A

Hooray! I made it to the second round of that romance-novel competition! Woot! So now I'm totally freaking out. I really, really need your vote. The three with the most votes out of the twenty-five semifinalists go on to the...

I don't have that much to say. I've been working too much, I think. I find I can work on no knitting but socks. I swear, I have a sweater that's got to be three-quarters finished, Lala's yearly sweater, and...

Do you need to be a dog to be top?

I made a scarf for my sister Christy's birthday. It's Slytherin in color and has a hidden Dark Mark that you can only see when the scarf is turned on its side. Viewed head-on, it's just stripes. Free pattern is...

Every team and office includes people with potentially conflicting personalities and working styles. By applying the right relationship management techniques, you can calm tension, communicate more easily, and run your projects more efficiently. Keith LaFerriere shows us how.

 

Hide Your Shame: The A List Apart Store and T-Shirt Emporium is back. Hot new designs! Old favorites remixed! S, M, L, XL. Come shop with us!

Laying out images consistently within a design is difficult, especially when you hand the keys over to someone else to fill in the content. ALA Staffer Aaron Gustafson demonstrates how a little clever JavaScript goes a long way toward resolving inconsistencies in image layout.

 

Hide Your Shame: The A List Apart Store and T-Shirt Emporium is back. Hot new designs! Old favorites remixed! S, M, L, XL. Come shop with us!

I am at the coffee shop. Surrounded by people talking, yet so very alone. Heaven. This is the very first time I've had to myself in.... I don't want to know how long. I think it's about..... Oh, crap. I...

You don't have to live in East London to be barking. You don't have to live in East London to be barking.

The First Romance Chapter competition closes on Tuesday, and I'm still in the running to move on to round two, but it's getting down to the wire. Out of the three hundred entrants, I was number three for a long...

When you drive to work, and you take the bike off the rack in the dark, and you notice the front wheel has turned backwards during the drive, make sure you UNTWIST that 1/2 turn, and not turn it in...

Guess what I did today? I rode my bike to work! Dude! Now, given that I live more than 30 miles from work, and given that my bike is a beach cruiser and we don't go up hills together, period,...

Shebang - is that like a ball of wax, or an enchilada, or a caboodle, or...?

Hey, what's that bright star I've been seeing in the early morning on my way to work? It's hanging in the east, and it's gorgeous. I know you know. Me, I'm at work. Long, long, long work hours lately --...

It is not new for me to discover brand-new obvious things. Like when I was asked about how I got into dispatching. "Well, I went to school forever and ever and got a Master's degree in English and creative writing,...

Prime time - at 4am?

Lala sent this photo and message to my phone. I love that he is bothersome.

Blog entry at Common Rotation's MySpace page says that Danny Strong (Jonathan) and Adam Busch (Warren) will be performing together with other folks in a play this Saturday at M Bar in Hollywood, prior to a performance by Common Rotation, the band Mr. Busch fronts with Eric Kufs.

If you didn't get to go at the weekend, now's your chance to gaze at some lovely pics of James Marsters, Elisabeth Rohm, Ken Feinberg and Juliet Landau (courtesy of RavenU).

Wizard Magazine brings us up to speed on Faith's past and drops some hints for her upcoming arc in Buffy season 8.

The article features the shows he's guest starring in.

I finished Kurt Andersen's Heyday on my week off in long island. It's a grand story about four friends' adventures together in the United States during the years of 1847, 1848, and 1848. It starts in New York and ends...

Got tired of hairclip, and I like this way of closing it. What do you think? (I think this is my last preblog. Hopefully I'll be back among you real-time-bloggers soon.)

Skimming through the "Dirty Jobs" message boards at discovery.com and in the response to whether Mike Rowe would be interested in a charity screening of the show a la "Serenity," host Mike Rowe revealed a 'versy connection.

The new Serenity DVD gets a nice review from Chud.

Something Awful has a fun article in Front Page News.

Before you know it, it's up and gone. Summertime - Josh Rouse - Subtitlo

The NY Times has a long piece on Rick Rubin in the magazine section this weekend. If you don't know, Rick Rubin is one of, if not the, top music producers in the business. He's produced The Beastie Boys, Johnny...

Filed under: home entertainment hacks, misc hacks

[Jesse] sent in this beautiful 300 watt amp project. It uses six LM3886 amps to create a pair of 150 watt amps that are bridged to create a single 300 watt amplifier. Usually I don't mind my lack of multi-language ability, but many of the parts were sourced from this site. It looks like the cases were bought in Hong Kong, anybody know were I could get some in the US?

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: robots hacks

[Lyle] sent in some of his work with mini-copters. This rig was built to test control methods with his mini-copter UAV. I'm hoping that some attention here will get him to document a bit of his home testing for us. (He's working on some bigger systems professionally, so I'm not sure if he will.) The test rig uses an IR camera to measure pitch, yaw and three dimensional positioning 120 times a second.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: misc hacks, pcs hacks

This hack isn't really all that, but I'm giving it points for creativity. [Christopher] pulled some blue led case fans and used them to make a giant VU meter. Each I/O line has a transistor to drive a TIP120 FET. Personally, I'll like to see even more of them stacked end to end and pulling fog from a conduit placed behind the stack.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: misc hacks

I guess we're on a UAV kick - I ran across this one when I was looking for interesting propeller projects. [Glenn]'s building this one based on a R/C helicopter he picked up. Both the controller and the heli recieved a propeller chip, along with a pretty standard array of navigation sensors for the heli. It's a work in progress, but sometimes those are the most inspiring.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: gps hacks, misc hacks

[Nick] caught [Alex]s GPS enabled AVR, so he sent in his project using the same Telit GM862 module. Rather than depend on an external AVR, he wanted to use the on-board python interpreter. Apparently, documentation is a bit sparse, so he put together a good write-up on developing python for the device. Since the GPS unit takes up the com port previously used for debugging info, he added a hardware python debugging board to speed development.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: pcs hacks

I like the idea of keeping my data private, so I thought you guys might like this how-to that [mark] put together. He mentions some decent dedicated distributions like FreeNAS and Cyrptobox, but he used OpenBSD for his.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: portable audio hacks

[Jesse] sent in this headphone amp. It's really just a board with a dedicated smd headphone amp chip(MAX9725) and a pair of smd caps recycled from an old hard drive, but it does job. I think the goal is to boost low signals rather than the usual audiophile quest for cleaner tunes.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: misc hacks

My new house is taking far more time to get into shape than I ever imagined. I've finally gotten most of the network and coax drops in place, and I wanted to show off my new mini-rack. Behind the door up top, my home theater gear is hiding. Below, my switch, patch panel, firewall and cable modem are happily humming along.

[Benjamin] send in a quick post on messing with DoorKings.

Another [Ben] sent in this cheap-o multi-touch interface. It's just a webcam, a glass desk and some software.

[Tarun] sent in this interesting low cost laser range finder project. It's webcam based, but uses a laser line (laser level style/simple beam splitter) to measure distances.

Oh, I'm freaking house poor this month, so I'm selling off some of my toys. (If you do buy something, let me know and I'll put some stickers in the shipping box, but only on request - As a rule, we don't sell our swag!)

Yes, we're going to do something to get more stickers out there, so stay tuned.

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: misc hacks

[Reza] sent in a project that he's obviously put loads of work into. His Pervasive Health Monitor is basically a bluetooth enabled health telemetry recorder/transmitter. I think it's an absolutely excellent piece of work. He's offered to post more technical details if we have enough interest - It's got my vote.

The video (after the break) starts off a bit dry, but trust me - it's worth checking out. The monitor sports a TI MCU, bluetooth chipset, flash socket, multiple signal amps and onboard audio amplification. The PocketPC is showing the real time data stream being delivered via bluetooth.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: handhelds hacks, playstation hacks

[krazywhiteguy310] let me know about the announcement of Pandora's battery. It'll cost you a Sony PSP battery to pull off the hack, but once you're done, you can use it to jump start your bricked PSP to load up a memory imaged designed to unbrick the PSP. (I haven't tested it, so I'm taking this on faith) Excellent news if you've bricked your PSP.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: misc hacks

This is probably the most entertaining "application note" I've ever seen. These things are usually a bit dry, ok, they make your eyes turn to a previously unknown state of matter. This one involves making your alarm clock snooze when you beat it. The trick? Wire an accelerometer to the snooze button. It takes a bit of supporting circuitry, but looks do-able for anyone worth of their soldering iron. Thanks to [Andy] for sending it in.

Hey, we have a tips line. Send in your hacks!

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: xbox hacks

[Paul] let me know about a new way to get a hacked kernel on a XBox 360. A new timing attack will soon allow you to install an older kernel with without having the CPU key which was the catch 22 situation before. The proof of concept ressurected a bricked XBox by doing some interesting things to one of the NAND (memory) blocks on the machine.
Great news for the homebrew/hacking scene!

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: handhelds hacks, ipod hacks, misc hacks

I wasn't going to post this - it's a freakin phone after all. But I've gotten quite a few tips on it, and I'd like them to end. [George] made a concerted effort to hack the iPhone - and it paid off. After his crazy ebay auction that topped out at 99,999,999.99 last time I checked, he ended up trading his first phone for a Nissan 350z and a few more iPhones.
He documented his process, step by step - if you've got the skills, you can probably do it yourself. The soldering work is damn fine work - probably the hardest thing there is. The write up is a little hard to follow, so plan on taking some time to comprehend everything. (Blogging software isn't the best way to organize how-tos, trust me on this.) My hats off to [George], he did some great work. - So, why didn't I want to post it? All this work yielded one thing: carrier choice for the iPhone.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: misc hacks

This last weekend we got a chance to check out ATLAS Devices' latest version of their powered rope ascender. You probably saw their first generation device in the news earlier in the year. It was originally built for a design competition, but they're now on generation 3. The earliest version used a capstan style winder, but newer versions have a far more simple/elegant design. The original had a ton of thrust and needle bearings that were hard to keep in adjustment. The new design is lighter, less abrasive to the rope, and easier to use.

We took the machine behind the apartment building Atlas devices is based in to try it out (their landlord is really understanding). Rigging the device is fairly straight forward; you could probably figure it out without any instruction. We attached a standard climbing harness to the device for our ascent. An additional rappelling rope was used as a backup.


It's a simple device to use. You just flip the large toggle switch to "on", pull the small trigger and off you go. The original unit moved at 10ft/s, but it was almost too jarring. The newer unit has a much higher load capacity. To descend you squeeze the large metal brake release handle. This causes you to drop fairly slowly since the electric brake is still engaged. The solution is to turn off the machine and regulate the descent with the handbrake.


Right now they're in the middle of doing a short production run that will be evaluated by the military. In service, a squad would have one person climb the obstacle. The next person would use the ascender and then just keep the ascender at the top to pull up the rest of the troops... I'm guessing they won't be using it to peep second story windows like us (no, not really). While the method of rope engagement is pretty much finalized, the team is constantly trying to improve the motor and battery efficiency.

We'd like to thank Nate Ball and the rest of the ATLAS Devices team for showing us a fun afternoon. Your next chance to see the ascender in person will be Wired's NextFest Sept. 13-16th in LA.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: cellphones hacks, misc hacks

Fresh from the tips line, [Pedro] sent in his GSM alarm. He combined a GSM phone, a motion sensor and BasicX24 controller board. If the detector trips during a set time period, the alarm sends SMS messages to the terminator, er whoever you want. He was kind enough to release the code, but I'd like to see this with a smaller micro-controller board to keep the cost/size down.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: transportation hacks

[Justin N] sent in one of his projects. It's a digital dashboard gauge for his Subaru. It's built around an arduino board with a text LCD and standard automotive senders. He's using it to monitor oil temp, turbo pressure, temperature, acceleration and provide a lap timing. The details are buried in this forum thread, but its worth a look if you've spent time geeking out on your car.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: misc hacks, peripherals hacks

In my quest for a new VOIP setup (I'm hunting for a new sip provider - got suggestions?) I ran across an excellent project that's been put together by [David]. It's a four port open source asterix PBX that runs under UClinux. He derived the design from a BlackfinOne (A dedicated UClinux board). He covers building the IPO4 in four parts series that starts here. It's probably one of the more intense open source hardware derived projects I've run across.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: misc hacks

[Skylark] converted a pair of defective HDTV processing boards into his very own FPGA SHA-1 hash cracker. After two months of evening work, he ended up with 15 Virtex-II Pro FPGAs and 5 Spartan-II FPGAs to do his bidding. (FPGA's aren't cheap, so this rocks) Eventually he's going to give it a web interface to allow cracking submissions on request. Great find on the boards and fantastic work [Skylark].

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: laptops hacks, pcs hacks, peripherals hacks

[ThoughtFix] sent in our first ever UMPC hack. It's along the lines of laptop mods we've seen before, but he deserves credit for opening up the already tightly packed inside of his UMPC, tapping the USB interface on his bluetooth card, adding a hub and an internal usb flash drive to provide readyboost to speed up Vista.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: misc hacks

[Dylan] sent in this amusing use for an O-Scope. The entire thing was implemented using six chips - four logic chips, 2 op-amps and 13 pots. Hit the video after the break or check out the project page.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

WorldChanging Team: 2007 is the year when, for the first time ever, more than half the world?s population will live in urban areas, according to the...

Adrian Muller: In the past few years we have been witnessing the resurgence of a worldwide civil society concerned with the environmental impacts of our actions. And...

Katie Kurtz: Prince fans have long trusted the mayor of Erotic City on matters of love and sex but how does he fare when it comes to...

Alex Steffen: No corner of the planet is so remote that it hasn't felt humanity's footprint. We have become a force of nature: influencing everything, accelerating destruction....

Erica Barnett: New York City, long seen as a mecca of hedonism and self-destructive indulgence, has witnessed a startling transformation over the past few years: life expectancy...

WorldChanging Team: The European Commission is developing legislation that will require minimum sustainability standards for biofuels development, European Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs said at the recent International...

Alex Steffen: Air travel seems to be one of the few unsustainable practices for which there is no good fix or substitute. Because of their inefficiency and...

Alex Steffen: My interest in nature films and photography has picked up recently, as I've spent time time with an incredible book and a phenomenal documentary: The...

Emily Gertz: Wind Powered Toy Electric Car: Fun! The End of Paper Airline Tickets? China's White Dolphin May Not Be Extinct India Looks to Tap Carbon...

Regine Debatty: Jean-Baptiste Labrune recently pointed me to this excellent overview of "Walking as art." Here's a new project to add to that list: The Energy Harvesting...

Mindy Lubber: I love my job, but the endless travel drives me crazy. Charlotte, San Francisco, New York and Washington are just a few of the cites...

Alan AtKisson: In my work, I have to fly. Both the NGO that I run, and the consultancy that I own, regularly send people around the planet,...

WorldChanging Team: In a new study, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) reports that the gap between the rich and poor in many Asian countries, particularly China, has...

Emily Gertz: The US presidential hopefuls are not ignoring the internet...but they're not getting it, either. Or maybe they don't really want to. Witness this week's breathless...

Emily Gertz: 158 Nations Reach Agreement on Greenhouse Gas Reductions Run Your House on a Prius Municipal WiFi Stalling in America? Mexico City Launches Plan to Cut...

When I first started this blog in 1588, shortly after positing the Earth's shape as an oblate spheroid but long before I invented the Internet, I made a conscious decision to limit its scope, confining myself to writing solely about...

Hey, I owe you a story, don't I? About our meeting with the social worker at the new clinic? Yes. But first a few links you might find intriguing: Lesbian sues crappy doctors for being totally crappy and crappily refusing...

I made three stops on my drive home from Albany: One. I stopped at the first mall I saw to buy a copy of The Who's Quadrophenia. The whole way home, I listened to "Love Reign O'er Me" as loud...

What you've done "I'm sure you won't read down this far," said a commenter on my last post. "You won't have time to read all these," said another. And from another, "I wish there were something I could do for...

Strangely enough, no one has asked me, "Why Minnesota?" Maybe you know how much I love Prince. But no: I know the chances of my encountering His Purple Highness in the corridors of reproductive medicine ? which are kind of...

Or any NBC show next season for that matter, due to an ongoing dispute between Apple and NBC. Shows affected include "Heroes", "The Office", "Psych", "30 Rock" and "Battlestar Galactica".

Screenings noticed so far in Oregon, Michigan, Texas, California, Indiana.

Featuring a character we already know, someone we never get tied of watching... A cute webcomic from xkcd. Joss and Universal, take note.

This weekend Juliet mentioned the launch of her new site, she is selling items on the site to raise money to help fund her own independent projects.

Did anyone catch the closing credits on "Who Wants To Be a Superhero"? Yan Feldman is completely covered up as Dr. Dark and I didn't even recognise his voice, but I just caught his name flashed on the credits. The link is a video and would have to fast forward to the credits if you don't want to watch the whole thing.

Because the last ten comments to my old posts were all spam, I am now requiring typekey authentication on all my old posts using the typepad comments system. For now, that effectively means that you can't comment on them because...

My friend Brad Feld takes a week "off the grid" every quarter. I have never gone to that extreme and generally am online at least once a day even when I am on vacation. But I think that Brad's approach...

The Feast Originally uploaded by fredwilson. I promised photos in my last post and so here's a photo of the barbecue feast before everyone went to town on it last night. The menu was pulled pork (cooked for 12 hours...

Hello kids! I'm at work. It's 7:45, and I've been up for three hours already. I hope you're still sleeping, and that your coffee-pot is pre-programmed. I have this to say, I am not a baseball fan. I don't dislike...