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DIY Warriors Saluted And Sought

Posted by timothy on from the bending-brazing-booting dept.

WaveDave writes "I have found some really inspiring pages out there by folks who are hacking together amazingly cool low-cost hardware/software/etc projects (reminiscent of the old homebrew computer club days). With the cost of IC's, sensors, microcontrollers, and PC's falling through the floor, we've entered a time where the barriers to entry on hacking neat projects are lower than they've ever been. There are a lot of indicators of the excitement in these projects, including the recent announcement of the upcoming Make Magazine from O'Reilly. Initially blown away by Matthias Wandel's projects, I've begun to put together a small collection of links to other creative DIY-ers out there, as well as resources for finding parts, getting stuff made (like PCB's and machined stuff). My current list is here - what are some of your favorite creatives and resources?"

23 of 190 comments (clear)

  1. Access to information by Exter-C · · Score: 4, Interesting

    In the past the access to information on how to go about doing this was much more difficult and not all libaries or regeons had that information availible. Since the birth of the internet and it becoming amazingly popular the information has become much more accessible. That is also one the major reasons why there has been a fairly large explosion in the amount of "hackers" out there doing cool things with hardware/software and thier self esteem.

    1. Re:Access to information by Exter-C · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Its rather amusing to think about it. In the past when alot of people where poorer and the quality of life was lower we would DIY everything from our house to our garden, car and bicycle. Now we are lazy we sit in side and DIY only our computers in some cases. Lets hope that this can be a further trend to people doing things for themselves and innovation will surely be the real benefit from this. Not only will innovation be the key but also self satisfaction and a feeling of acomplishment that so many people lack in todays society.

  2. Sharp Zaurus by MountainMan101 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    There's a lot of DIY hacks that use Palms and iPAQs. Not seen so many using the Zaurus (which runs Linux). I have one, and would be interested in following someones example to learn myself.

    The Zaurus 5500 should be an excellent choice for hacking as it have CF socket (could be used to add a hacked PCMCIA card supplying USB host), IR port and Sharp I/O which can be a serial port or USB client.

    Then with the option of QT, Java or C (and even Python and Ruby). It would be easy to prototype on a laptop and then port to Zaurus.

    I built a Garmin GPS to Zaurus cable. But that wasn't exactly challenging!

    Anyone have any interesting links like this?

  3. There's building PCs and Building PCs by KingDaveRa · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Back in the days of the Homebrew computer club, you literally did build a PC. These days, whacking a load of PCBs into a case isn't quite the same level of complexity. I remeber telling people I built PCs where I worked and they looked amazed. As far as I was concerned, it was nothing more complex than Lego with static. The hardest part was installing software.

    Things have definately changed.

  4. Diy Amplifier by 2$+Crack+Whore · · Score: 5, Interesting

    If you are interested in high quality audio, try making a gainclone amplifier - this website has more details:
    http://www.decdun.fsnet.co.uk/
    I made one and the sound quality is fantastic - better than any of the amps I have previously owned.

  5. check this out, then by mattdm · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Back in the days of the Homebrew computer club, you literally did build a PC. These days, whacking a load of PCBs into a case isn't quite the same level of complexity. I remeber telling people I built PCs where I worked and they looked amazed. As far as I was concerned, it was nothing more complex than Lego with static. The hardest part was installing software.

    Things have definately changed.

    Yeah, totally. Which was why I was surprised when I heard that one of my co-workers has designed and built (well, is building -- it's a work in progress) one ompletely from scratch. Although he doesn't mention it on the page, he's written games for it and everything. (I said, "does it have games?" and the next week it did). It's pretty much the most amazingly geeky thing I've ever seen, and seriously deserves to get slashdotted. :)

  6. Real DIY champ: afrotech by denthijs · · Score: 3, Interesting

    In terms of DIY, not many people can beat that guy
    not many but this one, surely, can:
    http://www.afrotechmods.com/,
    the amazing things this guy does with a computer using only, off the shelf, under a dollar items.
    see http://www.afrotechmods.com/reallycheap.htm for really great mods like the ghetto heatsinks or the paper cooled computer.....

  7. This year's score by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting
    So, this year's score:
    - a bat detector
    - a 3kW dimmer to control the ceiling-lights (I'm living in an old classroom)
    - an iButton lock on the frontdoor
    - lights in my livingroom are controlled by every phone in the house (built from a caller-id box)
    - plants are beeping when soil is dry
    - can control all my IR with LIRC and by phone

    And almost everything is built with parts recovered from old equipment.

    So, does this make me a slashdot-approved DIY warrior or am I just another techno-geek?
    Niels.

    1. Re:This year's score by slim · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Since you're an AC and I can't message you privately, I'll just have to reply. Beeping soil moisture indicators -- sounds great. How'd you make them, and are they cheap enough to have *lots* in a home?

    2. Re:This year's score by legirons · · Score: 2, Interesting

      "Since you're an AC and I can't message you privately, I'll just have to reply. Beeping soil moisture indicators -- sounds great. How'd you make them, and are they cheap enough to have *lots* in a home?"

      I'm not the AC you seek but you it's a typical high-school technology project. Pity that slashdot can't do sketches (well probably not really..)

      Sensor: double-sided PCB. Solder one connection to each side and stick it in the soil.

      Measurement: Connect a resistor (10K?) and the sensor in series across the power supply. Call the point inbetween them "A". Then connect a potentiometer (variable resistor, 100K?) across the power supply, and call it's centre connection "B"

      Triggering: put A and B as the inputs to a comparator. (like an operational amplifier but more sensitive). Adjust the potentiometer until the output is one voltage when the sensor is wet, and a completely different voltage when it's dry.

      Low-current outputs: connect buzzer, LED etc. between the output of the comparator and the appropriate power connection (choose which one so that it turns on when it's dry, obviously)

      High-current outputs: Send the output of the comparator into the "base" of an NPN transistor, attach its emitter to negative, and put the buzzer between its collector and positive.

      Oscillating output to drive the simplest, cheapeast piezo-buzzers: look up "multivibrator" (oscillator made out of 2 logic gates), or the 7555 timer chip, to see how you can make the output toggle between + and - volts several thousand times per second when it's dry, so you can send that signal to a buzzer.

      Better timed output: lookup how to connect 2 or 3 7555 timer chips in sequence to get something which beeps momentarily every 10 minutes (thus not wasting your battery, but still telling you about the plant's need of refreshment)

  8. More hardware hackery, sources, and ideas. by Myself · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I always love BG Micro's weird catalog. Don't let the yellow background throw you, it's a mimic of the colored paper they print the dead-tree version on. It's significantly less annoying in that form. Don't count on them for production quantities unless they say so, but some of the small lots of surplus stuff are super cool.

    American Science and Surplus, formerly known as Jerryco carries a broader spectrum of stuff, including plastic replicas of human organs, glow-in-the-dark everything, millitary surplus and yes, a variety of electrical and electronic weirdness. If the Edmund Scientific catalog is too highbrow for you, Jerryco is sure to amuse.

    There are some hardware hackers over at Green Bay Professional Packet Radio whose projects you might enjoy.

    I'm also going to suggest del.icio.us as a good way to collectively manage bookmarks like these. Just go play with it.

  9. Re:Cases by B1ackDragon · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Yeah, casing is the hardest part, in my opinion. (then again, I haven't done any home made cd changers or 3d scanners either...)

    I am currently learning to work with stained glass (should make some nice boxes), as well as looking for a local machinist. And don't forget about Front Panel Express, even though I'd really like to find something cheaper...

    --
    The snow doesn't give a soft white damn whom it touches. -- ee cummings
  10. DIY LCD projector with white LED array by kindofblue · · Score: 3, Interesting
    This would be fantastic. I've seen websites where people describe how to make projection screen TVs using LCD panels, mirrors, high lumen lamps, fresnel lenses, etc. They seem to be cheap and easy, but they are hot, and require fans and lots of ventilation.

    What would be better is a high brightness array of LED lights (white of course) to use as the white light source. Some DIY forums have noted that the problem is focusing the light from the array into a controllable direction and even intensity. This is hard because you need so many LEDs to get enough brightness. If this could be cheaply solved, then it would make a great DIY projector.

    Anybody have any luck with this or know any good websites for it?

  11. The hardware was always cheap by Alwin+Henseler · · Score: 3, Interesting
    With the cost of IC's, sensors, microcontrollers, and PC's falling through the floor (..)

    If you were 'hardware hacking' a century ago, you might have used wood, rope, nails, old buckets or glass items. These days, it's often electric/electronic stuff like sensors, stepper motors or ucontrollers. Either way, the hardware is always cheap, like ripped out of old equipment. Tradition wants it that way. If you use all new stuff, you're not hacking, but developing new hardware.

  12. Starting in 1971... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    In 1971 I built a stand-alone ALU out of TTL and won a trip to the International Science Fair (which was in Kansas City MO that year). The Fair was won by a guy who's father worked for Burroghs and who built a full computer out of RTL!

    I then built a series of machines using first the 8008, then a completely home-brew SSI (TTL) 8-bit-er of my own design (which amazingly I still own!), then a 6502, an IMSAI (#7) (with my own home-designed floppy disk controller) and finally a 40-bit microword bit-slice (AMD2901) machine that executed UCSD Pascal P-Code!

    It always amazes me when I see those old boards and realize how gloriously primitive (and fun!!!) things were in the days just-before and just-starting in the microprocessor business. When the Altir hit in 1975 I knew true "home-brew" computing was at it's peak.

  13. Re:Frankly, by Cyclotron_Boy · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I couldn't agree more. My cyclotron days were filled with searches (pre-internet) for equipment, surplus, parts, machining supplies, etc. I had to develop lots of stuff on my own. So, I'm writing a book about it. I'm a only 150 pages in, and have lots more to go. Basically, I'm aiming for something about like a "Building Scientific Apparatus" for homebrew particle physics machines. There's a lot of info out there that's buried in 1920s-1960s books on building such machines in the lab that has been more or less fogotten/lost. A list like the above would have helped out tremendously.

  14. Machining/CNC by wramsdel · · Score: 1, Interesting

    If you're into machining and CNC-type projects, be sure to check out 5 Bears Research. The author of the site has done some absolutely phenominal work. Be sure to check out his CNC mill section if you're thinking about making your own. Also, there are tons of homebrew jet engine sites, including more than a few that look to be destined for a Darwin Award. None of them is funnier than this site, though. Enjoy.

  15. Microcontrollers by glindsey · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I have to point out the incredibly useful Atmel AVR series of microcontrollers. Inexpensive ($2 to $8 each), easy to program (there's a GCC port readily available), entirely Flash-based, and pretty powerful for eight-bit microcontrollers. There's a large hobby development community over at AVRFreaks; if you're interested in homebrewing some great projects, check it out!

  16. holy jesus, no one mentioned cockeyed.com yet! by dea9 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    seriously, it's run by Rob Cockerham who is my fookin hero. He's hardcore DIY, but not really on the tech side but more on installations for entertaining social engineering (read: pranks).

    Also, check his killer Halloween costumes, which are good enough to win at the ILM party!

    http://cockeyed.com

  17. Don't forget Circuit Cellar Magazine by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I first read articles from Steve Ciarcia in some early issues of Byte Magazine (I subscribed to Byte due to his and Jerry Pournelle's articles.) But those things are history. Go to http://circuitcellar.com/ for some interesting projects.

  18. Phidgets? by musicxml · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I heard about Phidgets - USB sensors, motor controllers, and the like - from the JMSL mailing list. They look cool - has anyone tried them out?

  19. Nuts And Volts by gleman · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Lots of DIY stuff here.

  20. PCBs by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Let's not overlook the ability to etch your own PCBs amongst the discussion of PCB fabrication sites. The following site is a detailed description of one process for making PCBs, that seems to work well.

    http://www.fullnet.com/u/tomg/gooteepc.htm