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Quorten Blog 1

First blog for all Quorten's blog-like writings

Tips on home-grown electronic push buttons and wire shaping

quorten

2019-01-11

Categories: raspberry-pi  
Tags: raspberry-pi  

For Raspberry Pi electronics projects, sure you can always buy push buttons and wires, but why not use a more do-it-yourself construction and electronics recycling approach?

You can develop your own push buttons with ease from paper, cardboard, and aluminum foil. The main consideration when designing such a button is that you want the contacts to be relatively durable and reasonably close together so that the button is easy to use. At the same time, you want some springiness so that the button doesn’t stick down or bounce. With the right techniques, it is relatively easy to construct a reliable push button.

  • Basic cardboard bench spring. You have two contacts on a base board like printed circuit board buttons, and aluminum foil on the bottom of a cardboard “bench” key cap. Pushing down closes the contacts, the cardboard ensures a reliable release.

  • Paper sprung button. Similar to the cardboard bench spring, but using paper instead. Use a sufficient quantity and stiffness of paper to get a reliable spring. Use accordian folds if needed.

Read on →

How to repair a window screen

quorten

2019-01-10

Categories: home-network  
Tags: home-network  

Got a broken window screen? Windows are big, and so are the screens, so don’t throw it out if you can repair it instead. Repairing a window screen is actually quite easy so long as the frame is intact. All that is required is removing the old molding, called “spline,” so that you can remove or reposition the screen and insert new spline. If merely an edge is detached, you can reuse the old screen, but if there are holes in the screen, then you need to cut new screen to position inthe frame. Old spline should not be reused, so I am told, because it hardens over time, becomes brittle, and looses its stickiness.

Do you need a spline roller to insert the new spline? Not so, but inserting spline is faster if you have one. If you don’t have one, simply do it the old way by using a hammer and nail to pound it in.

20190109/DuckDuckGo repair window screen edge becomes detached
20190109/https://www.familyhandyman.com/windows/window-repair/how-to-fix-a-window-screen/view-all/
20190109/DuckDuckGo screen roller
20190109/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spline_roller

Repair aluminum mini blinds

quorten

2019-01-09

Categories: home-network  
Tags: home-network  

Suppose you have some aluminum mini blinds… but the cords are broken. Should you buy new mini blinds to replace them? Well, nowadays aluminum mini blinds appear to be pretty scarce on the market, purportedly having been replaced by cheaper and lighter vinyl mini blinds. So if you do want to switch to a different type of mini blinds, that would probably be a good move. That being said, you should hold onto your expensive aluminum mini blinds and consider rolling up your sleeves for a repair of the cords rather than a replacement of the entire blinds.

First of all, how did the cords of my blinds get broken? Basically, the carriage mechanism was unfortunately designed such that it effectively slowly cut/torn on the cords when manipulated. So, that would be ideal to change, fix, and replace, but I’ll get to that later.

For now, I wanted to point out that doing repairs on the cords is actually rather easy. If you have your familiar soldering iron, that is your best bet for easily melting the plastic-based cords to fuse them back together. Otherwise, you use a match to heat up the cords to melt and fuse them together.

20190109/DuckDuckGo repair mini blind cords
20190109/https://www.blinds.com/customer-service/repair#aluminumMiniBlinds

Usenet has its impact on today's Internet

quorten

2019-01-09

Categories: tour-de-force   reiterate  
Tags: tour-de-force   reiterate  

Server lift? Does Wikipedia have any information about that? Unfortunately, no. On the other hand, I read some interesting information about Usenet.

Again, I reiterate, because this is important! Usenet is a very important part of the history of the Internet. Although the technology per se has fallen out of favor nowadays, it has influenced many important parts of Internet culture. Why, that’s an understatement. Even in areas that are far displaced from “Internet culture,” some of the terminology that has originated from Usenet, such as Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) is used as serious business work terminology.

20190109/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usenet

UDP = Usenet Death Penalty? Interesting, although obsolete.

20190109/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usenet_Death_Penalty

Endless September, enternal September. The original Usenet community had an outdated understanding of the scope of the Internet, one where new users only reach as far as new college campus recruits. Interestingly, as mentioned by some of the external links, AOL users on Usenet were immediately labeled as a nuisance, independent of the content of their messages or their behavior. Also, AOL spend a lot of money to send out all those CDs with a free AOL subscription for a month on them.

20190109/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eternal_September

Articles on computer ergonomics and eye health

quorten

2019-01-08

Categories: twitter   misc  
Tags: twitter   misc  

These are some interesting and useful articles about computer ergonomics and its effect on your eye health. Interestingly, there are some, or perhaps many, people who have had vision problems due to their. Although, I must say, it appears the vision problems caused by bad habits are markedly different than those caused by genetics.

20190102/https://dev.to/sarthology/the-definitive-guide-to-protecting-your-eyes-for-developers-22jm 20190102/https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/09/how-to-keep-computer-screens-from-destroying-your-eyes/263005/

Interesting SparkFun article discussing discontinued chips

quorten

2019-01-08

Categories: raspberry-pi  
Tags: raspberry-pi  

So, I’ve found this interesting article on SparkFun discussing the fate of a particular IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit) that has been discontinued by its manufacturer, and reflects on the larger issue of parts being discontinued and their effects on higher-level projects.

“Another One Bites the Dust”

20190108/https://www.sparkfun.com/news/2851

F.Y.I. “Rubylith” integrated circuit design masks are the kind where a mask is cut away by hand.

20190108/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubylith

Soldering onto cardboard circuit boards

quorten

2019-01-08

Categories: raspberry-pi  
Tags: raspberry-pi  

You can hand-solder with leaded solder onto a cardboard circuit board, but do not use a cardboard circuit board for reflow soldering. The spontaneous combustion point of paper is 451 degrees Fahrenheit, approximately the same temperature as your reflow solder point. Likewise, due to the higher temperatures required for unleaded solder, you should not use this with cardboard circuit boards either. Or, for the daring, if you are weary and careful at soldering, you can do it okay even with the higher temperatures.

What are alternatives you can use in the way of your own plastic sheets? 3D printed base is an option. If you want sheets of plastic, you can get them via 3D printing. Plastic sheets are useful, for example, if you have multiple separate circuit boards that you want to mount inside a single case.

Graduated ordering of electronics project tools

quorten

2019-01-08

Categories: raspberry-pi  
Tags: raspberry-pi  

One thing that is nice about electronics is that you can assemble pretty compact kits to do a lot of electronics work. Or, in other words, this is a hobby that can be done without gear that is so bulky as to be considered immovable and confined to a stationary building that you must bring your team to.

Basic electronics project tools.

Note that tools are not to be confused with materials. Materials include any material that goes into the produced electronics project or any tool that gets consumed during the project development.

Level 0: pencil, ball-point pen, pair of scissors

Level 1: precision screwdrivers (heads: flathead, Philips, JIS), multimeter, anti-static wrist band, anti-static mat

Level 2: soldering iron (basic pencil type), safety glasses

Level 3: magnifying optics, armature

Level 4: electric oven (toaster oven size preferred, convection preferred, custom temperature controller ideal)

NOT INCLUDED: Computer data adapters such as USB CMOS serial cable, etc. Those are considered part of a computer adapters kit.

Read on →

When don't I feel inclined to write blog articles?

quorten

2019-01-05

Categories: blogging  
Tags: blogging  

Sometimes, I feel like I really need to write some blog articles, but there are other times when I go a while without writing blog articles. Why is that? When I don’t feel inclined to write blog articles… is when it feels like I’m reading excellent reference documentation and am not learning fundamentally new concepts. Just the specifics of an symbolic interface.