Recent content in Welcome to my site on Andre Lackmann
Six kids, six interlocking physical games, a mission-console web app, and 52 pages of printables — designed and built in a few evenings with AI. When you can build things this fast, why would you buy one?
What started as hunting for WipEout reference art for my Lego builds turned into a full-blown community archive of logos, emblems, fonts and art from across the entire franchise.
Feisar is arguably the face of WipEout — on the original PS1 cover art, iconic in blue and yellow, impossible to ignore. The collection wouldn't be complete without it. I kept putting it off. Then I couldn't anymore.
By popular request from the r/WipeOut subreddit, I've compiled high-resolution desktop wallpapers of the cover art for my Lego WipEout anti-gravity ship models.
Moving OpenHAB config changes from IDE to chat via OpenClaw and a dedicated sub-agent.
Retro Gamer magazine ran a two-page spread on my LEGO WipEout ship builds in their February 2026 issue. Still can't quite believe it.
When the right LEGO colors don't exist, you adapt. The fourth ship in my Wipeout collection features a reverse livery solution that turned a limitation into an alternate reality.
How a simple design problem — attaching LED displays to brick walls without drilling — led me to design and print custom brick clips for the 2025 Christmas lights display.
Commercial Christmas tree options didn't fit what I needed, so I designed a 2m tall LED tree fixture from scratch — 3D printed structural components, aluminium tube, fibreglass rods, and 1,960 individually addressable pixels.
How I scaled up my Christmas lights display from a hand-built 1,000-pixel setup to an epic(ish) 4,000+ pixel show.
Custom stickers can take a Lego model from good to great — but measuring tiny bricks is a nightmare. Unless you know about LDUs. Here's the complete workflow I use to design, cut, and print custom stickers for my builds.
The most complex Wipeout build yet - 842 pieces of angular aggression capturing the brutal aesthetics of Tigron's K-VSR anti-gravity racer.
The second ship in my Wipeout Lego series tackles Van-Über's distinctive twin-wing design using Technic connections and nearly 40 custom stickers.
I recreated the iconic AG-Systems anti-gravity racer from Wipeout using Lego bricks and Bricklink Studio, complete with custom stickers and real-world build instructions.
Launching my new LinkedIn newsletter exploring how today's technology decisions shape tomorrow's business outcomes. First issue - The internet's most successful business model just died. Here's what that means for your business strategy.
My son's been collecting 1:43 scale F1 cars, so naturally we had to build a proper display for his McLaren collection
I needed an iPad stand to hold our device while using some exercise apps that monitor your progress and provide feedback (such as Homecourt for basketball). This design holds the iPad almost vertically at 80° and accommodates larger cases.
I spent 5 hours letting GitHub Copilot Agent build a complete Node.js app that acts as a BLE-MQTT gateway for my home automation system. Here's what happened when I let AI do virtually all the coding.
After using NextDNS for parental controls, I've moved to a local AdGuard Home setup with OpenHAB integration for even better control over what my kids can access on our home network.
A complete guide to building a life-size Minecraft diamond sword with motion-reactive LED lighting using WLED, an ESP32, and a MPU-6500 gyroscope - changing light patterns as you swing!
Another year, another epic NYD pool party! After things got a little out of hand last year, we pulled it back slightly for Part 1 (Sunset) with melodic progressive house, then cranked it up for Part 2 (Night) when the sun went down and things got weirder and darker.
Speaking at Fastly Xcelerate 2024 led to unexpected news coverage about Nine's Olympics security. Turns out journalists ask questions at technical conferences, and big numbers make good headlines.
Another year, another hackathon at Nine Entertainment! For our 2024 event, I created a set of unique trophies that blended Tim Burton's aesthetic with Matrix vibes, all crafted from upcycled circuit boards and custom 3D printed elements.
My most technically advanced build to date - a fully 3D printed Great Frostblade from Breath of the Wild featuring WLED-controlled addressable LEDs, fiberglass reinforcement, and specialized ice-effect finishing.
A deep dive into creating a local API control system for Blueair Air Purifiers using Node.js and MQTT, replacing the Blue Air Cloud service, making everything better - well, mostly...
Another NYD pool party at our good friends' house and a very good time was had by all! Possibly a few too many cocktails were poured and things got a little loose, so please excuse some of the heavier FX usage in parts!.
It's my party and I'll DJ if I want too! A special live recording of my DJ set at Lazybones in November 2023. Something for everyone with a bunch of tracks from a bunch of eras, spanning 1989 to 2023.
A battery operated catdoor opener & closer. It uses ESPHome running on an ESP8266 microcontroller in a 3d printed enclosure, controlled from OpenHAB. Now the cat waits for it to open at 6AM :)
A 20' stand for the Native Instruments F1 DJ Controller
My colleague Lee Webb and I appeared in a video testimonial for Fastly, discussing Nine's experience with their Managed Security Service. A great opportunity to practice presenting to camera.
So, turns out ramming into the gutter at full speed repeatedly is going to eventually break something
At Nine Entertainment (where I currently work) we run a regular Hackathon for our teams. This years theme was AI (naturally). Check out the trophies!
My first WLED project and introduction to playing with RGB addressable LED strips. This is a 'mountain peaks' wall art design for my son's bedroom. Doubles as a handy reading or night light!
A 1.5-metre weapon combining laser-cut cardboard and 31 3D printed parts with advanced weathering techniques that won the Wildcard section at 2024 OzComicCon.
Javascript rules for OpenHAB home automation to allow control of Parental Control rules managed in NextDNS.
Creating a 1.5-metre illuminated Great Thunderblade from Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild using laser-cut cardboard, 3D printed components, and LED lighting.
I appeared at PagerDuty Summit 2022, participating in a panel discussion and video interview about how Nine uses PagerDuty to handle incident response at scale.
A weekend project creating a life-sized replica of the Royal Claymore from Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild using cardboard, spray paint, and 3D printed details.
Creating Fireblight Ganon's distinctive blue ancient sword with cardboard, fabric, and a clever design that makes it appear to be an extension of your arm.
Following on from djdrey 013 - this is 2hrs earlier as the sun went down on our NYD pool party. A bit of old skool in the front, proggy darkness in the back. Look out for unreleased or hard to finds from Infusion, Mat Zo, Fabrication & the KLF/Buick.
What a year 2021 has been. Pandemic, shoulder surgery, house renovation - no time for music and mixing. EXCEPT! There was a little pool party on NYD 2022 and I might just have recorded almost the whole set. This NIGHT mix is the last two hours, packed with classic trance from the 90s and 2000s with a few more recent bangers in between. Never a dull moment. Enjoy!
With Halloween quickly approaching and the Master Sword complete, I took on the challenge of creating the Savage Lynel Sword from Breath of the Wild using cardboard, metal bolts, and plastic chain.
A Halloween cardboard crafting project with the kids - creating Link's iconic Master Sword using recycled packaging, spray paint, and cardboard layering techniques.
What a year 2020 has been! All the being locked up in our homes has been frustrating, but a silver lining sure has been all the great music that has been coming out. So welcome to my 2020 Year Mix!
An evening with good friends and 3hrs at the decks. Mostly a new batch of tunes from the last few months, with the occasional classic thrown in. This set is all about enjoying the moment and the music with people who appreciate good beats.
Mix number 10 and we're in double-digits! No August mix, but here's something for September. Featuring vocals, melodies, and an epic from Marsh. Look out for Paul Thomas' 'Come With Me' - an acid workout. Enjoy, and don't forget to do all the good stuff: like, share, comment. See you next month!
Been planning this one for a while. Most of my mixes are, let's say, 'a bit hectic'. That's great for a club vibe, but it's not always Saturday night. Here's something for those Saturday or Sunday afternoons where you want some tunes, but maybe it's not time for the techno (yet) :) Hope you enjoy!
A bit of a mix this month, from techy house to techno bangers, and then a palette cleanser to finish. Featuring tunes from Marsh, Paul Thomas, and more. Loving Pronto Apeggio's bright synths and weird tempo changes, and Kolsch gets two tunes this month. Hope you enjoy!