Hackaday Podcast

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Al Williams shoot the breeze about all things Hackaday. We start off with some fond remembrances of Don Lancaster, a legendary hardware hacker who passed away last month. There's also news about the Hackaday Prize (the tool competition) and a rant about fast computers and slow software, a topic that drew many comments this week. In the What's That Sound event, Al proves he's more of a Star Trek fan than a videogamer. But there were plenty of correct answers, but only one winner: []. There's always next week, so keep playing! Elliot may be dreaming of cooler weather since he talks about ice sculptures, snow measurements, and a paint that can make things cooler. We don't know what Al is dreaming about, but he is worried about his fuses, and the ins and out of open source licensing. Along the way, you'll hear about personal vehicles, sky cameras, and zapping weeds with extreme solar power. As usual, there is an eclectic mix of other posts. What has the Hackaday crew been up to? Field trips! Hear about Dan Maloney's visit to the SNOTEL network to measure snowfall and a report from Al and Bil Herd's trip to the Vintage Computer Festival Southwest. What to read along? The links are over at Hackaday. Don't forget to tell us what you think in the comments!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Kristina Panos don't have a whole lot in the way of news, but we do know this: the Green Hacks Challenge of the 2023 Hackaday Prize ends precisely at 7AM PDT on July 4th. Show us what you can do in the realm of hacking for the planet, be it solar-based, wind-powered, recycled-trash-powered -- you get the idea. Kristina is now completely down for the count on What's That Sound, although this week, she was sort of in the neighborhood. But no matter, because we know several of you will nail it. Then it's on to the hacks, where we have quite a bit to say this week when it comes to cars. From there we take a look at a really fun gumball run, ponder the uses of leafy meats, and fawn over an Amiga-inspired build. Finally we talk PCB earring art, hacking the IKEA Kvart, and discuss the potential uses for wind-to-heat power. Check out the links over on Hackaday to follow along, and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

Elliot and Al got together to discuss this week's projects, and you're invited! You'll hear news about replaceable batteries in the EU, along with some news about the Hacakday Op Amp Challenge winners and the start of a new contest. This week's choice hacks ranged from a Star Wars-style volumetric display, navigation using cosmic rays, measuring car speed with microphones, and a crazy 3D printing technique that will blow you away. There's plenty more where that came from. Ever tried to land a model rocket vertically? How about building a punched card reader? The can't miss articles this week cover a thermal camera review and the unintended consequences if AM radio bites the dust. If you want to read along, head on over to Hackaday. Be sure to leave us your thoughts in the comments.

Elliot's back from vacation, and Dan stepped into the virtual podcast studio with him to uncover all the hacks he missed while hiking in Italy. There was a lot to miss, what with a smart meter getting snuffed by a Flipper Zero -- or was it? How about a half-gigapixel camera built out of an old scanner, or a sonar-aimed turret gun? We also looked at a couple of projects that did things the hard way, like a TV test pattern generator that was clearly a labor of love, and an all-transistor HP frequency counter. More plastic welding? Hey, a fix is a fix! Plus, we'll dive into why all those Alexas are just gathering dust, and look at the really, REALLY hard problems involved in restoring shredded documents. Head on over to Hackaday for the links. You really want them this episode!

Editor in Chief Elliot Williams is spending the week communing with nature, which under normal circumstances would mean no podcast -- after all, he's the one who puts each episode together. But since your weekend would obviously be ruined without a dose of lo-fi Hackaday beats to kick things off, Managing Editor Tom Nardi made a valiant attempt to go it alone and produce...something. This shortened episode will briefly go over the news, including updates about Hackaday's various ongoing contests and the recent unearthly conditions in the US Northeast due to the Canadian wildfires, before diving into the results of last week's What's that Sound challenge. Listeners will then be treated to a special Quick Hacks segment from Jenny List, before settling in for the main event: a pair of fascinating interviews recorded during the Vintage Computer Festival East in Wall, NJ. Check out the links below if you want to follow along, and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

ditors Elliot Williams and Tom Nardi are back in the (virtual) podcast studio to talk the latest phase of the 2023 Hackaday Prize, the past, present, and future of single-board computers, and a modern reincarnation of the Blackberry designed by hardware hackers. They'll also cover the current state of toothbrush NFC hacking, the possibilities of electric farm equipment, and a privately funded satellite designed to sniff out methane. Stick around till the end to find out if there really is such a thing as having too many tools. Check out the links and tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

You can join Elliot and Al as they get together to talk about their favorite hacks of the week. There's news about current contests, fake alien messages, flexible breadboards, hoverboards, low-tech home automation, and even radioactive batteries that could be a device's best friend. We have a winner in the What's that Sound competition last week, which was, apparently, a tough one. You'll also hear about IC fabrication, FPGAs, and core memory. Lots to talk about, including core memory, hoverboards, and vacuum tubes. Check out the links and tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

Elliot and Dan teamed up for the podcast this week, bringing you the week's sweetest hacks. And news too, as the ESA performed a little percussive maintenance on a Jupiter-bound space probe, and we learned about how to get an Orwellian free TV that exacts quite a price. We talked about Bitcoin mining two ways, including a way to put all that waste heat to good use -- just don't expect it to make good financial sense. Why would you stuff zip ties into a hot glue gun? It might just help with plastic repair. Lugging a tube transmitter up a mountain doesn't sound like a good idea, but with the right design, it's a lot of fun -- and maybe you'll be better able to tap into Schumann resonances while you're up there. Check out the links and tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Kristina Panos have much in the way of Hackaday news -- the Op Amp Challenge is about halfway over, and there are roughly three weeks left in the Assistive Tech challenge of the 2023 Hackaday Prize. Show us what you've got on the analog front, and then see what you can do to help people with disabilities to live better lives! Kristina is still striking out on What's That Sound, which this week honestly sounded much more horrendous and mechanical than the thing it actually is. Then it's on to the hacks, beginning with the we-told-you-so that even Google believes that open source AI will out-compete both Google's own AI and the questionably-named OpenAI. From there we take a look at a light-up breadboard, listen to some magnetite music, and look inside a pair of smart sunglasses. Finally, we talk cars, beginning with the bleeding edge of driver-less. Then we go back in time to discuss in-vehicle record players of the late 1950s. Check out the links over on Hackaday to follow along, and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

Hackaday Editors Elliot Williams and Tom Nardi definitely didn't plan on devoting most of this episode to 3D printing and space stories, but let's be honest, it was bound to happen sooner or later. After an update on the Hackaday Prize, the discussion moves on to a pair of troubled spacecraft and the challenges of exploring the final frontier. From there you'll hear about a chocolate 3D printer we've had our eyes on for years, the tools you should have next to your own (non-chocolate) 3D printer, and a bit of contemplation of what it really means to design for 3D printing versus traditional manufacturing methods. But it's not all plastic fantastic -- by the end of the episode you'll also hear about some particularly bold high-altitude aviators and the surprisingly short time we have left with the humble barcode. Check out the show notes to follow along with the links!

Hackaday Editors Elliot Williams and Tom Nardi definitely didn't plan on devoting most of this episode to 3D printing and space stories, but let's be honest, it was bound to happen sooner or later. After an update on the Hackaday Prize, the discussion moves on to a pair of troubled spacecraft and the challenges of exploring the final frontier. From there you'll hear about a chocolate 3D printer we've had our eyes on for years, the tools you should have next to your own (non-chocolate) 3D printer, and a bit of contemplation of what it really means to design for 3D printing versus traditional manufacturing methods. But it's not all plastic fantastic -- by the end of the episode you'll also hear about some particularly bold high-altitude aviators and the surprisingly short time we have left with the humble barcode. Check out the show notes to follow along with the links!

In this week's podcast, non-brothers Elliot Williams and Al Williams talk about our favorite hacks of the week. Elliot's got analog on the brain, courtesy of the ongoing Op Amp Contest, and Al is all about the retrocomputers, from a thrift-store treasure to an old, but still incredibly serviceable, voice synthesizer. Both agree that they love clever uses of mechanical parts and that nobody should fear the FET. Check out the links below if you want to follow along, and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

It's podcast time again, and this time around Elliot and Dan took a grand tour through the week's best and brightest hacks. We checked out an old-school analog cell phone that went digital with style, dug into a washing machine's API, and figured out how to melt metal in the microwave -- the right way. Does coffee taste better when it's made by a robot? Of course it does! Can you get a chatbot to spill its guts? You can, if you know how to sweet talk it. Let's play Asteroids on an analog oscilloscope, spoof facial recognition with knitting, and feel the need for speed with an AI-controlled model race car. And was VCF East worth the wait? According to Tom Nardi, that's a resounding "Yes!" Check out the links over on Hackaday and tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Contributor Emeritus Kristina Panos gushed about all the best hacks of the previous week. But first, a contest! That's right -- hot on the heels of the Low Power Challenge comes the Op Amp Challenge, sponsored by Digi-Key. You have between now and June 6th to dip your toes into the warm waters of analog and show us what you've got. Will it be a musical hack? Will you seek high analog precision? We can't wait to see. Kristina definitely did not get What's That Sound this week, which honestly reminded her of a cartoon character getting a piano dropped on them, except the sounds were in reverse order. Then it's on to the hacks, beginning with a way to make an IBM Selectric typewriter use Comic Sans, a project that's sure to make you a believer in graphene, and a miniature MNT for every (cargo) pocket. From there we take a look at a really cool indicator from a 1960s RAF aeroplane and investigate why your multimeter might be lying to you. Finally, we discuss the gargantuan task of building an AR system to rival Google Glass, and the merits of taking a lot of pictures as you go about your hacks. Head on over to Hackaday to check out the links!

Join Hackaday Editors Elliot Williams and Tom Nardi as they review some of their favorite hacks and projects of the past week. The episode starts with a discussion about the recently announced Artemis II crew, and how their mission compares to the Apollo program of the 1960s and 70s. From there, the pair theorize as to why Amazon's family of Echo devices have managed to evade eager hardware hackers, take a look at a very impressive SMD soldering jig created with some fascinating OpenSCAD code, marvel at the intersection of art and electronic design, and wonder aloud where all the cheap motorized satellite dishes are hiding. Stick around for some questionable PCB design ideas, a Raspberry Pi expansion that can read your mind, and the first flight of a (semi) hydrogen-powered aircraft. Check out the links over at Hackaday.

It was quite the cornucopia of goodness this week as Elliot and Dan sat down to hash over the week in hardware hacking. We started with the exciting news that the Hackaday Prize is back -- already? -- for the tenth year running! The first round, Re-Engineering Education, is underway now, and we're already seeing some cool entries come in. The Prize was announced at Hackday Berlin, about which Elliot waxed a bit too. Speaking of wax, if you're looking to waterproof your circuits, that's just one of many coatings you might try. If you're diagnosing a problem with a chip, a cheap camera can give your microscope IR vision. Then again, you might just use your Mark I peepers to decode a ROM. Is your FDM filament on the wrong spool? We've got an all-mechanical solution for that. We'll talk about tools of the camera operator's trade, the right to repair in Europe, Korean-style toasty toes, BGA basics, and learn just what the heck a Bloom filter is. Head on over to the show notes for links and more!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Contributor Emeritus Kristina Panos chewed the fat about the coolest hacks of the previous week. But first, a bit of news -- our Low Power Challenge fizzled out this week, and boy did we have a lot of entries at the last minute. We love to see it though, and we're going to get judging done ASAP. Don't forget, this weekend is Hackaday Berlin! Livestreaming for this one may be iffy, but we'll have the talks up for you eventually, so don't fret too much if you can't make it in the flesh this time. Kristina definitely got What's That Sound this week, but her answer will of course be bleeped out. Then it's on to the hacks, beginning with a 6DoF controller that does everything in interesting ways and a printed shredder that eats like a goat. From there they cover bolt dispensers, coffee grinders with Bluetooth weighing, camera calibration, and a 50-pen plotter that's definitely a hack. Finally, we discuss the virtues of physicality when it comes to SIM cards and recorded music. Check out the links below if you want to follow along, and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams is joined this week by newly minted Development Editor (and definitely not brother) Al Williams to bring you the weekly highlights from our little corner of the Internet. Between the rapidly approaching deadline for the Low-Power Challenge to Samsung creating a fake Moon with artificial intelligence, there's plenty in the news to get this episode started. From there, the Williams plural discuss using a webcam for cheap virtual reality thrills, an impressive expansion for the Flipper Zero, and whether or not finding a bug in the Nintendo DSi browser counts as retrocomputing. Stick around to hear about the fascinating work Joshua Vasquez has been doing with DIY light guide plates, and Arya Voronova's deep-dive into PCI-Express. You want links? You got links in the show notes!

It was one of those weeks, where Elliot and Dan found a bounty of interesting hacks to choose from for the podcast, making it hard to pick. But pick we did, and we found so many deep and important questions. What good is a leaky HCMI cable? Good for falling down a TEMPEST-like rabbit hole, that's what. Why would you use a ton of clay to make a car? Because it's cool, that's why. What does an electron look like? A little like a wiggling wire, but mostly it looks like a standing wave... of waves. Is artificial intelligence going to take over all the code and start suing us for copyright violations? Maybe yes, maybe no, but we're definitely in a strange, new world. And when all our media is on demand, what is the spectrum that broadcasters currently use going to be good for? It's not all heavy questions, of course; we found a lot of fun hacks, like an extreme drill press makeover, a couple of low-power cyberdecks, the return of Norm Abram in glorious AI-generated HD, getting up close and personal with flip dot displays, and a sled that lets you go uphill as easily as going downhill. For links and more, head on over to Hackaday.

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and (former Assignments Editor) Kristina Panos stood around talking about the greatest hacks of the previous week. But first, we've got a contest running now through March 21st -- the Low Power Challenge! Kristina almost got What's That Sound this week, but could only describe it as some sort of underwater organ, so still no t-shirt for her. But [BalkanBoy] knew exactly what it was -- the Zadar Sea Organ in Croatia. Then it's on to the hacks, beginning with the most beautiful sea of 7-segments you'll likely ever see. We gush over a tiny PC in a floppy drive that uses custom cartridges, dish about an expressive synth that uses a flexure mechanism, and enjoy a loving ode to the vacuum fluorescent display.

Join Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Managing Editor Tom Nardi as they explore the best and most interesting stories from the last week. The top story if of course the possibility that at least some of the unidentified flying objects the US Air Force valiantly shot down were in fact the work of amateur radio enthusiasts, but a quantitative comparison of NASA's SLS mega-rocket to that of popular breakfast cereals is certainly worth a mention as well. Afterwards the discussion will range from modular home furnishings to the possibility of using YouTube (or maybe VHS tapes) to backup your data and AI-generated Pong. Also up for debate are cheap CO2 monitors which may or may not be CO2 monitors, prosthetic limbs made from locally recycled plastic, and an answer to Jenny's Linux audio challenge from earlier this month. Check out the show notes for the links and discussion!

Under the weather though they both were, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Staff Writer Dan Maloney got together to take a look under the covers of this week's best and brightest hacks. It was a banner week, with a look at the changes that KiCad has in store, teaching a CNN how to play "Rock, Paper, Scissors," and going deep into the weeds on JPEG. We dipped a toe into history, too, with a look at one of the sexiest early hobbyist computers, seeing how citizen scientists are finding ancient burial mounds, and looking at the cryptography that cost a queen her head. Rather look to the future? We get it -- which is why we talked about a greener, cleaner way of making hydrogen from methane, as well as a generatively designed five-axis 3D printer. From laser-precise knife sharpening to circuit simulation with Python to clear plastic TVs of the 1930s, there's something for everyone!

Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Managing Editor Tom Nardi start this week's episode off with the announcement of Hackaday Berlin on March 25th. It's been quite some time since we've been on the other side of the pond, because we had to cancel 2020's Hackaday Belgrade due to COVID-19, so excitement is high for all three days of this "one-day" event. After a new What's that Sound, discussion moves on to an impressive collection of DIY sundials, the impact filament color has on the strength of 3D printed parts, the incredible retrocomputer replicas of Michael Gardi, and the Arduino FPGA that you've probably never heard of. We'll wrap things up with the unexpected difficulties of mixing multiple cheap audio sources in Linux, and try to figure out why our kitchen appliances need to be connected to the Internet. Check out the links and tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Assignments Editor Kristina Panos met up over thousands of miles to discuss the hottest hacks of the past seven days. There's a whole lot of news this week, and the really good part is the the small radioactive source that went missing in Australia has been found. Phew! Kristina is still striking out on What's That Sound, but we're sure you'll fare better. If you think you know what it is, fill out the form and you'll be entered to win a coveted Hackaday Podcast t-shirt! Finally, we get on to the hacks with an atomic pendulum clock that's accurate enough for CERN, safecracking the rough-and-ready way, and plenty of hacks that are non-destructive to nice, old things. We'll gush over a tiny DIY adjustable wrench, drool over CNC pizza, and rock out to the sounds of a LEGO guitar/synthesizer thing. Check out the links and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Managing Editor Tom Nardi meet up virtually to talk about all the hacks that are fit to print. This week's episode starts off with a discussion about the recently unveiled 2023 Hackaday.io Low-Power Challenge, and how hackers more often than not thrive when forced to work within these sort of narrow parameters. Discussion then continues to adding a virtual core to the RP2040, crowd-sourced device reliability information, and mechanical Soviet space computers. We'll wrap things up by wondering what could have been had Mattel's ill-fated ThingMaker 3D printer actually hit the market, and then engage in some wild speculation about the issues plaguing NASA's latest Moon mission. Check out the links over at Hackaday!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Assignments Editor Kristina Panos stood around and marveled at machinery in its many forms, from a stone-cutting CNC to an acrobatic robot to an AI-controlled Twitch v-tuber. But before all of that, we took a look at the winners of our FPV Vehicle Contest, poured one out for Google Stadia, and Elliot managed to stump Kristina once again with this week's What's That Sound. Will you fare better? Later, we drooled over an open-source smart watch, argued screen printing versus stenciling when it comes to bootleg Hackaday merch, and got into the finer points of punycodes. Check out the links and join in the conversation over at Hackaday.

Even for those with paraskevidekatriaphobia, today is your lucky day as Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Staff Writer Dan Maloney sit under ladders with umbrellas while holding black cats to talk about the week in awesome hacks. And what a week it was, with a Scooby Doo code review, mushrooms in your PCBs, and the clickiest automatic transmission that never was. Have you ever flashed the firmware on a $4 wireless sensor? Maybe you should try. Wondering how to make a rotary Hall sensor detect linear motion? We'll answer that too. Will AI muscle the dungeon master out of your D&D group? That's a hard no. We'll talk about a new RISC-V ESP32, making old video new again, nuclear reactor kibble, and you're least satisfying repair jobs. And yes, everyone can relax -- I'm buying her a new stove. Check out the links in the show notes over on Hackaday.

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Managing Editor Tom Nardi ring in the New Year with...well, pretty much the same stuff they do every other week. After taking some time to talk about the nuts and bolts of the podcast in honor of Episode 200, discussion moves on to favorite stories of the week including an impeccably cloned Dyson lamp, one hacker's years-long quest to build the ultimate Game Boy, developing hardware in Python, building a breadboard computer with the 6502's simplified sibling, and the latest developments surrounding the NABU set-top box turned retrocomputer. The episode wraps up with a review of some of the biggest themes we saw in 2022, and how they're likely to shape the tech world in the coming years. Check out the links over on Hackaday.

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Assignments Editor Kristina Panos decided against using one of Kristina's tin can microphones to record the podcast, though that might be a cool optional thing to do once (and then probably never again). After a brief foray into the news that the Chaos Communications Congress will be decentralized once again this year, as COVID restrictions make planning this huge event a complete headache (among other notable symptoms), we discuss the news that the EU is demanding replaceable batteries in phones going forward. After that, it's time for another What's That Sound results show, and despite repeated listens, Kristina fails to guess the thing. Even if she'd had an inkling as to what it was, she probably would have said 'split-flap display' instead of the proper answer, which is 'flip-dot display', as a few people responded. Finally, it's on to the hacks, where we talk about uses for ferrofluid and decide that it's one of those things that's just for fun and should not be applied to the world as some sort of all-purpose whacking device. Check out the links below if you want to follow along, and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

As we slide into the Christmas, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Staff Writer Dan Maloney look at the best and brightest of this week's hacks. It wasn't an easy task -- so much good stuff to choose from! But they figured it out, and talked about everything from impossible (and semi-fractal) 3D printing overhangs and the unfortunate fishies of Berlin's ex-aquarium, to rolling your own FM radio station and how a spinning Dorito of doom is a confusing way to make an electric vehicle better. Think it's no fun when your friend forgets to pick you up at the airport? Wait until you hear about what it's like to get stuck on the ISS, and the incredibly risky way you might have to get home. Interested in the anatomy and physiology of a cloned robo-dog? Then let the master do a teardown and give you his insight. We'll make some time for tea, cross our eyes for stereo photos, and dive into the mechanics of the USB-C. Check out the links over on Hackaday!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Assignments Editor Kristina Panos delighted in the aural qualities of Kristina's brand new, real (read: XLR) microphone before embarking on creating a podcast highlighting the best of the previous week's hacks. This week in the news, NASA returned to the Moon with Artemis I, and this time, there are CubeSats involved. After that, it's on to the What's That Sound results show, marred by Kristina's cheating scandal (listening ahead of time) and Elliot's reading the filename aloud before we started recording. Finally, we move on to the hacks -- they start with a trip to the 90s both sonically and visually, and end with a really nice alarm clock that's decidedly 70s, and definitely Hackaday. Check out the links over on Hackaday!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Managing Editor Tom Nardi start the Hackaday Podcast by talking about another podcast that's talking about...Hackaday. Or more accurately, the recent Hackaday Supercon. After confirming the public's adoration, conversation moves on to designing flexible PCBs with code, adding a rotary dial to your mechanical keyboard, and a simulator that lets you visualize an extinction-level event. We'll wrap things up by playing the world's smallest violin for mildly inconvenienced closed source software developers, and wonder how the world might have been different if the lady of the house had learned to read binary back in 1969. Check out the links and comment over on Hackaday!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Managing Editor Tom Nardi find themselves in the middle of a slow news week, so they dispense with the usual timely chit-chat and dive right into the results of a particularly tricky "What's that Sound" challenge. From there they'll cover the new breed of ATtiny microcontollers (and why you probably won't be buying them), a recently unearthed Z-80 consumer gadget that's begging to be reverse engineered, the fine art of electrifying watercraft, and a particularly impressive speech recognition engine. Stick around till the end to hear about the potential dangers of unsecured EV chargers, and take a walk down memory lane to a time when soldering irons and paper schematics ruled the world. Check out the links over on Hackaday, and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Assignments Editor Kristina Panos fumbled through setting up Mumble on Kristina's new-ish computer box before hitting record and talking turkey. First off, we've got a fresh new contest going on, and this time it's all about the FPVs. Then we see if Kristina can stump Elliot once again with a sound from her vast trove of ancient technologies. Then there's much ado about coffee roasters of all stripes, and you know we're both coffee enthusiasts. We have many words to say about the subject, but none of them are any of the 7+ dirty ones that the FCC would probably rather we didn't. Finally, we take a look at a bike frame that's totally nuts, a clock that seemingly works via magic, and a drone made of rice cakes. So find something to nibble on, and check out this week's episode! And be sure to visit all the links and leave a comment over on Hackaday.

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Staff Writer Dan Maloney review the literature on a hack-packed week of action. We'll find a Linux machine inside just about anything, including curb-side TVs and surprisingly secure EV chargers. No Internet? No problem -- just tunnel IP through WhatsApp! We'll see that 3D printers can be repurposed for lab automation of the cheap, build the worst -- but coolest -- 2FA dongle of all time, and see how a teetering tower of cards can make your old motherboard think any ISA card is plugged into it. Worried that driving an EV is going to be a boring experience? Don't be -- maybe you'll still get to jam through the gears. But if you do, rest assured there'll be plenty of careful engineering done to see if it's safe. Err, at least we hope so... Check out the links!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Managing Editor Tom Nardi are still flying high on their post-Supercon buzz (and are a bit jet lagged) this week. We'll start with some of the highlights from our long-awaited Pasadena meetup, and talk a bit about the winner of this year's Hackaday Prize. Talk will then shift over to shaved down NES chips, radioactive Dungeons and Dragons gameplay, an impressive 3D printed telescope being developed by the community, and the end of the Slingbox. Stick around for a double dose of Dan Maloney, as we go over his twin treatises on dosimetry and the search for extraterrestrial life. Check out the links if you want to follow along, and as always, tell us what you think about this episode in the comments!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Staff Writer Dan Maloney get together for a look at everything cool under the hardware-hacking sun. Think you need to learn how to read nerve impulses to run a prosthetic hand? Think again -- try spring-loaded plungers and some Hall effect sensors. What's Starlink saying? We're not sure, but if you're clever enough you can use the radio link for ad hoc global positioning. Historically awful keyboards, pan-and-scan cable weather stations, invisibility cloaks, plumbing fittings for electrical controls -- we'll talk about it all. And if you've never heard two Commodore 64s and a stack of old floppies turned into an electronic accordion, you really don't know what you're missing. We've go sooo many links. You must click on them all!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Assignments Editor Kristina Panos rendezvoused in yet another secret, throwaway location to rap about the hottest hacks from the previous week. We start off by gushing about the winners of the Cyberdeck Contest, and go wild over the Wildcard round winners from the Hackaday Prize. It's the What's That Sound? results show, and Kristina was ultimately stumped by the sound of the Kansas City Standard, though she should have at least ventured a guess after shooting down both modem and fax machine noises. Then it's on to the hacks, which feature an analog tank-driving simulator from the 1970s, much ado about resin printing, and one cool thing you can do with the serial output from your digital calipers, (assuming you're not a purist). And of course, stay tuned for the Can't-Miss Article discussion, because we both picked one of resident philosopher Al Williams' pieces. You can check out all the links in the show notes right here, on the Internet!

This week Hackaday Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Managing Editor Tom Nardi will discuss the return of the East Coast RepRap Festival, the scientific application of slices of baloney, and the state of the art in homebrew e-readers. The discussion weaves its way through various reimaginings of the seven (or more) segment display, an impressive illuminated headboard that comes with its own science-fiction film, and the surprising difficulty of getting a blinking LED to actually look like a flame. Stick around to the end to find out why iPhones are freaking out on amusement park rides, and to hear all the details about this year's Supercon badge. Check out all the links and join the discussion over on Hackaday!

It's déjà vu all over again as Hackaday Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams gets together with Staff Writer Dan Maloney to look over the best hacks from the past week. If you've got a fear of giant cockroaches, don't worry; we'll only mention the regular ones when we talk about zapping them with lasers. What do you need to shrinkify an NES? Just a little sandpaper and a lot of finesse. Did you know that 3D scanning is (sort of) over a century old? Or that the first real microcomputer dates all the way back to 1972 -- and isn't one of those blinkenlight deals? And watch out for what you tell GPT-3 to ignore -- it might just take you very seriously. We'll touch on solar-powered cameras, a compressor of compressors, and talk about all the unusual places to find lithium batteries for your projects. It's an episode so good you might just want to listen to it twice! (In case you're wondering about all this "twice" stuff -- Elliot forgot to hit record on the first take and we had to do the entire podcast over again. Oh, the humanity!) Feast on the spicy show notes!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Assignments Editor Kristina Panos gushed about NASA's live obliteration of minor planet Dimorphos using a probe outfitted with a camera. Spoiler alert: the probe reaches its rock-dappled rocky target just fine, and the final transmitted image has a decidedly human tinge. Kristina brought the mystery sound again this week, much to Elliot's sonic delight. Did he get it? Did he figure it out? Well, maybe. The important thing is one of you is bound to get it, so budding Neos need only enter their guess and their email address on the extremely official What's That Sound? entry form. We kick off the hacks with a really neat 3D printed linkage that acts as an elevator for a marble run, and then we discuss a mid-century hack that helps you decide whether it's time to emerge from the fallout shelter using the contents of your typical 1950s pockets. We spent a few minutes comparing our recent radiation exposure levels -- Kristina wins with about a dozen x-rays so far this year, but no full-body CT scans. Then we talk guitars for a bit, remember a forgotten CPU from TI, and spend a few cycles talking about a tone-wheel organ that sounds like a chorus of gleeful gerbils. Finally, we talk toner transfer for 3D prints, argue in defense of small teams versus large committees, and get all tangled up in cursive.

Hackaday Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams took time out from Supercon planning to join Staff Writer Dan Maloney for a look through the hacking week that was. We always try to keep things light, but it's hard sometimes, especially when we have to talk about wars past and present and the ordnance they leave behind. It's also not a lot of fun to talk about a continent-wide radio outage thanks to our angry Sun, nor is learning that a wafer-thin card skimmer could be lurking in your ATM machine. But then again, we did manage to have some fun by weighing cats to make sure they're properly fed, and making music by pegging VU meters. We also saw how to use PCBs to make a beautiful yet functional circuit sculpture, clean up indoor air on a budget, and move microns with hardware store parts. And we also got to celebrate a ray of international hope by looking back on the year that taught us much of what we know about the Earth. Check out all the links (and the hoopla) in the show notes!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Managing Editor Tom Nardi start off by talking about the chip shortage...but not how you think. With a list that supposedly breaks down all of the electronic components that the Russian military are desperate to get their hands on, we can see hackers aren't the only ones scrounging for parts. If you thought getting components was tricky already, imagine if most of the world decided to put sanctions on you. We'll also talk about kid-friendly DIY stereoscopic displays, the return of the rotary cellphone, and using heat to seal up 3D printed parts for vacuum applications. Join us as we marvel over the use of rubbery swag wristbands as tank treads, and ponder an array of AI-created nightmares that are supposed to represent the Hackaday writing crew. Finally we'll talk about two iconic legacies: that of the 3.5 inch floppy disk, and astrophysicist Frank Drake. Check out the links in the show notes!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Assignments Editor Kristina Panos had a lot of fun discussing the best of the previous week's hacks in spite of Elliot's microphone connectivity troubles. News-wise, we busted out the wine and cheese to briefly debate whether a Colorado man should have won an art competition by entering an image created by AI. Afterward, we went around a bit about floppies, which are being outlawed in Japan. Then it's on to the What's That Sound Results Show, but since Elliot can't find a 14-sided die, he pulled on the the Internet for our random number needs. Congratulations to our big winner [D Rex], who will receive one our coveted Hackaday Podcast t-shirts. Is the food-safety-of-3D-printing debate over once and for all? It is as far as Elliot's concerned. You know what else is over? The era of distributed, independent email servers. Bah! We're not kidding about that last one -- and we discuss a lie-detecting app that may or may not prove our innocence. Finally, we talk active foot cooling, heat barriers for hot shops, and big, strong magnets. What are they for? Fixing floppies, fool! Check out the links in the show notes!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Assignments Editor Kristina Panos met up on a secret server to discuss the cream of this week's crop of hacks. After gushing about the first-ever Kansas City Keyboard Meetup coming up tomorrow -- Saturday the 27th, we start off by considering the considerable engineering challenge of building a knife-throwing machine, the logistics of live-streaming on the go, and the thermodynamics of split-level homes. This week, Kristina came up with the What's-That-Sound and managed to stump Elliot for a while, though he did eventually guess correctly after the tape stopped rolling. Think you know what it is? Then fill out the form and you'll earn the chance to win a genuine Hackaday Podcast t-shirt! Later in the show, we look at a macro pad that breaks the mold, an ASCII terminal like it's 1974, and a Z80 that never was (but definitely could have been). Stick around as we root for the CubeSats hitching a ride aboard Artemis I, and at last call on the 'cast, it's lagers vs. ales (vs. ciders). Head on over to the show notes for links and oh, so much more!

Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Managing Editor Tom Nardi are here to bring you the best stories and hacks from the previous week (and maybe a little older). Things kick off with news that the Early Bird tickets for the 2022 Hackaday Supercon tickets sold out in only two hours -- a good sign that the community is just as excited as we are about the November event. But don't worry, regular admission tickets are now available for those who couldn't grab one out of the first batch. This week there's plenty of vehicular hacks to talk about, from John Deere tractors running DOOM to a particularly troublesome vulnerability found in many key fobs. We'll also lament about the state of 3D CAD file formats, marvel at some retro-futuristic photography equipment, and look at the latest in home PCB production techniques. Wrapping things up there's a whole lot of cyberdeck talk, and a trip down silicon memory lane courtesy of Al Williams. Check out the links in the show notes!

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Assignments Editor Kristina Panos convened in a secret location to say what we will about the choicest hacks of the past week. We kick things off by discussing the brand new Cyberdeck contest, which is the first of it's type, but certainly won't be the last. In other contest news, we recently announced the winners of the Hack it Back Challenge of the Hackaday Prize, which ran the gamut from bodysnatching builds to rad resto-mods and resto-recreations. Taking top honors in wow factor this week is [Stuff Made Here]'s jigsaw puzzle-solving robot. This monster can currently tackle small laser-cut puzzles, but is destined to solve an all-white 5000-piece nightmare once all the engineering pieces have come together. Then we took a field trip to Zip Tie City, where the plastic's green  and the wiring's pretty, admired volcano nuts from afar, and briefly considered the idea of a 3D printer with a heating zone of programmable length. Finally, we take a look at a creatively destructive robot that's akin to a useless machine, bloviate about books you should read, and dance around the topic of learning by playing. You want to click the links in the show notes, no?

This week, Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Assignments Editor Kristina Panos traded sweat for silence, recording from their respective attic-level offices in the August heat unaided by fans (too noisy). We decided there's no real news this week that lacks a political bent, except maybe that Winamp is back with a new version that's four years in the making. (Is Winamp divisive?) Does it still whip the llama's ass? You be the judge. After Elliot gives Kristina a brief math lesson in increasing area with regard to 3D printer nozzle sizes, we talk a bit about 3D pens, drool over a truly customizable macropad that uses a microcontroller for each keyswitch, and discuss dendrometers and tree health. Then it's back to keyboards for one incredible modular build with an e-ink display and haptic feedback knob which is soon to go open source. Finally, we talk tiny CRTs, a USB drive that must have the ultimate in security through obscurity, discuss the merits of retrograde clocks, and wonder aloud about the utility of jumping PCBs. Don't bounce on us just yet -- not until you hear about our first electronics wins and learn the one thing Kristina doesn't do when she's spending all day in the heat. Check out Hackaday for all the links!

Join Hackaday Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Staff Writer Dan Maloney for their take on the hottest hacks in a hot, hot week. We found a bunch of unusual mechanisms this week, like an omnidirectional robot that's not quite wheeled but not quite a walker either. Or, if you'd rather fly, there's a UAV that's basically a flying propeller. There's danger afoot too, with news of a chess-playing robot with a nasty streak, a laser engraver that'll probably blind you, and a high-voltage corona motor that actually does useful work. We'll use our X-ray vision to take a deep dive into a 60-GHz phased array antenna, let a baby teach a machine what it means to be hungry, and build a couple of toy cameras just for funsies. Ballons as a UI? Maybe someday, thanks to ultrasonic levitation. And we'll wrap things up by snooping in on the Webb telescope's communications, as we find out how many people it takes to make wire harnesses. Spoiler alert: it's a lot. Check out the links in the show notes!

Hackaday Editor-in-Chief Elliot Williams and Managing Editor Tom Nardi start this week's podcast off with an announcement the community has been waiting years for: the return of the Hackaday Supercon! While there's still some logistical details to hammer out, we're all extremely excited to return to a live con and can't wait to share more as we get closer to November. Of course you can't have Supercon without the Hackaday Prize, which just so happens to be wrapping up its Hack it Back challenge this weekend. In other news, we'll talk about the developing situation regarding the GPLv3 firmware running on Ortur's laser engravers (don't worry, it's good news for a change), and a particularly impressive fix that kept a high-end industrial 3D printer out of the scrapheap. We'll also fawn over a pair of fantastically documented projects, learn about the fascinating origins of the lowly fire hydrant, and speculate wildly about the tidal wave of dead solar panels looming menacingly in the distance. Check out the show notes!