@jaunty jetty yes yes it is
#general-chat
barren hemlock
spice moss
jaunty jetty
that feel when you try to go to digikey but accidentally type reddit
and then you try again and end up at a podcast
dusty citrus
hahaha.
My first modem to modem chat was probably in around 1985 or so.
I know for sure that by 1987 I was the sysop, and could break in for chat with the (single) user who'd called in to use the BBS.
It got to the point where I had an annunciator to say 'VIP' (very important person) in Morse Code when someone I wanted to chat with logged on.
Then, when the phone rang, I ignored the BBS unless the morse annunciator told me I had further interest.
Hadn't really worked out the details of silent phone ringing quite yet. ;)
Actually -- I had some kind of small box (modem sized) that responded to ring signals differently. There was a way to get it to differentiate.
Probably a Radio Shack product. Distinctive Ringing I think they called it.
dusty citrus
Yeah why not.
dusty citrus
Try to take a few measurements with a mutimeter to suss out what sort of inputs they need to power up.
Steppers I'd guess.
dusty citrus
You're a robot so you should be counting your ribs in medical school to cheat on the exam. ;)
Only in this case -- it's your motors. ;)
dusty citrus
Well what printer technology are you talking about?
Heck, take anything apart except for you know torroidal containments. ;)
dusty citrus
Yeah I haven't had a printer in 10 years plus so I don't know where things have migrated over to.
The problem with small motors is probably going to be making good connections with them.
sand tapir
Yeah
dusty citrus
I seem to recall that mr. Bunny Huang (spelling) was good at reverse engineering difficult connections.
sand tapir
Im hoping to use whatever board they are already attached to
dusty citrus
That's a lot of hope.
dusty citrus
I would do a careful disassembly 'teardown' as they call it and document that extensively.
sand tapir
yeah
dusty citrus
If you don't it can end up like 'ah this is too hard' and ends up in an odd pile of things that don't stack well into piles. ;)
sand tapir
Im only doing this anyways cause i think its better than sending em to the scrap
So no loss really if i screw it up
dusty citrus
You could offer them on ebay for cost.
sand tapir
eh i guess
dusty citrus
I know for sure people do this all the time. Only they try to make a lot of money by parting stuff out.
If you are very honest and .. importantly .. know the full history of the machine .. you can just tell the truth and let it fly on that basis.
dusty citrus
Be well!
dreamy solstice
the multiverse roleplay server is a roleplay server that you can be pretty much anything from any fictional universe, so long as it isnt annoying or overpowered, or anything from real life,
we have user personalized rp channels, meaning that in this "multiverse" we have "universes" that each member can have up to one "universe" all to themselves that is perfectly tailored to their needs, and we have much, much more, so, if you want to be john wick with HALO spartan armor and wields Mjolnir, be my guest
Top Features
+ good active staff
+ a friendly enviroment,
+ user personalized rp channels(dimensions)
+ contests
+ active members
+ 100+ members```
karmic kite
Makerfaire was a success! Way too many ideas for projects now
viral spruce
@karmic kite Whoo! Glad to hear that - snag your notebook and jot them down asap
proud garnet
karmic kite
Canadian prairies, in saskatoon
barren hemlock
all the maker fairs are so far away 😦
barren hemlock
oooh theres one in Louisville thats kinda close
karmic kite
One thing that came up repeatedly today was asking if forcing STEAM at tech areas is nessecary, as designers and hobbyists already integrate all aspects
karmic kite
Interesting, theres quite a few places like that. We often compare accents from east to the west by the way the pronounce city names
Calgary (calgry), toronto (toronA/toroTo)
karmic kite
Ver sie
barren hemlock
nah
karmic kite
I mean different pronounciations
barren hemlock
i know :)
half the people around here during the equestrian games did not know the correct way to say versailles
actually ~90%
roughly
karmic kite
They were probably just horsing around though no?
barren hemlock
nope
grave crest
Where do you clean a SAN?
At the LUNdry mat!
sturdy oyster
So, today I realized that being a maker is being a person adept at making your stage 1 design flaws into a stage 2 feature.
jaunty jetty
are you familiar with the game Tribes?
sturdy oyster
@grave crest I'll have to see if I can get a photo next time I'm there, but some folks around here call those washaterias
Tribes?
jaunty jetty
it's an old FPS, I want to say early 2000nds
there was a glitch in it where if you jumped repeatedly you'd basically be frictionless and slide down whatever terrain you were on; it was a game designed around huge maps and sprawling terrain so this plus the jetpack they gave you was super useful
this is the most recent title in the franchise https://youtu.be/_FBfV55tDQo
sturdy oyster
ha! nice
karmic kite
I blocked *.facebook.com with opendns from my main rig.. it blocks 1000-5000 requests a day and speeds the internet up ridiculous amounts
Static.facebook.com is really bad for adware on various sites
The university apparently blocks google ads with dns services but I cant seem to find what they blacklist
karmic kite
So I just added this to my blacklist on open dns, and haven't had any ad's for the past hour
*exception being if you like the fancy new look of google sites *.ytimg.com has to be whitelisted'
light ice
@karmic kite uMatrix is also good at blocking ads and malicious scripts
(Chrome browser extension)
karmic kite
I use to use extensions, but if I can block at the DNS level and not have extra add-ons in my browser it eliminates the traffic altogether from entering my home's bandwidth
light ice
In this case, uMatrix works out the same as a DNS filter. The browser never requests the ad or script data that normally gets loaded
The initial HMTL loads, many of the ad/script requests are blocked before they're even made
I've written my own DNS filter code (https://github.com/bitbank2/bb-hole) too
quiet urchin
For those of you who want any help designing or fabricating laser cut parts, I would love to help. DM me or leave me a message on https://Techniack.com
jaunty jetty
fun fun https://youtu.be/H7p5YEOrlSc
they're basically following guides off the internet to replace the costly nestcams he wasted money on with a raspberry pi zero and camera
quiet urchin
Yea
jaunty jetty
maker nerds need to get into the joystick & etc market
I'm looking at an automotive gearshifter that's fricken 170$
also stuff like throttle quadrants; logitech's 3 lever quadrant is like 80$, no buttons, just 3 analog axis controlled by levers with knobs on the end
oh wait there are some buttons
dreamy solstice
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/448912613863063553/450683107394191371/master_of_lightning.jpg
jaunty jetty
I bet Tesla could build a wicket joystick; either the guy or the company
dreamy solstice
admit the image is awesome
jaunty jetty
eh
grave crest
@jaunty jetty I can second the MotionEyeOS as a VERY practical solution -- I have been running the same thing for my apartment for years now.
The only change I made is I created a Linux VM running MotionEyeOS encoding software instead of a RPi3 -- mainly because I have an ESXi server and tons of spare cycles.
I have all the footage backed up to my NAS.
You can also put software hooks into the MotionEyeOS software for sensors -- so I have a camera that is tripped whenever my door is opened. Those videos are sent to my NAS + cloud storage + an alert is sent via SMS. So if an burglar stole my storage...well, I'll have something instead of nothing.
The sensor part is a bit involved, but absolutely doable.
I also use RPI3 w/ wifi for each camera instead of the RPi0w
They're a little bit faster.
Cost per each camera is sub $100. Better than any NEST camera you'll find.
jaunty jetty
NEST is a brand, I don't think they have that many models
the problem with nest also isn't the hardware or really the price, it's that they've designed the system so the basic functionality is locked behind a very high pay wall
grave crest
Regardless if you look at NEST or any other cloud-based solution -- they're not cheap, they get you on the hook for a monthly plan, and at any point, cloud-only hardware can be discontinued. Your expensive hardware is now a paperweight.
Rolling your own solution is much more flexible and avoids those monthly fees -- with the cost of you being responsible for maintaining the solution.
jaunty jetty
yea, this is all a service-reliance problem that in my eyes makes the nest cameras, and nest products in general, valueless
to be fair though, the cost of setting up a NAS is still unreasonably high
even 2 disk super basic NAS boxes are very expensive and they don't usually come with disks in them; a box you can properly RAID and could keep up with this kind of use case is going to be in the 300+ range most of the time, again without disks
building one wouldn't be so bad, you can probably get it under 250$ before disks, but that doesn't include any kind of case that can fit a useful quantity of drives
grave crest
Well...I disagree. They're not "very" expensive, but they're not cheap either if you buy quality. And it's nice that you can choose your own disks too. I'd want that freedom.
And I'd suggest against making your own, as you've just forgone any power savings --- repurposing an old PC with linux is going to eat power for breakfast compared to a 2-bay NAS appliance from QNAP or Synology
And you can use that nas for much more than just security camera video storage.
jaunty jetty
for someone looking to save money by building their own cameras, the price tag for getting a NAS eats any savings
modern jasper
fantastical is havin a giveaway comp if yall aint know it
$1000 to be won, 1 x $500 and 10x $50
https://wn.nr/wsF7ss
jaunty jetty
fantastical the calendar app for apple devices?
grave crest
That's a good point. For that person then, I'd suggest just getting a nicely sized SSD for an always on computer, and think about what sort of retention plans fit within the size of that SSD.
jaunty jetty
I feel like this kind of use case would burn out an SSD pretty quick
maybe also upgrade the ram in that computer and set up a ramdrive to buffer for an HDD
grave crest
Eh, not that really. And lets say it does burn it out within 3-4 years. By that point, a replacement will be cheaper, larger, and faster.
jaunty jetty
yea that's fair
grave crest
Spinning NAS drives -- Western Digital RED drives (non Pro series) last me about 4 years of 24/7 use, even with spindown enabled.
jaunty jetty
a small SSD and a cheap HDD could be a good solution too if you can get software to make that work the way I'm thinking
any idea what kind of data rate the central server needs to sink is like?
might be able to get away with a USB3 flash drive to buffer
grave crest
*shrugs....everything I do is 100mb wired, so the data rate is kinda a moot point for me
Never really looked at it.
And with two cameras running, I knew I was far below maxing out any of my equipment.
jaunty jetty
it's more an issue of the drive write speed; this should be very bursty traffic so as long as the HDD can drain the buffer during typical load and the buffer is big enough to hold burst traffic like when your door opens, it should be fine
65$ for a refurb HGST HDD, 12$ for a 32GB USB3 flash drive, that's pretty accessable
the flashdrive will probably burn out in 1~1.5 years but it's also very cheap
modern jasper
dreamy solstice
in yall's opinions, what is the best laptop that is best balanced over speed, portability, cost and quality?
like, what's the fastest laptop, that is affordable, highest quality, and highest portability, without sacrificing speed and cost,
grave crest
Macbook Pro 13" non-touch bar, latest edition
dreamy solstice
I forgot to say
*that runs windows, because macs are too strict for my uses
my apologies
grave crest
Macs do run windows, by the way. Both natively in Bootcamp and in virtualization via Parallels/VMWare fusion.
But I understand your preferences.
dreamy solstice
but.. that kind of stuff eats resources
I'd have to directly download windows onto a mac
(what I really want is a windows linux hybrid os 😐
tame saddle
@dreamy solstice i've been in the market for a couple months. i think i've decided on a Dell Inspiron 7000. Narrowing in on the "old" 13" or the new 14". 14" has 128GB SSD + 1TB HDD, which I don't really want. The 13" also has more USB A style ports...which I do want.
grave crest
Next I would suggest the Dell XPS 13"
grave crest
I would also consider the Surface Pro tablet hybrid, although I am not impressed with the reliability or hardware of them.
tame saddle
yeah, XPS is what i really want, but ultrabooks are fickle. and....they've pretty much all gone to USB C. 😦
Or a Surface Laptop. same hesitation.
grave crest
USBC is the new standard. I know how you feel, as I have many accessories that need USB type A. But it's not a bad direction to be going into.
dreamy solstice
I really want a pc with similar specs and cost and quality as a gdp pocket, but no smaller than 11"...
the 7" screen would give my eyes fits
but the quad core(modern atom, not old sucky atom) 2.56 ghz cpu, with 8gb of fast ddr3 ram, a actually good intel hd gpu, 1920x1080 screen, and windows 10? the only bad part is the 128 gb ssd
grave crest
The XPS 13" ultrabook is one the best regarded ultrabooks and windows laptops in general. Very good everything, reasonably reliable, etc.
And it's a 13" laptop in a 12" sized format
dreamy solstice
I'll definitely consider the xps 13
tame saddle
with a nosecam... 😄
grave crest
Yeah, the camera is subpar
dreamy solstice
I dont use cameras on laptops
grave crest
Personally, I would NOT get them as I'm a Mac fan. I think the rMBP 13" non-touch is the sweet spot
But that's my own opinion....even factoring in the awful keyboard.
and oversized trackpad
tame saddle
the sub 3lb, .46" thickness is the XPS' best feature IMO...
grave crest
@tame saddle Indeed, it's a tiny critter
tame saddle
the i7 w/16GB is pricey though...
dreamy solstice
if I were to have any hope at getting the xps 13, I'd have to get it from somewhere that has a lower price
tame saddle
yeah, they aint cheap unless you get the...what is it, m3 model? with like 4GB.
dreamy solstice
oof
4gb is terrible to today's standards
chrome uses like... 64 gb?
windows uses at least 16 gb
grave crest
I have serious reservations about the Surface line. The tablet is in 5th gen, the Book is 2nd gen -- but they still have many issues that plagued the line since the first generation tablet many years ago:
blacklight bleed, screen yellowing, slow SSD bandwidth, pen jitter, poor edge detection with the pen, terrible wifi chipset.
But.....if you get one that works -- it's an interesting concept, especially if you have a need for the hybrid format.
tame saddle
yeah, i love their look, form factor...and that Alcantra. but, the longevity and quality have too many dings.
dreamy solstice
see, my laptop's keyboard is broken, it's screen is dim, it's gpu is too old to handle modern tasks, it's cpu is slow and outdated, it's wifi chipset it slow and unreliable, the ram is, slow
grave crest
sounds like anything would be an upgrade 😃
dreamy solstice
it's got a core i5 2520m with intel hd 3000
and OLD 8gb of ddr3
tame saddle
The Asus ZenBook was another contender for me. Asus is one of my goto brands....
dreamy solstice
the only new part is the hdd I pulled out of a dead new(ish) inspiron laptop
to replace the hdd that suicided on me
grave crest
If cost was a factor and portability wasn't, I'd strongly recommend a 2015-or-earlier Macbook Pro. Last line to have USB-A, magsafe, thunderbolt, HDMI...a non-horrible keyboard, and a normal sized trackpad.
dreamy solstice
is there anywhere that'd sell that with windows loaded onto it?
grave crest
I have a late-2013 15" rMBP i7 w/ 512gb ssd + 16gb ram. Which was amazing and overkill back in 2013. It's still a serious workhorse today.
dreamy solstice
(goes to apple store
"hello, I'd like a licenced professional to insert a usb flash drive into my mac"
somewhere else
inserts usb flash drive into macbook
error, you have jailbroken your device
self destructing in, 10 seconds
grave crest
well, windows you pay for either way -- either through the OEM's cost of the machine or a license on your own
dreamy solstice
could I port an hdd's contents to it?
tame saddle
like with the OS? windows won't like that. motherboard detection (among others) will trip it...
dreamy solstice
heh, my laptop already did that
remember, it's hdd came from a dead dell laptop
that was....... 5 months ago?
I'm using that laptop rn
see the watermark?
grave crest
Let me put it this way -- I paid $2k for my MBP nearly 5 years ago. Works out to $400/year of every day usage as a main machine. A windows 10 license costs ~$100. That's $20/year additional cost. Not too bad.
dreamy solstice
that's the only thing it does
tame saddle
it also shuts down updates, doesn't it? (been a long time since I ran into Activation Required)
grave crest
If you're part of a school or workplace program, you might qualify for a reduced cost license.
grave crest
But what I'm saying is, if you plan on using it heavily, it's probably worth the cost.
dreamy solstice
I really want an alienware mx11, but they arent out yet
because dell is good
alienware is good
grave crest
or you can keep an eye on deal websites like slickdeals, see if a last-gen XPS or surface sale shows up. Might be worth the compromise for the savings.
dreamy solstice
yeah, if I could snag an xps 13 (8gb model minimum) for, at max $8-900 I'd be happy
grave crest
check what deals are available on slickdeals -- they might ahve coupons for the dell outlet site
and see what historically prices have been
dreamy solstice
k
grave crest
that's usually a nice indicator of future sales
dreamy solstice
hey woah those arent bad prices
grave crest
I used to be a big fan of second-hand computers, but unless you're getting a great deal, I hesitate. People & businesses usually beat up tech. For a fraction more, you can get a new item w/ a 2-3 year warranty
Great deal or from a trusted source. "Off-lease" machines? I'd be very afraid unless they came with a warranty.
tame saddle
http://www.dell.com/en-us/member/shop/dell-laptops/inspiron-13-7000/spd/inspiron-13-7370-laptop/dncwka002s
Dell Inspiron 7000 13": 8th Gen i7-8550, 8GB DDR4, 256GB SSD, 2 USB-A, 1 USB-C, 3lbs, .66" thick.
$930
The i5-8520 version is the same otherwise: $765
tame saddle
The ONLY thing i would swap on that rig is the HDMI for an Ethernet. But, USB adapter can do it anyway. 😄
tame saddle
i use it everyday. both at work and home. still rock a desktop.
just realized those are "member" prices. (i have a deal with work). they may discounted a little.
and it must be cookied, because i can't get to non-member. 😄
grave crest
I use ethernet all the time. I prefer it to wireless. More secure, more robust, less potential issues.
And higher bandwidth.
vestal phoenix
I hardwired the house because there is too much interference through plaster lath walls and neighbors looking for a free ride on the interwebs.
grave crest
Exactly. I hardwire everything that can reasonably be hardwired. Doesn't mean I don't have a strong wifi for things like phones and tablets. But it's utilized very little in comparison to the server, nas, laptops, security cameras, etc
and oh, it's easier to get a wired network setup on almost any OS. Just plug in the cable. Most interfaces are defaulted to DHCP. Bam. 😃
vestal phoenix
And I have a 1000' roll of plenum cat5e to use up, that is a lot of cable for one person...
red gulch
Hey guys, this is a bit off-topic, but can anyone help me choose between two laptops
I've narrowed down by search to two, so if anyone can send me a recommendation pm me http://www.dell.com/en-ca/shop/dell-laptops-netbooks-and-tablets/new-dell-g5-15-gaming-laptop/spd/g-series-15-5587-laptop on on the right https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B06Y4GZS9C/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=A18A938UBK28OZ&psc=1
proven olive
@red gulch I'd 100% go for the Acer.
More RAM (16gb vs 8gb)
Full SSD system - And for gaming, an SSD is far, far superior to a HDD in any configuration.
Having run a SSD boot + HDD storage configuration, I can say the biggest increase in... everything I have ever achieved was replacing it with a single SSD
Plus, if you need the storage, a 1TB external HDD is super inexpensive.
The Acer also has an I7-series processer vs the I5 on the Dell
But, on the other hand, that specific I5 in the Dell outperforms that specific I7 in most cases. That said... you wouldn't notice it much.
The I7 has slightly faster multi-core speed, the I5 slightly faster single-core speed. They're both quite solid
grave crest
Additionally, in many cases (but not all), the i7 runs hotter and draws more power. So you may have the internal fan kick on high more frequently, etc.
But I will 2nd what @proven olive said -- SSD-only is the way to go. I just saw a deal for an external 2tb USB-only drive for $65....external storage is way cheap.
More ram is always good, and although many say "you can always upgrade later" -- I found I rarely ever did. And most laptop now have the RAM soldered onto the motherboard. So if you're dropping money on a new machine, strongly consider 16gb out the door.
For me, fit and feel is the most important part. Do I like the keyboard and trackpad? Does the screen look good, to me?
jaunty jetty
SSDs are drop safe, definitely preferrable in portable machines, and everything is trending towards requiring more ram
8 years ago 8GB was 8lot of ram, now its only sufficient for browsing
jaunty jetty
Can you put the tabs on the bottom?
dreamy solstice
?
jaunty jetty
I cant use browsers with tabs on top
dreamy solstice
not to my knowledge
jaunty jetty
To be fair to all of the other browsers, they're terrible, but also the problem is more that websites have a ridiculous amount of far reaching script inclusions and thoughtless volumes of imagery driving up the footprint of pages
dreamy solstice
is there a way to store a virtual machine on an external hdd?
and run it from that hdd?
jaunty jetty
yep, just do that
now if it's a USB2.2 or below external enclosure your performance is going to be terrible, but a USB3 enclosure (on a USB3 port) should be fine, you can even get external SSDs that will perform very well
dreamy solstice
it's usb 3.1
sand tapir
how are yall taking the fbi thing with the routers?
I've been worried about this sort of thing for years
If the average consumer didnt expect this, then how will they react when they find out all the other things their iot devices can do?
jaunty jetty
did the FBI steal my router?
jaunty jetty
russia stole the FBI?
dreamy solstice
yes
jaunty jetty
I told you we needed a backup FBI
jaunty jetty
SD cards are not an archival format!
jaunty jetty
did you clean the capstans and replace the belts first? those machines go off like ghosts on halloween
dusty citrus
I've never seen a tabbed www browser with the tabs on the bottom. great idea.
dusty citrus
I think most software wastes valuable screen space. I don't understand that thinking (at all).
jaunty jetty
I've got a lot of screen space, I prefer clarity and usability
putting tabs in the header distinctly reduces usability and moves the part of the UI I touch the most further away from where I'm working with it
as an example, one of the UI failures I incur most often in discord is that in windows the header does not extend to the top of the window, so when you fling the mouse to the top of the screen to grab the window and pull it out of maximize, you're interacting with a text field
putting the tabs in the header really screws with this base level OS UX behavior, and for no good reason
also discord toasts directly over the entry field
severe glen
When I see an Adafruit product with "M0 Express" in the title, I can't help but think of this: https://youtu.be/i_85fUIRlmU
vestal phoenix
@severe glen This is the Circuit Playground Express. Watch the closing doors...
jaunty jetty
seems a little big
you could probably make a pretty decent PC-on-a-board given an entire frisbee
jaunty jetty
Anybody aware of an open source project to design a really good joystick platform?
the first result on google is this https://github.com/tjhowse/OpenJoystick but it's been dead for a long time and uses files bound to an obscure cad platform
sturdy oyster
@jaunty jetty I've been sort of working one one. Nothing fancy really, just using a microcontroller as a HID with some knobs and buttons. I'm thinking of building off this https://blog.gimx.fr/
I'm mostly still in the tinkering with hardware stage
plush musk
Finally an update on Simone's surgery. Sounds like it went well. https://twitter.com/SimoneGiertz/status/1002036156752543746?s=19
Twitter
dusty citrus
I told you inappropriate jokes are important to society. ;)
dusty citrus
Is there a good school called Harvard in the UK?
Harvard is frequently name-dropped in tv shows from the UK set at good schools such as Oxford or Cambridge. Seems odd that the well-known university in Boston, Massachusetts is mentioned so frequently on these programmes.
jaunty jetty
The ivy league is considered as close to europe as america gets so they're worth
dusty citrus
I was just surprised that they're a mentionable on the campus of Oxford. ;) Like they're going back and forth over the Atlantic, no cultural boundary. Seems odd.
In the other direction I get that well enough, as it's (one) parent culture over there.
dusty citrus
This Dell Optiplex 790 I'm running has the loudest audio chip (by far) of any PC I've owned (except possibly the 2002 iMac G4 I had; I think that one had a TDA2003 audio chip (or similar number).
Says Realtek ALC269Q in the Dell datasheet for the 790.
jaunty jetty
don't you hate it when the postal service emails you that you're expecting a letter that looks like it's probably something from the IRS that you're expecting and will radically modify your finances so you don't buy a bunch of cool stuff; and then eventually the mail arrives and it's spam from AT&T
since all that isn't happening I'm gonna order some PCBs
dusty citrus
Haha.
I don't like it whenever they win the made-you-look game and now I have an opened envelope with nothing inside it that I want or need.
jaunty jetty
cool, my PCBs got a free upgrade to first class
sand tapir
Any of yall ever play a game from the jedi knight / dark force series?
jaunty jetty
man, the internet really wants this experience to go great; digikey shipped my order same day and I barely put it in during business hours; though I think minesotta might be central?
I have a really bad time with amazon, they keep shipping my stuff AMZL which means you don't know anything about it until basically the day before it's to be delivered, and they tend to deliver it within about a quarter mile of your front door. This has been really nice
my last package the courier even threw the package at my door from halfway up the stairs and left
sand tapir
lol
I had a pkg once, with fragile labels and everything
Got tossed at my door, broke, and broke a garden statue
jaunty jetty
This future sucks
proven olive
I've heard many horror stories about AMZL. Thankfully, they don't operate near me, so my stuff goes through USPS - Which is pretty good around here (Although I've heard horror stories from elsewhere)
jaunty jetty
oh, they do
AMZL is Amazon Logistics, which is also a lie; they move your stuff inside amazon's supply chain until it's near you and then they hand it off to a local courier for the 'last mile'
proven olive
And those couriers are paid by number of packages delivered in X time
So the speedier they can get things done, the better
For them, at least.
jaunty jetty
these local couriers are generally rapid delivery business facing services, the kind that would normally move a small amount of stuff at a very high price between two businesses ASAP; so this AMZL business is only profitable because it has a high guaranteed throughput, but in every other way it's terrible business for them, in physical places they'd rather not be
I've ordered 90% less stuff from amazon since they started /exclusively/ using AMZL for my packages
yanno those things you can put a lamp what turn it's bulb socket into an outlet? are those safe?
a whole bunch of ideas on this project I'm brain cracking just came together and I think I can make it all work pretty well now
stray wind
I assume as long as the pull is low enough, yes. I've used them multiple times and had no problems, but I'm often using them plug light bulbs in further down an extension line (to turn a ceiling lamp into two ceiling lamps for example).
proven olive
In other words: It's as safe as the lamp is.
The socket connection should be solid enough. It's the lamp's wires that I'd worry about.
Light (hah) loads? Should be fine. Running a gaming computer? Probably not the best idea.
jaunty jetty
so I'm basically making a very specific RGP IoT lamp as a system status monitor; and I've got everything just about figured out electrically but I want to build it into a lamp that stopped existing as soon as I had reason to buy one
the plan now is to find any small lamp and get a PCB donut that all the stuff mounted on, then the donut slides onto the lamp's socket, ideally between two pieces that thread together but just kinda on top would be fine; put the socket socket in and that's where it's powered from
proven olive
A socket to plug converter, then a standard wall-to-usb (There's some really small ones out there) would be a great way to get 5v
jaunty jetty
the one I have isn't crazy small, but it's probably going to fit within the donut given some other bits the donut will have; and the lighting will be RGB strip on mesh just inside of the lamp shade so it won't mess with lighting
that said, it'd be pretty cool if somebody made a lightbulb to USB adapter
proven olive
I was looking, couldn't really find one
stray wind
I would also recommend Ikea lamps because they're often designed to allow for mounting the lamp shades on them which means there's threading on the lamp base and it comes with a threaded ring meant to hold the lampshade on.
There are also often options that are very inexpensive.
proven olive
Well, not entirely true: https://smile.amazon.com/USB-Light-Bulb-LampCharger-Rechargeable/dp/B076B8LJLT but that is large and ugly
jaunty jetty
I wonder if they have the lamp I want...
I feel like what I'd like in a socket converter would have to be targeted at makers doing something like what I'm doing; because normal people would want something horrible like that
I don't need to plug a lightbulb in the lamp at all, I am the lightbulb
normal person: But how do you put the lightbulb in?
jaunty jetty
I'm using the lamp as a case
jaunty jetty
in the lamp I meant to use originally I was going to gut everything and run my own wiring; but other lamps are more difficult to put stuff in
what I wanted was this thing (mocked up in cad)
sand tapir
The ghost of 3d printing past.... printttt itt
jaunty jetty
I can't afford a 3D printer
jaunty jetty
not around here they don't
sand tapir
aww rip
jaunty jetty
there's one makerspace that isn't out of business between here and ann arbor; and they're 50$ a month, membership only
sand tapir
ouch ouch
jaunty jetty
I like a lot of these ikea lamps, but all of the inline powerswitches are like 3 inches away from the lamp itself
I hope this is just a fake for the pictures so you'd know it's got a switch inline
https://www.ikea.com/us/en/images/products/ingared-table-lamp-with-led-bulb-beige__0497474_PE629154_S4.JPG
jaunty jetty
I wonder what the cheapest effective sous vide device you can build would be
some tiny arduino with a thermometer of some sort and a relay controlling a heating element; and then a cheap generic case fan of some sort should do
sleek urchin
somehow I don't think a case fan is gonna work well in water
jaunty jetty
well, maybe not, for long, maybe not, in hot water, eh; but it will work
sleek urchin
yeah, but sous vide is about prolonged periods in hot water
also dealing with mains voltage
Really might be a better idea to just get a premade one that's like $70
jaunty jetty
70$ is a lot more than like 15
sleek urchin
$70 is a lot less than your wiring failing and taking your stove to mains
jaunty jetty
stove?
sleek urchin
most people place sous vide pots, on the stove, because it tends to be one of the more heat resistant surfaces in the kitchen
sleek urchin
no? Metal pots and polycarbonate bins are the most common
jaunty jetty
temperature control is the name of the game, you have to keep it in a highly insulative container or you're just wasting everybody's time
putting it in the most conductive thing possible is just, dumb
sleek urchin
still seems like an awful idea to home build a high power kitchen appliance that's meant to be left running for many houirs on end, just to save a couple bucks
jaunty jetty
well now that's a very different point that I'm not going to dispute
but sometimes a thing needs to be done just because it's a bad idea
grave crest
Offtopic post: Amazon has a pretty awesome Gold Box deal today -- Dewalt oscillating tool + accessories for $100.
Normally the tool is $140 + accessories, so it's pretty nice. It goes for $100 once or twice a year.
Good tool for cutting larger items in tight quarters (home owners, this is for you).
As always, read the manual & don protective equipment before using.
It could also make a great father's day gift.
jaunty jetty
fun fun fun https://fast.com/#
netflix is now operating a download speed test off their servers, so ISPs can't differently prioritize the test platform from netflix itself in order to hide bandwidth shaping practices
I expect to see every service like netflix that is held hostage by ISPs offering this kind of thing within a year or so
this exists for amazon but they will probably put one out under their own branding https://cloudharmony.com/speedtest-for-aws
youtube will surely disappoint me, as they always do
karmic kite
burnt gyro
Question for the people that already did it: which is the minimum required internet speed to stream om youtube or twich?
jaunty jetty
Twitch for sure and probably youtube permit you to turn the stream quality way down, and the stream will technically work , very poorly, well under any reasonable limit
I'd say the minimum is going to somewhere around "internet == yes"
jaunty jetty
ok and minimum are very different things
burnt gyro
Lel
jaunty jetty
yea you'll probably need to push the resolution down to 480i, turn the compression way up, and the bitrate way down
compression will be hard on your computer, making it difficult to run games at the same time, but it lets you send out a better looking image with less data
burnt gyro
An intell i7 7700k overclocked is ok for compression, i think
jaunty jetty
depends on too many things to say; but you can improve the situation by forcing it onto cores the game isn't using
burnt gyro
Fortnite do not use so much cores
jaunty jetty
oh and this is going to totally screw over your network, so it's going to lag all the way
don't expect playing online multiplayer games to be fun
jaunty jetty
at least you're not tilted
burnt gyro
😂
jaunty jetty
is the internet situation permanent?
dusty citrus
No. One day it'll be replaced by SkyNet.
sand tapir
Everything Microsoft touches turns to "it just works, stop asking about it"
At least apple has a decent terminal built in
sleek urchin
Come to GitLab!
sand tapir
lol
jaunty jetty
now forgive me
I was informed several years ago that microsoft had purchased github
is the verge a good source of news?
sleek urchin
they haven't announced it yet, but even Bloomberg is reporting on this
proven olive
I've seen it a few places, too.
proven olive
@jaunty jetty I removed your comment. While the definition of the term may be correct, the term itself can be interpreted as derogatory. We want to ensure that Adafruit is welcoming and inclusive to all, so we must err on the side of caution when removing such things.
jaunty jetty
I am not aware of what you're talking about
oh my mandella effect joke?
eh
I do gotta say, the word I used has no definition, I made it up, so that I still don't know what you mean
proven olive
OK! So, referencing the Mandella Effect made me do a bit more research, and everything makes more sense now.
Give me just a sec.
proven olive
The term "Bernsteined" comes up quickly on UD with... A thing about corporate sales. Which can be seen as anti-semetic, considering a lot of historic context.
jaunty jetty
I saw that trying to figure out what you meant, I'm fine with not using that fake word
proven olive
When you mentioned the Mandela Effect, the first thing I saw was the Berenstain Bears, and now everything makes a lot more sense
Excellent. It's good that we all know what was intended now
jaunty jetty
yep, I'm from an alternate reality where Microsoft bought Github in 2014
proven olive
The Matrix has been reconfigured.
jaunty jetty
or at least I passed through it during that time
since I'm also from a universe where the books were called the Bernstein Bears, not the Berenstain or Berenstein Bears, I've probably travelled a lot
burnt gyro
misty escarp
I'm selling some ad space on my website, for more details, DM me please.
sleek urchin
free game alert https://www.gog.com/game/xenonauts
spice moss
they was already more contributing entity
MS drive to Opensource have being going up more and more
looks good as github get improved
sleek urchin
Microsoft sinks its fingers into open source and remolds it into a money making entity for them
I would be surprised if the "Embrace, Extend, Extinguish" concept was completely gone at microsoft in mangement
spice moss
the anydeveloper, any, cloud and so on
jaunty jetty
Since the release of windows 10 we can't really take microsoft as the company it used to be. They've vocally come to realize that their products no longer have worth as objects and they must dramatically change the entire soul of the business or die. We see this in Windows 10 being a service, not a product, microsoft office becoming a service, not a product. They bought Mono because C# needs to be opensource to be used widely and wide use is more important than quality. Everything that is not literally an object they are turning into a broad platform or a service, and everything that is literally an object they are leading the industry in trying to figure out what will make it valuable again
jaunty jetty
d'ya think 7.8" tall numbers are too big for an alarm clock?
covert spire
The only person that matters to is who it’s alarming
If it’s not too big for person using it, then nope
vestal phoenix
they do have projector clocks that project the display on the ceiling.
jaunty jetty
I think it'd be pretty good for me, except that it's about 700$ per character
proven olive
Well, then the price is fittingly alarming
vestal phoenix
It serves as a wake up call to how empty your wallet is.
@jaunty jetty you can adapt this https://blog.adafruit.com/2017/03/15/new-guide-john-parks-ninja-timergiant-7-segment-display-adafruit-johnedgarpark-adafruit/
jaunty jetty
17$ idea, a tiny screen, roughly enough space to display a tweet, that you glue to the bottom of your monitor, and it displays the contents of your clipboard at all times
vestal phoenix
I think MS Office has that clipboard pane functionality or maybe there's an app for that, macbook touchbar?
jaunty jetty
it can't be part of the monitor, all that space is already being used, and the macbook touchbar is single context so you can't have part of it always doing one thing while the rest of it adapts to the current program
vestal phoenix
two macbook touchbars then.
jaunty jetty
Ok, now how do I plug them into my PC
barren hemlock
I hope this job at wally world goes through. I haven't had a paying job since September. I put applications in at all the places that deal in electronics guess they dont want an autistic. :(
fluid forum
I hope it works
grave crest
Some "coding" for earning money:
$1 at bad job = $0.50
$1 at good job = $1.00
$1 at something you love = $H.appiness
karmic kite
With ms integrating all their products, will github go to xbox soon?
bold turtle
So, I'm heading to court to try and tell an apartment complex to eat my shorts. Good Luck vibes requested.
jaunty jetty
you can't start a variable with a special character
sturdy oyster
@karmic kite If not, I'm sure they've already planned to implement mandatory updates that will secretly install the Xbox app and reset your browser to Edge.
sleek urchin
free game alert https://store.steampowered.com/app/334210/Fortified/
jaunty jetty
my PCBs shipped! everything should be here by saturday and I'm off this weekend so yaaaay
sharp tartan
jaunty jetty
yanno how arduino and arduino like things can only tell if a button was pushed if they check the button while it's being pushed, so you have to design your code so that it can check if the buttons are being pushed frequently enough to catch all the button pushing?
A board that fixes that
sand tapir
nice
buoyant cradle
@jaunty jetty you're talking about GPIO interrupts ... how many you've got available depends on the board you're using, see: https://www.arduino.cc/reference/en/language/functions/external-interrupts/attachinterrupt/
jaunty jetty
I'm not
I'm talking about an external input latch
so the input is there when your code is ready for it
plush musk
I guess I shouldn't be surprised, but it was nice to see Adafruit IO supported by IFTTT as an event source. I just started using IFTTT for another project (Google Assistant control of Kodi).
proven olive
@stuck moth Could we get an :Adafruit: emote? I am surprised there isn't one. Feels a little odd that there is a 
one but no :Adafruit: one
stuck moth
@night crescent should be able to set one up. I don't have the logo super handy
night crescent
@proven olive 
jaunty jetty
it'd probably look best to put it in a black circle, or even a the-color-of-dark-in-discord circle
silver shale
fluid forum
@proven olive are you one of those mysterious few that use the non dark discard theem ?
grave crest
Users of the non-dark discord theme are an endangered species. Here at the Adafruit Zoo (we now have Crickits!), we have one of these rare Andons. Just don't tap on the glass.
soft thicket
ok this is freaking awesome!!!!! I want a vive real bad now!!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gx9q014KEcw
proven olive
@fluid forum Yep, I use the lighter theme.
Also, @soft thicket - One of my coworkers is getting that soon
soft thicket
im jealous
fluid forum
so I tapped on the glass, I have to know what you guys feed on
fluid forum
I thought it was the souls of red heads or something
soft thicket
Nah. am a cat. not a reaper. and gingers dont have souls 😛
fluid forum
oh, so catnip and what ever meat you can get?
soft thicket
fluid forum
meow
proven olive
@fluid forum Please don't use ethnicity or looks as a joke.
fluid forum
I was not
proven olive
"Souls of red heads"
Just because something isn't widely offensive doesn't mean it's acceptable.
jaunty jetty
are any of you really good at macos?
I need to rotate the orientation of my mouse by like 20 degrees counterclockwise
sand tapir
um
I use macos, but im not good at it
May i ask why you need to rotate your mouse? I dont really think macos lets users do such granular things
@jaunty jetty
There might be some terminal cmd, ill look at the docs
ok actually, what do you mean by rotate?
do you mean like make the cursor tilted, or is the input from the mouse the issue
jaunty jetty
for RSI reasons I have to hold the mouse pointing a ways to the left, which makes the pointer move wrong
fluid forum
I have been holding my mouse sideways for so long that I have stoped seeing it look odd
@jaunty jetty I do feel you on it
severe glen
I was just wondering earlier today whether there are hackable / internally programmable mice.
dusty citrus
Some of the LogiTech mice have an optically-encoded sphere (most, or all are in a track ball form factor). The sphere is red and has many dark markings; somehow the markings are read to orient the pointing device.
And there's laser mice to consider.
I don't know if either is biased towards a 'natural' up/down/left/right orientation, or if those are somewhat arbitrarily assigned.
If somehow the 'instrument package' were mounted in a rotatable receiver, then it'd be simple to unlock it, re-orient it to the new bias, then lock it down again (all mechanically accomplished).
'Literate' use of the mouse is incorporated into specific (usually developmental/experimental) operating systems such as Plan9 from Bell Labs -- and Oberon.
jaunty jetty
literate?
vestal phoenix
Get a dremel and hack the innards of the mouse out. Rotate the sensor/ball/tracker platform as desired and glue back in place.
jaunty jetty
yea but what if you want it to be slightly different than that
I strongly remember there being a button in windows XP where you'd click it, then move the mouse up, and it would calibrate the mouse orientation; that seems to be gone in 7
barren hemlock
I remember messing with my grandparents doing that
karmic kite
barren hemlock
Also flipping the screen too
karmic kite
- gasp* its been taken down
karmic kite
http://papertoilet.com/ the designer still has some sites up
jaunty jetty
why does eagle generate these weird little bits (the red trace)
proven olive
So not having used Eagle much, I can only guess.
And that's limited by the parts of the board I can see.
But it looks almost like it's trying to keep a minimum size on the plane that goes around the pad to the left.
jaunty jetty
here's some more
I can understand the distance keeping, except that it's fine being all up on the circle ones; what I don't get is why it moves back over
proven olive
Moving back over? Again, guessing. It draws the line, then modifies it to bump it out. Probably doesn't have any checks to see if it would be better to simply adjust the line
jaunty jetty
that's what I meant by moving back over, just a different perspective
some day I should just go through and pretty up all the lines for practice
I like eagle, it mostly works the way I expect, but some things seem arbitrary and unreliable
I have created one of the dumbest questions I've ever thought of
are PCBs foodsafe?
karmic kite
I mean, a lot of solder has lead in it, I would assume not...
not too mention fiberglass is terrible for the immune system
proven olive
Fiberglass is... bad for you.
Lead is bad for you.
Copper, however, is antibacterial. But on the other hand, whatever they use for silkscreen ink... probably isn't that great for you
tame saddle
On the flip side, food is bad for PCBs. Unless it's a severely over-cooked Turkey with no moisture left... 🦃
jaunty jetty
So no pcb hot stoppers
thin canopy
Never been tempted to cook a meal on a hot PCB like you might in your car's engine compartment...
fluid forum
I thought that was only fun on asphalt
dusty citrus
@jaunty jetty literate as in https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mouse_chording
Can't find any current rants on the subject in Google (odd, that; there was one good one)
jaunty jetty
oh yea catia does that
dusty citrus
http://doc.cat-v.org/plan_9/4th_edition/papers/acme/
There's probably a similar document for Oberon (which I tried first, prior to Plan9 and BlueBottle).
I would recommend http://9front.org/ as a starting point, and an inexpensive PC with a blank hard disk (or one you don't mind erasing).
Oberon/BlueBottle is an order more difficult to install (mainly because everything is out of date -- and, if memory serves, you have to begin with a boot floppy diskette, unless someone found a work-around for that.
The thing that got me about both Oberon and Plan9 (in the form of rio) was that they ran well off a single floppy diskette -- including a windowing system and fonts.
● ● ●
jaunty jetty
does anybody make a box that puts out a bunch of different voltages for use with breadboards and whatnot, like 1.5v, 3.3, 5, 12, 24
dusty citrus
Um instead of a variable power supply -- a set of fixed voltage outputs? Simultaneous, or one at a time?
jaunty jetty
the variable supplies are way out of my price range; they don't need to all be simultaneous, but sometimes you need more than one at once
dusty citrus
It's not going to be cheap, probably. ;)
jaunty jetty
bench powersupplies start around 70$
dusty citrus
If you can tolerate the bulk, again, hamfests can produce klunkers (or better) that,in agregate, would do the job.
jaunty jetty
klunkers?
dusty citrus
I dislike any lightweight supplies (they're 'switching' supplies and don't have a proper power transformer).
klunker meaning heavy and large dimensioned. I've seen the opposite, too -- Hewlett-Packard supplies that are very compact (and a bit obscure, with a blind/absent user interface).
jaunty jetty
this is a thing I'm going to buy next payday https://www.amazon.com/JBtek-Breadboard-Supply-Arduino-Solderless/dp/B010UJFVTU
it only does 3.3 and 5 but that covers a lot
dusty citrus
That's just 3.3 and 5 volts though. Not much of a challenge. ;)
jaunty jetty
it's both at the same time which is nice
dusty citrus
I had a variable bench supply with a nice analog (D'Arsonval movement) meter on the front panel. It was good for about 2.5 Amperes at 13.8 VDC (up to about maybe 16-17 VDC).
jaunty jetty
hmmm, there's an actually adjustable one on , 15 is more but actually being adjustable is pretty great
dusty citrus
I would use it to power more modular stuff with the standard 2.1 mm DC barrel jack. One module wanted 10 volts or so as input (maybe 9 but not much below 9VDC).
jaunty jetty
plus it's BYOS, always need more practice
dusty citrus
My current lineup has a great power supply but there's a problem with it: fuseholder went missing a long time ago.
So I'm reluctant to use it until that's repaired properly (if a replacement fuseholder cap cannot be found).
The LabVolt I have has a PSU that puts out AC voltages at (either) 6.3, 20, 30 or 40 VAC; and DC voltages at (ranges) 2-10 VDC or 10-20 VDC -- on separate pairs of banana jacks. Two yellow banana jacks for the AC output leads; and two pairs of black and red banana jacks for the two DC ranges (not sure if they can be used at the same time or not, but the AC and DC outputs can).
● ●
In keeping with their theory of operation ("a student will make an error") they probably provide both sets of DC jacks to prevent problems that arise otherwise, and disable the jack pair not currently in use by means of a front panel switch that only energizes one pair at a time.
A better example of this is the Ohm meter (also a part of this smart system): it's on its own jack (purple) with a common lead to the other VOM functions. You can't fry your Ohm Meter nearly as easily this way, when you thought you were measuring volts but forgot to switch it over from Ohms to Volts.
jaunty jetty
yanno what'd be great, I have a disused computer, that contains a powersupply, I'd love a reputible product I can plug it into to make it into a bench powersupply. There's loads of guides on how to do the conversion but they all seem really unsafe and poorly considered; also most of them only put out obvious combinations of power directly from the PSU
if I'm understanding this correctly, the right side breadboard Vi will always be (almost) exactly the power you put in, and the left side Vo will be whatever it's configured for, right?
https://learn.adafruit.com/adjustable-breadboard-power-supply-kit
dusty citrus
I'll look. EDIT There are four connections to the power rails of the breadboard, in the above photograph.
On the right is VUnreg; on the left is VReg (3.3 or 5.0 VDC -- or a third, regulated value determined by the blue potentiometer, which establishes the set-point for the LDO).
It basically means that your input voltage doesn't have to be very much more than your targeted output voltage.
Which isn't the usual case for an LDO.
jaunty jetty
but the left side is regulated and the right site is if anything slightly protected
dusty citrus
I didn't read that far. I'm a very slow reader because I read to comprehend and I do it in one go to stave off boredom/disinterest/short attention span type mental habits. ;)
What do you mean by left and right? What image are you refering to?
jaunty jetty
the one that's imbedded, top of the linked page
dusty citrus
Yeah but how do you know the components well enough to comment on their functions?
jaunty jetty
reading the text and making inferances
dusty citrus
Hehe. I'm more a schematic diagram kind of person. The DC barrel jack is probably the input. Looks like there's two screw terminals for output.
My guess is there's one regulator.
jaunty jetty
.... do you need some coffee?
dusty citrus
The input to that regulator would be basically whatever was fed to it from the DC barrel jack.
I might just be cranky. I did have some coffee, but not my usual higher dose.
jaunty jetty
the output is two pairs of pins sticking out the bottom into that breadboard below it
I'm pretty sure the screw terminals are an alternate input
dusty citrus
It's a standard adjustable LDO circuit.
Everything to the left of ic2 is VUnreg.
You can feed it anything you like. Should be rectified (no negative crossings). Dunno what a half-wave waveform would do to it; I usually feed these things straight DC power with some filtering already applied.
TM1 R3 and R4 are all to instruct the chip what to do and aren't to be considered as part of any output circuitry.
They're there to establish the range of operation of ic2.
● ● ● ● ●
Looks like they designed this for +9VDC input unless you want to power off a USB port (in that case +5VDC in).
The +9VDC is probably a maximum as they tout the LDO has an extremely low drop-out.
(so the target output voltage with +9VDC in would be near 8.6 VDC or so -- only a 400 milliVolt difference!)
Says 20VDC max input in the write-up.
I think the answer to your question is "Right."
to: >> if I'm understanding this correctly, the right side breadboard Vi will always be (almost) exactly the power you put in, and the left side Vo will be whatever it's configured for, right? <<
jaunty jetty
great
dusty citrus
They're providing a one-diode-drop version of the input power on some connection.
jaunty jetty
btw I couldn't figure out what ic2 is in that diagram
dusty citrus
It's the regulator
MIC2941
The author is measuring the unregulated output:
https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/004/924/large1024/adafruit_products_vintest.jpg?1396818031
Here, the author has measured the regulated output (supplied to the left-hand rails of the breadboard, in this view):
https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/004/926/large1024/adafruit_products_meter5vtest.jpg?1396818052
jaunty jetty
I wish I had tiny fingers....
dusty citrus
So, VUNreg is supplied to the right-hand pair of power rails of the breadboard.
That's the very last thing I noticed, not a minute ago. That this thing mounts on a breadboard, with two distinct sets of pins that are not bridged together on the circuit board. ;)
(well, the grounds are, but the positive voltages are not! haha)
● ●
The application that strongly comes to mind is when you want a fairly beefy VUnreg, but perhaps less than the (usual) 12 VDC, for some reason.
That reason probably has to do with a single chosen component in your project that cannot tolerate a full 12 VDC in, but would do okay with, perhaps, 8-10 VDC.
I think The Crickit has one IC that cannot tolerate a full 12 VDC (is rated for 2.7-10.8 VDC only). Maybe The H-Bridge (DRV8833).
Same chip:
https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-drv8833-dc-stepper-motor-driver-breakout-board/overview
VUnreg is typically applied to high-current devices that have a very good tolerance for fluctuation in supply voltage (as the load increases).
Whereas regulated outputs are generally much lower current supplies that are meant for integrated circuits (and similar devices) that aren't tolerant of supply voltage variation.
The usual practice for these supplies is to offer the end-user a chance to tap into the unregulated supply (often a wall-wart) as well as the regulated output.
This is the standard paradigm for hobbyist projects (a two-tiered DC power supply).
jaunty jetty
the one I found on amazon has separately regulated logic level voltages for both sides, whcih seams neat and I'm still considering things, it's going to be a week or more before I can budget this anyway
dusty citrus
The thing I do not like (at all) is a second connection to the house's AC mains, at any point whatsoever.
jaunty jetty
as long as the ground loop of both supplies is isolated, it shouldn't kill too many people
dusty citrus
If I can't do it from a single AC mains source, I always use an isolation transformer for the second DC power supply (that is not battery-operated, but derives its power from the dreaded 2nd connection to the AC mains).
Commercial gear usually won't blow up but I've seen that happen, too. Not often.
People claim that laptops in particular are immune to this problem -- 'somehow'.
For most people I'd guess that bonding all grounds together is sufficient precaution.
(I'm excluding any ground associated with the AC mains or Earth ground, for that matter ;)
Just means: if you do use two wall warts as your two DC supplies, and their grounds (negative terminals) are bonded together, that's better than if you don't bond them together.
● ● ●
If they weren't switching supplies, that'd not bother me very much at all.
I would much rather have a single point of entry to a project for any/all power.
So in practice the only two cases where I use a second power supply is the laptop (USB) .. and a battery augmenting some other DC source.
jaunty jetty
given an infinite budget I would too
dusty citrus
If nothing melts or blows up you've already gone past the area I'm concerned with, in all this.
I just find throwing a single toggle switch to power a project is fairly fool-proof. Then just bond all grounds together, where there are multiple regulated outputs, or combination of Vunreg and Vreg outputs.
● ● ● ●
CPX and Crickit (bolted together) is a good study on how to do all of this correctly.
I found the system to be worry-free and well thought-out.
(especially in terms of supplying power correctly and robustly)
dusty citrus
... and I'm back quiet.
jaunty jetty
is there a breadboard adapter for the feather formfactor?
jaunty jetty
there are five startrek themed cake structures on craigslist
two enterprises, voyager, DS-9, and a bridge with a warbird under it
grave crest
@jaunty jetty could you show a pic of the ds9 one?
jaunty jetty
dreamy solstice
I was trying to fix the connection, and ended up destroying the ribbon cable
barren hemlock
probs not
barren hemlock
pull the wires apart and strip them then solder?
dreamy solstice
I'm asking if it would be possible to just make a new cable
dreamy solstice
my eyes are too strained at the moment to do it right now
I might not even have the right wire gauge...
barren hemlock
pic?
dreamy solstice
I dont have a functioning camera
dreamy solstice
my phone doesnt have any way to upload pictures
barren hemlock
ok
dreamy solstice
what's sad is, each gold pad, is just like, 2 milimeters wide
and I am incredibly clumsy
at least the calculator wasnt expensive..
got it at the plano texas HAM com for $1
dreamy solstice
I dont trust ebay though
barren hemlock
ditto
dreamy solstice
I once ordered a DS game from it, and got a SD flash cartridge with another game on it, that was diguised as the game I ordered
ebay sucks
barren hemlock
lol
we are getting a good storm here
dreamy solstice
and where I am, it's hotter than mercury... 😐
barren hemlock
i am barely in grid square EM76sx. i am literally on the edge of it
barren hemlock
oh I bet
It gets pretty humid here. it was 95 yesterday with the build up of humidity for todays storm
barren hemlock
9:04 pm. civil twilight rn https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/usa/lexington-fayette
barren hemlock
yeah
dusty citrus
I just see a bunch of boxes here, not a name:
[1:08 AM] 🄽🄸🄺🄾🄻🄰 🅃🄴🅂🄻🄰: at least it's not 86F there
[1:08 AM] 🄽🄸🄺🄾🄻🄰 🅃🄴🅂🄻🄰: at NIGHT
That is unusable here, whatever it is/is not.
dreamy solstice
then your font/unicode settings are wrong
barren hemlock
@dusty citrus the boxes have Nikola Tesla in them
dreamy solstice
yep
they are just special unicode characters
I mean, if it's that needed, I can make a mentionable nickname,
grave crest
Yeah, it's a bunch of boxes for me too.
Also, we're putting tesla in a box now? Did he sign off on that?
jaunty jetty
triple or get out
jaunty jetty
that sounds like a personal issue
jaunty jetty
so you carry a monitor around with your laptop or something?
dreamy solstice
no
proven olive
My computer has had 7 monitors before.
dreamy solstice
when I bought it I had to carry it back to the car
jaunty jetty
I had 4 once, burned my eyes
also 4 is just a bad number, 4 wide is too wide to see and 2x2 is uncomfortable
proven olive
That was in a not ideal arrangement though. And now some of the second/third hand ones have died so I use "only" four
When I set things up how I want, it will be 2 tall by 3 wide. Upper monitors are for "occasional check" things. Music player, email, etc.
jaunty jetty
6 good ones where you can turn the brightness further down would be the ideal, but then you have to consider just getting one really big really high resolution screen instead of 4
I'd probably go for one big one and then vertical monitors on the wings
dreamy solstice
also, I recently made a server for a game I wrote
just going to post it here
broken space is a fully procedurally generated game, set in space
It is story driven, yet open worlded, with some sandbox elements,
You could be a lowly colonizer, a planet destroying maniac, a cultivator
who creates planets, a vigilante, a miner, a hunter, a explorer, a builder,
or any load of things, all in a DOS style text adventure, that runs on pretty
much any computer, no matter how slow.
dusty citrus
@dreamy solstice Right-clicking on your name presents 'Mention' which is what I did, here.
Also, the font I use in geany (text editor) sees your unicode as it was meant to be seen (e.g. copy and paste from this Discord window into geany).
This Discord client does not, but I don't know if I could install something to bring it up to speed.
$ hexdump -C ./tesla-uni.txt
0000 6e 69 73 3a 20 40 f0 9f 84 bd f0 9f 84 b8 f0 9f |nis: @..........|
0010 84 ba f0 9f 84 be f0 9f 84 bb f0 9f 84 b0 20 f0 |.............. .|
0020 9f 85 83 f0 9f 84 b4 f0 9f 85 82 f0 9f 84 bb f0 |................|
0030 9f 84 b0 20 52 69 67 68 74 0a |... Right.|
That was the first part of my utterance 'Right-clicking on your name' .. just above.
Reference for the very first letter in your utterance f0 9f 84 bd:
https://www.charbase.com/1f13d-unicode-squared-latin-capital-letter-n
dreamy solstice
HMM
spice moss
want to be initiative of making people develop without thinking of doing so GooseBus https://www.remix3d.com/details/33d2bb6971ce46f8a8e59fe61135294b?section=other-models
jaunty jetty
could you say that again with different words?
dreamy solstice
want to be part of a program for making people develop stuff without thinking of doing so?
that might be what he meant
@spice moss
jaunty jetty
that makes linguistic sense but I don't thing it describes a concept
spice moss
for example Solitaire made people play without thinking of using keyboard and mouse
whole goosebus thing started from London Insider Dev Tour
jaunty jetty
people think about using keyboard and mouse?
spice moss
years back they was
jaunty jetty
was back
vestal phoenix
Just looked at my cable bill, for internet they jacked up prices again and a new $3 Network Access Fee. Looks like the effects of no net neutrality sinking in.
barren hemlock
We should make our own isp
spice moss
there was a article in android central about FCC leader who think with more power to ISP means better "consumers rights"
severe glen
In the for-snorts-and-giggles department, Cool Retro Term is available for Linux and macOS: https://youtu.be/jWx7REAQ2MY
jaunty jetty
I could do without the screen curve, but monochrome phosphor CRTs are pretty great
fluid forum
are there any adobe adobe user that also use aesprite ? I am having an issue saveing palate for an adobe user and could use a hand
sleek urchin
You can tweak settings including screen curve in cool retro term
It really is an awesome terminal emulator
grave crest
Mr. Certainly's Public Service Announcement: Be careful with your passwords folks.
Although it's very important to have a non-guessable, complex password to prevent brute forcing -- chances are your information won't be compromised that way. Database leaks, improper corporate security, unhashed storage of passwords on a server, etc are a much more likely source.
My recommendation: use a password manager like 1Password, Keepass, LastPass, etc to keep track of all of your logins.
Use a different password for every account.
For security questions, do not use real (guessable) answers -- use nonsensical answers or literally other generated passwords [that password manager is excellent at keeping track of them].
For recovery accounts, use different email addresses for your important logins. That way if an email account becomes compromised, all of your eggs aren't in one basket.
Two-factor authentication is excellent, even if it's just an email or text message.
dusty citrus
Just Say No to logins and passwords - demand anonymous use of resources that do not in any way benefit you more by 'logging in'.
If they spam you, delete that account. Immediately.
If it's got anything to do with money, logout of your computer, and log back in under a different account you've established previously. Don't mix recreational computing with transactional.
Easiest way to generate passwords is with a private key you type yourself, and use something you will remember as the 'salt' -- and encrypt both. Use the encrypted output as the password typed to the foreign server.
grave crest
@dusty citrus I agree with the pervasiveness of accounts for activities that should flat out not need them.
For example -- the Merlin birdwatching app on my phone (made by Carnegie-Mellon University) requires a login & verified email account. Just to view the static data.
dusty citrus
salt: futoncaper
passphrase: nc1702
#!/bin/sh
echo "futoncapernc1702" | md5sum
You can also do a DiceWare passphrase. Those are fun and useful.
I generally use up to seven letters per DiceWare passphrase element, but only type the first three. This way they form complete words for the mnemonic, but there's less typing (and they can be longer, easier).
grave crest
So for instances where I "must" have an "account", I load up one of the handful of the spam/junk accounts I've created specifically for this situation.
And then I get a deluge of marketing emails, including "hey, you still have items in your cart." So obnoxious.
dusty citrus
Haha. Yeah I used to use a different email account for every single vendor.
This way I knew immediately who leaked what to who else when.
grave crest
I don't quite go to those extremes -- but I have half a dozen "good" emails and one or two "junk" emails. That's good enough for my needs.
And it's easy enough to monitor on mobile devices, like an iPad.
Versus 200+ email accounts.
dusty citrus
I just say No to the Internet in general. Done with all the bee ess. Really (really) done with it all.
The young people with their noses in their handhelds saddens me. Pathetic.
I've seen doctors use handhelds for an important use -- that makes good sense. They're getting work done.
But most people you see are basically Cartman from South Park in terms of benefit from the handheld.
grave crest
Tools are one thing. Distractions that impede basic things like walking down a sidewalk....something else. I have friends that immediately hop onto mobile Reddit as soon as you sit down with them for lunch. You ask them something...and 20 seconds later they go "HUH? WHAT?"
It has helped strengthen my patience, let's just say that. That's a polite way to rephrase what's REALLY going on in my head....
dusty citrus
I always said the main reason I'm not an alcoholic is that drinking makes me ill when overdone.
Same thing with 'video games' and small handheld devices -- I dislike them as a hominid. ;)
If this "teevee set" I'm using to 'talk to you on' weren't a talking fish tank that seemed to know my name, I don't think I'd bother with it much. It is television watching (because of the video blanking and what that does to the human that spends time in front of it).
I'm noticing that people cannot carry on a conversation anymore. Like, at all. In person, I mean.
A plein air artist on YouTube refers to FOMO - fear of missing out.
I think that 'scanning' pattern has become pervasive in society -- constantly scanning the immediate environment for moar n00 stuph.
and that's my little rant. [curtseys]
grave crest
👏 As a semi-young'un who's starting to really understand why older folks are so grumpy, I get where you're coming from and I can't argue.
dusty citrus
Also it's just pain. Ole foke have pain yew don't yet know about. ;)
grave crest
Oh, I work in IT service -- lifting servers all day. We're feeling it too.
Then we have someone complaining why I can't summarize a complex system into a bumper sticker's worth of instructions.
dusty citrus
My problem is I do know how to use the Internet as, essentially, a mind amplifier. That's very attractive, and it's a great escape from stuph I don't know how to address in the remainder of whatever my life consists of, beyond keyboard, trackpad and LCD (and maybe a companion cup of coffee).
At the moment, though, I have to scamper, scurry .. off to lunch with 'me mates' (but I'm an American in Connecticut, to be sure). 73. Nice to catch up with you a bit.
grave crest
Likewise, enjoy your day 😃
jaunty jetty
looking at police auctions for a bike, no bikes but Lot of One Hundred and Seventy Five computer monitors
they've got a photo of them piled up in a chain link cage, almost entirely old 3:4 LCDs, and one CRT
current bid 15.50$
proven olive
@jaunty jetty Then you have to transport them, though
jaunty jetty
luckily I don't need 175 monitors; and I currently have 3$
proven olive
I could have fun with 175 computer monitors...
But it'd cost a lot more than $15.50 to do anything with them.
barren hemlock
@dusty citrus @grave crest I would rather talk to someone in person than call them and call them than text them. I love hamateur radio. I love experimenting with stuff. I hardly play video games. I prefer classic rock to this stuff they call music now
TL;DR I dont fit in with my generation
barren hemlock
Late 60s through the 80s
jaunty jetty
that's a lot of things
barren hemlock
Most of whats in here: https://open.spotify.com/user/12129778732/playlist/3rv1Lrh0KdN0ASgBwYXSiT?si=2ZwPaEiHQFuZ-sFV2cAMjg
jaunty jetty
some of that is definitely more oldies than classic
barren hemlock
What would you consider oldies?
By the way it says woodshop playlist, so it's not just classic
jaunty jetty
certainly surfin USA
jaunty jetty
how do you feel about this https://youtu.be/y1KAtnpVcPE
barren hemlock
It's not really my style. Its interesting
dusty citrus
I find music in the current offerings. Usually they include stuff I like at the very end of a teevee show, and I write down the lyrics they use and find it on the Internet.
I found, for example, fink and mumford and son that way.
If it doesn't have lyrics, of course, it's quite a bit more of a challenge to figure out how to search and identify what it was.
barren hemlock
I use the app Shazam for that
dusty citrus
Right -- can search on the season and episode of a teevee show for its music.
barren hemlock
dusty citrus
In my life as I got older face to face conversation became more rare with any given conversation partner.
I learned to enjoy the telephone (and all telephony) to account for that.
Lots of people dislike spending any time on the telephone.
Even when its purely social (rather than goal/function oriented).
jaunty jetty
I hear poorly and understand speach worse, so phones are very difficult
dusty citrus
Wow. Yeah I'm the other way. I get a lot from hearing speech.
jaunty jetty
in person theres a lot of context to build on
dusty citrus
Agreed -- and I find long-term telephone abuse suffers from the lack of it.
jaunty jetty
with text people are more aware of the context they're not sending
dusty citrus
My brother is a 3-D talker - he not only uses his hands but his feet!
Text is like desparate telegraphy from the bottom of a mine shaft with a weak flashlight for signalling.
(SMS texting I mean)
jaunty jetty
but the messages tend to be better or worse, a reverse bell curve rather than a normal one
dusty citrus
Hehe with a big empty middle ground hi hi
barren hemlock
I am autistic and dont see facial expressions and i have partial facial blindness and sometimes dont understand social situations.
so i try to communicate any way i can
dusty citrus
I noticed that you get things here (visually) first time, and subtle details at that (greys).
I miss big details visually, on the short term (which explains why I could not pass Algebra II in high school, both times I took it).
jaunty jetty
I wasn't allowed to take a normal math class in highschool until my last semester, because reasons
instead every semester started with "how many apples do you see" and ended with "You can also un-add"
barren hemlock
i am mostly visual on things and catch things that happen before other people notice
dusty citrus
I learned to emulate vacuous gregarious behavior but I suspect rather transparently.
To me all that mattered was for a given moment I believed my own BS and relaxed around other people.
That seemed to be the benchmark they were looking for me to hit. ;)
un-add -- bet that went over famously. rofl
jaunty jetty
I don't know what word I said....
dusty citrus
I don't think CAD was even in the Popular Science styled magazines when I was in high school.
jaunty jetty
whatever
dusty citrus
It's jarring when you get censored and don't even know what the tarnation you did wrong.
I tried to tell them it's wrong but they aren't backing off that. It's harmful.
jaunty jetty
I swear frequently, it's how I was raised
jaunty jetty
I saw the orange for a moment... and then I cracked up
dusty citrus
For some reason a specific four letter word gets through. Yeah you just typed it.
jaunty jetty
either those are both swears or neither is
barren hemlock
lol. i was making ultra complex models in autodesk inventor
dusty citrus
Anyway they aren't budging so I'm just letting you know that yes, it is jarring.
I want to have my face slapped like in the movies, and know I had it coming. that has never once happened. I've never seen it, as a matter of fact. Never.
jaunty jetty
where was I
proven olive
@jaunty jetty Adafruit doesn't run Dynobot's swear filter. It's entirely third party
barren hemlock
that c word that just got censored is part of the last name of the guy that invented the toilet JOHN Crapper
jaunty jetty
in CPU architecture subtraction is vastly more efficient than addition, so addition is bad unsubtracting
same for division vs multiplication, any time you can divide it's quite a lot faster
dusty citrus
I thought bit shifting left and right was the basis of some of that.
I really don't understand the ALU and what its doing electrically.
(arithmetic logic unit)
barren hemlock
dusty citrus
Someone from Show and Tell was working on a very low level microcontroller - making their own ALU from simpler building blocks, iirc.
jaunty jetty
maybe I have the multiply/divide one backwards
dusty citrus
I don't know if it was virtual or out of soldered parts or what.
barren hemlock
What does "iirc" stand for?
dusty citrus
I think adding would not be bit shifting per se.
proven olive
@barren hemlock "If I Remember Correctly"
jaunty jetty
yea
proven olive
@dusty citrus I believe it was virtual, so far.
dusty citrus
if I recall correctly. It's in a family of similar utterances such as 'afaik' (as far as I know).
jaunty jetty
multiplication is 1~7 cycles, division is 15~40
barren hemlock
and buttload is a measurement of wine
a wagon full if i am correct
delete if not allowed
jaunty jetty
this of course varies by architecture, I'd expect arduino to be a lot more sensitive than x86 because it lacks the diversity of special case circuitry
barren hemlock
so yesterday I was answering a question for a bonus entry for a radio sweepstakes, the page wasn't even halfway loaded. the only thing that was loaded was the bubbles for the multiple guess and "submit" button no text or anything. I just happened to pick the right one for the bonus entry.
dusty citrus
no captcha
barren hemlock
nope
jaunty jetty
tell us if you win
barren hemlock
i will. you had to enter your callsign, email, and phone number
dusty citrus
seems to me a rubber band and some extra long headers on both sides of the ItsyBitsy should retain contact using the elastic force. Just have the rubber band pulling on both sets at the same time.
that's pretty much the same principle as pomona minigrabber
jaunty jetty
?
dusty citrus
Using elastic force to make pin contact with a PCB for temporary use (like Pogo Pin jigs do).
Trying to think of the least expensive method with common household objects and very inexpensive parts sourced locally at places like the hardware store.
I think more than two pins per side would lead to the four-legged table problem (only three legs (their footings, that is) can be in the same plane, ordinarily, due to construction tolerances).
jaunty jetty
if you can source used/disused spring pins from watch bands that might be useful
dusty citrus
Right! Good idea!
jaunty jetty
plus they're a rod with a flange, of the sizing is right they'll seat in a hole and contact the surrounding pad
dusty citrus
If they're conductive enough. ;)
Maybe embed in a block of acrylic for stability.
Using every other pin of a stacking header can provide some sideways spring tension on adjacent plated thru-hole contacts.
(as long as the pitch of the stacking headers are farther apart than the plated holes)
(interface with wire wrap)
If done gently may be reusable a few times.
jaunty jetty
I aughta build a board holder, with a component support backing
2 adjustable rails that I can fit the board between and put at different angles; and some kind of heat resistant foam pad that clamps against one side to keep all the through-hole components where you put them
huh, that's a perfectly stealable design
jaunty jetty
dumb idea, what if we bought a warehouse and filled it with hexbug arenas and robot arms to move then around, with webcams and all the bugs have glyphs on them for tracking, and then we run an illegal twitch TV toy fight gambling ring with fantasy hexbug leagues and stuff
proven olive
Hmm.
@jaunty jetty I think you have an idea, but I'm pretty sure you can dump the "illegal" part.
Robot fights are probably within Twitch's TOS, and considering Battlebots, I'm pretty sure they're legal too
jaunty jetty
are there twitch robot fighting channels already....
jaunty jetty
I should build a pegasus trainer
the chains make this much stronger than most reasonable usecases need, you could get by with timing belts
and then it's basically 100% lasercutable
buoyant cradle
Autonomous robot fighting league. Challengers enter by mail.
sleek viper
Make robot friend not robot enemy. I don't know if Adafruit could have been any clearer about their position on this subject.
😉
jaunty jetty
robot friends can punch eachother; also hexbug combat is largely indestinguishable from hexbug anything else
dreamy solstice
are there any ways to make a "memristor' at home?
jaunty jetty
anybody know about a company selling a 11~20" battery powered screen that I can connect to my phone via USB-C
stable vault
you would need some sort of dock first.
jaunty jetty
nah, just a fancy cable
USB-OTG -> HDMI probably
but I can imagine a company making the battery screen with integrated converter
stable vault
yeah, unless you wanted it to be a "desktop"
jaunty jetty
what?
stable vault
There are docks which add some fancy things (or just modify the image) to make it act like a desktop.
jaunty jetty
no, that's built into android
you just need the cables or adapters to get from one end to the other
chromebooks run chromeos, which is android without the cellphone mode
stable vault
ooohh well ok then
jaunty jetty
you can totally sync an android phone with a mouse and have a pointer
mmkay so I need a smallish LED display that uses an external power supply so I can give it straight DC
stable vault
define smallish..
jaunty jetty
60$ or less
stable vault
wut about size?
jaunty jetty
eh
jaunty jetty
I doubt there's a 5" screen with an HDMI input
I can't use a replacement panel for a phone
jaunty jetty
yea, I could pay more for a complete product but these don't have the battery, controller, adapter; I expect the total to be around 130$ finished
jaunty jetty
still way too expensive
stable vault
do you care about how janky it is?
stable vault
lol