Hardware Hacking Projects for Geeks 235
| Hardware Hacking Projects for Geeks | |
| author | Scott Fullam |
| pages | 348 |
| publisher | O'Reilly |
| rating | 8 |
| reviewer | PHPee |
| ISBN | 0596003145 |
| summary | How to get started in exploiting the hidden capabilities in hardware you may already own. |
Fullam takes the reader from the very basics of hardware hacking and quickly gets up to speed with some fun and interesting hacks. Projects start out easy and increase in complexity and cost as the book progresses. Hardware Hacking covers many popular hacks we've all seen before, such as the "Macquarium" (Mac Aquarium), a web-enabled coffee machine, and the Blinkenlights building-sized display.
The book is divided into two main parts, the first covering basic hacks, and the second covering more advanced hacks.
Part One:
Starting with the basics, Fullam takes the reader through a crash course in electronics, covering concepts like soldering, using a voltmeter, identifying various electronic components and reading schematics. This section of the book is by no means a replacement for a course in electrical engineering, but it is definitely a solid primer for those of us who weren't born with a soldering iron in our hands. If you've never played with electronics before and don't know the difference between a resistor and a capacitor, this section should get you up to speed fairly quickly.
After the brief basics lesson, the next chapter dives right in to the first project, which is a portable laptop power supply made with a pile of D-cell batteries, a battery holder and some wire. This project is very simple and requires no soldering at all, yet it gives the reader a quick and easy way to make something useful with very little investment in time or money.
Each of the projects is presented in a well-organized manner, starting out with a brief summary and some background information about where the hack originated. A list of necessary tools and materials is also given, followed by a project overview, outlining the major tasks required to get the project completed. Each project outline gives estimates for the cost range, time required and difficulty level for the hack.
After the introductory stuff is out of the way, step-by-step instructions are given on how to assemble, modify or hack the device in question. The instructions are easy to follow and are complete with images or illustrations where appropriate. Many pages contain sidebars that contain additional information related to the project, such as more photos, hints and tips, and links to relevant websites. These sidebars really help to fill in any gaps that may be present in the main text.
At the end of each chapter, Fullam has an "extensions" section, where he suggests ways the hacks can be hacked further, to improve upon the design or alter them to offer more or different functionality. This is one point where the book really shines, advocating the true spirit of hacking and encouraging creativity and experimentation whenever possible throughout the book.
At the end of each chapter is a "Bill of Materials" and schematics for the hack. The bill of materials outlines in great detail all tools and hardware required for the project, including approximate costs as well as sources where they can be purchased.
Some of the highlights in the first section of the book include the "Macquarium," a water-based PC cooling system, and the infamous Furby hack. The Macintosh mod teaches some valuable lessons on using a Dremel tool and working with Plexiglas, which are great skills any budding case modder would want to have. The water-based PC cooling project is one of the more useful hacks presented in the book, showing the reader how to create an inexpensive but effective means to cool down an overclocked CPU. And hacking the Furby to give it a new vocabulary is... well, definitely a great topic for conversation if nothing else. If you have to ask why someone would do such a thing, you wouldn't understand the answer.
Part Two:
Part Two of the book starts off with another more advanced lesson in electronics. It delves into more detail, describing different types of resistors, capacitors and connectors. It also introduces transistors, looking at integrated circuits and surface-mount components as well. One thing I found particularly useful was the section explaining how to read and interpret manufacturers' data sheets for integrated circuits.
The advanced hacks featured in Part Two of Hardware Hacking are a little more exciting than those featured in the first half of the book, but are definitely more involved. The section starts off with a chapter on building a PC-based PVR, using Mandrake Linux. Sample code is included to create shell scripts for a simple, text-based interface, although Fullam does briefly mention some of the more popular GUI-based PVR software available, such as Freevo and MythTV.
Another great hack featured in the advanced section is the "Building-Size Display" hack, reminiscent of Blinkenlights. The chapter starts off with instructions on how to build a display matrix on a much smaller scale, using a series of ultra bright LEDs, but later shows how the project can be expanded to create a 12-story display using an entire building.
Some other mentionable hacks in the advanced chapters include a cubicle intrusion-detection system, an Internet-enabled toaster and coffee maker, and a remote object tracker. These projects provide instructions on how to use more advanced components such as photodiodes, lasers, GPS receivers and microcontrollers (such as the BasicStamp2, in particular).
Two other noteworthy projects in Part Two include a MAME cabinet and a wearable computer.
Plans for the MAME cabinet are very well done, taking the reader through cutting MDF, building the cabinet, installing the software and interfacing the controls to his PC. This chapter goes into great detail, even covering things like creating a monitor bezel and a backlit marquee, and using T-molding for that authentic arcade machine look.
The wearable computer hack is very interesting, covering a wide range of concepts I would never have considered. Fullam gives ideas on what to use for a head-mounted display (HMD), what types of motherboards and CPUs work best, and looks at various power sources, including batteries, solar panels and different generators. The chapter also presents ideas for input devices, such as keyboards and mice, but also speech recognition systems, cameras and GPS receivers. At the end of the chapter, there is an extensive list of websites related to wearable computer projects, offering much more reading to the interested hacker.
The appendixes, while quite brief, do offer more information on topics like creating and editing schematics, using microcontrollers and using different power sources. There is also a list of resources for further reading and a short list of parts suppliers.
Hardware Hacking also has an accompanying website, where readers can download all of the images, illustrations and schematics from the book. The files are available in EPS, PDF and TIFF formats, although they are all gzipped, and are not readily viewable without downloading and extracting first. The website supposedly has code downloads as well, but the links are broken as of this writing, so you'll be stuck typing in code from the book until the site is fixed.
Overall Thoughts
Overall, I was very impressed with this book. Fullam has given the geek community a valuable resource that will provide inspiration for aspiring and veteran hackers alike. It covers many projects that I have personally wanted to build or learn more about, and presents concepts that would be of interest to many fellow Slashdotters.
The only things preventing me from giving this book a 10 are the aforementioned issues with the accompanying website (which I'm sure will be fixed soon) and the quality of some of the photos. Most of the photographs in the book are crisp and clear, but some are rather grainy or pixelated, as if they were enlarged from a website image. Fullam does make mention of the image quality, stating that many photos actually were taken from the original Web sources, and "the clarity of the photograph suffers in print." It's a small point, but definitely noticeable in certain sections of the book. However, as mentioned, the images are available online, and often do look better on a monitor in full color, as opposed to the black and white images in the book.
I highly recommend Hardware Hacking Projects for Geeks to anyone with an interest in those fun projects that only nerds can understand.
You can purchase Hardware Hacking Projects for Geeks from bn.com. Slashdot welcomes readers' book reviews -- to see your own review here, read the book review guidelines, then visit the submission page.
But does it have my fav hack? (Score:4, Funny)
Re:But does it have my fav hack? (Score:4, Funny)
did you mean a COASTER dopey?
Re:But does it have my fav hack? (Score:2)
;-)
Re:But does it have my fav hack? (Score:2)
Re:But does it have my fav hack? (Score:3, Funny)
My computer... (Score:4, Funny)
Re:My computer... (Score:2, Funny)
Re:My computer... (Score:2)
Well the first thing you want to do is stop hiding your weed in your computer
Then again, bong making could be considered a hacking art in itself.
Re:My computer... (Score:2)
Re:My computer... (Score:3, Funny)
*VSC=voltage to smoke converter. Made plenty in my day.
Remember The Days When... (Score:5, Insightful)
It's funny how even the art of hacking has been commoditized these days.
My own advice, just do it.
Re:Remember The Days When... (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Remember The Days When... (Score:5, Insightful)
I am, nonetheless, greatful that Howard Chapelle took the trouble to distil the combined wisdom of boatbuilders into his books. Thus I get to spend my time building more sound boats while playing with new ideas instead of wasting it recreating what is fairly "common" knowledge.
And sometimes a book/how to can simply serve as inspiration to get you going. That is a valid function as well.
KFG
Re:Remember The Days When... (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Remember The Days When... (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Remember The Days When... (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Remember The Days When... (Score:2)
Actually I remember one of the most famous articles on hacking emphasising the need to read as much as you possibly can to become a good hacker.
Re:Remember The Days When... (Score:5, Insightful)
It's no different than a betty crocker cook book. The recipies are there to illustrate the basic skills and information needed for the task at hand. It is left to the reader to expand that knowledge into their own recipies later on.
Many kids these days are growing up in a world where everything they own is a black box with mysterious circuit boards and a few wires inside. Long gone are the days where a kid would be given one of those "build your own radio" kits, or a computer is shipped to you as a box of parts. Exploring the innards of a device is considered backwards now, and even frowned upon.. you're instead supposed to just throw it away and buy a new one if it breaks. Many electronics are so complex anymore that a newbie trying to extract interesting pieces and doing something with them results in useless slag.
Don't view this book as cheapening your "hacker status".. but view it as an effort to open up the world to people that aren't part of it.
Re:Remember The Days When... (Score:3, Interesting)
One thing that I liked about it (that was only touched upon in the review) was how the various projects give people completely unfamiliar with electronic component hobbying various levels of potential involvement.
"Want to etch your own boards?" Fine....here's some tips on how to do it
"Want to breadboard it?" Fine....here's a couple tips
"Just want to get past the soldering end and get into the chip progr
Re:Remember The Days When... (Score:5, Funny)
What, before books?
You must be REALLY old. Hands down the oldest person on the planet.
Even "oldschool" hardware hackers read books. "Circuit Cellar", Forest Mims books from Radioshack, etc. I'm sure there are guys here who started out on even older stuff than that. They probably still have a box of vacuum tubes somewhere
components not included (Score:4, Funny)
like this book: http://images.amazon.com/images/P/1844110036.01.L
Re:components not included (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:components not included (Score:2, Informative)
You get pretty good at de-soldering.
You pick up design concepts from the way the stuff was built.
Fun finding out just *what* that unknown IC does.
Satisfaction in knowing that you are helping the environment by recycling potentially toxic materials and using them in your insane creations. Weather they're useful or not.
etc etc
Where do you find chip info? (Score:2)
Just out of curiosity where do you find info on those older or off-brand chips?
I've run into several chips I couldn't identify over the years despite, at the time, having IC Master and such available to me.
yep (Score:4, Funny)
Re:yep (Score:3, Insightful)
last time i checked, a mac is a personal computer.
Re:yep (Score:2)
Re:yep (Score:2, Interesting)
UPS modding (Score:5, Informative)
http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=98025&cid=837
Pictures here:
elvis.netmar.com/~will/ups/ [netmar.com]
I'm going to write this up more formally, and at least put it in my
Anyway, this is a great geek hardware hacking project. If you have any questions on how to do it, let me know. I always read replies.
~Will
Re:UPS modding (Score:5, Insightful)
Anyways, you do realize the liability aspects of a project like that, right?
I mean, it's one thing to point people over to some fun hardware diddly doo, but it's something else for people to start messing with fairly high capacity bateries and chargers for such.
I guess what I'm saying is that, it is actually possible for someone with more than half a brain to (unintentionally) mess up the project you are describing and do a significant amount of damage.
I'm normally not the first person to get worried about stuff like that, but I'd hate to see a battery blow up in someone's face. You should probably at least make people aware of that possibility.
Re:UPS modding (Score:5, Informative)
It is dangerous any time that you are using 24 volts at 5 amps. Plus, there are capacitors inside of UPS's and, if you're not careful, there are wires that you may think are dead that are live.
As a general rule when ever doing something like this, there are some ideas that I try to follow:
1.) Use fuses. On a setup like a 5U APC UPS, you're going to have a 20 amp wall circuit and 48-52 volts on the batteries. I always put a 100A fuse in the middle of the batteries. It may not prevent catastrophies, but it might, and it just feels safer.
2.) This is a reason that I really like the plugs that come with the APC UPS's. They are able to be plugged in without sparking and without touching wires, etc. Very solid. So use connectors that are shielded (like shielded spade connectors on the Tripplites or specific plugs on the APC's), and use electrical tape anytime you do anything like connect two wires. Doing a google image search, I came up with this as an example of the connectors that are in the APC's: it's the yellow thing [platan.ru], although this isn't quite it, but it's close. The connectors are made by Anderson Power Products, and they're rated for 600V at 50A.
3.) Wear gloves, work on carpet (not on concrete), don't ground yourself, wear rubber-soled tennis shoes, etc. Obvious stuff.
4.) Use wire designed for the amperage you need. For 5 amps, you don't need a HUGE wire, but for the rackmount stuff where it's possible that you'd be pulling 15-16 amps, you need big wire. Stranded copper works best, because (i think, this could be wrong) amperage travels along the outside of wire. Figure out what size wire you need, and go one bigger for safety. We use 10AWG for the rackmounts, cause that's what they use on the inside. It might be 8AWG, i'm not sure. I know they use 10AWG in the APC SmartUPS rackmounts.
It takes a bit to make a battery explode. It's not that common. But ALWAYS, caution is in order.
Also, as long as we're disclaimering, obviously this is dangerous / voids your warranty / should be only done by trained professionals etc. The guy who taught me how to do this was my boss (the guy that owns Netmar, Cengiz Akinli), who has taken numerous electrical engineering classes at Virginia Tech (he's mostly done with a triple aerospace engineering / math / physics degree). So, while yes this sounds risky, it can be done safely, and we've worked all this stuff out mathematically, too, as well as having put it into use in real situations for several years.
~Will
Re:UPS modding (Score:3, Interesting)
That is only an issue for high frequency (Mega- and Gigahertz) applications, where you have the so-called skin effect. But there, it will not help if the strands are touching each other, since the whole thing would look like a solid to the rf anyway.
I once used a 6 kW 2--30 MHz tube amplifier. Its coils were done using metal tubing. Since the inner part would not carry current, it was simply le
Re:UPS modding (Score:2, Funny)
What liability? Lawyers should be herded, summarily executed, dried, powdered, and used as fertilizer. Basic knowledge and the awareness of existence of Darwin Prize should be enough.
What's much more detrimental to experimenting and playing with cool toys than people complaining about "hacking cookbooks" is the pervasive fear of liability and lawyers.
I hate disclaimers.
Re:UPS modding (Score:2)
Anyway, i like this project, it does sound like a very novel idea, but my question to you is will the new battereies overload the charging circuit (transformers, inverters, caps...), and even more so what will happen when the power does indeed go off, will it melt the wires (if they're lower gauge)or even freeze the relay? And finally
Re:UPS modding (Score:3, Interesting)
UPSes are dumb. They're not controlled by microprocessors, they don't have an intelligent learning capability, etc.
When a UPS is charging, all the UPS knows is "hey, those batteries aren't pushing back as hard against my current, so i'll let current naturally flow to them". It does this until they are at sufficient voltage. Period. There's no timer or anything. And I say this, but I don't mean that *no* ups has none of this intel
Re:UPS modding (Score:2)
Re:UPS modding (Score:2)
But, best of luck to you!
Paying for Air (Score:2, Insightful)
This reminds of those "Internet Yellowpages" they used to sell at Barnes & Noble when AOL took off. Why not just use Yahoo? (pre-google, mind you)
Re:Paying for Air (Score:2, Insightful)
Writing clear 'easy' prose is incredibly difficult.
Re:Paying for Air (Score:5, Insightful)
Your assertion applies to 99.9% of non-fiction published in the last five years anyways, but people continue to buy the books. Ever occur to you that the compilation and presentation of all that free material in a coherent informative package is something of worth in and of itself?
In point of fact you do the author a tremendous diservice by trivializing the work in such a fashion. Let me propose a little experiment, you take tomorrow with google, a few hours with LaTex the next day, and none of us will hold our breath waiting for your publishing contract. See the point? You hypothesize that creation of the work is nothing more than collecting stuff off websites amd stuffing it into a pdf. I'm suggesting that would never have been published. First off, most websites give professional editors fits, if you want to make an editor think you're incompetent, then stick wsith the plan you suggest. If you want to thought of as a writer, understand that most of the job is going to be taking that flood of google results and turning it into material fit for the printed page.
But wait, there is more... What about those websites that google turned up? That site that talks about teaching your TiVo to fetch your pipe and slippers for example. Did that site try to present the information clearly and completely, or did the author assume a bunch of knowledge on your part? Were any procedures provided likewise described? While I don't doubt that all the info is available, is it all consumable?
Like the other reply to this, I also have to ask if it is as trivial as you pretend, where is your Hacker's cookbook? And I'm guessing your Pullitzer prize is in the mail? I for one recognize that it isn;t that simple, and I have neither the time nor the temprament to undertake such an activity. Will I buy his book? No. Like you I will go to google and undertake essentially the same process you would, or the author did. However, I don't disparage the process, or that the author has obviated it for those willing to pay for the privilege. I personally feel that the process is part of the experience, and often the source of new ideas to explore. However, that in no way imparts any license to disparage the author's work, or to trivialize the process by which it was created, since it is essentially a macrocosm of the process each of us would apply to that same material. The difference being that when you or I do it, we do it for an audience of one, an audience, I hasten to add, we are intimately familiar with. The author undergoes that process for an audience of far larger than one, and without the benefit of familiarity.
Now re-read your first post, is this a skill you think you really have? Is that how you preent information effectively? Hell, and your audience was just /. members, a group you have some familiarity with....
To update an aphorism:
Those who can, do. Those who can't criticize the former on /.
Paying for less time spent! (Score:2)
You know what I would give to have a whole day to research some of this stuff? Some of us have (more than) full-time jobs, families, kids, etc. I don't always have time to put in a lot of research before I tinker around with something. The book sounded interesting to me
Hacker? (Score:2, Funny)
a carbon microphone, a speaker, and a battery (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:a carbon microphone, a speaker, and a battery (Score:2, Interesting)
A HACK FOR MY HOMIES IN THE PEN (Score:5, Funny)
Things you'll need:
* bic pen (this is your tube that houses the needle)
* 4 or 5" section of guitar string
* tooth brush ( this gets bent like a "7" and joins the pen to the motor)
* an eraser from a pencil (this joins the shaft of the motor to the needle/guitar string)
* small battery operated motor (from a "walkman" or a hand held fan)
* some tape (to join everything together)
Putting the pieces together:
1. Take the guitar string and bend a little bit of the end down or up.
2. Take out the ink tube of the pen, and cut it to about a 3 or 4" length, now file down the brass tip of the pen to get the ball out, make the hole big enough to allow passage of the needle.
3. Insert the needle into the pen.
4. Now take the tooth brush and cut off the bristles making it about 4" long. Heat it up in the middle with a lighter and bend it in to a "7" and hold in place untill stiff.
5. Join/tape the pen needle assembly to the tooth brush.
6. Now take the eraser from the pencil and shove it onto the shaft of the motor, try to get it as dead center as possible. Join the pen/needle/tooth brush to the motor/eraser assembly, tape the brush to the motor.
7. Take the bent part of the needle/guitar stirng and stick it into the eraser, IMPORTANT- the needle must be purposely OFF CENTER.
8. Now all that is left to do is find a power source, I used the plug-in adapter frrom a cd player. i guess you could hook up some batteries to a switch and then to the contacts of the motor.
Re:A HACK FOR MY HOMIES IN THE PEN (Score:2)
here's a page with a diagram [rentyman.com].
~Will
Oh Great (Score:5, Funny)
Just try to explain that to the TSA people at the airport when you try to haul your "laptop battery" through security.
"No Officer, this pile of batteries with wires sticking out everywhere is just a spare battery for my laptop...wait - what are you doing with those handcuffs - heeeelp".
Re:Oh Great (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Oh Great (Score:3, Insightful)
Sizzle (Score:5, Funny)
Um.. Ouch? The poor mother..
my review... (Score:5, Interesting)
And for each project, there is a graph for project cost, time and difficulty on the beginning page. For some projects, there's a list of what items you will need. There are also extensive step by step instructions for each "project," along with drawings, photos and diagrams. You'll love this book if you're one of those people who loves taking apart products and trying to "improve" upon their original design.
OT like usual (Score:3, Interesting)
It looks pretty easy to make, albeit rather narrow use? Very interesting. That whole site should be required reading for /.ers. ;)
last night's hack -- does it count? (Score:4, Interesting)
(It certainly counts as a quick fix for a botch -- i should have popped it when it was still in the car).
-dB
Re:last night's hack -- does it count? (Score:2, Funny)
Duh ! (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:last night's hack -- does it count? (Score:3, Informative)
It's funny, 6 years ago my friend was having trouble with has new car stereo/radio/CD player that he just installed. It wasn't working at all, so he called me over to track down the problem.
Turns out the fuse was blown, a new fuse blew instantly, I tracked the problem to the unit. We took it out, took the whole thing apart ot see if anything was shorting inside.
Electric motor from junk drawer stuff hack (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Electric motor from junk drawer stuff hack (Score:3, Informative)
BTW, this was the first public web page I ever created -- way back in the dark ages of the web. I need to fix the broken links, counter, and my (really) old e-mail link
Re:Electric motor from junk drawer stuff hack (Score:2)
Re:Electric motor from junk drawer stuff hack (Score:2)
Re:Electric motor from junk drawer stuff hack (Score:2)
=Smidge=
A "Hack" lets your PC answer telemarketing calls (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:A "Hack" lets your PC answer telemarketing call (Score:2)
I plan on incorporating this into my home automation project work!
Simple hacking of my optical mouse (Score:5, Interesting)
I modded my blue Logitech Optical Mouse (USD$20 the last time I checked). Removed the regular red LED and replaced with the blue LED. Now my mouse glows blue. Looked kinda weird previously coz the mouse was blue, with semi-transparent blue plastic but glowed red underneath.
Easy modding... takes less than 15 minutes, unless you lose a spring or something.
put a hard drive in your APEX DVD player (Score:5, Interesting)
First printing isues (Score:2)
I got a copy of this book hot off the presses, and while overall it's good, the first printing has some quality-control issues. The centerpiece of the first real chapter, the "basic electronics" chapter, is a big schematic diagram with various points labelled "A", "B", "C", etc. up to "K" or so. Unfortunately, the text spends several pages referring to these as points "1", "2", and "3" -- either the text or the diagram must've been changed at the last minute, and they don't correspond!
I bet this will be
Chapter 2 in the book is my aquariums! (Score:3, Informative)
Woo Hoo!
Anyway, my aquariums are Here [techquarium.com].
The plans Scott used for his book are here [techquarium.com]. The plans are kind of old and busted (there's no link to them any more on my site) and I think the author did a great job.
The one thing in the book I'd like to build now is the MAMA game cabinet. I've got an old arcade Ms Pac-Man and it gets lots of use but I'd love to have a bunch of the old games in one stand-up cabinet.
Re:Just curious... (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Just curious... (Score:5, Insightful)
I consider myself a hacker. I make stuff. But I don't need a book to give me instructions. I do read a lot. Books on engineering, electronics, chemistry, biology, well, anything really. And I use all these bits of knowledge to make things by applying the knowledge to solve a problem.
Having a book that contains step by step hacks seems like reading a cookbook to become a chef. It just doesn't work that way.
Re:Just curious... (Score:2, Funny)
A good analogy is like a chicken with a toupee.
Re:Just curious... (Score:5, Interesting)
On the other hand, if you want to become a chef, you are definitely going to read quite a few cookbooks. It's only by mastering the basics that you'll become an expert.
The review says that the book contains "all you need to know to get started in the wonderful world of hardware hacking". By following the instructions and having a clear explanation of the rationale behind them, one would quickly gain enough knowledge and understanding to become a hacker in the sense you describe.
Perhaps the title should have been "for Wannabee Geeks" instead. :-)
Re:Just curious... (Score:5, Insightful)
Perhaps the title should have been "for Wannabee Geeks" instead.
The truth is that every geek is a "Wannabee Geek" in some sense. By friend is great at electronics and cars but knows nothing about computer programming. Whereas there are alot of projects that I would like to do, but know too little about (analog)electronics to do so. Furthermore, I would think that there are alot of people like me since you can learn alot about the software aspects of computers by exploration, but electronics isn't so accessable in the everyday home. This book seems like a great way to learn about the basic of EE and end up with a cool project in the process.
Re:Just curious... (Score:5, Interesting)
Having a book that contains step by step hacks seems like reading a cookbook to become a chef. It just doesn't work that way.
No, I agree, it doesn't work that way. But it can start that way. Your cooking analogy is particularly apt. I started out just following recpies by rote. As I did it, I got confidence that I was indeed capable of cooking yummy things without destroying the kitchen. Then I started playing with recipes to see how things would change if I altered the script. Now I'm reasonably good at making up good dishes on the fly, without recipe, based just on what I have or what I can get that's fresh. Following someone else's directions isn't really hacking; but it can be a good place to start developing an interest in so doing.
Re:Just curious... (Score:3, Insightful)
So if I read this book, learn something, then combine it with my existing knowledge and come up with something slightly different or new?
imo, a real hacker would not rule out any potential source of information...a real hacker isn't quick to pigeon hole something either.
Why not? think about [color] boxes. (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Why not? think about [color] boxes. (Score:3, Informative)
Re:Just curious... (Score:2, Insightful)
I, myself, benefit from watching someone, then trying to do it myself. If this book encourages other people to try some of the step-by-step stuff, it's far more likely that they might get a bit more interested in in, and start doing cool hacks on their own--then it would have completed it's goal.
Re:Just curious... (Score:5, Interesting)
Back when, my Commodore 1541 disk drive (1st gen with the built in PSU) would overheat all the time. They all would, it was a design flaw. One day I jammed unsharpened pencils into the screw holes, putting it on stilts. Never had any overheating problems, plenty of airflow.
That was a simple hack, and the fact that I told my friends what I did, and they all did the exact same thing doesnt diminish it. Hell, I'm sure millions of other folks came up with the same, or similar idea.
Re:Just curious... (Score:2, Funny)
And without knowing, you probably, inadvertently, violated someone's patent. :P
Re:Just curious... (Score:3, Funny)
I ran a BBS using a C64 with 4 of the 1541 drives that, as you point out, tended to overheat. My solution was to get four of the ever popular muffin fans, and put one on top of each drive to pull the air through.
Of course, with that as my comparison point, you can imagine why I consider my current PC to be quiet enough...
Re:Just curious... (Score:2, Informative)
"Originally, a hack [...] meant a quick fix to a computer program problem." And so you can't really say that creativity has to be involved, but the term is normally used that way:
"The surface implication was [...] a casual attempt to fix the problem, but the deeper meaning was, often, something more clever and thus impressive."
Re:Just curious... (Score:5, Insightful)
Don't forget that the free exchange of ideas is integral to the hacker ethic. This makes for inspiration for other hacks.
Re:Just curious... (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Just curious... (Score:5, Insightful)
future hackers have to get started somewhere.. (Score:2, Informative)
Re:DUPE (Score:5, Funny)
No sh*t.. (Score:2, Funny)
Christ I just come here to troll, not to get harrased!
Re:I hate that word. (Score:5, Interesting)
Have to start somewhere.
"they help build stupid peoples' egos..."A very elitist statement that clearly shows the size of your ego...
your flame hurts too (Score:5, Insightful)
The problems are, for lack of a better word, attitude based. Hubris is all the more obvious when accompanied by ignorance (n.b. I didn't say stupidity). I am a pretty good programmer and am conversant in formal mathematics, though the idea of "software development" (in as many words) is abhorrent to me. So yeah, you're irked by people doing trivial "hacks" and bragging about it. I have similar irritations.
But these irritations are illusory. Get over it; I am.
But back to the point, Mr. (2, Troll) (*), I am considering getting this book as a simple introduction to some stuff which I was not fortunate enough to learn at such a young age, as to mistake it for "innate ability" or a symptom of some "superior intelligence"... I suspect many other people here are doing it for the same reason. Honestly, do you think Archimedes (or, for that matter, Enrico Fermi or even Einstein) would know how to do these "true hacks" without some education and/or training?
(*): I see you've now been upmodded to (4, insightful). Oy vey.
Re:I hate that word. (Score:4, Informative)
I consider the hacks I do as being as 'real' and meaningful as the software hackers - I just choose a diffrent medium to play on.
Re:I hate that word. (Score:4, Funny)
Re:I hate that word. (Score:4, Funny)
Not that I'm comparing you to Newton... no doubt you've contributed a lot more original thought to the body of human knowledge than he ever did. (that is in addition of course to recreate the entirety of the body of human knowledge without ever referencing a book... although I must admit it's passing curious why you seem so focused on electronics given the knowledge of everything you have within you.) On second thought forget my whole post... I think you must be right in your tacit assertion that you didn't learn anything from anyone...
I only hope that you'll have a chance to read my reply and attendant apology for thinking you lacking in humility. That thick condescension towards your coworker and others that exudes from your post surely means you maintain an extremely busy social calendar.
Best of luck to you and please forgive those of us who have to rely on the knowledge of others to learn things. We don't mean to make you bitter. (Although I'm sure your bitterness makes you a wiz with the ladies.)
Re:I hate that word. (Score:4, Insightful)
> same as when people claim to be software
> developers when all they do is html... Same
> word used to describe something with a
> rediculous range of skill levels...
Ask yourself why you care if someone is erronously placed in your league upon cursory examination of your matching titles.
Do you place yourself in the same league as, say, Linus Torvalds or Dennis Ritchie? They are (or have been) software developers. Perhaps YOU need a different title, or perhaps they should be deified.
Re:I hate that word. (Score:3, Insightful)
I welcome anybody who has a sense of curiousity and a desire to start from somewhere.
Part of the "hacker" ethos is sharing knowledge, which is what this book aims to do. There is nothing wrong with using someone else's "trivial" hacks to learn more about doing your own. Honestly, I don't think anyone on this site can claim that they could have learned everything they know in absence of others knowledge.
When I started in
Re:I hate that word. (Score:2)
They should, and if they are gently corrected, that should be enough. If not, leave it be, and market forces will take care of them. There is no need to make them miserable while they circle the drain and simultaneously paint yourself as a jerk.
Re:if your such a l33t hax0r (Score:2)
Are you sure you're not using your troll account?
And why am I feeding it?
GTRacer
- Oh right, it's Super Value Wednesday at McD's
Re:#define HACK (Score:3, Funny)
# define HACK breakingstuffonpurpose
#endif
-WS
Re:666 (Score:2)
Genre: Animation / Sci-Fi / Musical
Plot summary: Angel, a member of a punk rock band in the apocoliptic(sic) future, is kidnapped by Mok, a legendary superocker. Obsessed with a dark experiment, Mok plans to use Angel's voice to summon a demon from another dimension. The rest of the band follows Mok to Nuke York in an attempt to get her back.
Re:666 (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Excuse me...? (Score:2)