MIDI-driven light show

By martinm, in DIY, july 12,2012.

The MIDI protocol, well known from all musicians, exists for almost thirty years. Although it was originally thought for keyboards, there are now all kinds of MIDI instruments: guitar, saxo, drums, etc. Most of the time, MIDI is used to record or drive an instrument, but would it be possible as well to use MIDI to drive a light show? Let's try...

Using the MK802 as an home automation controller

By mvuilleu, in Reviews and Tiny PC, july 06,2012.

Given the tremendous interest around the Raspberry Pi, it is surprising how few people speak about the Rikomagic MK802. Similarly to the Raspberry Pi, the MK802 is a small and cheap computer based on an ARM processor. At first sight, the MK802 seems to be a bit more expensive (around 80$, instead of 30$ for the Raspberry Pi). But this price includes a tiny enclosure, a power supply, wireless networking and required cables and adapters. So, beyond the price, what can you do with it?

Email controlled home

By martinm, in Internet of Things, june 28,2012.

In Europe, most of the roof windows are produced by Velux, to the point that in current language Velux has become a common noun like frigidaire was a while back. Well, now Velux produces motorized windows. The obvious questions is what do we need to add to be able to control such a window from a computer?

Using our USB modules with Java

By Sébastien Rinsoz, in Programming, june 22,2012.

Numerous customers have asked for a Java library, and we are finally able to fulfill their wish: we are publishing today the beta-test version of the Java library. We need to finalize the documentation and probably to correct a few bugs, but all the functionalities available in the other languages are implemented and commented.

The USB hot dog cooking machine

By mvuilleu, in DIY, june 14,2012.

Summer will be back in a week, and with it comes the sausage season! Obviously, geeks won't barbecue in the sun, everybody knows that the sun provokes cancers and it's dangerous for your health. So, how can you cook a hot dog sausage at the office, without putting fire to it, and without any other equipment than the few Yocto-modules lying about? Ideally, we'd like to monitor the cooking by USB, if it isn't too much to ask...