Saying that [Ian] had some overheating issues with his iMac G5 would be an understatement. After losing three hard drives due to heat he decided to do something about it. The first step was replacing the thermal paste with Arctic Sliver. The solution for the hard drive was a little more unorthodox.
[Ian] picked up a 320GB Western Digital Caviar Blue drive because of its very low noise rating. He used rubber grommets to mount it outside the case and ran SATA data and power extension cables through a quarter inch hole to the motherboard. He mentioned to us…
Hack
Tear your iMac’s insides out
Hack
Vintage Hack – Game Boy Camera
Back in 2005, a member of a French robotics team named [Laurent] wrote a wonderful how-to that we somehow missed on using the Game Boy Camera as a vision device for a robot. The images above are actual shots from his project. The Game Boy Camera features a stunning 128×123 pixel resolution in a gorgeous 4 color gray-scale palette. Possibly the most attractive feature of this hack is that it is still possible to get a hold of these cameras for under ten dollars on ebay.
He connected the camera sensor to an Atmel AT90S4433 using a combination of…
Tech Support
A Handy Recording Tool for Work and Play
The digital voice recorders from Olympus are wonderful tools for the always pressed-for-time folks who desire to have a greater number of options than the traditional tape recorders to capture songs or ideas. Olympus Digital Voice Recorder offer distinct sound quality, longer duration of recording, as well as convenient file management.
The Olympus vn2100pc digital voice recorder offers wave software as well as a USB connection. This diminutive and accurately designed model of digital voice recorder produced by Olympus, makes it easy for you to move your files, index your recordings, and set an alarm. The style can be used…
Tech Support
What You Should Know Before Buying a Digital Camera
Digital images are created by light being focused onto semiconductors. The popularity of digital cameras has been closely linked with the increasing popularity of personal computing, both in terms of making advances features possible and how people prefer their pictures. Digital photography allows a paperless age, where people often prefer to store, view, and share images over the computer instead of printing them physically.
Talk to those you know who own digital cameras before buying one. Friends and family can offer the best advice, and tell you which brands and models they favor or are disinclined towards. You can make…
Tech Support
A Handy Little Voice Recording Tool
The digital voice recorders produced by Olympus are great choices for the always pressed-for-time people who desire to have more options than the usual tape recorders to capture musical pitches or creative impulses. Olympus Digital Voice Recorder offer distinct sound quality, longer duration of recording, as well as convenient file management.
The Olympus vn2100pc digital voice recorder includes wave software along with a USB connection. This small and efficiently designed model of digital voice recorder created by Olympus, permits you to move your files, manage your recordings, and set an alarm. The model is compatible with Microsoft Windows 2000 professional,…
Hack
Digital motorcycle monitor
[Bill] documented the creation of his motorcycle monitor over on the Arduino forum. Consisting of a speedometer, tachometer, and gear indicator, the monitor accurately displays the variables measured by each of the gauges. The gear indicator works by comparing the engine RPM to that of the rear wheel. This ratio is unique to each gear, allowing the Arduino to easily tell which gear the bike is in. The same system is used on many commercial gear indicators. The initial prototype was built using a protoshield, Bluetooth module, graphic LCD, and a few other components. In order to make logging simpler, the Bluetooth…
Hack
Arduino muon detector
[Sebastian Tomczak] was borrowing a homeade muon detector from his friend, and managed to hook it up to his computer through an Arduino. The detector itself uses 3 fluorescent tubes to detect radiation. Three separate tubes are used in order to filter out terrestrial radiation; cosmic radiation will fall in-line with the tubes and pass through at least two of them, whereas terrestrial radiation will only hit one. There is some basic circuitry to amplify the signal and then perform the OR operation.
[Tomczak] used an Arduino to take the raw data and feed it into his computer. He…
Software
Sony Products Multikeygen KeyGen v1.6
This release is working for the following softwares nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp Sound Forge 9 0 Series nbsp Sound Forge Audio Studio 9 0 Series nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp DVD Architect Pro 4 5 5 0 Series DVD Architect Studio 4 5 Series nbsp Vegas Pro 8 0 Series nbsp nbsp nbsp Vegas Pro 8 1 64 bit Series nbsp nbsp nbsp Vegas Pro 9 0 32 and 64 bit Series nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp Vegas Movie Studio 8 0 Series nbsp nbsp nbsp Vegas Movie Studio 9 0 Series nbsp nbsp nbsp Vegas…
Facebook
fbFund REV Demo Day Is Today
Today Facebook will be hosting the fbFund REV demo day to showcase the 25 companies that participated in the first incubator program run in partnership with Facebook and Founder’s Fund. Dave McClure was the primary organizer of this year’s program but Facebook is clearly pumped up about this year’s companies and the new format. Last week I had a chance to speak with Cat Lee of the Platform Product Marketing team to discuss what will be taking place later today.
All of the developers that were part of this year’s program will be showing off their evolved products tomorrow and…
Hack
Your music in Rock Band 2
[Peter Kirn] over at Create Digital Music takes an in depth look at the process of adding your own music to Rock Band 2. This involves using REAPER audio production software, uploading your work via the XNA Creators’ Club, and then playing the fresh track on an Xbox 360. Both REAPER and the XNA Club cost money, and the total price comes out somewhere between $100-$160. The process is now in closed beta but a wider beta is expected in September followed by a full release in October.
Hack
Hacking the Western Digital TV media player
Western Digital recently released a media player that attaches to your TV and allows you to play HD media straight from an external USB drive to the television. With a price point of about $100, it’s strange that the device hasn’t made more of a stir in the consumer electronics market. Of course, if it exists, someone will hack it, though. Clever hardware and software hackers have already managed to get an alternative firmware running on the device, allowing for packages like a web server, RSS reader, Apple trailer viewer, and other linux-based packages. It’s good to see a…
Hack
Camera peltier cooler
[Gary Honis] has been modifying his Canon Digital Rebel XSi in order to do astrophotography. He previously removed the IR filter and replaced it with a Baader UV-IR cut filter that lets most infrared light through. However, in order to reduce noise in the pictures, he had to cool the camera down. He based the project on a peltier cooler that he salvaged from a powered beverage cooler. He made a small aluminum box and insulated it with styrofoam to hold the camera body. The peltier cooler was then attached on the side. It takes just over an hour…
