July 2010
4 posts
Brother P-touch PT-80
The Brother P-Touch PT-80 label maker is not good!!
This label maker sucks down batteries like there is no tomorrow. It runs off 4 AAA batteries and it does not come with a wall power adapter. I kid you not, with brand new fresh batteries, I was able to print only SIX labels. Fifty one letters, in six labels and then my batteries were toast. It’s not only me, there are 14 one-star reviews...
American Express Webkey Hack
Pete got this interesting junkmail from American Express a while back. It’s a piece of plastic that looks like a thick credit card, but has a small fold out section that fits into a USB port. When you plug it into your computer, it opens your browser and takes you to a website to sign up for an American Express credit card.
Seems like a lot of work to get you to their website, but it...
May 2010
1 post
December 2009
2 posts
4 tags
Programming PICs on the mac = cheap and easy!
I really like playing with Microchip PIC microcontrollers, and I really dislike using windows. You can imagine my excitement when I realized I could finally program PICs directly from my mac, without using windows.
Microchip sells the USB PicKit 2 ICSP programmer for $34.99 from the microchipDIRECT site. Order using your .edu email address and you will get 25% off. (there are other ways too,...
sign boneyard
amazing las vegas sign collection; http://iconology.therndm.com/archive/neon-boneyard-pam-sattler/718
October 2009
2 posts
Pencil Lust
Do I need a new pencil? the Staedtler Regulator is looking mighty nice.. http://www.jetpens.com/product_info.php/cPath/340_869/products_id/4701
“The spectrum of thin lead drafting pencils runs from all metal rotrings to deep...”
– from the epic online drafting pencil museum; http://www.leadholder.com/ proud to be in the all-metal rotring category, the glorious 0.35mm Rotring 600
July 2009
4 posts
REAL assembly..
it hit me after writing this line;
andi $t0, $a1, 0x80000000
I am really doing assembly now!
psycode
just spawned a donkey!
just spawned a squirrel!
just spawned a squirrel!
just spawned a goblin!
just spawned a donkey!
just spawned a goblin!
just spawned a donkey!
just spawned a squirrel!
just spawned a donkey!
just spawned a squirrel!
just spawned a donkey!
just spawned a squirrel!
just spawned a squirrel!
just spawned a donkey!
just spawned a squirrel!
just spawned a donkey!...
xkcd - the unix 2038 problem →
this is my life right now.
wednesday: what did you do today?
Today I finished HW2 for CS61C! A glorious 1D Cellular Automaton. Here is the output of 20 lines on Rule 30.
May 2009
2 posts
Re: friday: what did you do today?
I’m in Europe for a couple weeks! Blog; http://euro.bitnet.cx
April 2009
2 posts
more linistepper
joy! the linistepper stepper motor controller is working!
The schematic on the linistepper website is a bit confusing. It turns out that a number of the resistors on the circuit diagram are not supposed to be added. I guess they are there to illustrate that you can adjust them to adjust the microstepping current. The problem is that important point is buried deep in their poorly organized...
microsoft
every time I am forced to use one of those awful microsoft programs like word or excel I am amazed by the fact that someone, somewhere, within the company actually approved that little paper clip animation thing. It isn’t just some unfortunate side effect or natural disaster — multiple people with decision making powers actually liked it.
March 2009
5 posts
3 tags
the linistepper on 16f628
you know when you have a very specific question about a very specific project, and you do a google search and a page comes up that has the very specific answer? It’s amazing. Well I had one of those questions the other day, and unfortunately that very specific page could not be found. I had to search through some random forum postings to find the answer. Well that is about to change!
When...
xkcd - A Webcomic - Powers of One →
I think everyone links to this comic because it’s genius, but they are right! it is genius!
pinouts, baby
I always have trouble determining whether a DB-25 connector is male or female. it’s the gender illusionist of ports. Male or female is really easy with headphone jacks, but with a DB-25 (or DB-9) it’s got BOTH in and out parts.
Anyways, all of the pinout diagrams on the internet have some lame drawing of the port, so it’s impossible to tell what’s what.
Max and I are...
February 2009
3 posts
sunday: what did you do today?
spent a rainy sunday drawing up some front and back schematics for the doomsday counter and wirewrapped one test digit.. it works! http://www.skot9000.com/proj/doomsday/front.pdf http://www.skot9000.com/proj/doomsday/back.pdf
giant letters
wow, a whole museum dedicated to just giant letters! I wanna go!
http://www.core77.com/gallery/photos_search.asp?context_id=1&album_id=80
74 series logic ICs
handy datasheet archive for 74ls series logic ICs; http://www.skot9000.com/ttl/
January 2009
2 posts
“Citi Jet Purchase: $50 Million, 12-Seat Plane Despite $45 Billion Bailout” It seems like they just don’t get it. Why are companies like this being helped out?
http://www.nypost.com/seven/01262009/news/nationalnews/just_plane_despicable_152033.htm
Re: tueday: what did you do today?
raspberry toaster waffles.. mmm
December 2008
3 posts
Re: wednesday: what did you do today?
and finals are done! … …
Re: saturday: what did you do today?
feels so nice to be done with my chemistry final. I took all 4 hours to finish it. I’m a little bit more stoked about circuits on tuesday…
Re: tueday: what did you do today?
So much finals!
November 2008
1 post
OJ Simpson Screensaver
in my opinion the best screensaver for windows is one Robert found wayy wayy back in the day. It has horrible graphics and pretty low quality animation, but it captures the low speed OJ Simpson highway chase in a way that nothing else has.
As it is getting increasingly harder and harder to find this gem online I am providing a download link with updated install instructions for windows xp...
October 2008
1 post
Re: sunday: what did you do today?
yes I’m still here! It’s amazing how much less I think about blogging when i’m not in front of the computer 8 hours a day..
September 2008
4 posts
offshore drilling
Santa Barbara, 1969;
“…more than 3 million gallons of crude oil spewed from drilling-induced cracks in the channel floor. For weeks national attention was focused on the spill’s disturbing, dramatic images. Oil-soaked birds, unable to fly, slowly dying on the sand. Waves so thick with crude oil that they broke on shore with an eerie silence. Thirty miles of sandy beaches coated with...
frontrow update
…and it doesn’t fix album artwork over the network! LAME LAME LAME!!
google chrome, omfg
oh my fucking god (OMFG) google chrome;
Re: monday: what did you do today?
brunch! 11am at out house!
August 2008
16 posts
Birthday action
Had a pretty excellent birthday weekend. Robert came up on saturday and we tested the winch out at ocean beach. We were concerned that the Ranger would kick us out and/or ticket us. However when the truck came driving down the beach, all he said was “I don’t think the ranger will like this”. He then watched us for a while and then took off. I guess he was just the lifeguard. No...
Re: thursday: what did you do today?
Wow.. it’s a trip to be back at school. Sandwiches from the roach coach, cheese-its from the vending machine, buying books, talking about quantum mechanics and drinking coffee. I don’t normally have class until after noon… except for Thursday. blech.
Re: friday: what did you do today?
Last day at NextBus today! The talking sign is done! look for it on a street corner near you in the future! in other news, the LA Interchange project I worked on for Luther Thie was mentioned on BLDGBLOG! Hopefully the site will have some video soon. Winching double-fast this weekend! Excitement! School starts on Monday!
BAAART
Last night I got further proof of my claim from the previous post that BART trains won’t normally stop for you…
Re: wednesday: what did you do today?
Yesterday Ria and I decided to meet up for the amazing happy hour at Jade bar on Gough and McAllister. $2 drinks and it’s M-F until 7:30. It’s directly on my way home from work, and they have free snacks. double bonus. Anyways, when I finally finished up at work it was 6:30. (I work in West Alameda). Knowing that If I wanted to cash in on cheap happy hour drinks and hang with the...
say what!?
“the time is 3:00 PM. 22 Fillmore 2 minutes and 8 minutes. 5 Fulton Arriving and 5 minutes. thanks for taking transit”
what you say!? booyah! The Nextbus project is coming together just in time.
OH!,
I forgot to mention, Robert reported that after a small throttle modification, the winch now goes TWICE as fast! RADDD!
z weekend
1 week left at the internship! school starting so soon. Starting up the flow of Physics Club emails again. I had almost forgotten. Alex and Kevin threw an excellent party on saturday night. Robot theme. Ria had a genius costume made out of a silver car sun shade. All Prodigy set by Alex was epic. I didn’t even realize it was almost 4AM. The next day I FINISHED Phase II of the LA Interchange...
Re: thursday: what did you do today?
every year or so I get really into playing some video game for about a week. It usually coincides with something else I should be doing instead. Last night I downloaded the free urban terror. It’s a pretty cool, free, shooter game with an emphasis on realistic levels. Unfortunately no single player mode. My lame playing skills combined with my trackpad made me a pretty easy target. I think i...
Graph Paper
It’s simple:
wirewound, 5 squares per inch (both sides), perforated pages, faint quad ruling.
Pockets are nice but not required.
Sadly, from what I can tell this does not exist. I have been using Mead 5-Star notebooks for years now, but their varying quality drives me crazy. And now they have seemed to have abandoned 5x5 altogether. WTF?!
re: Posey Tube is Filthy
Riding through the Posey Tube this morning it appeared that at least 2 or 3 layers of grime were missing from the wall! That leaves only 5 grime layers left! Progress!
Re: tuesday: what did you do today?
I’m liking this automatic email blogging thing, but the title, “tuesday: what did you do today?” is a little tough since it’s tuesday at 9 am.
talk to god
just one component of the amazing large hadron collider in geneva. Parts of the LHC will be cooled to 1.9K! Cold! more photos here
Re: sunday: what did you do today?
rocked the winch on the russian river on saturday with Robert, Wain, Dad and Dave Gibbs. It’s crazy fun. A few tweaks are needed like free spooling and a bit more speed. I’m crazy sore.