Computer Hacks

Stoplight used to indicate Server Status

It is nice to be able to see a status of equipment at a glance. A power on light on the power bar, some flashing lights on the router are some things that can be glanced at to ensure everything is operating properly. A server on the other hand is a bit trickier, you might want to see what the load is like on the server, check some ping times,

IBM and 3M Adhesive will make Computers 1000 Times More Powerful?

Will this new IBM/3M super adhesive revolutionize the computer CPU as we know it? We have been hearing that the silicon technology in our modern day processors is nearing the edge of size reduction. Just like growing the chip die to add additional CPUs this new idea allows the addition of processors but without the increase of the die footprint by stacking them! One can only imagine how the connections

Microsoft Kinect controlled Delta Robot

Malte Ahlers from Germany sent in this great Microsoft Kinect controlled Delta Robot (translated to English). We have seen quite a few Kinect hacks recently but this one represents something that interfaces very well with an external device like we have seen in the past with quite a few Wiimote Hacks. “I built a delta robot and tried to control it with the Microsoft Kinect sensor. My aim was to

Vowel Voice Decoder System

Annie (Wei) Dai from Cornell University sent in this Vowel Voice Decoder System she did for the ECE 4760 Class. “The audio input is sampled through a microphone/amplifier circuit and analyzed in real time using the Mega644 MCU. The user can record and analyze his/her speech using both hardware buttons and custom commands through PuTTY. In addition, the final product also supports a simple voice password system where the user

Robodance 5 - Telepresence Robotics for the Disabled

Our friend Robert Oschler is running a Kickstarter for his new Robodance 5 – Telepresence Robotics for the Disabled project. Check it out and support it if you can. “What you are funding is the Pro version, which has additional exciting features and also has benefits for the physically challenged.  For the first time in history an affordable consumer EEG headset is being sold called the EPOC, an Emotiv Systems,

Light-Pack USB Ambient Lighting System

We saw a project earlier this month that worked like an Ambilight system but this open source Light-Pack USB Ambient Lighting System seems to have much better effects. And since it’s open source you can get all of the info you need to make your own. I can’t wait till there is a system that doesn’t requite a computer to process the image. “The software analyses the image on your

Handmade Wood Computer Case Build

Makieks spent about 30 hours and $65 building this Pearwood Computer Case. You can see a video of the original CAD design here. The water cooling system sight glass under the wooden buttons really makes the system look fantastic.