$25 HMD UPDATE!

Heck yeah.

Before I get to that sweet little ‘bot pictured above, I need to clear something up.  I (and the folks at Wild Planet, apparently) continue to receive questions from people regarding the availability of those replacement headsets I wrote about in this previous post.  Unfortunately, they are most certainly not available anymore.  In fact, they sold out pretty soon after that post hit the ‘net, and they’re doubly unavailable now because they’ve discontinued that toy entirely.  If you still really want one, check out the comments by the kindly Mr. Bobby Edwards here and here.  He’s got some similar devices for sale, as well as some related pieces of awesomeness.

Now that that’s all taken care of, kindly proceed past the “more” link below to hear about something truly exciting!

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Published in: on March 26, 2010 at 1:12 pm  Comments (6)  

First, a word from our sponsors…

OK, not really  “sponsors”–more like a sweet company that is letting me play with a toy in exchange for writing about it…

But ANYWAY:  this site has been silent for much too long, and for that I apologize!  Later today there will be a new post regarding an old project and something to look forward to in the near future from friend of the show blog, Wild Planet.  After that, I aim to resume semi-regular postings of projects and the like.  I have a pretty sizable back-log of creations, so there will be no shortage of things to share with you fine folks!

Published in: on March 26, 2010 at 9:12 am  Leave a Comment  

Press!

I haven’t posted anything in a rather long time, so I thought I’d take a minute to brag about share with you a couple bits of popular media in which I’ve been mentioned recently.  First up, is {this} lovely article penned by the talented Mr. Morgan.  Unfortunately the New York Times, for which the piece was originally written, bumped it at the last minute in favor of a more fashion-centered Steampunk story.  Disappointing, but I consider my inclusion in this article to be an unspeakably great honor regardless, and it is definitely rather high on my list of proudest accomplishments (especially since I got more ink than that fiend {von Slatt} (artist’s rendering) for once!  Ha!).

Last but not least, we have the just-published {cover story} in the IEEE’s flagship publication, Spectrum.  Though {von Slatt} (file photo) gets his usual overabundance of attention, my televisor and I get a much appreciated mention on {page two}, as well as a wonderful little write-up on {page 8} of their accompanying slide show.  I’ve been a member of the local IEEE branch here at MTU for three years now, so it means a lot to be recognized in their magazine!

In other news, I do have some new contraptions to share so keep an eye on this site for updates over the next few weeks.

Published in: on October 13, 2008 at 10:59 am  Comments (3)  

The Man Who Loved

::Sigh:: you’re all going to know what I look like now*…

In June of 2007, coworker and good friend of mine, one Mr. Tom Russell, approached me with an opportunity to act in he and his wife’s newest film. (more…)

Published in: on January 1, 2008 at 6:12 pm  Comments (2)  

A Warning and a Plea

This is NOT actually my hard drive*

Well, dear friends, it seems as though I have fallen victim to an incurably failed hard-drive… (more…)

Published in: on December 18, 2007 at 2:32 pm  Comments (10)  

$25 Head-Mounted Display

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So it’s 2007: shouldn’t there be more cyborgs? Well, for a mere $25.00 (or less), you can be one big step closer to being one yourself. How so, you ask? Click the following link to to find out! (more…)

Published in: on September 30, 2007 at 10:53 pm  Comments (185)  

The Torch of Saint Dismas

Warning: this one could be a bit upsetting

Imaginary:

“So,” she asked in her charming cockney accent, “this is what you’ve been working on so mysteriously all this time, is it?” The young gentleman to which she was speaking smiled in the affirmative and handed over the parcel, hastily wrapped in what was clearly the kitchen towels. He watched with pride and anticipation as his athletic, yet elegantly feminine wife drew the oddly-shaped gift from the linens in which it was lightly bound. As the wrappings fell gracefully to the hardwood floor, a look of gleeful disbelief spread across her alabaster countenance. With the eyes of a young girl just given a pony, she wildly looked up at her grinning husband and stammered “It…It’s some sort of…It’s…It’s a Hand of Glory, isn’t it?!?!” (more…)

Published in: on August 24, 2007 at 8:48 pm  Comments (16)  

The Bug: Steampunk Computer Mouse

The Telecalculograph finally has a suitable mouse!

Imaginary:

Though the eccentric Professor William C. Ravenscroft remains stingy on details of his “Telecalculograph“, he has recently allowed photography of the device with which its user controls it. These images, as well as speculation upon their contents follows:

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Published in: on April 20, 2007 at 1:04 pm  Comments (77)  

SteamTV Part 1 — first looks at my newest project

My university’s chapter of the IEEE held a “Hacks/Mods/ Gadgets” contest a while ago, in which I entered the Telecalulograph and Vitorio-Nixie Tube. By sort of winning (there were only two other entries), I was awarded the chance to build the project of my choice–with them picking up the tab! I rather quickly realized that this would be the perfect opportunity to construct something that had been nibbling at the back of my mind for some time: a steam-powered Baird Televisor. While many people have built reproduction mechanical TVs, I am (to the best of my knowledge) the first to power it directly with a steam engine. I am beginning to see that there is good reason for this, but I am determined!

The project is in it’s infancy now (hence the “Part 1″), so there isn’t a whole lot to see yet. The physical framework and most of the basic components are built and functioning on their own, but the is an incredible amount of work to be done before the thing actually does anything interesting. I will be posting updates as I go along, so stay tuned! Photos and descriptions of what I have so far are after the jump:

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Published in: on April 7, 2007 at 6:17 pm  Comments (19)  

Source for the Mysterious Pen Found!

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This photo is sort of troubling. Who is this “Craig” that this small child is writing to? Where is he supposed to be taking her?

 

Possible kidnapping aside, the industrious Flickr member “Allwell.geo” has succeeded where I have failed: finding a source for the pen I used in the Victorio-Nixie Tube. It’s not quite as cheep as I’d like, but hey–better than nothin’, eh? Anyway, click on the above picture to be whisked away to said cyber-store.

Want something cheaper? Well, let me direct your attention to my most favorite catalog in the whole wide world: American Science and Surplus. Among their vast plethora of geekish goodies, they have this. It won’t be much good for an exact replica, but what fun would that be anyway?

Published in: on February 14, 2007 at 9:52 pm  Comments (4)  
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