Did you forget your hardware-based password and now you’re locked out? If it’s an IBM ThinkPad you may be in luck but it involves a bit more than just removing the backup battery. SoDoItYourself has an article detailing the retrieval of password data from an EEPROM.
The process is a fun one. Disassemble your laptop. Build a serial interface and solder it to the EEPROM chip where the password is stored. Connect this interface to a second computer and use it to dump the data into a file. Download a special program to decipher the dump file and dig…
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Steal the administrator password from an EEPROM
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Laptop running on a sealed lead acid battery
[Viktor's] laptop needed a new battery; he had the trade off between carrying around a cheap but heavy sealed lead acid (SLA) battery, or buying an expensive but light Li-Ion battery. Figuring his old laptop was pretty heavy already, and having an unused SLA available, re-purposing it for his laptop wouldn’t be too much of a hassle. Using a boost converter he built out of a custom dip MAX668, he is able to output the necessary 5 amps required. An MC 34161 voltage monitor chip is planned for future revisions, but he’s currently running it just fine. Check out…
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Vintage Video: Computing Across America
in 1983, [Steve Roberts] packed up a Tandy 100 laptop and a 5-watt solar panel, fleeing suburbia on his recumbent bicycle on what would become a 17,000 mile journey that forever cemented his place in the geek pantheon…not just as a technology hacker, but as one of the preeminent “life hackers,” pursuing his own dreams on his own terms and inspiring others to do the same.
In this 1989 video, recently unearthed by Hack a Day, [Roberts] reflects on the first 16,000 miles of his voyage, detailing some of the technology that went into his then-current ride, the Winnebiko II.…
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Bar2d2 on the Discovery channel
The friendly robotic bartender we’ve covered a couple of times before hit the airwaves last week. [Jamie], the inventor of Bar2d2 sent in a link to video of the barkeeper in action. The story runs from 0:30-4:40 and covers a bit about the build, the conversion to automatic drink mixing, and plenty of happy liquor-guzzling party goers.
We get a good look at the drink ordering interface called Lazy Drinker. It runs on a laptop and communicates wirelessly with Bar2d2. Looks like you can get your hands on the software for free but the hardware, either in kit form…
Computer
Nokia Booklet 3G specs
Nokia is my favourite handphones brand. Now, Nokia introduces Booklet 3G ‘mini laptop’. This is first Nokia’s netbook. I think is nice to see a nokia netbook.
Nokia Booklet 3G specifications:
Nokia Booklet 3G comes with premium design with a chassis made from a single piece of machined aluminum (Three different colors at launch: black, ice (white) and azure (blue)). Nokia Booklet 3G uses Intel Atom Z530, 1.6 GHz with Intel Poulsbo US15W, fanless design. The size of this netbook has a thickness (19.9 mm thin), with only 1250 g weight. The Nokia Booklet 3G comes toting a glass 10.1-inch…
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Cellphone-controlled home
[Tixlegeek] used a Motorola 68HC705J1 development board to remotely control his home through his cellphone. The video above, as well as [Tixlegeek]’s website, is in French, though the video has been captioned. The development board (called the ERMES125) is controlled by a PIC externally. It has an array of LEDs, and apperantly a few high voltage relays. The PIC is connected to a laptop through a serial interface. The laptop is running a small web server, which uses CGI to control the PIC from a webpage. This system allows [Tixlegeek] to log onto the webpage from his web enabled phone, click a few…
Internet
Options and Add-ons to Enhance Your New Computer
Technology is a big part of today’s world and it is constantly evolving. Just when it seems it can’t get better, a new development is released and somehow out does what we had before. One area where we have seen the most growth is computer technology.
More and more high-end computers are being produced every day. As technology continues to develop, costs come down, and these top-of-the-line computers become more affordable. If you’ve gotten a new computer recently, you’ll have a lot of options available to make the computing experience even better.
One of the more important additions to a…
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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…
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WiFi Mapping with a smartphone
Not so long ago, mapping WiFi required a laptop, GPS, a big antenna and Kismet/NetStumbler. Today’s smartphones have replaced even this task. For those of us running a GPS and WiFi equipped Windows Mobile phone, WiFiFoFum is an excellent and simple solution, as well as a great companion for installing an AP. Start up WiFiFoFum, put your phone on the dash and let it collect the locations of the APs you find while driving around. You can then save the file in several formats: XML, txt, Wi-scan, POI Database, MemoryMap, Netstumbler, and even as a KML File for Google…
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Lightweight Webkit based browsers
With netbooks being slim and mostly utilitarian, it seems a bit contradictory to use a standard and somewhat bulky web browser with them. After all, we’re trimming down the operating system to perform faster on these little devices, so why not thin out the focal point of the netbook: the browser. Firefox, Chrome, or Safari may be well and great for a full powered desktop or laptop, so how about something a bit more trimmed? Enter the lightweight Webkit based browsers: Arora and Midori.
Arora and Midori are relative newcomers to the browser wars, but each offers a great…
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Ruggedize your not-so-rugged portables
Popular Mechanics has a detailed how-to on diy ruggedization of common portable electronics such as laptops, cameras, and cellphones. There is video of a laptop surviving an eight foot fall due to the tennis balls, pipe insulation, and weather stripping they’ve added. Its not just shock resistant, they’ve used a two-part compound marketed for making custom molded earplugs to make the laptop water resistant.
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The Serpent Mother
The Serpent Mother is certainly an appropriate name for this 168foot long snake fire art installation filled with enough goodies to impress anyone who is into flame effects. [The Flaming Lotus Girls] were allocated $60,000 in May of 2006 to bring this art project to Burning Man. A team of nearly 100 people worked together at a furious pace to pull it off. The collaboration of skill-sets is unfathomable between the metal art, firmware, software, LEDs, and propane design. The primary flames consist of 41 “poofers” along the spine of the serpent each one capable of delivering a 8′…
