Friday fun: Compressed Air Rocket

Since this weekend is the 4th of July I thought this "Compressed Air Rocket" project from makemagazine would make a nice Firday Fun post:



Here are links to pdfs for the article and the template for the rocket. If those links don't work then go here: http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2010/04/weekend_project_compressed_air_rock.html

Have a great & safe weekend ~ Jim

Friday fun: Retro Wireless Handset

Are you tired of your Bluetooth headset, and you want to have a little fun? If the answer is yes, and you happen to have a spare handset from an old phone then try this hack from makemagazine:



One of the fun things I can see someone doing with this is walking around a supermarket late at night while talking to a friend on the other end. I wonder what the other shoppers would think?

You can find more information here: http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2010/01/weekend_project_retro_wireless_hand.html

Have a great weekend ~ Jim

Friday fun: LNE - LEGO PackBot

brdavis5 built a really cool all-terrain vehicle based on the Lego NXT system called the LNE. Check out this video of the LNE as it goes through various obstacles and storm troopers:



You can find more images at: http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=229082

Have a great weekend ~ Jim

Friday fun rerun: Max Headroom - Paranoimia

I posted this Max Headroom clip a little over a year ago, and I decided to repost it to celebrate the upcoming release of "Max Headroom: The Complete Series" DVD set on August 10th, which is just two months away:



Another reason why I am reposting this clip is that I just like the song.

Have a great weekend ~ Jim

Friday fun: Lego printer fun!

I know this video of a Lego printer has been featured on Digg, PCWorld, and Geekosystem, but this is so cool I just had to post it here again. Depending on your tastes the music may be a little too loud so adjust your speakers accordingly:



Have a great weekend ~ Jim

Friday fun: BigDog Beta

I thought I would finish off my binge of BigDog robot videos with this video from pantlessknights showing an early BigDog prototype (read parody)



I wonder what the BigDog left on that beach in Thailand?

Have a great weekend ~ Jim

BigDog Beach'n

Here's another video from BostonDynamics featuring the BigDog robot. This time the BigDog is strutting his stuff on a beach in Thailand:



Imagine working on a robot such as BigDog and then going to some exotic beach to test it out. Talk about dream jobs! Cheers ~ Jim

Friday fun: Boston Dynamics BIGDOG Robot

If you are in any way interested in robotics then you have to check out this video from boingboingvideo of Boston Dynamics BIGDOG Robot:



The BIGDOG is designed for military use and is one of the most advanced quadruped robots out there. It's a pretty interesting concept, and the Boston Dynamics and BIGDOG links provide a lot more information.

Have a great weekend ~ Jim

Friday fun: Portable computer commercial from 1977

This week's Friday Fun may be a little redundant in that I already posted this video on my 8-Bit Retro Computing blog, but I just get a kick out of this classic commercial for the IBM 5100 Portable Computer courtesy of MrClassicAds:



The commercial is from 1977 which happens to be the same year that I graduated from high school. I guess back then that a computer weighing about 50 pounds really could be considered a portable. By comparison my netbook is about 1/50th of the weight of the 5100, and orders of magnitude more powerful. It's incredible to see how technology has progressed over the years.

Have a great weekend ~ Jim

Friday fun: Evasive Beeping Thing

Here is another weekend project from makemagazine. I am quite certain that those of you who enjoy playing pranks on your coworkers will enjoy building the Evasive Beeping Thing:



If you plan to build this little beastie then you should check out this link at the makemagazine site which includes errata, user comments, and further links including one for the updated schematic.

And if you have a moment please check out the Geeks Who Care blog, and drop me a line or leave a comment if you have any suggestions.

Have a great weekend ~ Jim

Friday fun: Bohemian Rhapsody Remix

While last weeks clip on reusing Zip Drives was good, I have to say it pales in comparison to this weeks video clip on creative ways of reusing old technology. Check out bd594's fantastic "Queen Bohemian Rhapsody Old School Computer Remix" below:



Pretty cool huh? By the way I have been meaning to write a post about a project I worked on recently with my friend Chuck Goolsbee, but due to a case of toxic pizza I have just been too sick to write anything. I am feeling better now, so I will get something up soon. In the mean time swing on over to Chuck's blog and read his account of the tachometer mod I helped him with for his E-Type Jaguar.

Also if you have a second then please swing by my Geeks Who Care blog, and take a look. It's a blog set up to help coordinate efforts between geeks and groups who need their services, but it's doesn't seem to be getting too much interest. Please drop me a line or leave a comment if you have any suggestions. Thanks!

Have a great weekend ~ Jim

Friday fun: New Life For Old Zip Drives

Thanks to this video from makemagazine I have some ideas for those old Zip Drives I have lying around:



Have a great weekend ~ Jim

Friday fun: 2-Mile Camera Remote

More than likely I am about the 976th person to repost this video from makemagazine, but the video is of a cool project and it's worth reposting:



If I ever have time I am going to try this mod on an old Canon digital camera I picked up cheap. Here are the links for both the Make Magazine site, and the article that the video refers to.

Have a great weekend ~ Jim

Friday fun: Catapult grasshopper

Once again Minuscule comes up with another great video. Chalk another one up for the Ladybug:



Have a great weekend ~ Jim

Friday fun: Internet-Enabled Cat Feeder

Earlier this week there was an article on Digg about a Internet enabled cat feeder that I found really interesting and thought would be a good follow up to the "Maker Workshop - VCR Cat Feeder" post I made a few weeks ago.

The article "Web-Enabled Cat Feeder w/ Video Feed" is from Catster's Cats and Kittens Blog and inlcudes a link to inventor Mathew Newton's site and the video below:



Mathew's site now features a newer version of the cat feeder that uses the Linksys WRT54GL Router. The use of the versatile WRT54GL router makes this an even more interesting project, and gives me some project ideas for my own WRT54GL router. Another cool thing featured on Mathew's site is the microchip-enabled catflap for his two cats Frankie and Elmo.

If you are in to cats and technology then you have check out Mathew Newton's site, and be sure to give Catster's Cats and Kittens Blog a peek too.

Have a great weekend ~ Jim