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August 17, 2008

Best of CRAFT

Here are some of my favorite posts from the CRAFT blog this week:

Posted by Natalie Zee Drieu | Aug 17, 2008 01:00 PM
Crafts | Permalink | Comments (0) | Suggest a Site

Flashing LED beehive beacon

From the MAKE Flickr photo pool:

This project is to replace the 12 volt lamp in a stock auto clearance lamp with a flashing red led that can be used to provide a caution light around a telescope when viewing under dark conditions with more than one person around. The project is based around a stock beehive clearance lamp from any auto parts store.

Flashing Marker Beacon

The 1920s satnav ... and other weird and wonderful gadgets that never quite took off...

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The 1920s satnav ... and other weird and wonderful gadgets that never quite took off... via Land-o-links.

CLOCKWORK TEASMADE - Patented in Birmingham in 1902, this brass and copper tea maker was the first Teasmade. The alarm clock triggered a switch and a match was then struck against moving sandpaper, lighting the spirit stove under the kettle. Once the water boiled, the steam pressure lifted a hinged flap and the kettle would tilt, filling the teapot beneath. Finally, a plate would swing over the stove, extinguishing its flames.

Paper pump rocket

Restoration Place made this awesome paper pump rocket - they launched one about 10 feet!

DIY cat

2008 08 Funny-Pictures-Your-Cat-Has-Built-A-Bff
I wasn't expecting a MAKE icanhaz, but it finally happened...

Yellow Bike Project's Bike-Powered Move

If you need an excuse to switch to biking as your primary means of transportation, check out this video from Austin's Yellow Bike Project, as they move 4500 square feet of bike parts from one shop to another. Particularly amazing starting at 3:30:

Doesn't your commute seem a bit mild in comparison?

XR3: 225 mpg hybrid car kit

I can't say that I am a big fan of the looks of this car, but the 225 miles per gallon is hard to beat. The car has an electric rear drive system with a Kubota diesel system when the lithium batteries run out. Apparently you will be able to purchase an XR3 kit soon. There are a lot more pictures on the website, including the build process.

Austin Event: Beer Co-Op

Austin's homebrewing culture is alive and well (pun intended), with a hoppy event tonight that includes a homebrewer's corner:

Image courtesy Brian Birzer

The events are ultra-casual; here's more information on what to expect. I hope to see you there!

GIF news

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2763688560 F92E80624B O
8-bit BBS memories... GIF news newsletter & Flickr set via waxy.

GIF News was a GIF-based hardware and software newsletter released bi-monthly from 1988 to 1993 by Eric Hsiao. (This set currently only houses issues from 1990 to 1993.) Pages have been arranged in the set in chronological order for easier reading. After January of 1993, GIF News ceased publication, replaced the next year by GFX News.

Austin Event: Space Squid Party

Like science fiction of a humorous bend? Or, just curious what bold zine could claim to be "Earth's least established publication of fine sci-fi and humor?"

Space Squid is releasing issue 5 and throwing a free soiree tonight:

SATURDAY, AUGUST 16th, 5pm-7pm, BIKINIS SPORTS BAR
A big SPACE SQUID party! For the biggest SPACE SQUID issue yet!

There will be free copies of Space Squid #6 (with a COLOR COVER)! Enjoy some FREE APPETIZERS!* Drink some deliciously intoxicating regular-priced BEVERAGES! Marvel at the DINING ETIQUETTE of the Space Squid editors! Meet Central Texas' finest hacks (and some actual published authors)! Chat with a Squidgrrl! Buy a Squid t-shirt at unheard of prices ($7)!

Learn more about Space Squid here; those not fortunate enough to be in this center of the Lone Star state can download their latest issue for free.

Evolution of the typewriter

I found this great article about the evolution of the typewriter on the site of the Science Museum in Kensington, England.

QWERTY refers to the most common form of layout of letters found on the keyboard of a typewriter or computer. The name refers to the first six letters at the top of the board. The initial idea and later development of this design came from one of the first pioneers of the typewriter, Christopher Sholes, who invented the first commercially successful machine. The original layout of letters was in an ABC format, but Sholes found this continually jammed his typewriters. To solve the problem, he asked his brother-in-law, a mathematician, to work out an arrangement that would for most of the time prevent the bars from clashing. Sholes later claimed that this was a highly 'scientific arrangement'. From this the QWERTY idea was evolved in 1873.

More:
Jeremy Mayer's typewriter reassembly

I left my Death Star in San Francisco

Here's a really cool short video, done by Star Wars fan Michael Horn, of various Star Wars vehicles participating in "Imperial Fleet Week" in San Francisco. Horn says he "shot everything on my junkie DV camera, did motion-tracking and comping in After Effects, and basic sound design in Final Cut."

MAKE pal Bonnie Burton did a brief interview with Horn on The Official Star Wars Blog.

[via Laughing Squid]

Toriton water surface instrument gets an upgrade

Toriton 1.5

Sebastian built this new aesthetically enhanced version of his Toriton water surface music controller for display @ the South Australian Museum's Science Week. Nice work - the copper pipe used seems to keep with the instrument's elemental feel, and congrats on the much deserved recognition! - Toriton Version 1.5

More:

- Toriton Plus: Water Surface Music Controller

LEGO pin plotter

Check out this nifty LEGO NXT printer, a "needle plotter" with a ...er... prickable area of 90 x 70mm at 33 pricks per inch.

NXT pin-plotter III [via Hack-a-Day]

Giant turd runs amok!

Art-Turd

On July 31st Paul McCarthy's giant inflatable art broke free from its moorings at a Swiss museum and travelled 200 meters, bringing down a power line and breaking a window along the way. Sent through the air by a sudden gust of wind, the house-sized turd-art was equipped with an auto deflation system which unfortunately failed on this particular occasion. Luckily no one was injured during this unfortunate incident. (I'm somehow at a loss for witticisms here - though I'm sure many will seem painfully obvious)

- Giant dog turd wreaks havoc at Swiss museum

Rocket sculpture from industrial debris

"Gravity" is a work by Aleksandra Mir. It's a giant model rocket made from junk, mainly steel and fiberglass. The video shows the build process, backed by smooth jazz. Via VVORK.

Stretchy USB fabric connection

Instructables user Pulsea writes:

Make a stretchy fabric USB cable for whatever reason you like. This was a first test for me and... it worked! So the next step will be to integrate this USB connection into a shirt that I can wear, with a pocket for my digital camera, containing a USB connection that connects to the end of one of a sleeve, so that I can plug right into my laptop to download my pictures.

Calculate the solar potential of your roof

The RoofRay site allows you to specify location, size and slope of your roof via Google Maps. It then uses this info to estimate how much energy can be generated from your available exposure. Though perhaps not terribly precise, it's certainly helpful for familiarizing more people with some determining factors and maybe even making solar power planning a bit more fun (and viral!) - RoofRay [via Lifehacker]

Weekend Project: Making Biodiesel

Make your own backyard biodiesel. It's easy to make a small batch that will work in any diesel engine. You won't need any special equipment--an old juice bottle will serve as the "reactor" vessel--and on such a small scale, you can quickly refine your technique and perform further experiments. Thanks go to Rob Elam for the original article in Make Volume 3

To download Making Biodiesel MP4 click here or subscribe in iTunes.

Check out the complete Making Biodiesel article MAKE 03 "Making Biodiesel" & You can see that in our digital edition.

New in the Maker Shed - Twitchie Robot kit

Twitchie1
Twitchie2

Certainly a unique take on robotic kits, the Twitchie awaits your creative 'touch' -

Twitchie is an open source multi-purpose robot kit. It has the capacity to frighten and scare, but also the power to love and care! It's a regular pathos-o-matic! Grown men scream! Maternal instincts long dormant, suddenly activated! It's a robot unlike any other, and you can make one with this kit. Cover your Twitchie any way you'd like to make it truly unique.

Features

3 Servos

6 Laser cut wooden parts

1 circuit board

1 ATMEGA168 preloaded with Lillypad [Arduino] firmware and Twitchie software

1 set of various electronic parts such as LEDs, capacitors and resistors

1 printed manual

- Twitchie Robot Kit

Check out a clip of Twitchie in action @ the Maker Faire -

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Phillip Torrone
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Tel: 707-827-7311

Gareth Branwyn
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Natalie Zee Drieu
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CRAFT

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WOW! Thanks to everyone involved with Maker Faire Bay Area: attendees, makers, exhibitors, sponsors, volunteers, and crew...it was AMAZING! Over 400 Makers and 60,000+ attendees! Be sure to check out the photos @ Flickr, and our Maker Faire posts for all the action! The next scheduled Maker Faire is Austin: Oct. 18th & 19th, 2008 - Travis County Expo Center!