Technology

HOW TO – Make any website a mobile site, with Google…

HOW TO – Make any website a mobile site, with Google…

GooglephoneJeff at Palm addict writes – “Somehow tonight I stumbled on something I’ve never heard of. It seems that Google has a page that will optimize any website for viewing on a mobile phone or PDA, similar to Skweezer and IYHY. All you see when you load the page is what shows in the included graphic. No Google logo, no explanation, nothing. But simply enter a URL and you recieve a quick-loading mobile optimized version of the page you requested.” [via] Thanks, Brian! Link.

HOW TO – Build an Electrostatic Motor

MotorHere’s how to make a very cool motor from a disposable plastic drinking cup, aluminium foil, glue-stick, bamboo or dowel, wire and a non-conducting base, such as a plastic plate or a wooden board. Kiteman writes – “Normal motors are driven by electromagnetic forces. This motor needs no batteries, mains supply or solar cells. Electrostatic motors are turned by the kind of electricity generated by wearing nylon clothes in a modern office. Think of it as gigantic nano-technology as well, because this is how the microscopic motors of nanobots work.” Link.

Verizon Prevents Treo Use As 3G Modem

TreoPretty unfortunate. I suspect we’ll see a hack to work around this soon – “So you just bought a Windows Mobile Treo with EV-DO service and you want to use it as a modem for your laptop? Forget it. Verizon Wireless says you must buy a second 3G subscription and they have the technology to back it up. Specifically, while the device, which has well-reviewed, comes with Bluetooth, Verizon has disabled the Bluetooth dial-up networking capability that would enable the Treo 700w to act as a modem for laptops.” Link.

10 Tips for Easy Motherboard Upgrades…

0,1425,I=90953,00Good round of motherboard upgrading tips on Extremetech – “…motherboard upgrades can be either difficult or straightforward. It all depends on how you approach it and how you prepare. We’ve upgraded motherboards quite often over the years, so we’ve learned a few lessons along the way. We’d like to share our knowledge, so that when you tackle this, you encounter minimal hassles. Our pain over the years is now your gain.” Thanks Star! Link.

MIDISpeak: Speak & Spell MIDI Kit

MIDISpeak: Speak & Spell MIDI Kit

Midispell2Not a bad deal for $49. “MIDISpeak Module – Version 2, The Talking Toy MIDI RetrofitAdds a standard MIDI IN port to your Speak & Spell, Speak & Read, or Speak & Math. Non-English versions also supported. Trigger thousands of sounds–words, word fragments, garbled speech, percussion and bizarre sound effects.” Link. In MAKE 04 we also show you how to build music toys like this. Modify a Casio keyboard (or other electronic audio stuff) and start playing some of the strangest sounds you’ve ever heard.

HOW TO – Make a fast action NERF rifle…

HOW TO – Make a fast action NERF rifle…

Good1This look really fun, and really scary, but it’s NERF, so it’s probably OK. “The FAR is a magazine fed spring powered rifle capable of firing Nerf darts in rapid succession. It uses a fast-action bolt system. This means that all that needs to be done to cycle the weapon is to rack the bolt back and release. The rifle is fed by a bottom feed detachable magazine that holds 5 rounds. The design of the FAR permits it to be fully disassembled and all components accessed for repair or replacement. Only a philips head screwdriver and a pair of hands are required for field stripping.” [via] Link.

HOW TO – Build a Cool Linux Toy…

HOW TO – Build a Cool Linux Toy…

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Pramode C.E. writes – “With a low-cost general purpose microcontroller like the PIC16F628, bits and pieces of cheap, commonly available electronics components, and LOTS of code, you can build many interesting `toys’ and hook them up to your Linux machine – a really great learning experience for the hardware hacker who wants to learn Linux, or the Linux hacker who wants to learn a bit of hardware. This article describes how I went about building my temperature-sensing project – amateur Linux/hardware hackers might find some of the ideas useful when they start building things on their own.” Link.