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  • Hack a Nintendo Zapper into a Real Life Laser Blaster

    - by Jason Fitzpatrick
    Why settle for zapping ducks on the screen when you could be popping balloons and lighting matches on fire? This awesome (but rather dangerous) hack turns an old Nintendo zapper into a legitimate laser gun. Courtesy of the tinkers over at North Street Labs, we’re treated to a Nintendo zapper overhaul that replaces the guts with a powerful 2W blue laser, a battery pack, and a keyed safety switch. Check out the video below to see the laser blaster in action: For more information on the build and a pile of more-than-merited safety warnings, hit up the link below. Nintendo Zapper 2W+ Laser [via Boing Boing] 8 Deadly Commands You Should Never Run on Linux 14 Special Google Searches That Show Instant Answers How To Create a Customized Windows 7 Installation Disc With Integrated Updates

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  • Modded Portal Gun Levitates a Companion Cube [Video]

    - by Jason Fitzpatrick
    This cleverly designed Portal gun prop levitates a model Companion Cube; the whole setup just begs to be paired with a Halloween costume. Courtesy of Caleb over at Hack A Day: I was out to lunch with a couple friends, brainstorming ideas for fun projects when one of them says “Wouldn’t it be cool if we could build a working gravity gun?”. We all immediately concurred that while it would in fact be cool, it is also a silly proposition. However, only a few seconds later, I realized we could do a display piece that emulated this concept very easily. Floating magnetic globes have been around for quite some time. I determined I would tear the guts out of a stock floating globe and mount it on a portal gun, since they’re easier to find than a gravity gun. I would also build a custom companion cube to be the correct size and weight necessary. Watch the video above and then check out the link below for more information on the build. HTG Explains: What is the Windows Page File and Should You Disable It? How To Get a Better Wireless Signal and Reduce Wireless Network Interference How To Troubleshoot Internet Connection Problems

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  • How to Shoot Liquid Flows [Photography]

    - by Jason Fitzpatrick
    If you thought water drops frozen in time were neat, this tutorial shows you how to capture the flow of colored liquids dropped into water–the effects are quite eye catching. The process combines a small tank of water, heavy cream with dye mixed in, and of course some off-camera flashes and a DSLR. Hit up the link below to see the full setup and some beautiful photos. How To Shoot a Liquid Flow [DIYPhotography] How to Use an Xbox 360 Controller On Your Windows PC Download the Official How-To Geek Trivia App for Windows 8 How to Banish Duplicate Photos with VisiPic

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  • Terminator Skull Crafted from Dollar Store Parts [Video]

    - by Jason Fitzpatrick
    Earlier this year we shared an Iron Man prop build made from Dollar Store parts. The same Dollar Store tinker is at it again, this time building a Terminator endoskull. James Bruton has a sort of mad tinker knack for finding odds and ends at the Dollar Store and mashing them together into novel creations. In the video below, he shows how he took a pile of random junk from the store (plastic bowls, cheap computer speakers, even the packaging the junk came in) and turned it into a surprisingly polished Terminator skull. Hit up the link below for the build in photo-tutorial format. Dollar Store Terminator Endoskull Build [via Make] How to Banish Duplicate Photos with VisiPic How to Make Your Laptop Choose a Wired Connection Instead of Wireless HTG Explains: What Is Two-Factor Authentication and Should I Be Using It?

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  • AllSparkCube Packs 4,096 LEDs into a Giant Computer Controlled Display

    - by Jason Fitzpatrick
    LED matrix cubes are nothing new, but this 16x16x16 monster towers over the tiny 4x4x4 desktop variety. Check out the video to see it in action. Sound warning: the music starts off very loud and bass-filled; we’d recommend turning down the speakers if you’re watching from your cube. So what compels someone to build a giant LED cube driven by over a dozen Arduino shields? If you’re the employees at Adaptive Computing, you do it to dazzles crowds and show off your organizational skills: Every time I talk about the All Spark Cube people ask “so what does it do?” The features of the All Spark are the reason it was built and sponsored by Adaptive Computing. The Cube was built to catch peoples’ attention and to demonstrate how Adaptive can take a chaotic mess and inject order, structure and efficiency. We wrote several examples of how the All Spark Cube can demonstrate the effectiveness of a complex data center. If you’re interested in building a monster of your own, hit up the link below for more information, schematics, and videos. How Hackers Can Disguise Malicious Programs With Fake File Extensions Can Dust Actually Damage My Computer? What To Do If You Get a Virus on Your Computer

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  • Upgrade a Retro Corded Mouse with Wireless Bluetooth Connectivity

    - by Jason Fitzpatrick
    If there’s a beloved retro mouse gathering dust in your office closet for want of wireless connectivity, this detailed tutorial will guide you through upgrading the guts to turn your corded mouse into a Bluetooth model. If you’re handy with a soldering iron and not afraid to hack apart the guts of a modern but inexpensive Bluetooth mouse, you should have no trouble digging right into this project. The end result is a modern mouse packed inside the casing of your old mouse–same old look and feel, brand new engine inside. Hit up the link below to check out the full tutorial. Retro Wireless Apple Mouse [via Lifehacker] HTG Explains: Is ReadyBoost Worth Using? HTG Explains: What The Windows Event Viewer Is and How You Can Use It HTG Explains: How Windows Uses The Task Scheduler for System Tasks

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  • Old Lock Retrofitted for Wireless and Key-free Entry

    - by Jason Fitzpatrick
    What do you do if the old key your landlord gave you is poor fit for your apartment’s lock? If you’re the geeky sort, you build a wireless unlocking module to do the work for you. Instructables user Rybitski writes: The key to my apartment never worked quite right because it is a copy of a copy of a copy. I am fairly certain that the dead bolt is original to the building and the property manager seems to have lost the original key years ago. As a result unlocking the door was always a pain. Changing the lock wasn’t an option, but eliminating the need to use a key was. To that end, he built the device seen in the video above. An Arduino Uno drives a servo which in turn opens the deadbolt. The whole thing is controlled by a simple wireless key fob. Hit up the link below for the full build guide including code. Key Fob Deadbolt [via Hack A Day] How To Delete, Move, or Rename Locked Files in Windows HTG Explains: Why Screen Savers Are No Longer Necessary 6 Ways Windows 8 Is More Secure Than Windows 7

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  • Convert Your Workspace to Standing Height for $22

    - by Jason Fitzpatrick
    If you’d love to try out a standing workstation but you don’t want to shell out $$$ to buy or build one, this simple $22 project will raise up your workspace surface on the cheap. All you need is a LACK side table, some shelf brackets, a shelf, and some screws. The side table goes on your desk, the monitors go on the side table, and the keyboard and mouse go on the shelf (mounted to the brackets that have been positioned at the perfect height for your forearms). Hit up the link below for more pictures, tips, and a downloadable build guide. IKEA Standing Desk for $22 [via Unpluggd] How to Banish Duplicate Photos with VisiPic How to Make Your Laptop Choose a Wired Connection Instead of Wireless HTG Explains: What Is Two-Factor Authentication and Should I Be Using It?

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  • Add Custom Color Changing RGB LED Lighting to Your Next Project

    - by Jason Fitzpatrick
    While this specific project is a really neat back-lit bookcase with customizable LED lights galore, you could easily add the exact same setup to just about anything you wanted to give some LED love. The core of the project is a set of addressable LED modules, an Arduino board, and a simple bit of code. You could use it to make a 70s style mood lighting box, add color changing accents to your media room, or any other number of fun projects just by cloning this project and extending/shortening the wires where appropriate. The control module allows for solid colors, multi-colors, and animations. Hit up the link below for more information including the source code. ExpeditInvaders [via IKEAHacker] HTG Explains: What The Windows Event Viewer Is and How You Can Use It HTG Explains: How Windows Uses The Task Scheduler for System Tasks HTG Explains: Why Do Hard Drives Show the Wrong Capacity in Windows?

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  • How to Turn a Match into a Miniature Rocket [Video]

    - by Jason Fitzpatrick
    If you’re looking for a novel little stunt to impress your friends this Fourth of July, these tiny matchstick rockets are a cheap and easy trick to pull out of your sleeve. Courtesy of Grathio Labs, all you’ll need is a book of matches, a pin, a paper clip, and some aluminum foil. Watch the video to see how it all comes together: As always, play safely with the fun-but-potentially-dangerous projects we share. [via Make] How to Use an Xbox 360 Controller On Your Windows PC Download the Official How-To Geek Trivia App for Windows 8 How to Banish Duplicate Photos with VisiPic

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  • Take Camera Phone Macro Photos with a Cheap Laser Pointer Lens

    - by Jason Fitzpatrick
    Inside those cheap laser pointers you see in the grocery store checkout line there’s a handy little plastic lens that, when slapped on your phone’s camera, makes it easy to take macro photographs. In this tutorial, they take the lens from a laser point and secure it using tape and a bobby pin. An alternative method to achieve the same end (and with a higher quality lens) is to dismantle a CD/DVD drive to source the lens and use painter’s tape to hold the lens in place–this is the technique I used several years ago, check out the tutorial video here. Laser Pointer Macro Lens [via Apartment Therapy] How to Get Pro Features in Windows Home Versions with Third Party Tools HTG Explains: Is ReadyBoost Worth Using? HTG Explains: What The Windows Event Viewer Is and How You Can Use It

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  • Turn a Kindle into a Weather Display Station

    - by Jason Fitzpatrick
    The e-ink display, network connectivity, and low-power consumption of Kindle ebook readers make them a perfect candidate for an infrequently refreshed high-visibility display–like a weather display. Read on to see how to hack a Kindle to serve up the local weather. Tinker and hardware hacker Matt Petroff hacked his Kindle to accept input from a web server and then, graciously and in the spirit of geeky projects everywhere, shared his source code. He explains the heart of the project: The server side of the system uses shell and Python scripts to convert weather forecast data into an image for the Kindle. The scripts first download and parse forecast data from NOAA via the National Digital Forecast Database XML/SOAP Service. After parsing the data, the data then needs to be converted into an image. This is accomplished by preprocessing a specially crafted SVG file to insert temperatures, forecast symbols, and days of the week. This SVG is then rendered as a PNG using rsvg-convert and converted to a grayscale, no transparency color space as required by the Kindle using pngcrush. Finally, it is copied to a public location on the web server. The Kindle is set to refresh twice a day (you could easily tweak the scripts for a more frequent refresh) and displays the forecast as seen in the photo above–with crisp and easy to read text and icons. Hit up the link below for more information and the project’s source code. How To Create a Customized Windows 7 Installation Disc With Integrated Updates How to Get Pro Features in Windows Home Versions with Third Party Tools HTG Explains: Is ReadyBoost Worth Using?

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  • Getting Started in Electronics Tinkering: A Shopping List

    - by Jason Fitzpatrick
    If you’re interested getting an electronics tinkering hobby off the ground this detailed list of things you’ll need (including why you’ll need them and how to get the best value) is an excellent starting place. Kenneth Finnegan started his adventures in electronics tinkering a little over two years ago and in that time advanced from being a complete beginner to putting together some really advanced projects. After his projects started appearing on popular hacking/electronics blogs like Hack A Day he decided to put together a guide to help out all the new hobbyists who were emailing him about his projects and what kind of gear they should get. His buying guide covers books, equipment, development tools, components, and analog chips. His list is very detailed with links galore and plenty of explanation for a new hobbyist. So You Want to Build Electronics [Kenneth Finnegan via Hack A Day] What is a Histogram, and How Can I Use it to Improve My Photos?How To Easily Access Your Home Network From Anywhere With DDNSHow To Recover After Your Email Password Is Compromised

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  • DIY NAS - links for Instructions

    - by Kaushik Gopal
    Good folk of SU, I'm planning to build a NAS (Network Access Storage). I'm planning to do it cheap (:read Old PC Config + Open source software). I was looking for good DIY links . Before you shoot this down as a Repost, I'm only looking for good links containing detailed instructions for setting up a NAS. I did a fair bit of searching and found these links (so please suggest others. While these links are great they delve more on the hardware side, i'm looking for more instructions in the software side). For the sake of the interwebs: Ubuntu: http://snarfquest.com/wiki/index.php/Setting_up_a_Home_NAS http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/content/view/27962/77/ http://jonpeck.blogspot.com/2006/11/how-to-configure-80-fileserver-in-45.html FreeNAS http://www.smallbusinesscomputing.com/webmaster/article.php/3719706 http://www.codeproject.com/KB/system/homemade_nas.aspxhttp://www.codeproject.com/KB/system/homemade_nas.aspx There was one at rubbervir.us that everyone points to, but apparently the site has gone down. A couple of other queries: Is Printer/Scanner sharing a possibility with NAS devices? Many talk of torrent support with NAS Devices, a little more light on this? Does this mean, an auto download of torrent through a feed into NAS, or just support for storing Torrent download files onto the NAS(don't see the difference between the latter and a normal file tranfer)

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  • HomeMade/DIY NAS solution

    - by MicTech
    Has anyone experience with building NAS (Network-attached storage) for home/small office using? What component would you recommend? Hardware CPU motherboard HDDs RAID controller etc. Software OS FTP HTTP etc.

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  • Has anyone tried to DIY his own router?

    - by router
    Can someone provide all necessary components to assemble a router? Especially,what's the component to make it programable? Seems google doesn't give such information . UPDATE I'm not gonna use a computer as router,definitely perfer an embeded device,but what's the component list of the device?

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  • Learning Electronics & the Arduino Microcontroller

    - by Chris Williams
    Lately, I've had a growing interest in Electronics & Microcontrollers. I'm a loyal reader of Make Magazine and thoroughly enjoy seeing all the various projects in each issue, even though I rarely try to make any of them. I've been reading and watching videos about the Arduino, which is an open source Microcontroller and software project that the people at Make (and a lot of other folks) are pretty hot about. Even the prebuilt hardware is remarkably inexpensive , although there are kits available to build one from the base components. (Full disclosure: I bought my first soldering iron... EVER... just last week, so I fully acknowledge the likelihood of making some mistakes. That's why I'm not trying to do the "build it yourself" kit just yet. It's also another reason to be happy the hardware is so cheap.) There are a number of different Arduino boards available, but the two that have really piqued my interest are the Arduino UNO and the NETduino. The UNO is a very popular board, with a number of features and is under $35 which means I won't hurl myself off a bridge when I inevitably destroy it. The NETduino is very similar to the Arduino UNO and has the added advantage of being programmable with... you guessed it... C#. I'm actually ordering both boards and some miscellaneous other doodads to go with them.  There are a few good websites for this sort of thing, including www.makershed.com and www.adafruit.com. The price difference is negligible, so in my case, I'm ordering from Maker Shed (the Make Magazine people) because I want to support them. :) I've also picked up a few O'Reilly books on the subject which I am looking forward to reading & reviewing: Make: Electronics, Arduino: A Quick Start Guide and Getting Started With Arduino (all three of which arrived on my doorstep today.) This ties in with my "learn more about robotics" goals as well, since I'll need a good understanding of Electronics if I want to move past Lego Mindstorms eventually.

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  • The Best of CES (Consumer Electronics Show) in 2011

    - by Justin Garrison
    This year, How-To Geek’s own Justin was on-site at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, where every gadget manufacturer shows off their latest creations, and he was able to sit down and get hands-on with most of them. Here’s the best of the bunch. Make sure to also check out our list of the Worst of CES 2011, where we covered the gadgets that just didn’t make the cut Latest Features How-To Geek ETC HTG Projects: How to Create Your Own Custom Papercraft Toy How to Combine Rescue Disks to Create the Ultimate Windows Repair Disk What is Camera Raw, and Why Would a Professional Prefer it to JPG? The How-To Geek Guide to Audio Editing: The Basics How To Boot 10 Different Live CDs From 1 USB Flash Drive The 20 Best How-To Geek Linux Articles of 2010 Arctic Theme for Windows 7 Gives Your Desktop an Icy Touch Install LibreOffice via PPA and Receive Auto-Updates in Ubuntu Creative Portraits Peek Inside the Guts of Modern Electronics Scenic Winter Lane Wallpaper to Create a Relaxing Mood Access Your Web Apps Directly Using the Context Menu in Chrome The Deep – Awesome Use of Metal Objects as Deep Sea Creatures [Video]

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  • MS in Computer Science after BE in electronics

    - by Abhinav
    I am doing my 3rd year Bachelors in Electronics and Electrical Communication but from the first year I have been interested in Computer Science. But at that time it was just my hobby. But in second year when I joined robotics my love for computer science rose. I with my team came in top three in 2 National Competition (Technical fests of different IITs) where we used Image Processing, Hardware interfacing etc. But then I realised that Computer Science is not just about coding. I took many lectures from online free schools like Udacity, Coursera in subjects related to Artificial Intelligence, Building a Search Engine, Design and Analysis of Algorithm, Programming a Robotic Car, Programming Languages, Machine Learning, Software Engineering as a Service, WebApps Engineering, Compilers, Applied Crypotography etc. I also did some courses in Core and Advanced Java in my second year from training institute. I will also be taking course in Statistics, Databases, Discrete Mathematics from 25th June. Now I realized how vast is the field of Computer Science and how efficient you become on deciding algorithms and classifying problems into different subfields which have been thoroughly researched so you don't always do brute force thing or naive programming. Now this field has become kind of passion for me. Adding to the fact I am also doing my 6 months internship in software field in Texas Instruments where I am working on Automation and Algorithms. I also have some 5-6 good college level projects in Softwares and Robotics. I also like Electronics but only some fields like Operating System(this subject was there in Electronics also), Micro Processor, Digital, Computer Architecture, DSPs etc. I really want to pursue MS in some field of Computer Science. I am giving GRE in October/November. Till now I have good CG of around 9.4/10 and my 1 year in college is still left. Do I have any chance that some good University in US will consider me for MS in field related to computer science or Robotics. Also Can you suggest somethings that I can do during this 1 year to increase my chances for MS or should I apply for EECS(Electrical Engineering and Computer Science) and then I can shift more towards Computer Science as my major option. My main aim is to do Phd after Ms in CS if I am able to do that somehow. I know that I have to put much extra effort to understand things in MS than CS undergraduates but I will do that with my full dedication, also when I communicate with my college CS students or during my internship period I didn't feel that I am missing very much stuff that they know and was very comfortable during my internship with software employees.

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  • The Worst of CES (Consumer Electronics Show) in 2011

    - by Justin Garrison
    This year, How-To Geek’s own Justin was on-site at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, where every gadget manufacturer shows off their latest creations, and he was able to sit down and get hands-on with most of them. Here’s the ones that just didn’t make the cut. Make sure you also read our Best of CES 2011 post, where we cover the greatest gadgets that we found. Keep reading to take a look at the best of the worst products, that might have initially appeared good but showed their true colors after we spent some time with them Latest Features How-To Geek ETC HTG Projects: How to Create Your Own Custom Papercraft Toy How to Combine Rescue Disks to Create the Ultimate Windows Repair Disk What is Camera Raw, and Why Would a Professional Prefer it to JPG? The How-To Geek Guide to Audio Editing: The Basics How To Boot 10 Different Live CDs From 1 USB Flash Drive The 20 Best How-To Geek Linux Articles of 2010 Arctic Theme for Windows 7 Gives Your Desktop an Icy Touch Install LibreOffice via PPA and Receive Auto-Updates in Ubuntu Creative Portraits Peek Inside the Guts of Modern Electronics Scenic Winter Lane Wallpaper to Create a Relaxing Mood Access Your Web Apps Directly Using the Context Menu in Chrome The Deep – Awesome Use of Metal Objects as Deep Sea Creatures [Video]

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  • Is there a peripheral that lets my computer monitor the connectivity of pairs of wires?

    - by raldi
    I've got a bunch of physical switches and circuits that act like switches (they're either connected to ground or they're just an open wire). Is there some sort of thing I can plug into my computer (ideally, via USB) that has a bunch of screw terminals, and I can attach wires to the screws and have the computer keep track of which circuits are closed and which are open? Bonus points if the device also lets the computer open and close switches, too. I don't even know what to google for.

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  • Electronics 101 for kids: littleBits review

    - by Daniel Cazzulino
    I'm always on the lookout for cool toys that can empower my kids (9, 6 and 2yo) to be creative and break the mold of being just consumers of other's ideas. I recently came across littleBits while watching a TED video of their creator. I was immediately hooked. It seemed like the perfect blend of simplicity and self-learning that I was looking to get my kids into electronics. So I went ahead and purchased the kit from SparkFun and a bunch of standalone parts (&quot;bits&quot;) from the site itself. There are also a bunch of videos and pictures on their site to get a better idea of what they are, as well as multitude YouTube videos. This weekend I gave them to my kids, and coincidentally, we also travelled to my hometown and they got to share them too with their cousins. Man, what a blast it was! I decided to approach this &quot;toy&quot; just like one of the iPod/iPad games I buy for them: &quot;How it's used? I've no idea! I just heard it was great, you go figure it out!&quot;. And figure it out they did....Read full article

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  • LEGO Ornaments Bring Geeky DIY Charm to Your Holiday Decorating

    - by Jason Fitzpatrick
    Why settle for just a Death Star ornament when you can have a Death Star ornament you built yourself from LEGO? These DIY ornaments are a perfect geeky touch for your tree or gift for a LEGO loving friend. Courtesy of Chris McVeigh, we find nine DIY ornament guides that range from traditional (like teardrop ornaments and bulbs) to geeky (like Death Stars and Millennium Falcons). Hit up the link below to check out all the files and order the brick collections right through LEGO’s Pick a Brick service. LEGO Ornaments [via Geeks Are Sexy] HTG Explains: Why Screen Savers Are No Longer Necessary 6 Ways Windows 8 Is More Secure Than Windows 7 HTG Explains: Why It’s Good That Your Computer’s RAM Is Full

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