Due to extreme hacking (we just placed an order for breakfast/dinner delivery) there is little to no chance any of us will be awake by 10am. We’ll open things up at noon. Pass the word on! We’d hate to have anyone waiting out in the cold for us.
NYCR T-Shirts Series 2!
We’ve just gotten our new T-shirts, an they look awesome! Huge thanks to 1aeon for another set of fantastic designs!
This time around, we got both Men’s and Women’s shirts in a variety of sizes, but we’ve got a limited supply, so to get one of these shirts, you’ll need to find your way to the NYC Resistor space! Shirts are $20 each. With the move coming up and a limited supply, we unfortunately won’t be able to ship any out.
Train Drama
As usual, the MTA is being squirrely this weekend. The R, which usually stops right on our block, is skipping our station (and a host of others) this weekend. Thankfully the R is indeed stopping at Dekalb, which is only a few blocks away (one stop farther into Brooklyn).
The A/C and 2/3 are also being a bit wacky, although they’re at least stopping here. Check the MTA site for info on your route.
Live Shot from Hackathon!
Edit: Thanks everyone who came out for the hackathon!
Here’s a semi-live shot of the hackathon at NYCR this weekend! Say hello internets.
Madagascar Institute!
The Madagascar Institute is an awesome art/build/make/catch-on-fire space and we’re about to move a lot closer to them. This video made by the Motherboard team is a great introduction to them. Make sure to check out their classes!
A little valentine’s day sneak peek
Valentine’s day is fast approaching, and what is an enterprising hacker with a laser cutter to do but make some heart-shaped LED projects?
There are a few valentine’s day related projects in the works here tonight – here’s a peek into what’s being built!
Exploding Capacitors
When I went to boot up an old computer which had sat dormant since I moved in April, nothing happened. No lights, no whirring, nothing. I assumed it was a bad power supply, and left it for another day. Over the weekend my boyfriend got sick of seeing it out, guts exposed to the world, and threw a new power supply in it. Still no life. Then he pulled out everything but the motherboard, and it booted! Or at least, as much as a computer with just a motherboard can.
As he added each component in one by one, the culprit became clear without even having to power up the machine:
Not seeing it? Here, let me get a little closer:
This is, or was, my video card. A reasonably nice (at the time) 7600 GT. The most remarkable thing is that this is not the first time I've seen this happen to this particular card. In fact, it's the third. Two other friends of mine have had theirs blow capacitors as well. And a google search for "exploding capacitors 7600" brings up tons of results.
Goodbye, video card. We have these in a number of the computers in the house, including my main machine. I wonder how long it will be until the next one goes.
What did I forget to add on my Hello World Hackerspace Map
Ok, what did I miss? Leave a comment here or click the picture to leave a comment on Flickr. – Bre
Powerlabs 100KJ Rail Gun
A lot of you folks may not know this but, I went to high school ( and graduated from there ) in Brazil. One of my friends from there currently is living in New Jersey. He’s been running powerlabs.org since high school ( probably earlier ). Sam has also just recently sold his soul to facebook here
Above is a video of him test firing a 100 KiloJoule rail gun. And I cannot stress this enough… THIS IS FREAKING AMAZING. Sam’s fairly famous so some of you may already know of some of his past exploits, but if not… by all means check his stuff out. Sam’s been inspiring me with his insanity for years.
Register for the 48 Hour Hackathon!
Don’t forget to register for the hackathon! It’s totally free, but we’re asking folks to sign up so we can get an idea of how many people to expect!
NYC Resistor’s first 48 hour hackathon will run from 6pm Friday, Feburary 12 to 6pm Sunday, February 14. At the end of the hackfest there will be time to share your projects as well as exciting prizes for the most awesome hacks.
You can work by yourself or with a team, and if you don’t have a team/project we’ll assign you to one. Projects we’ve heard buzz about include:
- Re-enabling the 1930’s teletype
- Building props to do a trivia quiz. Buzzers, lights, etc
- Subway wifi radio station aka “Radio Free MTA”
The format is open, you’re welcome to come and go as you please. We’ll keep the Club Mate flowing and follow a loose schedule of demos and workshops to help spark your imagination. PS, interested in giving a demo of some sort at the hackathon? Contact Kelly!
Friday, Feb 12
6pm – 8pm: Intros and whatnot. There’s no formal registration, but it would be nice if folks introduced themselves and what they’re working on
8pm – 12am: hack hack hack hack hack
Saturday, Feb 13
12am-4pm: hack hack hack hack
Afternoon-ish: Makerbot demo! Watch as Widget produces widgets with his magical printing device!
12pm – 2pm: Soldering lab! Practice your soldering skills. We’ll have some of the TV-Be-Gone kits on hand for folks who want to learn to solder (or just irritate employees at Best Buy)
4pm – 6pm: GO EAT SOMETHING. We’ll need to make space for the Audio Fun with Coils class from 4-6, so it’s a good excuse to get some food, take a shower, reunite with your kids, etc.
4pm – 12am: hack hack hack hack hack
Sunday, Feb 14
12am – 5pm: hack hack hack hack
7am: Late night breakfast. We’ll strike out for food before the valentine’s day brunchers are even awake.
5pm: PRESENTATIONS! Everyone will get a few minutes to show off what they did. We promise this won’t be long and painful.
5:45- 6pm: We’ll award awesome awards, tidy up, and have you all home in time for Valentine’s dinner.