Category: Uncategorized
Blinking Blue- Powering a 3.7 volt LED from a 2.4 volt coin cell with a $0.02 charge pump
Everyone loves blue LEDs and everyone loves coin cell batteries, but if you want to power a blue LED from a coin cell you will need some help. Here is a super-cheap and easy way add a to boost your LED voltage with only an additional capacitor & diode, and a little software.
Capacitive Coupling Casestudy: Programming The Public Radio without removing it from its sealed shipping box
You’ve probably heard about the refreshingly simple Public Radio (TPR). There is no tuning knob needed since your TPR magically knows your favorite station straight out of the box.
Like most magic, this illusion of simplicity involves a lot of work behind the scenes. Each TPR has to be custom programmed by hand, assembled, and then lovingly packed before being shipped to your door. If only there was a way to program an assembled TPR without opening the sealed box…
How to keep comments relevant on your WordPress.com site
TFW the article is choc-full of high-density information, but the comments are page after page of “This is great!” and “What changes would I need to get this working on my my 1978 Chevy Tahoe with the special Darfur 18V option?” and “I English Not how make do it?“. The few useful comments are lost in the noise.
Don’t let this happen to your articles. Please. Here’s how to chaff-proof your wordpress.com site in 5 minutes…
Divorced by Apple in California
We have all gotten used to bugs causing lost data or inconvenient crashes, but here is a confirmed case of a software bug directly leading to the user’s divorce.

Marketizing Citibike… comes true!
Remember Marketizing Citibike from 3 years back? Well, starting today it is real!
Points rather than dollars, but still a huge bold step!

What is the best way to mount LED strips on polycarbonate panels?
Polycarbonate panels are cheap, strong, light, durable, and easy to buy. They are perfect for constructing large scale LED strip installations. But what is the best way to secure your LED strips to the panels? I’ve done a lot of testing to find out, and the most reliable method turns out to also be one of the cheapest and easiest…
Simple.com hacked!

Outlook 2016’s New POP3 Bug Deletes Your Emails!
Yikes, looks like the new version of Outlook 20016 has broken the POP3 implementation. If you are currently using the “leave on server and delete after x days” function, the you should check your account because it seems like that the new Outlook is actually deleting your emails almost immediately after retrieving them over POP3. You might also be seeing dupes.
TL;DR If you are using the Outlook 2016 to download from a POP3 server, you should disable automatic updates and/or downgrade to a previous version or else your emails are likely to be deleted almost immediately.
Continue reading

“Prove me Wrong” Kickstarter Campaign
I just submitted a new campaign to Kickstarter where I ask backers to prove me wrong. The larger story is that I think the new Orison Power System Kickstarter is destined to crash and burn like way too many others have. My campaign is an experiment to see if anything can be done before everyone looses. My past efforts to intervene in crash and burn crowdfunded tech have been painfully ineffective, so I will keep trying new stuff until I get it right!

Flux 3D Printer First Look and Teardown
A brand new Flux 3D printer arrived from Taiwan! This product is still very much beta, so I’ll leave it to others to nit-pick the many rough edges. My goal here is to give a quick look at some of the interesting technical details.
Continue reading