How a dimmer switch works - diacs and triacs
Reviving a foot dimmer switch and learning about the operation of diacs and triacs in the process.
Corners were cut
Seriously, I don't have time for this.
Latest posts
Resurecting a pair of bluetooth earbuds
Reviving small electronics by opening them up and forcing the battery back to charge.
Designing a simple object from scratch: two-minute timer
The details of my latest short project, where I design and 3D-print the case and create a PCB on a protoboard for a two-minute timer.
Using Blender for editing STL 3D‑print models
A few tips & tricks on how to use blender effectively to produce valid STL files for 3D printing that I learned while creating models for tools I want to give to my kids.
OVH apache logs fetch and analysis
A bit of a meta entry where we build a tool to fetch OVH apache logs, analyze the blog's logs and filter them to get a more realistic user count.
MIDI to SN76489 to chip music, part 3: putting it all together
It is now time to take this project to the next level: soldering 4 chips to a protoboard, adding an Arduino, a mixing circuit, putting it all into a box, and making music! Finally!.
MIDI to SN76489 to chip music, part 2: from noise to music
At this point in the project, we have reliable communication with one SN76489 chip on the breadboard and some form of sound output. In this article, we'll make it play its first note, control it from a computer, and start improving its musicality.
MIDI to SN76489 to chip music, part 1-B: diving into an amplifier circuit
The TI chip can output up to 10 mA, which begs for some amplification. A few components I had bought or salvaged a while ago were looking at me with begging eyes, so this provided a good excuse to indulge.
MIDI to SN76489 to chip music, part 1: setting things up
The first installment in a series were we build a MIDI instrument from a bunch of SN76489s. In this article, we concentrate on setting up communication with a an SN76489 and getting some sound out of it.