Category Archives: Making

CNC – first sawdust!

Posted on August 5, 2012 by jimbo

It’s been a long time coming. I finally decided to bite the bullet and get the CNC machine running. It’s been eating at me that I haven’t been able to get anything done on the machine. I have stopped really … Continue reading →

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Random project thoughts

Posted on July 18, 2012 by jimbo

I’ve been thinking about doing the soon-to-be-passe Christmas lights synched with music thing. The lights don’t come cheap; it’s $50 or so for a strand of 35. Here’s a stripped-down version from Adafruit for $40: http://www.adafruit.com/blog/2012/07/18/updated-tutorial-12mm-led-pixels/ More holiday circuits, this … Continue reading →

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Arduino-hating: I don’t get it.

Posted on July 17, 2012 by jimbo

I love me some Arduino. I have several. I build pretty much every project around them. Even when I’m building a circuit that doesn’t use the microcontroller at all, it’s very convenient to have a regulated 5V USB power supply … Continue reading →

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Arduino power control

Posted on July 2, 2012 by jimbo

The digital scale project has been a measured success, as most maker projects tend to be “in the early revisions”. On the one hand, the circuit works dandy when it’s up; step on scale, weight gets transmitted, computer processes and … Continue reading →

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Whats the difference between Arduino, Raspberry Pi, BeagleBoard, etc?

Posted on July 2, 2012 by jimbo

uC Comparison

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UAV / Quadcopter roundup

Posted on June 5, 2012 by jimbo

This post is intended to be a living document containing the information that I have about RC, planes, helicopters, quadcopters, and UAV/IMU/FPV. Discussion on LinkedIn group about UAV Arduino PID library IMU tutorial HobbyKing quadcopter frame has a good set … Continue reading →

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Home Automation roundup

Posted on June 5, 2012 by jimbo

This post is intended to be a living document gathering the information that I have about Home Automation. WebMote panStamp garden sensors battery charging monitor hybrid mains power webserver+arduino+mains control wireless power outlet control proximity mains switch uC switched power … Continue reading →

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Working on my communication

Posted on May 27, 2012 by jimbo

I’m beginning to realize that most of the big electronics projects that I have right now are going to require a more serious level of inter-device communication than most of my previous stuff. Any kind of UAV/quad is going to … Continue reading →

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Networked Arduino

Posted on May 24, 2012 by jimbo

I picked up two separate Ethernet solutions for Arduino while I was at Maker Faire; an Arduino Ethernet Shield, and a Nanode 5. Once I got them home (and got the Nanode soldered together), it turns out that they use … Continue reading →

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Spring projects

Posted on May 22, 2012 by jimbo

Maker Faire comes at the perfect time each year. I’ve worked my way through all of the winter projects, and starting to think up new ideas. The projects that are on my mind at the moment: – home automation (start … Continue reading →

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