Hasta La Gadget!

From the man that brought you the OS Xbox Pro and the Cinematograph HD comes… a cockpit canopy filled with hard drives? Not quite. Meet the Black Dwarf, a custom network-attached-storage device from the mind of video editor Will Urbina, packing 16TB of RAID 5 magnetic media and a 1.66GHz Atom N270 CPU into a completely hand-built Lexan, aluminum and steel enclosure. Urbina says the Dwarf writes at 88MB per second and reads at a fantastic 266MB per second, making the shuttlecraft-shaped 12.7TB array nearly as speedy as an SSD but with massive capacity and some redundancy to boot. As usual, the DIY guru shot a professional time-lapse video of his entire build process, and this one’s not to be missed — it showcases some pretty spiffy camerawork as well as the man’s welding skills. See sparks fly after the break.

Continue reading Homemade 16TB NAS dwarfs the competition with insane build quality (video)

Homemade 16TB NAS dwarfs the competition with insane build quality (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 May 2010 04:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Hack A Day  |  Will U. Design  | Email this | Comments

We told you you could shave down your old and busted SIM cards and turn them into minty fresh Micro SIMs, didn’t we? An industrious Londoner by the name of John Benson has gone and proven that concept with the help of some cutting implements and an original Micro SIM to use as a reference. His saintly patience resulted in his being able to negotiate the Vodafone SIM you see above into his iPad 3G (imported from the USA) and riding the waves of Voda’s network as if Apple never decided to encumber its portable device with a silly new standard. The 3FF (Micro) SIMs and the bulkier original ones are electrically identical, so there’s no threat of harm by using them interchangeably, though we can’t say the same thing about the tools that get you there. As always, we advise trying to rope someone else into doing the work for you — less chance of hurting yourself that way. Hit the source for more.

[Thanks, Brandon]

How to create your own Micro SIM card using a chef knife and some scissors originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 06 May 2010 08:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Continue reading Wooden DSLR shoulder rig does follow focus with a twist

Wooden DSLR shoulder rig does follow focus with a twist originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 May 2010 18:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Switched  |  cinema5D  | Email this | Comments

Paper-mache, candy, and human cells have all been seen flowing through 3D printers for custom fabrication work, but students and faculty at Canada’s McGill University have a cheaper prototyping material: plain ol’ H2O. They recently modified this Fab@Home Model 1 by replacing the soft goo extruders with a temperature-controlled water delivery system, and set about making decorative ice sculptures and a large beer mug for good measure. While the academic project is officially supposed to explore “economic alternatives to intricate 3D models of architectural objects,” we’re not sure architects will want much to do with prototypes that drip… but tourism might well get a boost from liquor sold in frosty custom containers. We’re thirsty just looking at them.

3D printer creates ice sculptures — just add water originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 03 May 2010 08:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Fabbaloo, Boing Boing  |  McGill  | Email this | Comments

Unlike some photo DIY projects, I can see no reason why you would ever have to buy a commercial version of Derrick Story’s Rear Lens Cap Pad. It is as simple a project as you could imagine, but also solves a real problem: bag space.

The Rear Lens Cap Pad is simply a circle cut from a sheet of adhesive, padded material, and stuck to the existing rear-cap of your lens. What does it do? It allows you to stack lenses inside a bag or pouch without a bulky lens cover. And while it doesn’t offer the dust or bump-protection of a proper lens bag, it looks protective enough for day trips, stopping lenses from bashing and scratching each other as they jostle.

Derrick uses the caps so he can perch smaller lenses atop a zoom lying flat in his bag. A 50mm prime is small enough for a pocket, but put it inside a padded case and it immediately becomes unwieldy. I often leave lenses at home because of the size problem, and this hack gives me an even better idea: With a single foam tube and a few cap-padded lenses, you could easily make a minimal case into which any number of small objectives could be slid. A weekend project? I think so.

Rear Lens Cap Pad for Stacking in Camera Bag [The Digital Story]

See Also:

• Make a Cheap Lens Case
• Make It: Stealth Camera Bag