poundland Poundland Surprises! Need a LiPo battery and boost converter? Got £1? Then go to Poundland and give this a go.
tuesdaytooling Tooling Tuesday - #pounderland special Take apart a Poundland amplifier / speaker...it only costs a quid...honest!
pounderland Friday Fun: Poundland Edition It'ssssss Pounderland! So today I popped into my local Poundland to look for stuff which I can hack into a time machine project for tomorrow. I found a few bits and pieces. Solar
soldering The "Essentials" Soldering Kit Disclaimer - This kit was provided free of charge by CPC I love soldering! I only learnt to solder about 2-3 years ago, but since then I have enjoyed the hobby. Yes even
chip Chips, dips and Doom I recently took delivery of a $9 computer, called C.H.I.P, a kickstarter project from 2015. I opted for Pocket CHIP, a Gameboy-esque case that provides a full keyboard and touchscreen
hacking Blinky Lights LEDs are wonderful things! The humble LED provides us with illumination, it indicates when a device is on standby and it can teach anyone the basics of controlling a physical device with a
keyboard Bluetooth Keyboard Shenanigans If you have followed my antics long enough then you will know that I am a little frugal. Some would say "cheap", well both are true :) So on Hot UK Deals
microbit micro:bit - Hacking the GPIO - Updated! So yesterday on the train...I saw this tweet. Just had GREAT yr4 after school club using #bbcmicrobit 😀 BUT trying2do traffic lights & struggled w/ short circuits pic.twitter.com/xsp1upJs3q— Ben
microbit BBC micro:bit - Gesture controlled blinking lights I've been tinkering with the new BBC micro:bit computer, especially the Micro Python editor Mu. I love how flexible the board is, especially for getting down to hacking in very little time.
hacking Hacking Poundland My love for cheap electronics is well documented and the various Pound shops in Blackpool feed my need quite well. Today at Blackpool Makerspace I worked with young hacker Josh to build a
hacking Geekery and tinkering I'm a geek I know far too much about Computers, Electronics and Star Trek, don't get me started on Galaxy class starships! So this makes me a geek, which is cool because just
Raspberry Pi Using Raspberry Pi in museums Blackpool has a long history of entertainment with many big names coming to Blackpool during it's "Golden Age". I was recently asked by Blackpool Council to provide a Raspberry Pi workshop
Raspberry Pi Origins I’ll let you into a secret. I’ve not always been a programmer, in fact I’ve only been programming for a few years. Ok compose yourself, get a brandy or a
hacking Micro:bit Last weekend, August 15 and 16, the BBC were in Blackpool as part of their Make it Digital roadshow. I was lucky enough to be asked along to help deliver a day long
hacking Micro Python Python is my favourite language and it has been my favourite for around three years. Why? Well because I understand it and I can use it to make different projects. I also enjoy
Linux Directly Connecting To a Raspberry Pi At a recent Picademy Bytes CPD session I was asked by Monica "How can I connect my laptop to a Raspberry Pi?" Good question! Monica was keen to take her Pi
hacking CodeBug - First steps I love the CodeBug, it is so accessible to children but yet it provides a platform for more advanced hacking. I was lucky to receive my CodeBug in person from Andrew Robinson and
Linux Staying sane - Your guide to writing multiple Raspberry Pi SD cards If you are like me then you probably host a lot of Raspberry Pi themed events. You've probably built up quite a stash of kit, including around 20 Raspberry Pi. So what do
hacking FT232H GPIO Breakout board Recently I've received many different micro controller boards but one that has rally caught my eye is the Adafruit FT232H. But why? Well it enables any computer to have GPIO pins that can
Raspberry Pi Using Python to get weather data Being British I have an unatural obsession with the weather. In a taxi my opening gambit is usually "Well, isn't the weather nice/wet/cold ?" to which the poor driver responds
hacking Apple A1048 - Almost there! #sysadminA1048 Last night I finished off installing all of the now bleached keys on the keyboard and I have to say that I am rather happy with the result. Sure the keys are not
Raspberry Pi Smile - You're on Minecraft Camera Minecraft Pi is considered to be one of the killer apps that ships with the Raspberry Pi. I do a lot of work for web and print magazines and they always want a
hacking #sysadminA1048 - Bleaching the keys Earlier this week I ordered a few key components for my Apple A1048 keyboard restoration / hack. I needed some Hydrogen Peroxide (9% strength) and a UV light source. So off to Amazon I
arduino Hacking Apple A1048 Keyboard Confession - I love early 2000s Apple design asthetics. So when I had the chance to own an A1048 mechanical keyboard...I jumped at the chance. The keyboard itself was a little unloved,
Raspberry Pi Toys Stories New toys to play with. PiFace Relay + joined with a PiFace Motor Control EXTRA One of the perks of being a tech journo is that you get to play with some pretty amazing