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Hai friend, i need your help about blog. i don't know very well how to create blog. saya baru kali ini membuat blog, dan itupun akunya hanya mengkopi blog milik orang lain. sorry ya bagi semua blog yang aku kopi. aku coba membuat blog tentang technologi, kira-kira situs apa ya yang mesti aku kunjungin. biasanya sih aku selalu kunjungin ''Hackaday''. to all people yang ngerti soal TECHNOLOGY, Please help me !

Meet Mr. Haas, he makes eyes

Here’s a story of an ocularist who makes prosthetic eyes from glass. Obviously here’s a necessary and important service, but we find it surprising that this seems something of a dying art. [Mr. Haas] lives in the UK but notes that most glass eye makers have been German, and tend to pass the trade down to their children. With that father-to-son daughter transfer of knowledge becoming less common these days we wonder just how many people know how to do this any longer.
But don’t despair, it’s not that there won’t be a source for ocular prosthesis, as acrylic eyes are quite common. But what we see in the video after the break is breathtaking and we hate to see the knowledge and experience lost the way vacuum tube manufacture and even common blacksmithing have.

Ego Box monitors web hits

[Bogdan's] latest project is a box that displays web hits for a chosen site. He calls it the Ego Box because depending on how traffic goes it either bloats or crushes your ego. This provides similar functionality as our Troll Sniffing Rat but the biggest difference is that this is a stand-alone Ethernet device. That’s thanks to the ENC28J60 Ethernet controller chip which manages the stack and has been quite popular in DIY electronic projects. In order to monitor your hits [Bogdan] crafted a bit of code to add to the header of your index page. It increments the counter file each time the page is loaded, and the Ego Box simply monitors that file, displaying the traffic on an eight digit 7 segment display.
[via Adafruit]

Hands-on with eZ430-F2013

At the beginning of the Month we came across a coupon code for a free eZ430-F2013 development stick. TI has given these things now and again so we took the opportunity to acquire one. It arrived yesterday and we’ve spent just a bit of time looking it over. Above you can see the first project completed; Hello World on a salvaged Nokia cell phone screen. Join us after the break for our thoughts on the device, as well as more pictures and details.

Snail mail notification system

[Mime] lives on one of the upper levels of an apartment complex. The mailboxes, being located at the ground floor can be somewhat inconvenient to check regularly. [Mime] decided to rig up a device to let him know when his mailbox had been accessed. He started with a wireless doorbell, thinking he could use the door side button inside his mailbox as a trigger with only some slight modification. On the receiver side, he wanted an LED to flash, letting him know that it was time to check his mail. One simple circuit and a self blinking LED later and the whole setup was finished. Great job [Mime]

SNES arcade controller

[Daniel] is making a mini arcade cabinet with an SNES housed inside. He wanted to build an arcade controller for it and chose to construct something from scratch instead of destroying an original piece of hardware. We can almost feel you guys sighing with relief at that one. He sent us some nice photos of his build and pointed out that he’s using one of the Evilmadscientist AVR boards housing an ATtiny2313. The arcade buttons are readily available at sparkfun. The source code for this project is available after the break.

Triggering a DSLR shutter with an audio clip

Apparently Pentax DSLR cameras have a remote shutter option that used infrared signals. [Pies for you] gathered up several different hacks and built a method of triggering the camera using custom audio. He put together the dongle above, just a headphone extension cord and two IR LEDs, which plugs into the headphone jack of any audio device like an iPod or an Android phone. When you play back a file the audio signals drive the IR LEDs. This is completely worthless unless you craft your own audio file using the correct frequency, duty cycle, and bit encoding. [Pies for you] did just that and got things up and running. Looks like the system doesn’t do so well with MP3 compression, but take a look at the waveform analysis that he posted and then make sure you’re using a lossless format.

ORQUIDEORAMA: A Beautiful Floating Meshwork of Modular Flower Tree Structures

We’re crazy about this gorgeous botanical garden in Medellin, Colombia that was renovated in 2008 by Plan B Architects. The Orquideorama is an organically expanding wooden meshwork of modular “flower-tree” structures that weaves its way through the garden’s heart. A stunning study on structure and scale, the project unites the micro and macro worlds through an elegant synthesis of cellular and architectural forms.

Woolrich and Agion Will Launch a New Line of Odor Resistant Outerwear

Any outdoorsman (and woman!) knows that roughing it with Mother Nature can quickly give way to a curious stink synonymous with the wild. But if you’re an adventurer who’s hoping to save yourself from the overwhelming stench of outdoor sweat and toil, you’ll be happy to know that Woolrich (“The Original Outdoor Clothing Company”) recently joined forces with Agion (a leader in odor-fighting solutions) to produce a line of outerwear that mitigates that staleness without frequent laundering. So how is this all done? Two words: silver ions.

Would You Wear the Same Jeans for a Year Without Washing Them? It’s Not as Gross as You Think

College students are well known for their questionable hygiene, particularly when it comes to clean laundry their first year in. Not yet ready for the world of responsibility University of Alberta student Josh Le wore his tight-fitting raw-denim jeans every day for 15 months and one week, after just one wash. Privy to Le’s “experiment”, one day his professor took bacterial counts from his pants before he threw them into the wash, then sampled the same jeans a couple of weeks later. So was the bacteria count out of control or were the jeans just as fresh as they were straight from the wash? Jump ahead for the results!

Going cellular with your Arduino projects

You can add a huge measure of extensibiltiy to a project by using a cellular connection. Anywhere the device can get service you can interact with it. In the past this has been a pretty deep slog through datasheets to get everything working, but this tutorial will show the basics of interacting with phone calls and text messages. It’s the 26th installment of what is becoming and mammoth Arduino series, and the first one in a set that works with the SM5100B cellular shield.
We love the words of warning at the top of the article which mention that a bit of bad code in your sketch could end up sending out a barrage of text messages, potentially costing you a bundle. But there’s plenty of details and if you follow along each step of the way we think you’ll come out fairly confident that you know what you’re doing. Just promise us that you won’t go out and steal SIM cards to use with your next project. Find part two of the tutorial here and keep your eyes open for future installments.

Burp Catching Backpack Traps and Contains Methane Released by Cows!

Ah, green design at its finest. Here at Inhabitat we pride ourselves in bringing you the freshest eco-friendly innovations, so how could we pass on the merits of this bright pink burp-trapping bovine backpack? It’s more than just a catchy concept – believe it or not there’s real SCIENCE at work here! The methane collecting tanks were utilized by Argentina’s National Institute for Agricultural Technology as part of a a study to determine the atmospheric impact of methane released by cows. The findings were startling, as researcher Guillermo Berro estimated that “30% of Argentina’s total greenhouse gases could be generated by cattle.” Time to seriously consider that poo power plant!

N64 Advance portable gaming system

Like many people [Kyle] loves the Nintendo 64 and decided he wanted a portable version of his beloved console so he could play games while on the move.  One year, two PSOne screens, and three N64 consoles later, his vision is complete.  A Game Boy Advance travel case was gutted and used to house the console, hence the “N64 Advance” moniker.  Like many others, his project uses a PSOne screen for the display, and a Li-Poly battery pack that provides up to 3.5 hours of playing time.  He made sure to include other members of the Nintendo family in his build by adding a pair DS Lite speakers to the mix.
This build also includes some nice “extras” such as having the N64 RAM expansion pack built-in, headphone and A/V out ports (with a screen kill-switch for TV use), and an external controller port that can be used by either the first or second player. Be sure to check out the video of his build after the jump.
Read the rest of this entry »

Steampunk CD player

This custom CD-player enclosure may not be your style, but you can’t deny that the fabrication techniques are top-notch (translated). This starts with a portable CD player and a set of amplified speakers. A brass plate serves as the base for the electronics, with the CD player internals mounted from the underside. The brass dome that covers the spinning disk also started as a sheet of metal, with quite a bit of work (translated) going into shaping and smoothing to achieve these results. The base and speaker boxes exhibit some fine woodworking, and there’s even additional electronics for lights, control buttons, and to drive the two analog meters. A lot of thought went into each component of this build and that’s how you put together a masterpiece.
[Thanks Polossatik]

First Full Bamboo School in Philippines Stands Up to Tough Stormwinds

As you may recall in the famous fairy tale, the three little pigs build homes of straw, brick and wooden sticks to avoid having their houses being huffed and puffed and blown down by a big bad wolf. In the end, the pig with the brick house triumphs, but in real life, a new school in the Philippines (where they know quite a bit about buildings being blown down by powerful tropical winds) has done one better by utilizing a flexible, storm resistant material that is also locally grown and rapidly renewable - bamboo. Designed by architect Eleena Jamil of Malaysia as the winning entry in the Millennium Schools competition organized by Illac Diaz's MyShelter Foundation, the structure was recently completed in Camarines Sur, and is proud to call itself the first full bamboo school in the Philippines.

Custom enclosures made of paper

[Sivan Toledo] needed a enclosure for a unique sized electronic project, not finding what he needed in off the shelf solutions, he went to the next best thing, … Papier Mâché!
Using a mold made out of standard corrugated cardboard, he slowly built up layers made of magazine paper, and ordinary “white glue” diluted with water. After getting near the thickness wanted he switched over to typing / copy type paper for a nice clean outer surface. Ports were made in the usual fashion when dealing with soft or thin material, drill a smaller hole, going back with successively larger holes, and then follow up with an appropriate file, all while taking things slow along the way to prevent unwanted results. Finishing up with layers of paper carefully cut into strips to meet the circumferences / edges, along with the final outer surface to make it all even.
The end result is awesome as it stands, but we cant help but wonder what some sanding and paint would look like on a enclosure made like this, though any way you finish it, the idea comes down to custom enclosures that do not need special tools or materials to complete (on the cheap).
Thanks [Drone]

DIY Genius Creates Shiny Gold Peddle-Powered Porsche Roadster

Can't afford to buy a Porsche? Why not make your own? That's what one skilled sport car enthusiast did, and the result was this absolutely gorgeous golden replica of the coveted boxter. And don't think there's a heavy bloc V8 engine sitting underneath the hood - this shiny number runs completely on pedal power!

The Date Farmers Create Striking Collages from Found Materials

Artists Armando Lerma and Carlos Ramirez, aka “The Date Farmers,” take regular trips from their homes in Southern California to scavenge Mexicali and Oaxaca for found materials to create their collaged art work. The pair pick up everything from cracker tins, old signs, and discarded toys to paper advertisements, stickers and bottle caps, which they then assemble and embellish with drawings and paintings.

Arizona Life Science Building Has A Really, Really Big Shading Roof

A growing biotechnology industry necessitated Paradise Valley Community College in Phoenix, AZ to expand and build a new facility dedicated to life sciences. Through the expansion, the college had three aims: to incorporate the new building into the fabric of the existing campus, enhance collaboration amongst students, teachers and researchers and finally to respect and celebrate the Sonoran Desert. The Life Sciences Building was designed by Marlene Imirzian & Associates Llc, Architects, and includes appropriate desert architecture and sustainability strategies like rainwater collection, xeriscaping, energy efficient design and use of locally sourced materials. Most notable about the building is a gigantic roof that creates the Big Porch, a shaded zone public meeting areas that were designed to enhance collaboration.

2011 Lincoln MKZ Hybrid: The Most Fuel-Efficient Luxury Sedan

Ford has a great thing going with the Fusion Hybrid, so they decided to take it one step further and create the Lincoln MKZ Hybrid. Essentially a Fusion Hybrid with Lincoln luxury amenities, the Lincoln MKZ has entered the market with a bang by taking the title of the most fuel-efficient luxury hybrid from the Lexus HS 250h.

Vote for Your Favorite Sustainable Ideas in the Wild Energy Design Competition

Hey green design aficionados! The Wild Energy design competition to find creative ways to power New Zealand’s land of lush green national parks, rivers and deep blue oceans has received a ton of clean energy ideas and it’s up to you to choose the winner. Vote here!

8×8 LED infinity mirror

[chromationsystems] put out a couple instructibles on building infinity mirrors. One with an 8×8 array of LEDs and one with a 32 LED ring. These are very well  documented covering the construction of the mirror enclosure as well as the circuit and code. The effect is quite nice. The 8×8 array is interesting, we haven’t seen that before. These would make a fine addition to any geek cave/electronics lab. While it looks like these were basically advertisements for a product he sells, you can definitely make your own from his instructions. We like this kind of advertising.

13 Sexy and Sweet Green Valentine’s Day Gifts to WOW Your Eco-Sweetie

When it comes to being eco-friendly, Valentine's Day has got a pretty ugly rep. But going green this February 14th doesn't mean you have to suck all of the fun out of giving gifts to your sweetie! Why not turn this Hallmark holiday into an opportunity to support ethical and eco-conscious businesses with your dollars while simultaneously showing your special someone just how you feel?

Homebrew Mp3 player with some bonus features

When [falldeaf] set about making his own homebrew Mp3 player, he ended up at the same place we most do while looking into the subject, the wonderful Minty Mp3. Basing the design on [Adafruit Industries] popular board, we are presented The Mp3 Garbler.
First change of the project was to replace the sometimes difficult to find ST013, or the more expensive ST015T Mp3 decoder chip, and the CS4340 digital to analog cconverter with a single vs1001k, which we have checked out before. And while yes VLSI says that the 1001 series is a discontinued product, and it may be a bit hard to find now days, they also offer an updated model on their website, which should suit the application fine.
Next up is a useful LCD display sporting a Sparkfun lcd backpack, that shows us all the important to know music info. And finally there is a 10×14 led matrix display, that can be used to display all sort of user feedback icons, and is driven by a MAX6953, which we think is a pretty spiffy chip.
While there is no schematic, there are brd files, and source code available for your PIC18F452 or similar micro controller to complete your own

Analog computer does math

This analog computer can multiply, divide, square numbers, and find square roots. It has a maximum result of ten billion with an average precision of 2-3%. [Miroslav's] build recreates something he saw in a Popular Electronics magazine. It uses a resistor network made up of three potentiometers with a digital multimeter is an integral part of the machine. To multiply a number you set the needles on the first two knobs to the numbers on which you are operating. To find the result turn the third knob until the multimeter has been zeroed out and read the value that knob is pointing to. It seems much more simple than some of the discrete logic computers we’ve seen, yet it’s just as interesting.

Portugese Scientists Create Water-Powered Paper Battery

Scientists at the Faculty of Science and Technology in Lisbon, Portugal have created a new breed of paper battery that can be charged with one of the planet’s most abundant resources – water. The center, also known as CENIMAT, is dedicated to developing new ways to power gadgets and small electronic devices and this water-powered paper battery is their latest innovation.

Touch sensors: overview, theory, and construction

This collection of touch sensor information should be of interest to anyone who liked the simple touch sensor post from Thursday. That was a resistive touch sensor and is covered in detail along with AC hum sensors that trigger based on induced current from power lines around you, and capacitive touch switches like we’ve seen in past hacks. Each different concept is discussed and clearly illustrated like the slide above. [Giorgos Lazaridis] has also put together individual posts that build and demonstrate the circuits. We’ve embedded his resistive sensor demo video after the break and linked to all three example circuits.
Read the rest of this entry »

Charging timer for R/C batteries

Santa brought [Quinten's] son a shiny R/C truck for Christmas, but this new toy had one drawback – its batteries could only be connected to the charger for a maximum of 6 hours, lest he turn his house into a pile of smoldering ash.  With grave warnings from the manufacturer dancing in his head, he searched around for a timer that would allow him to cut power to the battery after charging for its allotted time.  Coming up empty, he decided to create his own timed electric socket regulated by an Arduino he had sitting around.  He grabbed a project box and wired up a nice looking socket timer, complete with an LCD status display.  To make things easy for his son, he added two buttons to the front of the controller – one for selecting the amount of charging time, and one to set the timer in motion.  As with his previous hacks, [Quinten] has provided plenty of documentation in the form of pictures, code, and even a video of the timer in action.

Arbor Chair: A Rustic Interpretation of the Panton Chair Carved From a Tree Trunk

If you’ve always wanted your very own Panton chair but don’t have the $260 a pop to shell out for one, check out this woodsy alternative. Designed by Peter Jakubik, the Arbor Chair takes on recognizable features of the famous seat its modeled after, but is carved from a simple tree trunk. If you’ve got an old tree trunk lying around, why not follow Jakubik’s lead and turn it into your very own Panton x Log Cabin look-alike?

The future of cyberattacks

[Dino A. Dai Zovi] gave a talk in the earlier part of 2010 where he shares his thoughts on the future of malicious exploits. You can watch it on Ustream and he’s also posted a set of slides (PDF) that goes along with it. We find the 48 minute video to be quite interested. Instead of going into mundane detail, he covers the broader picture; what has been done in the past, what will happen in the future, and how are we currently ill-equipped to respond to future threats? That last question is covered throughout the video, but seems to come back to the concept that we are stuck in a rut of terminology and past practice that is impeding our ability to innovate security strategies at the same rate that the bad guys are coming up with the next nasty thing to come down the pipeline.

Belkin Conserve Valet Charging Station Helps You Save Energy and Reduce Clutter

Nowadays, it’s pretty common to have more than one mobile device per household – if not per person. But charging all of those electronics can not only be electricity-intensive, it can also be a cluttered eyesore. Belkin is hoping to solve both of those issues for you with their Valet USB charging station. Part of the Conserve line of energy-saving products, the Valet can hold and charge up to four devices at once, shuts off automatically when your gadgets are done powering up to eliminate vampire power drain and keeps all your cords nice and neat.

6 Green Lighting Tips That Will Help You Cut Your Energy Bill

Lighting is one of the most crucial elements in interior design, and not surprisingly, it also has one of the biggest impacts on energy consumption as well. When a room is illuminated intelligently - both naturally and artificially - it can reap a bevy of benefits, affecting the comfort, mood, health, and in turn the productivity of a space's occupants. Thankfully, with massive improvements in green lighting technology in the last few years, the options for energy-efficient illumination are greater than ever. Moving far beyond the ubiquitous CFL, companies and eco-conscious designers are carefully considering human health and comfort in addition to the energy consumption of their products. But you don't need to spend big bucks to transform your space - in fact, implementing these alternative lighting options can put extra money in your pocket. Read ahead for our eco-friendlylighting tips, which will arm you with exactly what you need to transform your interior space with beautiful lighting while cutting your energy bill.

MIDI input for the Kaossilator

This isn’t strictly a MIDI input hack; [Furrtek] pulled off an alternate input hack for the Kaossilator that he’s currently using with a MIDI connection. In its unhacked form the Kaossilator is a small touchpad-based sound manipulation tool. [Furrtek] sniffed out how the touchpad data is read and used on the little device. He then purposed an ATtiny2313 as the core of a circuit that spoofs those signals. The microcontroller now listens for incoming MIDI data, looks up the proper signal translations in a table, then outputs them to the Kaossilator.
In the video after the break you can see that it works perfectly, with no lag or noticeable problems. As we alluded to at the top, there could be so much more done with this. Since the ATtiny2313 is merely translating MIDI into touchpad signals, the input could be anything. The first thing that comes to mind is a dance floor that changes the music based on how many people are out there tearing it up. Read the rest of this entry »

CNC milled docking system for Droid

[Steve] wanted a dock for his Droid phone but couldn’t bear to put cheap-looking parts in his nice BMW. He decided to build his own in order to satisfy his functional and stylistic needs. His main goal was to have a dock with no wires showing, but it also needed to be removable and have the ability to work with different devices (GPS, Droid, etc.).
The hardest part of a build like this is matching the bracket system to the car’s interior. [Steve] sidestepped the problem by starting with a commercial mounting bracket made specifically for the BMW E90 series. From there he added the female half of a mounting bracket he milled himself. The male half connects to this part using an edge connector, passing signals and power between the car and whichever device is currently installed. This way he can design brackets for different devices and not change what’s in the car.
To get a closer look, check out the video after the break. The system he came up with looks wonderful and works great.
Read the rest of this entry »

A Tequila Based Biofuel? Cheers to That!

Tequila! It makes this writer happy! But could the plant that powers most frat parties also soon power our world? According to researchers from the University of Illinois, the Agave plant that is used in making tequila could be an excellent source of biofuels. In a report published in the journal Global Change Biology Bioenergy, two Agave species are capable of producing yields of biofuels that far surpass those from biofuel feedstocks such as corn, wheat, soybean, and sorghum. Scientists have said that in 14 independent studies, it was concluded that Agave had “high biofuel potential”.

Shotgun blast lights up your controller

[Jrfhoutx] makes gaming in the dark a bit easier with this backlight shotgun shell d-pad for an Xbox 360 controller. He’s building on another tutorial he posted showing how to use the brass base of a shotgun shell to replace the stock plastic direction pad. That hack uses most of the original plastic part, cutting it down a bit and capping it off with the shell base. But now he’s detailing the process used to add LEDs around the base. He picked surface mount 0603 packages which are first chained together, then held in place using hot glue. While you’re in there, give this rapid-fire mod a try as well.

A Briefing on Integrated Circuits

Although technology is constantly racing to faster / smaller / more, so many of the fundamentals of how it is made remains similar, if not the same. This interesting 30 minute video clip [thanks to The Computer History Museum] was made in 1967 by Fairchild Semiconductor as a briefing on integrated circuits, and shows the different steps to produce ICs including:
Design, making the photo masks, manufacturing the silicon ingots, preparing the wafers, building of the circuit and its components (like transistors, resistors, and capacitors), testing, and final packaging. Add in some other cool items of interest such as a 1960′s pick n place machine, wave soldering, an automatic wirewrap machine, and toss in some retro computer action and it’s surely a video worth watching, with something for everyone.
So join us after the break, kick back and enjoy the show!
Read the rest of this entry »

India to Install Solar-Powered Cell Phone Towers This Year

Mobile communications are a big business in India, but they traditionally tend to be powered by coal. However Vihaan Networks Limited (VNL) is set to change all that — they just announced plans to roll out a set of solar powered cell towers outfitted with batteries made by US-based Boston Power. The WorldGSM communication stations are not tied to the grid and are designed to operate on energy provided by a few solar panels.

Chrome in the Pwn2Own Contest

Google has announced that it will be sponsoring a $20,000 prize at the 2011 CanSecWest Pwn2Own Contest. $20,ooo will be given to the first person to escape Chrome’s sandbox through Google-written code in the first day. If researchers are unsuccessful on the first day, then days two and three will be opened up to non-Google-written code. In addition to the cash, there is also a Google CR-48 running ChromeOS offered as a prize, but it will not be the actual platform used to hack Chrome. We look forward to seeing what comes out of this contest.
[via GearLog]

ENIAC was first

Well, no. Many of us who went to school and have degrees in various computer related fields instantly think of ENIAC as the first “computer”, but we’re all wrong. We know some of you are already familiar with the Atanasoff-Berry computer, and we are too… now. However, when we learned about it, it was long after our school lessons were over, and it felt like learning Santa wasn’t real, or the pilgrims didn’t really have a fancy dinner with the native Americans. [Jane Smiley] is releasing a book telling the whole story, and it should be fairly interesting. She gave an interview with Wired about the book. In the interview she talks about how fascinating the story is and even addresses [Alan Turing]‘s role.

LifeEdited Design Contest Yields Awesome Green New York Apartment

 

New Yorkers are used to small apartments. We think keeping sweaters in our stove and having one piece of furniture function as our bed/couch/desk are totally normal ways to live. But what if your tiny apartment could host a 12-person dinner party? Or comfortably accommodate two friends for a weekend visit? A recent crowdsourced contest by LifeEdited tasked contestants to design a 420-square-foot New York apartment that would do just that. The goal of the contest was to motivate designers and the public to be more eco-minded about our living spaces and reduce our carbon footprints.

USB controller for multiple servos

[dunk] constructed an easy to use AVR-based USB controller with the ability to drive up to six R/C hobby servos at once.  While the USB-powered Atmega8 he used supplies the necessary PWM signaling for all of the servos, an external power supply rated up to 30v at 3A is necessary to provide the 5v of power each servo requires.  His project is an extension of the USB servo controller built by [Ronald Schaten] and includes several significant upgrades.  The addition of 5 more servos aside, [dunk] switched to AVRlib routines for multi-servo control and PWM management, as well as added the aforementioned power supply to prevent an excessive current draw on the USB port.  His tutorial includes a complete parts list, Eagle PCB schematic, the required USB servo source code, as well as a sampling of commands that can be issued to the servo controller.

Remote camera trigger built from air freshener parts

[jcopro] took a look at a Glade automatic air freshener he had sitting around and couldn’t help but open it up to determine how the mechanism worked.  After taking it apart, he found that the automated system was comprised of a 3v motor, a series of gears, and a mechanical arm.  When actuated, this arm simply pressed the spray nozzle of the air freshener canister contained within the device.  After some consideration, he decided that the components would make a great remote trigger for his Casio point and shoot camera.  He fabricated a small plywood rig including both the camera and air freshener components, which was able to be mounted on a tripod.  [jcporo] also mentions that the air freshener has the ability to be triggered by a built-in timer.  Although the presets are locked at 9, 18, and 36 minutes, he suggests that a 555 timer could easily be used to add some custom timing intervals when wired to the manual trigger.  Be sure to check out his video of the remote trigger in action.

It’s a Bird! It’s a Plane! No! it’s a… Hostel?!

Visitors traveling to Stockholm will find soon themselves with the option of sleeping on a plane! That may not sound like the most exciting proposition until you realize that the 747-200 in which they will be sleeping has been retired from flying, salvaged from being dumped somewhere to rot and turned into a low-cost, fully-furnished hostel that is perfect for overnight accommodation.

Harvesting ultrasonic sensors

With many modern cars coming equipped with an array of ultrasonic sensors mounted in the bumpers, it stands to reason that many junk yards have them too. [jimk3038] points out that, unless they’re crushed, they’re probably good. The list of features on these is pretty long, including being short proof, water proof,  EMF proof and fast. These tough little suckers can be used in a multitude of projects and can have a range of roughly 2 meters.  [jimk3038] documents in great detail how to use these things as well as offering some sample code to get you started. Why didn’t we think of this?

PID controlled smoker

[dafonso] purchased a nice 1500W smoker but was somewhat dismayed that it only had one cooking temperature. To compensate he designed his own PID control system which allows him to set the cooking temperature digitally. At the heart of the system is a PICAXE 18 micro which switches the smoker on and off using a solid state relay. Rather than testing the 110V system on the smoker itself (which would have been a pain indoors) he used a lamp instead. To see if he was getting the correct temperature he taped his thermocouple to the light bulb and let the PID switch the lamp on and off. Also be sure to checkout his video which does a good job of explaining how he was able to solder the surface mount components required for the control board.

Wolgan Valley Resort: World’s First CarboNZero Certified Hotel

With Valentine’s Day approaching, wouldn’t it be nice to escape for a few days with your loved one and relax in pampered luxury – without feeling guilty about the huge footprint you are adding to the environment? The world class conservation-based Wolgan Valley Resort & Spa in the Blue Mountains, located just a 1.5 hour drive south of Sydney, Australia will provide you with luxury AND a guilt-free carbon-neutral experience! It’s the first hotel in the world to achieve international carbon neutral certification through carboNZero, so you are in for quite a treat.

Internships: have fun while working toward a career

Attention Students: Living your life with a devil-may-care attitude will soon come to an end… But while you’re at it, take the summer away from your normal school’s-out activities to hack together something cool while tricking family into thinking it’s good for the career.
That link will take you to Waterloo Labs’ announcement that they’re hiring four paid interns this summer. You’ll need a bucketful of hacking skills from mechanical, to electrical, to coding (or any combination thereof). If the name doesn’t strike a bell be warned; these guys and gals do things like riding the roof of remote-control cars, and playing video games with real armaments.
Is your company offering similarly radical internships? We’d love to connect some hardcore hackers with good summer homes. Send a tweet a to Mike (@szczys) so that we can post an internships follow-up with more opportunities.
[via Twitter]

See-through LED display

[Ndsit] is having a party and wanted to liven up the place with some blinky lights. He’s a bit new when it comes to hobby electronics, and although we’d highly recommend inviting some resistors to participate, the LED matrix that he built is very nice. It’s 8×8, it’s big, and (as shown in the clip after the break) the lights seem to hover in midair. That’s because he didn’t use a substrate to make the display. A grid of enameled wire is strung between the four sides of the wooden frame. LEDs were gathered from a string of Christmas lights which means they’re in a holder and have insulated wires already connected. Each one was tied on at a junction point of the grid, then connected to a portion of the wire where enamel had been scraped off.
It works but there’s already one light that is out. We hope some current protection is added so that this can be used again and again.
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Netherlands to Roll Out Energy-Generating SolaRoad Bike Path

Paving new bike paths is a great way to encourage carbon-free transportation and cut car emissions, and now The Netherlands is getting ready to roll out an energy-generating solar cycle path. The project, known as SolaRoad, has been developed by the TNO research institute along with the Province of North Holland, the Ooms Avenhorn Group and Imtech. It is currently slated to be constructed in the town of Krommenie, near Amsterdam.