Gizmodo: DIY

Build Your Own Electric Motorcycle for $3000

Elaine Chow — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 18:15:00 EDT

For DIYers with a lot more technical know-how than cash, an Instructables user has put up a really interesting tutorial on building an electric motorcycle using just $3000. The vehicle has a 70mph top speed, but can only go about 10 miles before it needs to be recharged. It's great for a quick trip to the store, if you don't make any unexpected stops along the way. With gas prices being what they are, you should probably try to make it so everything you would normally need to get to is less than 10 miles away anyhow. [Instructables via Uberreview]

MAKE Makes Call for Makers for October Austin Faire

Kit Eaton — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 07:01:09 EDT

We love the whacky creativity of the Maker Faire here at Giz, and all you DIY gadget enthusiasts out there will be pleased to hear MAKE has just put out a call for Makers for the upcoming Austin Faire. You've got until September 4th to get your application in, and the faire itself will be happening October 18th and 19th at the Travis County Expo Center. [MakerFaire via LaughingSquid]

DIY Blow-Outable LED Birthday Candles Perfect for Uber-Geeky Kids

Kit Eaton — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 06:24:28 EDT

Kids nowadays are so showered with electronic goodies that I suspect a traditionally-lit birthday cake just wouldn't cut the mustard for some of them. Luckily, over at Instructables they've got a recipe for DIY electronic "candles" that actually lets you blow them out. Its flickering LEDs are accompanied by a thermistor warmed above room-temp by a nearby resistor, and accompanied by a microcontroller. When you puff hard on the thermistor, the circuit senses the temperature drop and switches off some LEDs. Brilliant, but sadly it seems you can't get extra wishes by blowing them all out at once. The demo video is undeniably funny though: a fake birthday part thrown by the builders.

All you need now to please an uber-geeky kid is to follow the instructions, box the device up somehow, and embed it in a cake. It's even a lower fire-risk than real candles... assuming your wiring doesn't go horrifically wrong. [Instructables via Hacknmod]

DIY Clove 2 Glove Allows You To Type One-Handed, Sans Keyboard

Sean Fallon — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 17:00:00 EDT

Oh, how I love complicated DIY projects that impress your geeky friends but make simple tasks more difficult! Case in point, this Clove 2 glove that allows users to type without a keyboard using a convoluted set of hand gestures. The glove communicates with your computer using Bluetooth and custom software that translates your finger movements into keyboard actions. I can see how something like this would be useful in a simpler form, so if you are up to that challenge you can start with the complete set of instructions for building the base Clove 2 glove.

[HackaDay ]

Automatic Cat Faucet is One DIY Hack That Felines Will Love

Elaine Chow — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 14:30:00 EDT

Luckily, my cat was always too dumb to make the connection between the faucet and fresh water, so she's made do thus far with just sipping from her water dish. But I've heard that once kitties taste from the tap, they never want to go back. For running water addicted cats, MAKE contributor tsruzik has constructed a pretty ingenious automatic cat faucet using an IR sensor and some tubing.

The hack requires a little plumbing know how and some circuitry work, which makes it slightly harder than your normal DIY project. To help you and your pets out, Tsruzik has put together some kits for order. Prices range from $10 to $125.

The end product works a lot like those sinks that automatically turn on when you waive your hands under them—except instead of detecting hands, it detects cats. Tsruzik has even thrown in an optional “people detector” so that the faucet won't run every time a person walks by. Check out the video to see some cute kittie drinking action:
[MAKE]

Zing Laser Brings Laser Cutting Goodness to the Average Guy

Elaine Chow — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 11:00:00 EDT

Fans of laser engraving can now prettify all their stuff with Epilog Laser's new Zing Laser, a machine that's roughly about the size of a bulky office scanner. The Zing Laser, one of the first fully functional low-cost laser etchers on the market, has 25 watts of cutting power and can engrave designs into wood, acrylic, plastic, leather, cork, glass, treated metals and more.

When hooked up to a personal computer, the Zing is recognized as a printer. Put whatever you want to etch on a 16 by 12 inch engraving area and then use Corel Draw to calibrate where the design will go before starting the cutting process. Get to customizing every Mac thing you own for $7,995.

Here's a video of an iPhone getting carved and the laser cutting through wood.

[Gearlog]

Super-Sleek Aurora Open Source DJ Mixer Can Be Built From a Kit

John Mahoney — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 18:00:00 EDT

We love open source hardware, especially when it can throw some MIDI flange and fade into your party like the Aurora—a dual-channel, USB-powered DJ mixer. All the schematics, bills of materials and source code can be nabbed for free online, or you can have one built and shipped. And it can pull off a pretty mean LED lightshow...

Here the ump-shh ump-shh is dished out by Ableton Live, with effects being controlled by the Aurora.

[Aurora via Hack A Day]

Multi-Platform Universal Console Mod Plays Everything Modularly

Jason Chen — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 16:20:00 EDT

This game console mod does things slightly different from older mods we've seen. Instead of taking an old console and shoving it into a smaller body, this guy made a universal body and modularizes consoles—in effect, turning consoles like the N64, NES, Megadrive, Jaguar, GBA, and PlayStation into insertable "cartridges" that can be played on this main unit. He's only got the N64 working (he says it's the hardest one), but will keep working on other systems until he can pretty much play everything made before 1998 on this thing. [Modded By Bacteria]

Custom Nervous System Jewelry is Carved to Your Algorithmic Designs

Kit Eaton — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 12:15:00 EDT

Designers Jessica Rosenkrantz and Jesse Louis-Rosenberg have come up with a mathematical way to design jewelry. Via their Nervous System site, you steer open source "Processing" algorithms to produce a pattern you like. This is then machined by water-jet, etched and even gold-plated for you into real jewelry. Currently they've got a particle algorithm dubbed Radiolaria (think: bubbles in glass) and a diffusion-limited one, Dendrite (think: coral) but will soon add a tree-like Algae one. The prices vary, of course, depending on what you want—the gold necklace in the image costs $70. If you prefer, you can choose a pre-made pattern... but where's the fun in that? [Nervous System via PopSci]

Keyboard Haptics Mod Turns Shrill PC Speaker Into Soothing Vibration

John Mahoney — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 12:00:00 EDT

Modder and frequent terminal user Matt was getting mighty tired of his piercing PC speaker going off with every typo, so he rigged up a nifty DIY haptics setup using a Microsoft keyboard and an old cellphone vibrator triggered by the scroll lock LED. Unless you're playing Oregon Trail in your elementary school's computer lab 15 years ago, you probably haven't heard your PC speaker in a long while, but if you're frequently using the terminal (especially under Linux) for command line tasks, this is the mod for you. [CiboMahto via MAKE]

Can a USB Socket Power a Popcorn Maker?

Kit Eaton — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 05:50:00 EDT

Some guys over at Metacafe have posted this video of possibly the best USB gizmo ever. It's a DIY desktop USB popcorn maker. Sounds too good to be true, doesn't it? It uses a minimum of parts, and "high intensity heater lights" driven only by the power from your PC. I was skeptical at first (and still am) but the electronics kind of make sense, and the video is convincing. If you're a bored cubicle-monkey and fancy trying it out for yourself, the video shows you how... and you could then cheer up those work days with a snack of DIY popcorn. What's your take, guys? Real or not? [Metacafe via Crunchgear]

Hide Your Fancy Car Stereo Behind a Very Crappy Car Stereo

Adam Frucci — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 19:20:00 EDT

So you got yourself a fancy new stereo for your car. It's all well and good while you're driving, but when you're out of the car you know damn well that it's a magnet for ne'er-do-wells who are just itching to take a crowbar to your window and forcibly remove your fancy apparatus from your dash. What to do? Simple: disguise it with a really crappy looking stereo faceplate, complete with a half a cassette sticking out.

Over at Instructables they have detailed instructions on just how to do this. It works best if you have the original, crappy stereo that came with your car handy, but it'll work with other models if you measure properly. Just get yourself a bunch of epoxy, some Velcro, an ironic cassette and a few hours of your time and you'll be good to go. Unless someone with a fetish for old cassette decks walks by your car, that is, but that's probably a risk you're willing to take. [Instructables]

Thingamakit DIY Synthesizer is Horribly, Wonderfully Noisy

Kit Eaton — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 07:25:00 EDT

Weird... but I kinda want to hear more. That's roughly how I'd describe the sound output of the Thingamakit, a strange "noise monster" DIY synthesizer. I like the fact that it uses some sort of optical feedback: adjusting those tentacles affects how the sounds are generated, which then gets fed back to the LEDs in the tentacles. So it's a pleasingly tactile gizmo, and if you're really a strange-noise-machine-ophile, you'll also appreciate that you can buy it as a kit from maker Bleep Labs. [Bleep Labs via Hackaday]

Water Balloon Slingshot Brings the Wet into Hot American Summers

Elaine Chow — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 14:30:00 EDT

Now that we're headed deep into the middle of summer, it's time to bring out water balloons and figure out ingenious ways to fling them at your enemies. Here's a great tutorial at Instructables for making a wicked water balloon catapult using surgical tubing, a rag and other random doohickies from around the house. According to the dude responsible for this weapon of watery destruction, this shooter will never explode the water balloon prematurely, unlike some of the types you get in stores. [Instructables]

EeePC 900 Gets a Touchscreen Mod That's So Good We Want It Standard

Jason Chen — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 15:59:59 EDT

If we didn't know that this was done by a user, we'd swear that this touchscreen Eee PC was made by Asus themselves. The video shows a super sensitive and responsive screen, flicking quickly up and down on a web page with either the finger or stylus. On a laptop of 10-inches or smaller—what we like to call "tardtops"—a touchscreen fits just perfectly. Why get a Kindle when you have a light, touchscreen laptop that can be carried with you and supports lots of colors? Nice work jkkmobile. [JKKMobile]

Chinese DIY Helicopter is the Culmination of 10 Years of Ingenuity, Possible Mental Illness

John Herrman — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 21:00:00 EDT

A DIYer from the Guangdong Province in eastern China has finally perfected his sub-$3000 home-built helicopter, taking it for a demonstration flight in what appears to his back yard. A tinkerer since he dropped out of school in his teens, Chen Zhaorong has been working on this project for nearly 10 years, but only began flight attempts a few months ago. The first attempts were neither successful nor fatal, (a remarkable combo) but this time around he not only got liftoff, but seemed to be in complete control.

And in control he was, piloting the buzzing death machine to a totally unnecessary height of over five stories. His apparent skill is especially fortunate considering the close proximity of buildings, power lines and men on motorcycles, each of which poses its own interesting "will it blend" question. The answer to all of them: Yes. This video was secretly released by a friend of the builder, as he had been banned from flight by local officials after a near disaster mere weeks ago.

DIY helicopters are nothing new, but like that Chinese farmer's poop-inducing flight on an even less together-looking craft, Zhaorong's effort deserves special mention for its economy and shear nerviness. [QQ]

Desk Clock Plays Life, Counts Yours One Second at a Time

Jesus Diaz — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 08:00:00 EDT

I like this Life Clock. What makes it for me is not the fact that you can do it yourself using Arduino components—the open-source electronics prototyping platform—or that it can tell you the temperature and play Conway's life on its own. No, what makes it all come together is the simple wood design and the use of 60s sci-fi spaceship computer lights. [Make]

Time Harp Instrument is Motion-Sensing, String-Playing Howler

Kit Eaton — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 16:30:00 EDT

"Argh, um, ooh... actually that's kinda interesting" is an approximate record of my thoughts as I heard the Time Harp play in this vid for the first time. The robo-musical instrument grinds plastic discs against strings to make them resonate, activated by motion sensors. And it produces...well, a kind of vooming hum that is almost, but not quite, entirely unlike the sound of Dr Who's TARDIS dematerializing. Designed by Larnie Fox, I like it for its low-tech strangeness and eerie sounds. Plus its the sort of sound that'll pop up in the background of some dance tune or other, and now you'll know where it came from. [Makezine via Crunchgear]

DIY Iron Man Repulsor Light Won't Repulse Anybody, May Dazzle 'Em

Kit Eaton — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 14:00:00 EDT

DIY gadgeteer Carlos at Carlito's Contraptions and Tony Stark have at least one thing in common: they like to tinker with homemade gizmos and strap 'em onto their bodies. Sadly Carlos didn't have access to Tony's array of sci-fi gadget impossibilities, but that didn't stop him from producing this palm-mounted ultra-bright LED flashlight in a sturdy aluminum frame that's activated with a cocked wrist. Check out the video to see it in action.

Follow the rough DIY instructions, match it up with the DIY arc reactor, and you'd have the start of your own iron suit...with just the rockets, weapons and other flim-flam to put together in your garage. [Carlito's Contraptions via Hacked Gadgets]

Working LEGO Gun Will Make You Shoot Bricks

Elaine Chow — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 11:00:00 EDT

One man's LEGO is another man's treasure, and what better way is there to guard your grand stash of colored bricks than by using the bricks themselves as a weapon? The Thriller Automatic and Thriller Compact are slide action crossbow pistols with cocking and chambering mechanisms that are almost completely made out of LEGO. Martin Hüdepohl, a German designer and the man who built this amazing monstrosity, has a video of the gun in action. Pew pew!

Instructions on how to become your own LEGO arms dealer can be found in Hüdepohl's book, LEGO for Adults. The book features construction plans for the two weapons, detailed operating instructions, and a Thriller Automatic mini poster. According to the website, only 1,050 copies of the book were made because of LEGO's rules against using their trademark in connection with guns. So grab the book quick, before you're on the losing end of a LEGO showdown. [Xubor via Boingboing]

CCTV-busting, DIY LED Glasses Makes Robbing a Store/Bank/Warehouse 4x Easier!

Adrian Covert — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 18:00:00 EDT

Don't you hate it when your perfect heist is foiled by some hidden camera that serves your head to the police on a platter? Well some deviant genius posted a video on Metacafe showing you how to create a pair of LED shades that hides your face on CCTV. All you need are a couple of LEDs, some wire, tiny batteries and a bit of skill. But if committing felonies aren't quite your thing, maybe you'll appreciate the fact these also make you look like some possessed spawn of Satan on camera. [Metacafe via Red Ferret]

Signal Jacket for Cyclists Gets Instructable: Your Arms Will be Happy

Kit Eaton — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 10:15:00 EDT

Back in March we showed Leah Buechley's neat signaling jacket for cyclists, the one that has LED turn-indicators on the back. Not much info was available on it at the time, save for the fact it used an Arduino Lilypad controller. But now Leah's posted a detailed Instructable for the jacket, including handy things like a shopping list for materials and tools, so you could easily make your own. One thing we didn't know: there's a single LED on each cuff, confirming your turn signs are showing on the back. Good idea that—saving you from veering into the path of a juggernaut that didn't know what you were up to. [Instructables via Talk2myshirt]

Build Your Own iPhone Anti-Interference Shield With a Can of Red Bull

Sean Fallon — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 18:11:38 EDT

One of the things that irritates me about iPhone ownership is how my computer speakers buzz whenever the phone gets too close. It wouldn't be that big of a deal except for the fact that my desk is the most logical place to charge my phone. Fortunately, someone has come up with a simple MacGyver-esque solution to this problem using nothing more than a Red Bull can and some double stick tape. The creator warns that it could interfere with your reception, but it shouldn't pose much of a problem. Besides, your desk is probably littered with empty soda cans as it is. Hit the link for the full set of instructions. [Project Page]

Readybot is a Robot Maid for Cleaning Your Stuff, Version 0.1

Kit Eaton — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 04:09:00 EDT

It's hard not to watch this video of DIY robot Readybot and think "sweet... what's the next version like?" Looking like everyone's favorite trashcan-shaped sci-fi droid has collided with a dishwasher, Readybot's intended to be a home-assistant 'bot doing a maid's job, cleaning your house. It may be slow and primitive now, but it looks pretty adept at grabbing stuff from the floor. And deploying a Roomba to do the vacuuming is genius. Actually an on-going development by makers The Readybot Robot Challenge, the robot will get more sophisticated, and we'll be watching for Phase 2 later this year. I'll get excited when it can put my clothes away and clean the cat litter tray. [Readybot]

Daft Punk's Designer Shows DIY Glowing Outfit Tricks

Kit Eaton — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 11:20:00 EDT

Almost as famous as Daft Punk's electro-tunes are their glowing electro-outfits. And now, thanks to the chap who made clothes for their 2007 Alive tour, and an Instructables DIY page you too could don glowing gear. It looks fairly easy, as long as you're nifty with a needle and thread: the hardest part seems to be soldering the wire's electric contacts. There're a bunch of tips on wire placing and sewing, and photos of EL wire patterns on everything from boots to hats. And now, if you excuse me, I'm off to persuade my missus of the benefits of a glowing bra. [Instructables via Hacknmod]

R/C Tortoise Crawls, Meanders, Barely Interests Cat

Elaine Chow — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 15:00:00 EDT

The robot tinkerers over at Crabfu have made a remote-controlled tortoise that ambles around using 4 sub-micro servos controlled by a 4 channel radio system. Each leg is tied to an independent channel and axis, which means the robot moves through some serious thumb twiddling action. Besides proving that it could move forwards and backwards and all around, Crabfu also put the mechanical hero in a half shell through the rigid “Does it annoy the cat?” test. Unfortunately, it seems like this green machine has nothing on its real life counterpart:

[Crabfu via Technabob]

DIY Sleeping Mask Puts You In Control of Your Dreams

Benny Goldman — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 19:50:00 EDT

There's a Lucid Dream Machine sleeping mask on Instructables that pulses LEDs in your eyelids four hours after you fall asleep, waking you up just enough to notice your dreams and control their outcomes. The mask requires a fair bit of soldering and programming experience, so it isn't for DIY luddites like me. Which is good, because my sleep is too precious and my dreams are too weird to want one of these anyway. [Instructables via Make]

DIY Lightsaber Makes Attacking Whiny Jedi Nerds More Authentic

Elaine Chow — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 10:00:00 EDT

For those of us that saw footage of the drunken Darth Vader attack and found ourselves slightly disappointed by the... well... un-Star Wars-like nature of the Sith Lord's weapon, Instructables has a DIY kit to ensure that our next drunken rampage is truly worthy of the Dark Side.

The project, from Instructables user Ricardoaraujo, uses a normal toy lightsaber hilt, some AA batteries, a rubber hose and a couple of LEDs to build a weapon you'd be proud to kick Jedi ass with. Now all you need to do is knock back a couple too many Guinnesses and find some Obi Wan Kenobi-worshipping dork to smack around. Death by pretend lightsaber it shall be!
[ Instructables via Technabob]

LED LEGO Iron Man Minifig Explodes With Boozy Charm, RPG Rounds

Jason Chen — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 20:30:00 EDT

Chris and Jared over at Brickmodder rigged up this fantastic diorama of a scene inspired by Iron Man. There's a detail picture of Iron Man after the jump, but you can see from the wide shot that Iron-y is just hanging there, eyeballing that RPG as it gracefully flies past his head before blasting the two terrorists (or construction contractors) in the face with hand lasers. "Yeah, I can fly." [Brickmodder via Brothers Brick - Thanks Lindsay!]

NeuScreen is a Nokia N95 'Multitouch' Screen Engine Project

Jason Chen — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 13:50:00 EDT

Sittiphol Phanvilai, a developer on the Nokia forums, managed to rig up a "multitouch" engine using the N95. With the camera, an IR filter on the back, a light pen and a TV, he cobbles together a system that allows drawing. Since this is only one pen, it's not exactly multitouch, but it is a start that shows what the N95 can do with the proper input systems. Does it means the N95 will get a multitouch screen some time in the future? Probably not. [Nokia Blogs]

The Heineken Jacuzzi Bubbles Over With Beer Drinking Fun...and Possibly Vomit

Sean Fallon — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 14:40:00 EDT

I'm not sure who built this jacuzzi nor do I have all the details on its construction, but I have to give credit to the people behind it. Those Heineken crates look like they make a decent framework and they ensure that a warm, possibly hot beer is never out of arms reach. Actually, it could use a little work on that end but still—its amazing what a bunch of drunks can do when they put their mind to it. [Ellf via about:blank]

DIY Robot Does 3D Carving: Self-Replication Still Far-Off

Kit Eaton — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 09:30:00 EDT

Robots robots robots... from sexy ones to fighting ones, we love them here at Giz. But this amazing project by Matt Denton over at Robosavvy has me in two minds. It's a modified DIY hexapod robot with a motorised Dremel-tool nose, and Matt's written some code that lets the robot move the cutting tool with precision, so it acts like a little precision CNC mill. And it's amazing: wait til you see the video of it in action, carving out a model. But is this project a scary step towards self-replicating 'bots?

Matt's achieved such precision in such a short time of working on this project, I can't help but wonder about it. Look at that robotic femur—it's just polystyrene, but surely this is step one on the road to metal-cutting self-replicating robots? The thought of one of these, armed with that eerie-sounding cutting tool, advancing across the floor towards me is a real heebie-jeebie inducer...

Just kidding, of course. As long as it doesn't choose to remodel anyone's face with that Dremel cutter, it's a pretty cool project. [Project page via Robosavvy —Thanks Limor]

NZXT's Aluminum Khaos Case Is Curved Like Battlestar's Number Six

Jason Chen — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 20:45:00 EDT

NZXT's been making slightly expensive gaming cases for a while, but their latest full tower Khaos case looks very nice. It's got dual power supply support, 2-3mm aluminum build, a total of 7 fan slots and a price of $399. Did we mention that it looks nice? This case alone costs more than some fully-built computers, but if you're the type of gamer that likes to haul your rig to LAN parties in order to compare your aluminum wang to your buddies', you could do a lot worse. [NZXT]

David Byrne Uses An Entire Building as a Giant Instrument

Adrian Covert — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 16:15:00 EDT

Boing Boing TV got to sit down with Talking Heads' front man David Byrne, who has created an awesome, humongoid instrument from a whole building. Basically, Byrne took an organ and wired the keys to different areas of the building where various gizmos are set up. When he strikes a key, it sends an electric current that starts a motor at the end of the wire, powering something that might strike the side of a wall or send a breeze through a pipe. This project is for Byrne's installation "Playing the Building," which is on display at NYC's Battery Maritime Building until August. [Boing Boing TV]

Do Your Own R2-D2 with Paper, Scissors and Glue

Jesus Diaz — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 07:24:40 EDT

It may not be as amazing as one made out of aluminum, and you won't be able project video with it, but in a day where all news is going to be about you know what, maybe it's time to take a deep breath, turn on the ink jet printer, grab some scissors and glue and spend some quality time with your inner Force building your own R2-D2 paper robot (instead of a mini-Steve .) And it doesn't only look cool: this thing is articulated.

If you want a bigger challenge, you can take the vector-based PDF plans to print in a large format plotter to build your own life-sized, completely useless but absolutely awesome astromech. And if you do, please send me pics. [R2-D2 Plans via Star Wars Blog]

DIY Papercraft Steve Jobs: Enact Your "One more thing..." Fantasy

Kit Eaton — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 05:49:00 EDT

Courtesy of Joe Chiang you too can have a tiny printout-paper Steve on your desk in a matter of minutes, ready to act out this afternoon's action— just swap out the picture of the iPhone for your fantasy iPhone 2. Check out Joe's other creations too, from Mario to R2-D2. [Toy-a-Day via Technabob]

If Giz Readers Designed Apple Products, We'd Have Some Pretty Strange Apple Products

Adam Frucci — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 12:20:00 EDT

Last week, I introduced our DIY Apple Mockup Kit, a Photoshop file with all the doodads that'll allow you to make your very own fake Apple product for leaking to blogs before a big announcement. We got a great response. Hit the jump for the 35 best entries as well as special awards for Most Droolworthy, Most Questionable and Most Batshit Insane.

Most Droolworthy — iMac Pro by Jim D'Alessandro
I love the super-thin bezel and the speakers all along the base. Who knows if this is feasible, but I really like it.

Most Questionable — iShuffle by Misha Kvakin
While the design itself is pretty nice, there's only one button, and according to Misha "you just press the button and call a random person from your list." Yeah, I can't imagine ever wanting to just call a random person from my contacts.

Most Batshit Insane - Whatever the Hell This Is by "Flip"
Yeah, I got nothing. Although it is accurate that Chen shoots a laser beam of Steve Jobs' face on an Apple logo out of his pants. But an Ethernet jack for a mouth?? You so crazy!

And now, for the rest of the best. Thanks to everyone who took the time to send something in! If we didn't include yours, don't take it personally; we got a ton of entries for this one. Try again next time!

College Student Makes Multi-touch Table Out Of Cardboard Box

Elaine Chow — Sat, 31 May 2008 16:00:00 EDT

Microsoft's Surface multi-touch table sure is cool, but who has $10,000 to spend on a gadget like that? I personally have maybe fifty bucks to my name right now, so I guess I'll have to fulfill my multi-touch itch with a cardboard box and a webcam like this guy.

Seth Sandler, an undergraduate student at UC San Diego, built a portable multi-touch pad out of a cardboard box, a piece of glass, paper, and his Philips SPC900NC webcam. The camera picks up on the shadows created by your fingers when they're placed on the pad's surface. A tracking software then transfers the motions onto a computer screen. Multi-touch goodness at an incredibly low cost—looks like I can afford to eat this month after all! [New Scientist]

Son Gets Steampunk Clock As Wedding Present From Dad

Elaine Chow — Sat, 31 May 2008 10:00:00 EDT

In a story sure to melt the gears in our brass-and-copper hearts, one steampunk fan toiled for weeks in his workshop in order to present his son with an intricate walnut clock as a wedding present. The best thing is, the son had been the one to introduce him to steampunk in the first place. The dad-humor in the note that came with the present puts an "aw shucks" smile on my face.

Congratulations, you are now the owner of a one of a kind two-faced clock by Diversified Artistic Designs (D.A.D.). The clock's energy is supplied by a state of the art dilithium crystal power generator. If you wish to order the accessory hub and adaptor cable, the generator can be modified to power your home as well as all of the cities in your hemisphere. (Parts not included. Contact your service center for details.)

To activate the dilithium power generator and set the clock, remove the large brass knobs and lift off the top. Caution, the generator itself is not a serviceable part. Do not remove the small brass nuts on top of the clock. If for any reason the power containment unit should become damaged or compromised in any way we recommend that you evacuate immediately, preferably to an alternate universe.

Father's Day is just two weeks away, kids! Maybe you ought to share with him one of your fascinations and see where he runs with it. [Steampunk Workshop via UberReview]

DIY Iron Man Arc Reactor Doesn't Run on Martinis

Jesus Diaz — Fri, 30 May 2008 16:30:00 EDT

No wonder Tony Stark managed to do an arc reactor in a desert cave. According to this tutorial, you really only need some LEDs, a 9-volt battery, plywood, 22 AWG gauge copper wire, assorted resistors, and a substance called polymorph—which can be made into any shape—to create your very own virtually-unlimited power source. Or look like the geekiest homeless person at any costume party. The mask is even better.

Unfortunately, it's just papier-mâché with a great finish. What this guy fails to realize is that being Tony Stark is not a matter of arc reactors and metal suits. Tony Stark is a state of mind. One that requires cocktails—and yes, at last it's Friday. [Instructables and Instructables via Hack'n Mod]