI web site
is the best resource. Here you’ll find
data sheets
,
articles
, and most useful of all are the
application notes
. There’s also
information for working with other languages
: Java, Perl, Python and Visual Basic, among others. | 80 | 50 | [
{
"comment_id": "95711",
"author": "monkeyslayer56",
"timestamp": "2009-09-22T15:06:47",
"content": "sweet and no arduino(although hints to “microcontroler” we know what hackaday ment :) )",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "95714",
"author": "s... | 1,760,377,583.847308 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/21/six-monitors-one-video-card/ | Six Monitors, One Video Card | Chris Gilmer | [
"home entertainment hacks"
] | [
"amd",
"displayport",
"displays",
"maximum pc",
"multiple screen",
"video card"
] | With most of us utilizing at least two monitors these days in our day to day operations, six monitors, while an awesome thought, might seem a little too excessive. After all, do we really have space for multiple video cards?
AMD has a new setup in their testing lab that is running six Dell 30inch displays at 7680×3200 through a video card holding six DisplayPort connectors.
Maximum PC
has the scoop on the setup, and they say that this single GPU will be coming out on AMD’s DirectX 11 capable chips. Details are slim with the amount of video RAM, speeds and cost not known at present.
Think of the possibilities! Trade shows are one thing, but how about a video wall at home for gaming and movies? How would you use the six monitors shown above? Be sure to leave your ideas in the comments. | 66 | 50 | [
{
"comment_id": "95578",
"author": "Vask",
"timestamp": "2009-09-22T00:57:24",
"content": "o.0 Why did they multiplex that? you would have to be so far away to not care about the huge gaps in your vision.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "95579",
... | 1,760,377,583.936205 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/21/virtual-pool-real-world-interface/ | Virtual Pool, Real-world Interface | Phil Burgess | [
"classic hacks",
"Misc Hacks"
] | [
"ball",
"billiards",
"cue",
"game",
"gaming",
"infrared",
"interface",
"physical",
"pool",
"stick"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Wc_DXGe2fQ]
Sunday we saw
robots playing pool and an augmented reality pool game.
Today we’ll complete the pool trifecta:
virtual
pool using a
real
cue stick and ball in another
vintage video
from Hack a Day’s secret underground vault. The video is noteworthy for a couple of reasons:
First is the year it was made: 1990. There’s been much buzz lately over real-world gaming interfaces like the Nintendo Wii
motion controller
or Microsoft’s Project Natal. Here we’re seeing a much simpler but very effective physical interface nearly twenty years prior.
Second: the middle section of the video reveals the trick behind it all, and it turns out to be surprisingly simple. No complex sensors or computer vision algorithms; the ball’s speed and direction are calculated by an 8-bit processor and a clever arrangement of four infrared emitter/detector pairs.
The visuals may be dated, but the interface itself is ingenious and impressive even today, and the approach is easily within reach of the casual garage tinkerer. What could you make of this? Is it just a matter of time before we see a reader’s
Mini-Golf Hero III
game here? | 9 | 9 | [
{
"comment_id": "95576",
"author": "cyanide",
"timestamp": "2009-09-22T00:35:12",
"content": "match this up with the pool playing robot mentioned above",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "95602",
"author": "yuppicide",
"timestamp": "2009-09-... | 1,760,377,583.980011 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/03/office-warfare/ | Office Warfare | Jakob Griffith | [
"home entertainment hacks",
"News"
] | [
"cubicle",
"destruction",
"john austin",
"office",
"pencil",
"rubber band",
"tape",
"warefare",
"weapon"
] | a Ruler, rubber band, and a pen make a bow and arrow? How about tape, a ping pong ball, and a lighter coming together to make a ‘Zooka. We didn’t think such destructive weapons could possibly be made
from office supplies
, but the famous
[John Austin]
is here to prove us wrong. He’s been miniaturizing toys and their munitions including Transformers, Star Wars, Jurassic Park for years. With the resent release of his
new book
, he’s left us the grace of a few teasers.
[Thanks Chris] | 16 | 16 | [
{
"comment_id": "98470",
"author": "Nate",
"timestamp": "2009-10-03T21:07:47",
"content": "first post",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "98479",
"author": "Aaron",
"timestamp": "2009-10-03T21:20:39",
"content": "They all look good, I th... | 1,760,377,584.030316 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/03/garage-door-packet-sniffer/ | Garage Door… Packet Sniffer | Jake W | [
"home hacks",
"Security Hacks"
] | [
"attiny",
"garage",
"remote",
"sniffer"
] | Some type of logger or sniffer
exists for almost every form of electronic communication. Your keystrokes, phone conversations, and wireless networks could all be monitored. In this awesome proof-of-concept project, [James] expanded that array to
include garage door openers
. After receiving a piece of chain mail which stated that criminals have the technology to record any remote code and play it back, [James] wondered if he could build such a device that would work on at least his opener model.
[James] started off with a trip to the hardware store. He was unable to find both a transceiver that worked on the frequency of his remote control (
308MHz clocked MAX7042 chip
), so at least for this incarnation (he plans to build another one that is capable of replaying a captured signal), only a receiver was implemented. The receiver was connected
to a logic analyzer
in order to determine its protocol. Since the signal coming from the receiver was very low, [James] had to amplify it through a buffer before it could be detected.
An ATtiny26
and a 4 line x 20 character backlit LCD were used to interpret and display info from the receiver. [James] built the sniffer around a custom PCB (though he ran into a few layout errors that he had to fix post-production). All of the firmware was written in C. It is fairly straightforward, but takes up 98% of the microcontroller’s memory. The program is designed to monitor pin change interrupts and timers to filter out invalid codes as well as noise. Any info (the door codes that have been sniffed) is displayed through
a 4-bit interface on the LCD
, for easy recording. With the codes, one can configure another garage remote to open the door. If you have any suggestions for V2, We’re sure [James] will be reading the comments.
Update:
The code and PCB files (with the error) are available through one of the following mirrors:
filesavr.com/codegrabber
filefactory.com/file/a0eb0gg/n/code_grabber_zip
filedropper.com/codegrabber_1
mediafire.com/?sharekey=7c4692dd4f3ad2c36e7203eb87368129e04e75f6e8ebb871 | 46 | 43 | [
{
"comment_id": "98456",
"author": "TheFIsh",
"timestamp": "2009-10-03T20:15:52",
"content": "ironic, a peace of mail sent out to warn people about there security makes them less secure. this is still a coll project though, and i got the first post!",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"repl... | 1,760,377,584.111178 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/03/sonys-wireless-electricity-offering/ | Sony’s Wireless Electricity Offering | Mike Szczys | [
"Video Hacks",
"Wireless Hacks"
] | [
"magnetic resonance",
"prototype",
"sony",
"wireless electricity"
] | In August we covered a
wireless electricity presentation
from the TED conference. Now Sony has put out
a press release on their wireless flat panel television prototype
. The device is capable of operating without audio, video, or power cables connected to it. This is possible at distances up to 50cm at efficiencies as high as 80%.
As was talked about in the comments of the other article, the efficiency compared to that of a cable doesn’t blow our socks off. But this does show mainstream development of this technology. We hope to see advances in both efficiency and distance. We also look forward to that small black box (which we presume facilitates the energy transfer) being integrated into the TV’s body.
[via
Gizmodo
] | 45 | 43 | [
{
"comment_id": "98439",
"author": "hrpuffnstuff",
"timestamp": "2009-10-03T19:31:01",
"content": "80% is awsome for wireless efficiency but to compare it to wired is like comparing the sun to a tanning lamp. Considering all the chips involved, bravo.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"re... | 1,760,377,584.39377 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/03/ubuntu-9-10-beta-now-available/ | Ubuntu 9.10 Beta Now Available | Mike Szczys | [
"downloads hacks",
"Linux Hacks"
] | [
"9.10",
"beta",
"bugs",
"karmic koala",
"torrent",
"ubuntu"
] | The latest version of the world’s most popular Linux distribution is
now available
. Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala continues the six-month development cycle of this
free
OS. We’ve used Ubuntu since 2005 and, after a short adjustment period, never looked back at those other operating systems.
Never used Linux? This distribution is for you but we recommend waiting until the release makes it out of beta to the stable version on October 29th.
Comfortable with Linux and want to get your feet wet? The Hack a Day team is calling on all of you to test, report, and improve upon this community driven project. Get yourself a copy of the beta (we recommend
using the torrents
) and
start reporting bugs
. You can help fix them by joining the
bug squad
, or use your coding skills to
become a developer
. | 40 | 39 | [
{
"comment_id": "98425",
"author": "Maj",
"timestamp": "2009-10-03T18:18:33",
"content": "It’s not necessary to wait for 9.10 to be released, 9.04 has been stable for some time.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "98426",
"author": "catzburg",
... | 1,760,377,584.694134 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/02/growing-algae-with-an-arduino/ | Growing Algae With An Arduino | Matt Schulz | [
"Arduino Hacks",
"green hacks",
"home hacks"
] | [
"algae",
"arduino",
"arduino pro mini",
"automated plant care",
"grow box",
"ir",
"strobe",
"temperature monitoring"
] | We’ve seen automated grow boxes of all
shapes
and
sizes
, but all were for growing plants. [Jared] over at Inventgeek wanted to do something similar for his algae. He started off with an
Arduino-based solution that allows the controlled pulse of LEDs
connected to his standard bioreactor as a prototype. Once he determined his proof of concept worked, he began work on a design based on the Arduino Pro Mini that has more advanced features such as temperature monitoring and algae culture density monitoring via some fancy IR voodoo. The code is open source and the hardware is easily obtainable, all that remains is the desire to grow algae. | 58 | 50 | [
{
"comment_id": "98199",
"author": "samurai",
"timestamp": "2009-10-02T20:17:33",
"content": "inb4 “aaaauuughhhhhh just do it with some mosfets, op amps and duct tape”italians do it better.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "98207",
"author": "... | 1,760,377,584.777897 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/02/how-to-build-your-own-lathe/ | How To Build Your Own Lathe | Mike Szczys | [
"Tool Hacks"
] | [
"bowl",
"green",
"lathe",
"pwm",
"recycle",
"woodworking"
] | [bongodrummer] wanted to use a lathe to make some gifts for his family. Instead of buying one, he decided to
make one and recycle some parts in the process
. More info after the break.
[bongodrummer] scavenged a motor from a washing machine which is a great choice because these motors are capable of generating plenty of torque. To control the speed of the lathe he developed his own pulse width modulation controller. All of the parts were then mounted to some heavy steel plates and an enclosure was built around the belt-driven assembly. In keeping with his recycling goals, the tool rest was fabricated from tubing reclaimed from a junked bicycle frame.
This lathe is not a
CNC machine
, but judging from the wooden bowl he turned out we’d say this project is a huge success. | 14 | 14 | [
{
"comment_id": "98192",
"author": "supershwa",
"timestamp": "2009-10-02T19:51:39",
"content": "Washing machine hacks :PWell done, and a great tool to produce",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "98206",
"author": "polymath",
"timestamp": "20... | 1,760,377,584.61447 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/10/02/pickle-lighting-for-fun-and-profit/ | Pickle Lighting For Fun And Profit | Caleb Kraft | [
"LED Hacks",
"Peripherals Hacks"
] | [
"led",
"oled",
"pickle"
] | The fantastic people at MIT have taken it upon themselves to
explain how an OLED works
. Their visual aide in this explanation is an electrocuted pickle. This helps describe how OLEDs are actually constructed from organic material. Many of you probably already know how they work, but for those who don’t this video will clear up any questions you might have. Even if you do know how OLEDs work, you may learn something too. We hadn’t realized how amazingly thin the displays are.
[via
Engadget
] | 19 | 19 | [
{
"comment_id": "98181",
"author": "joe",
"timestamp": "2009-10-02T18:08:44",
"content": "what, no write-up on how to build a glowing pickle?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "98185",
"author": "techninja42",
"timestamp": "2009-10-02T18:40... | 1,760,377,584.559761 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/20/wacom-light-graffiti/ | Wacom Light Graffiti | Mike Szczys | [
"Laser Hacks",
"Misc Hacks"
] | [
"graffiti",
"graffiti research labs",
"laser",
"projector",
"wacom"
] | [Jon] wanted to have some fun with the Graffiti Research Lab’s
LASER Tag
. Unfortunately his computer wasn’t quite up for the challenge of detecting the laser pointer with a webcam. Not to be discouraged by this hardware limitation, he purchased a used
Wacom tablet and threw together some code
to make it work with the GRL display software. Now designs can be scrawled on the pad and the projector displays them with the familiar dripping paint effect.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRRqmW1PFkw&feature=player_embedded#t=31] | 17 | 17 | [
{
"comment_id": "95331",
"author": "Jon Szymaniak",
"timestamp": "2009-09-20T22:05:30",
"content": "Hey there! Just to avoid some confusion — I’m not actually using the GRL software at all in this project. I believe GRL’s program uses Quicktime, which crawled on my machine.My software (which is a r... | 1,760,377,584.832153 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/20/nokia-push-competition/ | Nokia PUSH Competition | Jake W | [
"contests"
] | [
"cortex",
"maemo",
"N900",
"nokia",
"push"
] | With the upcoming release of a
Cortex-A8 based
handset, Nokia is looking at gaining some popularity with the hacker crowd through
their new project/competition
. If you can think of a good hack for the
Maemo
-running
Nokia N900
, you could win a vague prize pack consisting of the device itself, plus support (including financial) to make your idea a reality. The website states that winning hacks will be toured around the world. The due date for submissions is October 11th. A
getting started guide is available
(though it mostly consist of instructions on connecting the N900 to an Arduino
through bluetooth
). | 24 | 24 | [
{
"comment_id": "95321",
"author": "sly",
"timestamp": "2009-09-20T19:47:12",
"content": "yeah… make it to where the service providers can’t block wi-fi access.",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "95335",
"author": "Mike",
"timestamp": "2009... | 1,760,377,584.8911 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/20/wireless-rgb-light-bulb/ | Wireless RGB Light Bulb | Jake W | [
"home hacks",
"LED Hacks"
] | [
"attiny",
"AVR",
"lightbulb",
"radio",
"rgb",
"sprite_tm",
"wireless"
] | Want to make the above yourself? [
Sprite_tm
] did a thorough job
documenting the build
step by step (complete with pics, schematics, graphs, and links to the parts used). In summary, [Sprite_tm] busted open
an Ikea CFL bulb
to reuse the housing. Inside, he installed a scavenged power supply,
ATtiny44
, RGB LED module, and a radio receiver. A remote control allows [Sprite_tm] to change the lighting of his room to nearly any color. The cost of the project is a little under $30. The price tag isn’t so steep when one considers
the insanely long lifetime
of LEDs. | 15 | 15 | [
{
"comment_id": "95303",
"author": "Bill Hates",
"timestamp": "2009-09-20T17:08:30",
"content": "Looks familiar…http://www.thinkgeek.com/gadgets/lights/831e/Nine bucks more and you get a five watt LED..",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "95305",
... | 1,760,377,584.940024 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/20/pool-playing-robot-arpool/ | Pool-playing Robot + ARpool | Jake W | [
"Misc Hacks",
"Robots Hacks"
] | [
"ar",
"arpool",
"augmented reality",
"deep green",
"pool",
"queens",
"robot"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AENJxqR0g48]
Enjoy losing at pool? Well the folks at
Queen’s University
just made it a whole lot easier. The
Deep Green robot
was created with the purpose of playing a flawless game, allowing it to beat even the most skilled human players.
More than
a
couple of
research papers have been written on the project. A ceiling-mounted
Canon 350D
tracks the position of all of the balls, in addition to another cue-mounted cam (for higher shot accuracy). Using a bunch of calculations, and a computer (probably more advanced
than an Arduino
), the Deep Green is able to strategize and play. Very well.
On a positive note, another team from Queens is working on a seperate but
related project: ARpool
(as in augmented reality). It was created to make playing pool easier. The website does not provide much info, but it seems to project different moves onto the pool table, allowing an inexperienced player to tell whether a shot is at all possible. | 14 | 14 | [
{
"comment_id": "95296",
"author": "Hackius",
"timestamp": "2009-09-20T16:11:47",
"content": "I’ve seen at least two groups in Europe working on similar systems. One in Romania and one in Germany. While interesting the price of the hardware makes it unlikely to be a product in the near future.",
... | 1,760,377,585.047606 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/20/laptop-running-on-a-sealed-lead-acid-battery/ | Laptop Running On A Sealed Lead Acid Battery | Jakob Griffith | [
"laptops hacks",
"Repair Hacks"
] | [
"battery",
"laptop",
"Li-ion",
"notebook",
"sealed lead acid",
"sla"
] | [Viktor’s] laptop needed a new battery; he had the trade off between carrying around a cheap but heavy sealed lead acid (SLA) battery, or buying an expensive but light Li-Ion battery. Figuring his old laptop was pretty heavy already, and having an unused SLA available,
re-purposing it
for his laptop wouldn’t be too much of a hassle. Using a boost converter he built out of a custom
dip MAX668
, he is able to output the necessary 5 amps required. An MC 34161 voltage monitor chip is planned for future revisions, but he’s
currently running it
just fine. Check out some of his other cool hacks on
Karosium
.
Related:
MSI Wind extended battery | 24 | 23 | [
{
"comment_id": "95285",
"author": "taco",
"timestamp": "2009-09-20T15:04:59",
"content": "Who would voluntarily lug around an SLA?",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "95288",
"author": "babble",
"timestamp": "2009-09-20T15:11:36",
"cont... | 1,760,377,585.000645 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/19/how-to-make-your-project-an-internet-sensation/ | How To Make Your Project An Internet Sensation | Mike Szczys | [
"HackIt"
] | [
"popular",
"project",
"sensation",
"share",
"submit",
"writeup"
] | We’d like to spend some time talking about documenting your project and sharing it with the world. For many, the goal is to become an Internet sensation, hopefully for the right reasons. Taking a bit more time to make certain you do a great job of sharing your information will pay off. Here at
hackaday.com
we focus on technological wonders but these guidelines should work well at improving the desirability of anything you might want to share on the interweb.
1. Pictures
Yes, you need to have a picture to go with your project. Even if you did something that can’t be captured on camera you must have a photo. An example of this is the main photo for our recent
udev rules post
. It’s just a udev logo with some words but it immediately shows what the article is about.
This is doubly important for concept illustrations, flow control charts, schematics, assembly diagrams, etc. Visual materials complement your writeup. They also encourage readers to spend more time looking at your project, once again increasing the chance that they’ll share this with others.
Multiple pictures are a huge plus, even if some of them are just links to photo sharing sites. There are many examples of
posts that show a few pictures and then have a link
pointing to more. Having several eye-catching shot options to choose from increases the chance that someone will blog about your project. Think of the extra photos as your
press kit
.
2. Descriptions for all levels of readers
Have you just completed something that is cool for everyone to look at but the gory details require specialized background knowledge? Make sure you include a layman’s description of what you set out to do and what was accomplished. But don’t make the mistake of dumbing everything down, many readers are looking for things they can learn from and adapt into their own projects. Strike a nice balance that includes a general overview at the beginning, details in the middle, and a conclusion that gives a broad overview of your accomplishments.
3. Submit it yourself
Hoping that everyone you know will head to your site and then tell your friends about it? Why not be more active? You can
submit your project directly to Hack a Day
; most popular sites have some way of doing this. If you’ve asked questions on your favorite forum throughout the project, make sure you post an update to all of those threads with a link to the finished project page. We always want to see the fruits of one’s labor so we subscribe to threads that look interesting. This added step will bring the kind of traffic you want: the admirers who wish
they
had pulled off the feat that you completed.
4. Site stability
Often called the Digg effect or the
Slashdot effect
, having your site go down because of traffic is a bad thing. If you want everyone in the world to take a look at your project, make sure you have chosen a host that can handle the traffic. Clicking through to a dead link will turn readers away (obviously). If you’re hosting on your home server, keep the link to yourself and your closest friends.
5. Post follow-ups
Did you find a way to make your project better? Make sure to post a follow-up, then link it at the bottom of the original post and vice-versa. A great example of this is
the twatch
, which had a
twatch-in-a-picture-frame
follow-up. The original project was an interesting one, the follow-up is eye-catching and fun; each builds on the popularity of the other. Once you’ve posted a
useful
followup, go back to step 3 and promote it!
6. No Spamming, no cheating
Flooding forums or emails that are unrelated to your project is Spam. The same goes for leaving links in comments that don’t have any relation to what you accomplished. If you are trying to syphon hits by tricking people into clicking a link then you are cheating. Become a sensation for the right reason: because people love your project.
Conclusion: it didn’t work
Well, there’s only room for so many sensations. But, if you followed our advice you have a quality writeup of your post and we’re certain many people took a look at it. This builds your reputation and increases the chances that your next project could go viral. | 22 | 22 | [
{
"comment_id": "95207",
"author": "medix",
"timestamp": "2009-09-19T23:16:59",
"content": "Excellent..",
"parent_id": null,
"depth": 1,
"replies": []
},
{
"comment_id": "95208",
"author": "Dean Putney",
"timestamp": "2009-09-19T23:17:40",
"content": "You’ve forgotten... | 1,760,377,585.105789 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/19/web-controlled-dark-crystal/ | Web Controlled Dark Crystal | Mike Szczys | [
"LED Hacks"
] | [
"ajax",
"atmega8",
"AVR",
"avr-usb",
"mood rock",
"perl",
"V-USB"
] | [Reza] sent in
his mood rock
. Unlike other “mood” devices, instead of showing what mood you’re in, it shows what mood the internets are in. Two
ShiftBrite modules
are controlled by an AVR ATmega8 which then connects to a computer via USB. The assembly is placed inside of a piece of alabaster.
USB communications are controlled by the ATmega8 running
V-USB (formerly AVR-USB) firmware
. [Reza] wrote some code to control the colors from the web using Perl and AJAX.
Head over to the web interface
to set the colors yourself. We’d love it if a live webcam was added so we could see our mood on the rock itself.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUOcE_a_99c] | 11 | 11 | [
{
"comment_id": "95189",
"author": "reza",
"timestamp": "2009-09-19T22:10:05",
"content": "I’ve got a web cam here – any suggestions for some software that’s reasonably lightweight to steam?The colors are already changing, kinda strange wondering who’s controlling it..",
"parent_id": null,
"... | 1,760,377,585.201625 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/19/jolicloud-os-seeks-to-move-past-browsers/ | Jolicloud OS Seeks To Move Past Browsers | Mike Szczys | [
"Linux Hacks",
"Netbook Hacks"
] | [
"jolicloud",
"linux",
"netbook",
"prism",
"ubuntu"
] | Jolicloud is a new
Linux based operating system aimed at netbooks
. The developers were nice enough to let us get our hands on their closed development version of the new OS. This distribution is built off of
Ubuntu Netbook Remix
(9.04 Jaunty Jackalope). At first glance it looks like nothing more than Ubuntu with a new skin, but the difference is deeper. Jolicloud added an App Store type program that offers installation of web applications along with traditional desktop apps. Using
Mozilla Prism
, web based applications like Facebook, Gmail, and Wikipedia are installed, get their own icon in the launcher, and run without the aid of a browser.
We installed Wikipedia and gave it a whirl. There are no menus and no controls, just the title bar at the top with the webpage as the application. The first issue comes when clicking through to a page and realizing it isn’t the one we wanted. Normally the back button is our friend here, but with Prism, there is no back button. The search needs to be re-run to choose a different result. One saving grace is that when an external link is clicked, the default browser is launched to handle the new page.
The absence of navigation buttons is not necessarily a deal breaker. When using Gmail, how often do you hit the back button? As web apps become more and more like traditional apps, we think the interfaces will all trend toward self-sufficiency and make browser controls obsolete.
In addition to application installation, the Jolicloud app offers some social networking functions. Each user has their own profile and there are lists for Following, Followers, and Latest Members. For us, the most interesting feature is that Jolicloud tracks which computers are associated with your account. We want to see the customizations and settings such as bookmarks travel with us from one computer to another.
All together we’re rather excited about the potential of this product. Right now it is free and we’re hoping the service would stay that way once released. For now we’re satisfied with a glimpse of Prism in action and a tantalizing step forward for notebook functionality.
Want to try out Prism but can’t wait for Jolicloud?
Here’s how to try out your web apps without waiting for the public release of Jolicloud. If you run ubuntu it’s available in the repositories:
sudo apt-get install prism
If you don’t run Ubuntu you can
download Prism from Mozilla
.
Run from the command line by typing “prism”. A dialog box will pop up:
Fill out all of your information, here we’re running hackaday.com as an application. This will create a desktop shortcut that launches the web app.
Final thoughts
Jolicloud starts with a great OS, Ubuntu Netbook Remix, and couples it with a different way to use existing web applications. We think the developers have done a great job integrating Prism into their interface and find it very usable. Only time will tell if users are willing to migrate from traditional browsing, to using web apps for what they really are: an application. | 13 | 13 | [
{
"comment_id": "95181",
"author": "Matthew",
"timestamp": "2009-09-19T21:46:55",
"content": "I’m a little pissed off at prism. It’s barely any better than just a plain browser. There are features that developers can use to make there applications compatible. It also has some serious problems with l... | 1,760,377,585.372303 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/19/double-the-ram-on-d-link-router/ | Double The RAM On D-Link Router | Mike Szczys | [
"Misc Hacks",
"Peripherals Hacks"
] | [
"d-link",
"ram",
"router",
"solder",
"upgrade",
"xbox"
] | [Pelaca]
upgraded the RAM on his D-Link DIR-320 router
from 32MB to 64MB. This hack is simple enough: swap out the existing RAM chip for another one and change the bios to make use of the upgrade. The actual execution is not that simple because of the pitch of the TSOP II package; you’ll need to bring your
mad soldering skills
to pull this off.
This reminds us of when
upgrading original Xbox RAM to 128MB
was all the rage. It involved the same type of hack, adding four memory chips to unpopulated positions on the motherboard. The forums are thick with people complaining that their box not working after a failed upgrade attempt. Hopefully you’ll have better luck.
[Thanks Juan] | 26 | 26 | [
{
"comment_id": "95163",
"author": "Hackius",
"timestamp": "2009-09-19T20:24:57",
"content": "I keep wondering why you’d want to double the ram of the router. Usually it has enough RAM to do what it was designed to do.What is he running on that router that needs that much RAM?",
"parent_id": nul... | 1,760,377,585.433425 | ||
https://hackaday.com/2009/09/19/show-us-your-most-useless-machine/ | Show Us Your Most Useless Machine | Mike Szczys | [
"HackIt"
] | [
"failure",
"machine",
"useless"
] | [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bE7U0fHtQ8]
We were fortunate enough to StumbleUpon the
most useless machine ever
. Delightful! Eclipsed perhaps by the
world’s most useless machine copy
. We say that because the doll arm looks more realistic which creeps us out in a very entertaining way. So these machines aren’t useless, they provide entertainment.
We, on the other hand, have had some projects that really fell on their faces. With that in mind, show use your most useless machine. Please leave a comment after the beep.
(beep) | 43 | 42 | [
{
"comment_id": "95136",
"author": "Reinier",
"timestamp": "2009-09-19T19:09:01",
"content": "Oh. My. God. Geenstijl (the green crown icon,http://www.geenstijl.nlis the main site,http://www.dumpert.nlis the video site) on HAD. It’s like a weird merger of absolute internet-crap combined with internet... | 1,760,377,585.639431 |
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