DIY Hacks

Maker Faire 2008 - Big Success

  By the sounds of it the Maker Faire is getting bigger and bigger each year. I think I need to make some time and go next year… DL.TV went down and covered the event along with many others. "Wow! Another great Maker Faire. Thanks to everyone who came out and supported the 3rd annual Maker Faire, and a special thanks to our Makers, Crafters, Sponsors, Exhibitors and the amazing

Freezer Failure Alarm based on the PIC Microcontroller

  Gadget Freak has a cool Freezer Failure Alarm project that is based on the PIC Microcontroller. Most projects have no important purpose but this one sure does. It could save you hundreds of dollars if you have a freezer full of meat! Looks like a nice simple yet effective design. See this document for full build details. "The gadget is built around a small controller, an alarm and a

Slashbot - Guitar Hero Robot by Texas A&M Electrical Engineering

  I know, we have featured a few of these Guitar Hero robots here in the last while… But they are so interesting, this Slashbot Guitar Hero Robot by Texas A&M Electrical Engineering uses similar principals as Auto Guitar Hero did. The main difference is that Slashbot actually presses the keys as it plays. Video after the jump. "Slashbot is especially cool because it literally plays the guitar controller using

Automate Guitar Hero

  David Randolph from Systm cracks open a Guitar Hero and hooked up a show controller that would allow him to program in all the key presses for a particular song. It isn’t as high tech as the last Guitar Hero hack we saw but it should allow a flawless performance after quite a bit of work.          

Stinger Spud Gun

This Stinger Spud Gun shoots 10 inch PVC missiles! There are no details on the build but by looking at it I would guess that the red button that is used to ignite the gun is a BBQ igniter. The rest of the gun appears to be the standard spud gun that has been dressed up with the black holder and scope. Have a look at the video, looks like

Wireless GPS Project

  Youtube user KDG86 has made quite a few interesting projects. This Wireless GPS Project is nice and simple but have lots of cool possibilities. He is using a GPS module that outputs RS-232, this signal is connected to a wireless transmitter. A receiver is then used to get the data into a computer. Since it is RS-232 all you need is a terminal program to have a look. He

AutoGuitarHero - FPGA powered Guitar Hero System

There have been lots of Guitar Hero hacks since it came out but I think this is the most elegant I have ever seen! Auto Guitar Hero (AGH1000) simply connects to the composite video of the game and "looks" at where the colored pucks are and presses the associated button. The idea was thought up when a father couldn’t compete with his son at the game. If you want to