Developages - Development and Technology Blog

It’s a been a while since we had our last roundup of projects from our Flickr photo pool, so here’s a big ol’ collection of recent highlights -

• 3D printed business card holder

• LED concrete furniture
• ThingaMunny Goblinator
• Lyrics box for practice/gigging
• Tree ornaments via laser
• Trumpet Hero!
• Classic handset gets bluetooth-ed
• Coffee cup speaker set
• NES cart sleeve pen-cup
• Apparatus for High Voltage Treatment of Alcoholic Beverage
• Light + charger for flip cams
• Prepaid Number reminder as iPhone wallpaper
• Mac mini cube
• 9V Tragedy
• Father & son as Eve & Wall-e
• The painting that watches you

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Original post by Collin Cunningham

Homemade strobe photography by Tom Anderson and Wendell Anderson…

JUMPIN&rsquo JACKED FLASH

We built a strobe flash out of a Kodak disposable camera and then designed a circuit that triggers the flash when it detects a sound or other measurable event. The strobe flash will freeze motion!

We use a digital camera set for a long exposure (two seconds or more), and shoot the picture in a dark room. When the balloon pops, the sound-activated trigger circuit fires the flash, and the camera captures the incredible event.

Why not just take the picture of the balloon with a digital camera and its built-in flash? First, getting the timing right is a hard problem: the camera&rsquos exposure, its flash, and the event itself need to be synchronized. (Try it yourself and see what luck you have.) The second problem is that a stock camera flash doesn&rsquot make a very good strobe because it flashes too long, causing blurry high-speed photos.

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Original post by Phillip Torrone

In yesterday’s instalment, we loved the Ricoh, Panasonic and Lumix. Read on for our conclusion today of the best high-end digital compact cameras.

Original post by Mike Slocombe

In Part One of our search for the hottest high end digital cameras, we finished by looking for something to beat one of our favourites, the Olympus XA.
That camera was the Ricoh GR, which, like the XA, offered a fixed, wide angle lens in a compact package.

Original post by Mike Slocombe

Tilt-shift photography can be a really expensive undertaking. Then again you can simulate the effect in Photoshop, but it just isn’t the same. This is a great project to make that will save you a lot of money compared to the commercial versions.

I know there are people out there who would love to experiment with a PC Shift lens, but the cost of purchasing one is generally prohibitive unless you plan to shoot professionally with the lens. (A nikon shift lens with tilt functions cost over $1000, BTW: The Nikon guys once took a look over this and said, “why would you do that to such a nice camera? We sell that lens you know.” I know. That’s the point).

More about DIY:Tilt-shift PC lens

From the pages of MAKE:

In MAKE 09 we show you how to make your own! Tilt-Shift Photography - page 144. Subscribers–read this article now in your digital edition or get MAKE 09 in the Maker store - Link.

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Original post by Marc de Vinck

Join us in our never ending quest to find the perfect, high end digital compact camera.

Original post by Mike Slocombe

Udi sent in this link to a DIY: PVC C-Stand. If you are unfamiliar with a C-Stand, they are stands used in photography to hold things like backdrops, lights and screens. This is a cheap DIY alternative to expensive commercial versions. [Thanks Udi]

I love nothing better than a good PVC construction. This is why I was so happy when David Turman sent in this great PVC stand. As any stand it can double as a light stand or a backdrop stand. You can use the stand to mount the cool backdrop you already made, or “just” your store bought backdrop.

More about DIY: PVC C-Stand

In the Maker Shed:


High-Speed Photography Kit Version 4

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Original post by Marc de Vinck

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Huge shocker here: removing your shoes at airport security causes massive headaches and makes the wait longer for everyone. Now that we’re all good with Captain Obvious′ latest headline, let us point you to one prototype that’s looking to solve said dilemma. SecuriScan, which has been developed by Professor Wuqiang Yang at the University of Manchester, would theoretically be able to “detect and pinpoint suspicious objects instantly,” all without requiring passengers to remove their kicks. Better still, the system uses electric and magnetic sensing instead of a radiation source, which could also address safety concerns while helping you get where you’re going more quickly. Moving forward, Yang hopes to develop a more advanced and realistic prototype for testing, and just in case you were doubting this guy′s determination, he’s also investigating a handheld version that could hastily screen abandoned luggage or packages.

[Via Physorg, image courtesy of ChangeAirportSecurity]

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Wearables

For shame. We know good and well engineers can concoct energy-generating garb that actually looks good enough to wear, but evidently those fashion-minded gurus weren′t hired for this project. Granted, we have all ideas the image you’re quizzically staring at above is NTT’s first go at a pair of power-packing sandals, but there’s clearly a good ways to go before these things are cute / safe enough to wear on the streets. Might we suggest shoving all that hardware inside of something? The “all hanging out” look just isn’t working here.

[Via TokyoMango, image courtesy of AFP / Getty]

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Transportation

With an electric MINI Cooper just around the bend, a Twin Drive hybrid Volkswagen landing in 2010 and Chevrolet’s Volt rolling into showrooms in a matter of months, Audi’s ten-year plan is looking a little awkward. Though we’ve yet to hear that it’s actually speeding things up, Peter Schwarzenbauer, who sits on the management board at Ingolstadt, recently confirmed that the company would be offering “a pure electric car” sometime in the future. Additionally, rumors of it being based on the A1 were dashed, opening the door for speculation that it will instead be built around the VW Up! (Lupo) concept. Here′s hoping we find our prior to 2018.

[Via Autoblog]

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Displays, HDTV, Home Entertainment

We still haven’t been able to shake the ViewSonic dragon from our memory, but we’re attempting to move on with our lives by directing our attention (however briefly) to the N2201w. This so-called “3-in-1″ LCD TV packs a 22-inch 1,680 x 1,050 resolution panel, a 5-millisecond response time, 1,000:1 contrast ratio and a built-in NTSC / ATSC / QAM TV tuner. You′ll also find an integrated DVD player and an HDMI port, and just to prove it really is multifaceted, there’s a PC input to boot. No telling if the picture quality is anything to write home about, but the $429 price tag sure is palatable.

[Via CEPro]

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Laptops

AT&T has freely supported Panasonic’s WWAN-enabled Toughbook 19 / 30 on its mobile broadband network for nearly a year now, and for those worried that the two may break things off when Gobi entered the picture can finally breathe a sigh of relief. Qualcomm′s hybrid-3G technology (which goes from EV-DO to HSPA with the flip of a software switch), has just been certified for use on the carrier’s nationwide network, and sure enough, Panny has decided to offer it on “all″ new Toughbook machines. Gobified Toughbooks should be on store shelves this October, though we’re not sure just how costly the option will be.

Read - AT&ampT certifies Gobi technology
Read - Panasonic offers Gobi on Toughbooks

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Gaming

Just in case you didn’t have enough fake instruments cluttering up your living room, Mad Catz has now let loose its Fender Precision Bass for Rock Band, which it helpfully reminds us is the first ever bass guitar for the game. Among other things, this one drops the whammy bar normally found on Rock Band / Guitar Hero guitars (the volume knob does the job instead), and it incorporates a new Split Strum Bar, which promises to let you strum and pluck notes faster than a standard strum bar. Unfortunately, it’s only available for the Xbox 360 at the moment, but at least the $70 price tag isn′t quite as excessive as some of the other “premium” guitars out there. Now, if only someone would offer a Neil Peart-style drum kit, we’d really be able to do Rush justice, or at least out-do their now infamous performance on The Colbert Report.

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Original post by Donald Melanson

Filed under: Tablet PCs

The launch of the next-generation Vectra (or Insignia, as it has become) has been a long time coming, and Vauxhall is making good and sure everyone notices now that its time has arrived. As part of an elaborate marketing scheme, the automaker crashed a UFO in Potters Fields Park in London, and there was even a fence, men in dark glasses that were evidently mute and copious amounts of smoke to set the scene. Just how this relates to a new motorcar? You′ve got us there.

[Via Black-Night-Sky]

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Home Entertainment

Although DISH Network’s previous quarter wasn′t anything to write home about, it sounds like the satcaster (EchoStar, technically) isn’t going to allow its set-top line to grow stale in the process. During the recent Team Summit in Nashville, Tennessee, DISH’s CEO Charlie Ergen reiterated that it would be beaming out “more than 100 national HD channels” by the end of 2008, and he also made mention that the EchoStar 11 satellite would lift off in July. Most interesting, however, was all the talk about the new STBs. The forthcoming ViP 722 will be the first HD DVR from the outfit with loads of Sling technology built in — not too shocking considering the recent acquisition. Additionally, the box is said to feature an all new interface and the ability to browse to (select) websites, double as a SlingCatcher and even handle Clip & Sling duties. There’s plenty more where this came from, so be sure and hit the read link when you’ve got some spare time for reading.

[Via GizmoLovers]

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Original post by Darren Murph