Blog
Build logs, project notes, and write-ups from the workshop.
- How to Fix the Arduino Uno Serial Port Problem on Mac Arduino clone not showing a serial port in the IDE on macOS? The fix is a CH340 driver install plus one terminal command. Here is exactly what to do.
- TI-99/4A AV Cable DIY — Build a 5-Pin DIN to Composite Video Adapter Skip the RF modulator. A 5-pin DIN connector, a spare RCA cable, and an hour at the bench gives your TI-99/4A a clean composite video signal into any modern TV.
- What Is an Arduino? A Beginner's Intro (Plus 13 Cool Projects You Can Build) Arduino is the framework that made electronics accessible to everyone. This post breaks down what it actually is — hardware, software, and community — and shows 13 real projects to prove the point.
- How to Remove Permanent Marker and Clean NES Game Contacts A Magic Eraser takes Sharpie off NES cartridge shells in under a minute. Isopropyl alcohol on a cotton swab handles the contacts. Together, they fix roughly 90% of games that refuse to load.
- How to Replace the Battery in Pokémon Sapphire (Game Boy Advance) When the CR1616 battery dies in a GBA Pokémon game, the real-time clock stops — but your save data is safe. Here is how to replace it, what battery to use, and why size actually matters here.
- How to Arduino #4 — analogRead, Potentiometers, and map() to Control a Servo A potentiometer outputs a voltage between 0V and 5V. The Arduino reads it as a number between 0 and 1023. map() converts that to 0–180 for a servo. This post covers the theory, the wiring, and the one-line conversion that ties it all together.
- How to Use Servos with Arduino — Wiring + Code (HiTec HS-322HD, TowerPro MG995) How to wire and control hobby servos with Arduino — external power, common ground, lead color schemes for HiTec and TowerPro, Servo library code, and why jitter happens.
- How to Arduino #1 — Installing the IDE and Uploading Your First Sketch Installing the Arduino IDE, selecting the right board and serial port, uploading the Blink example, and reading your first sketch. Also: why the Arduino Nano fits on a breadboard and the Uno does not, and a plain-English walkthrough of the three sections every Arduino program has.
- Programmable LED Jack-o-Lantern with the TI MSP-430 Launchpad + Energia IDE Replace a fake pumpkin's incandescent bulb with 6 individually-controlled LEDs and program the whole thing with the TI MSP-430 Launchpad and Energia — which is basically the Arduino IDE with a red color scheme and TI chip support.
- How to Fix Nintendo Wii Disc Read Errors — Optical Drive Replacement Tutorial The dreaded "Unable to read disc" error on a Nintendo Wii is almost always the optical drive — and a $20 replacement from overseas plus one very specific screwdriver will fix it in about 35 minutes.