Monthly Archives: October 2013

Waterproof a Canvas bag, with Wax

Posted on October 15, 2013 by robertwilkie

Nice idea on waterproofing a canvas bag with wax.  Only downside would be that you need to apply it constantly. http://lifehacker.com/5972434/waterproof-any-canvas-bag-with-wax

Posted in Misc-Life | Comments Off on Waterproof a Canvas bag, with Wax

OCR to find data on a power meter

Posted on October 15, 2013 by robertwilkie

Nice write up on using OCR to figure out what a power meter is displaying.   This is a nice way to get the data without needing to hack the meter. http://www.anfractuosity.com/projects/ocring-a-power-meter/

Posted in Tinkering | Comments Off on OCR to find data on a power meter

Nice portable radiation detector

Posted on October 15, 2013 by robertwilkie

Nice build that is robust and standalone for a radiation detector. http://theiopage.blogspot.ca/2013/01/solar-powered-wireless-autonomous.html

Posted in sensors, Tinkering | Comments Off on Nice portable radiation detector

Nice write-up on NERF sentry gun

Posted on October 15, 2013 by robertwilkie

Looks like the author adapted the Open Sentry project for a really big NERF gun with a custom paint job.  The author did a good job writing up how to make it. http://www.instructables.com/id/Nerf-Vulcan-Sentry-Gun/#intro

Posted in Tinkering, weapons | Comments Off on Nice write-up on NERF sentry gun

15 year old builds a flashlight powered by body heat

Posted on October 15, 2013 by robertwilkie

Nice build of a flashlight, no details but it looks like some  Peltier devices where used to build it.  Those buggers are expensive, so I would figure the flashlight cost around $80 with the surface area being covered (or more). http://hackedgadgets.com/2013/07/03/body-heat-powered-flashlight/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+HackedGadgets+%28Hacked+Gadgets%29

Posted in Teaching and Learning, Tinkering | Comments Off on 15 year old builds a flashlight powered by body heat

Father hires in game assassins to get son off games

Posted on October 15, 2013 by robertwilkie

This is too funny, basically to get his kid off games, the dad hired other gamers to take his son out on the games if they ever saw him. It happened several months ago, but still funny. http://www.ubergizmo.com/2013/01/father-hires-in-game-assassins-to-discourage-son-from-playing-rpg-games/?utm_source=mainrss

Posted in Misc-Life | Comments Off on Father hires in game assassins to get son off games

Simple proximity sensor for Arduino

Posted on October 15, 2013 by robertwilkie

Nice write-up and I think this is cheaper than buying a prox sensor. http://makezine.com/projects/use-a-diy-proximity-sensor-to-automate-your-haunted-house/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=%24%7Bfeed%7D&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+%24%7Bmakezineonline%7D+%28%24%7BMAKE%7D%29&utm_content=%24%7BGoogleReader%7D

Posted in Arduino, Cheap, sensors | Comments Off on Simple proximity sensor for Arduino

Interesting garage door remote control

Posted on October 15, 2013 by robertwilkie

Interesting build using an RPi as the controller.  The author built his own shield to control and get status on the garage door.  I like the use of magnets for sensors to determine if the door is open or not. … Continue reading →

Posted in RaspberryPi, sensors | Comments Off on Interesting garage door remote control

Hacking an OTP token

Posted on October 15, 2013 by robertwilkie

The author hacked a One Time Password Token and found out it was using a PIC controller.  He modified it to display what he wanted.  Neat hack, but could be allot of work for other tokens out there.  However I … Continue reading →

Posted in Security, Tinkering | Comments Off on Hacking an OTP token

Rosy picture from a Stock Analyst

Posted on October 15, 2013 by robertwilkie

Interesting rosy picture painted about Xerox from its failing withe EBT cards this past weekend.  The reason rosy is the author points out how Xerox has diversified from the technology end to services. http://seekingalpha.com/article/1744322-xerox-mishap-shows-how-far-it-has-come?source=google_news

Posted in Xerox | Comments Off on Rosy picture from a Stock Analyst