DIY Hacks

Door Chime Privacy Sentry

If you need to set a quite door bell period this is a cool (high tech) solution. Code and a detailed circuit explanation can be found at Richard Cappels site. “To set the timer, you just push the button momentarily, and when its released, the amber LED will come on and the doorbell circuit is disabled (the door bell button doesn’t work) for a 10 hour period. At the end

Solar Robotics

This is an neat little solar robot that would be cheap and easy to build. “Make your own solar powered robot at home using things you probably already have. Transistors, resistor, capacitor, solar battery and flashing LED are available at any electronic store, if you don’t already have them. Solar cells out of calculators work as well, you might want to use more than one since they are really small.

How to Make a Mouse with a Fan in it

If you want to keep cool while using your computer give this mouse mod a try. If you still need more cooling this USB shirt may be the answer. “It’s not too hard to add a small DC fan to a computer mouse. The plastic housing for a mouse, especially on older ones, is usually wide open in the back. Put a fan in the back to keep your hand

Change Optical Mouse LED

Ever want to change the color of your optical mouse? “This mod is very easy to do. It took me about 15 minutes from start to finish. Blue IMO looks much better than the red before. Much easier on my eyes. The skill level to do this mod is pretty low. The only thing you need to know how to do is solder, which is something that anyone can pick.

Photo Etch Circuit Board Process

This article goes through the steps required to photo etch your own copper clad circuit boards. There is a relatively small amount of hardware that is required and the steps are quite simple. If you have done the toner transfer method in the past why not move to the next level? If you are thinking of making your own circuit boards there are a few option: * The easiest is

SmackBook

By using the internal motion sensor you can do some neat things! “Turns out, the laptop has a built-in motion sensor. Nominally, it’s there to protect the internal hard drive. The basic idea is this: If the accelerometer suddenly notices that the gravitational pull of earth is no longer present, the most likely explanation is that the laptop, sensor and all, is currently accelerating at 9.81 m/s² towards said earth.

Grow Plants using LEDs

If you are thinking of growing some plants indoors LEDs might be what you are looking for. BVnursery has built some LED panels for growing plants and has had some great results. “The target of the project is to develop an inexpensive, effective method of providing light to plants using only leds. This unit is designed to light standard horticultural starter trays measuing 10 x 20″. The logic follows several