Gregarius » MAKE Magazine » January 30, 2008

Feeds

90353 items (3212 unread) in 29 feeds

• auVisio HV0102 / PE-3481,3482,3495,3497

Director (6 unread)

• Director Online Resources List
• Lingoworkshop
• Director Online Lingo Notes
• Director Online Announcements
• Director Online Articles
• Director @ Night (2 unread)
• New at DirectorWeb
• Aldo's blog
• updateStage what's new
• Developer Dispatch
• CodeRecipe(...) (3 unread)
• Shockwaves
• Farbflash (1 unread)
• undocumented Lingo

Technology (1261 unread)

• Tweakers.net Mixed RSS Feed (759 unread)
• Wired News: Top Stories (502 unread)

Music Technology (337 unread)

• Sonicstate.com News (132 unread)
• Harmony Central (205 unread)

Fun (523 unread)

• Boing Boing (523 unread)

Music (105 unread)

• DJBroadcast features (17 unread)
• DJBroadcast djsets (16 unread)
• REBELBASS WEBLOG (21 unread)
• DJBroadcast news (51 unread)

Robotfunk

• robotfunk

DIY Electronics (980 unread)

• MAKE Magazine (755 unread)
• Superpositioned (2 unread)
• midibox.org Forum (223 unread)

Video

• Prelinger

MAKE Magazine

• 

  Homemade Halo armor

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 11:00pm CST

  Kids are awesome. This cardboard Halo armor is cooler than any refrigerator-box-fort I ever made as a kid - [via] Link.

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  NewScientist vid: Robots inspired by animals

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 10:00pm CST

  
  NewScientist has some nice short science videos on YouTube, including this one surveying various research projects in animal-inspired robot motility. Especially check out the last bot, M-Tran, a "self-configuring mobile robot."

  Robots inspired by animals - Link
  M-Tran - Link

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  Moldable mouse

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 9:00pm CST

  
  

  Itching for a remake:

  Moldable Mouse is made of non-toxic lightweight modelling clay, covered with nylon and polyurethane blend fabric. It can be kneaded into any shape the user prefers, and the shape is self-retaining. By allowing a wide variety of hand positions when holding the mouse, it reduces repeated motions of the same posture, thereby minimising the chance of common mouse-related injuries such as the Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. The click buttons and touch-sensitive scroll pad of the mouse are stick-on parts with built-in RFID (Radio Frequency Identification Device), which can be repositioned for maximum comfort.

  Moldable mouse - [via] Link.
  

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  The low-down on BALLS 17

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 8:00pm CST

  
  BALLS 17, the premiere experimental rocketry launch contest, has been announced for Sept 26, 27, 28 in Black Rock, Nevada. The event website has details on BALLS 17 and the competition rules.

  This is the extreme rocketry event where experimental rocketeers push the envelope of size, staging/clustering, altitude, home-made components and motors, and cutting-edge rocket tech. Not for the faint of heart and not for children. Bring your hard hat.

  BALLS 17 - Link
  

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  Another Red Ring of Death (RRoD) fix

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 6:00pm CST

  
  Here's a fix for the Xbox 360 RRoD problem that uses little more than some added screws and washers.

  Fix the Red Ring of Death! (without towels!) - Link

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  Bike part coffee table

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 5:00pm CST

  

  Here's an elegant table made from bike parts by MAKE Flickr pool member Delcruiser. It features a chain ring shelf handy for stowing magazines/books or maybe a kryptonite chain or two.

  Bike part coffee table on Flickr - Link

  Also - Check out these graceful seatings by Frida Ottemo Kallstrom - constructed from recycled bicycle parts:

  
  Recycled Bicycle Furniture on Inhabitat - Link

  
  Recycled Gears on Inhabitat - Link

  Related:
  
  Furniture made from bikes - Link

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  Pocket amp circuit

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 4:00pm CST

  

  This serene little pocket amp circuit was submitted by MAKE Flickr pool member Abie Ringman.
  The Mint-Tin/CMoy headphone amplifier costs around $20 to make and therefore is a very attractive alternative to similar commercial amps which can run upwards of $100. Get more info on this popular project in MAKE Volume 4.

  Pocket amp circuit on Flickr - Link

  From the pages of MAKE:
  
  Mint-Tin Amp MAKE 04 - page 141. Subscribers--read this article now in your digital edition or get MAKE 04 @ the Maker store.

  Related:
  
  RC4560-based headphone amplifier - Link
  

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  Seeing red mushrooms

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 3:00pm CST

  

  From the MAKE Flickr pool:
  Member Schroeder71 uses a tip from MAKE Volume 12 to punch up this image of fungi and achieve a crisp contrasting definition.
  Accentuating color channels is an excellent pretreatment when you want that Ansel Adams look from grayscale conversions. Check out the MAKE 12 pdf for all the details.

  Red Mushrooms on Flickr - Link

  From the pages of MAKE:
  

  MAKE Vol. 12: Seeing Red - Link

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  Dances of Vice: Steampunk festival

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 1:00pm CST

  
  

  We invite all modern dandies, decadents, aesthetes, artists, thinkers, and dreamers to join us on February 8th and 9th for the 2008 Dances of Vice Festival in New York City! While our regular monthly events are grounded in the 1920-30s, the 2008 Dances of Vice Festival will have a distinctly Neo-Victorian flair.

  In addition to our roster of sensational live entertainment, the Dances of Vice Festival will also feature a number of exciting vendors, an art exhibition, and an elaborate vintage Polaroid photo booth, with over $3000 worth of costume prizes and giveaways to be distributed throughout course of the event. For details regarding the festival proceedings, please download our official Program Booklet: dovprogdigi.pdf (3.62 MB)

  You are warmly invited to join our mailing list, Myspace, or LiveJournal community to keep updated regarding festival announcements. and check back often for updates! Ticket pre-sale will go until February 7th, or until the event is sold out.

  We look forward to welcoming you to Dances of Vice!

  New York Dances of Vice Weekend- Link
  

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  Pabst of Yore - beer can peg board tool holder

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 12:00pm CST

  
  Cycle Jerk writes in -

  I was working in the basement this weekend and decided it would be a good idea to go spelunking in the crawl space. What I found there was a treasure every cyclist and cheap beer aficionado would be proud of. Whoever built my house in 1937 was drinking on the job, god bless em' and dropped a few empty cans of PBR into the foundation before slapping the house on top. These cans sat still for 71 freakin years, waiting for someone with the lack of common sense to shimmy their way into the darkness and yank them into the 21st century. There they could achieve the greatness those cans were destined for... a handy tool holder on my peg board! With a can opener, a dremel tool, and a wee bit o' moxie I brought a little more honor to my beloved workspace.

  Cycle Jerk: Pabst of Yore - beer can peg board holder - Link.

  Related:
  
  Pegboard workbench organizer - Link.

  
  Make - Volume 05 - The Quick and Dirty (Page 110) - Link.

  
  MAKE Volume 05: Science, Weather, and Outdoors. Homemade electric vehicles, high-powered water rockets, electricity-generating windmill, jet engine in a jam jar, and a backyard zip line! Link & Get it at the Maker Store.
  

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  DIY Electric stick bass

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 11:00am CST

  
  Mark writes -

  Here's an electric bass created using 1 broken bass string, 1 piezo transducer, part of a cheap wooden easel leg, and 2 metal rods from a bookshelf.

  DIY Electric stick bass - Link.

  Related:
  
  SensorBib upright bass augmentation - Link.

  
  Weird bass guitars - Link.

  
  HOW TO- Make a Guitar/Bass Pickup - Link.

  
  DIY Cardboard box upright bass - Link.
  

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  The muio interface

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 10:00am CST

  
  
  Interesting project, any maker use it?-

  The muio interface is a modular system for sensing and controlling the Real World, from programmes such as Pure Data, MAX/MSP, SuperCollider, Processing or something you have written yourself.

  There are several interface controllers around now - some others are even OpenSource. They all have their pros and cons. However.

  • The muio needs NO PROGRAMMING.
  • The muio needs only 2 readily available chips to get started.

  The muio interface is an I2C to USB hardware device, based on USBIO from Delcom Engineering. I2C is a standard protocol that is popular within robotics. There are several ready made chips and circuit boards that are i2C compliant. These can be ready connected to the muio and are controllable once you know the operation codes for that particular device.

  The muio interface, thanks Steve! - Link.
  

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  New categories and better search!

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 9:00am CST

  
  Some MAKE improvements and new categories! First up our search is way way better, we've tweaked how and what Google indexes us and now it's easier to find things from MAKE, CRAFT, HACKS, MAKE forums, the Maker store and Maker Faire. Give it a whirl, and if you send us tips search the site first - many times we've posted something (even the team uses the search, we post a lot!) - Link.

  
  Next up there are two new categories by popular demand and request - Culture jamming, projects that have some type of social commentary and/or discourse... You know stuff that keeps the comments active - Link.

  
  Next up, Remake... many interesting things are made and possibly unobtainable because they're too expensive or just not logistically possible to ship something around the world - sometimes it's just some something cool you'll make instead of buy - Link.

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  Pollen bots scare you into thinking you don't have hay fever

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 9:00am CST

  

  Tokyo-based weather forecasting company Weathernews, Inc. is deploying a 200 glowing eyeball-shaped robots (called "Pollen Bots") nationwide in order to monitor the pollen count around the country. The robots weigh 1 kilogram (2.2 lbs), measure 30 centimeters (1 ft) across and consist of a monitoring unit housed in a spherical styrofoam shell. Their eyes glow 5 different colors in order to indicate the level of cedar and cypress pollen in the air. This is a community effort, as 200 hay fever sufferers are hanging the bots outside their homes where they monitor the air and communicate over the Internet to update a real-time online pollen map located at Weathernews' headquarters in Tokyo. A pretty interesting and rather ominous way to implement distributed environment sensing technologies.

  Pollen Robots - [via], Link (in Japanese)
  

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  What do gold atoms look like?

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 8:00am CST

  
  
  This is what gold atoms look like and that giant machine is what peered in to the tiny - Link.

  Related:
  

  • World’s most powerful transmission electron microscope - Link.
  • Plenty of Room at the Bottom, Feynman - Link.

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  Fritzing adds PCB design to the Arduino and Processing family

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 7:30am CST

  

  In the same style as Processing and Arduino, "Fritzing" is an open source PCB layout tool that attempts to help designers move from physical prototypes to building actual products. In particular in the area of PCB prototyping, the freely downloadable cross-platform software allows for basic layout and design of projects like Arduino shields and other projects and can also be used to document PCB designs for later publishing on the web, etc... Lots of very good introductory information at the link below.

  Fritzing - Link

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  QR codes from Google - The CueCat is comin' back! (or just use your phone...)

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 7:00am CST

  
  Google has 2D barcodes for their print folks (also known as QR codes, and used here on the MAKE blog on the right side, scroll down). I like these for art and culture jamming-type projects, but here is what Google is up to...
  

  Recently, you may have seen newspaper ads for jewelry retailer Blue Nile placed through the Google Print Ads platform. These particular ads include a Google footer with multiple response mechanisms: URL, search terms, phone number, coupon code, SMS code, and 2D barcode. This test is part of our efforts to make print advertising more useful for readers and more measurable for advertisers. 2D barcodes are an especially exciting part of this because they allow readers to "click" on interesting print ads with their cellphones and seamlessly connect to relevant online content.

  Google AdWords Print Ads - [via] Link.

  Could be interesting, reminds me of CueCat...

  Related (how to make your own and more):
  
  

  • QR Code Cake - Link.
  • C.R.T. Cat - Link.
  • PalmOne Zire + CueCat = Barcode scanner? - Link.
  • CueCatLibraryThing & CueCats - Catalog your books - Link.
  • LEGO barcode reader - Link.
    
  • QR code generator - Link.

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  Pencil scarf and MASSIVE super duper scarf round up

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 6:00am CST

  
  I like the idea of this pencil scarf, would be better if you knitted a (wool) version up, but that's what (re)makes are for... - [via] Link.

  MASSIVE super duper scarf round up:
  
  Knit Pencil Scarf - Link.

  
  HOW TO - Make a No-Knit Scarf - Link.

  
  Blood Scarf - Link.

  
  O Rly owl scarf - Link.

  
  Vintage Scarf Bedspread - Link.

  
  A Scarf That Loves You Back - Link.

  
  Vickie Howell Dave Scarf Pattern - Link.

  
  Space Invader - QR code scarf - Link.

  
  Knit a Skull Scarf - Link.

  
  Wet Felted Scarf - Link.

  
  The Saw That Dripped Blood...SCARF - Link.

  
  1-Up Crochet Mushroom Scarf - Link.

  
  Linux Scarf - Link.

  
  Bacon Scarf - Link.

  
  Mario Villain Scarf - Link.

  
  HOW TO - Knit a Binary Scarf - Link.

  
  Robot Scarf - Link.

  
  Swiss Cheese Scarf - Link.

  
  Rat Race Scarf Kit - Link.

  
  Knit Spiral Scarf Pattern - Link.
  

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  Make a survival hand-vice

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 5:00am CST

  
  Jim created this step-by-step tutorial on how to create a hand-vice. Although he says it is great for holding bone & fishhooks, I am sure it would be great for plastics and electronics too. This is a really good addition to your toolbox, even if you are not a survivalist.

  A small, easy-to-use handvice can be readily made out of a one-inch thick hardwood limb. Such a vice is very handy in stone and bone working. It can be wedged between two rocks or in a tree trunk to provide a very steady holder for small projects (arrowheads, fish hooks, etc.).

  Make your own hand-vice - Link

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  Make a survival hand-vise

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 5:00am CST

  
  Jim created this step-by-step tutorial on how to create a hand-vise. Although he says it is great for holding bone & fishhooks, I am sure it would be great for plastics and electronics too. This is a really good addition to your toolbox, even if you are not a survivalist.

  A small, easy-to-use handvice can be readily made out of a one-inch thick hardwood limb. Such a vice is very handy in stone and bone working. It can be wedged between two rocks or in a tree trunk to provide a very steady holder for small projects (arrowheads, fish hooks, etc.).

  Make your own hand-vise - Link

  [Read this article] [Comment on this article]
• 

  Start a fire with air

  Posted: January 30th, 2008, 4:00am CST

  
  Here is a great little project to try out, it's called a fire-piston. It certainly isn't as easy as a piece of flint, matches or a lighter, but none of them are nearly as impressive. This will be high on my list of things to MAKE.

  The principle of increasing temperature by method of compressing air is explained by the adiabatic process in which the internal energy of a gas must increase when a mass of air is rapidly compressed or the volume of a mass of air is rapidly decreased. The resulting increase in internal energy results in a temperature rise sufficient to light an ember, just like the pressure produced by an ice skater's blade is sufficient to increase the internal energy of the ice which turns ice under the blade into water.

  Make your own fire-piston - Link

  Related:
  

  • Use a can of Coke and a chocolate bar to make fire - Link
[Read this article] [Comment on this article]