The Big Book of Hacks: 264 Amazing DIY Tech Projects

470 Pages·2012·15.85 MB·English

by  Doug Cantor

contents
FOREWORD by Jacob Ward
INTRODUCTION by Doug Cantor
HOW TO USE THIS BOOK

001 Put Together a Soldering Kit
002 Learn Soldering Basics
003 Study Circuit Components
004 Build a Circuit
005 Choose a Microcontroller
006 Program an Arduino
007 Know Basic Woodworking Tools
008 Make a Straight Cut in Wood
009 Master Woodworking Joints
010 Drill a Hole
011 Suit Up with Metalworking Tools
012 Cut Metal Pipes and Sheets
013 Learn to Weld
GEEK TOYS
014 You Built What?! The Ultimate All-in-One Beer-Brewing Machine
015 Drink Booze from a Melon
016 Break into Your Beer
017 Install a Shower Beer Caddy
018 Chill Your Beer Really, Really Fast
019 Disguise Your Brew
020 Reuse Those Red Party Cups
021 You Built What?! The Drink-Slinging Droid
022 Serve Shots in Jell-O Cups
023 Make Drinks Glow in the Dark
024 Freeze LEGO Ice Cubes
025 Cook a Hot Dog with Electrical Current
026 Mod Your Toaster for Far-from-Average Toast
027 Wield a Potato Launcher
028 Improvise a Planetarium
029 Put On a Liquid Light Show
030 Jam Out to a Sound-Reactive Light Box
031 Wave an LED Lighter at a Concert
032 Party with an LED Glow Stick
033 You Built What?! An LED-Lit Disco Dance Floor
034 Make a Sonic Tunnel of Fire
035 Turn Your Campfire Green
036 Hold a Flaming Ball in Your Bare Hand
037 Set Off a Spinning Fire Tornado
038 Ignite a Homemade Sparkler
039 Wreak Havoc with the Ultimate Squirt Gun
040 Make a Mini Catapult
041 Play with a Bike-Part Spirograph
042 Turn Junk Mail into Pencils
043 Set Up a Turntable Zoetrope
044 You Built What?! The Real Iron Man Suit
045 Mix Magnetic Silly Putty
046 Cook Up Ferrofluid
047 Catch a Thrill on a Backyard Coaster
048 Set Up a Pinball Game at Home
049 Play DIY Skee-Ball
050 Build a Mint-Tin Racer
051 Shake Up a Martini in a Mint Tin
052 Strum a Mint-Tin Guitar
053 Carry a Pocket Billiard Set
054 Build a Mini Arcade Game
055 Cinch a Nintendo-Controller Belt
056 Set Up a Supersize Game of Operation
057 Play Giant Checkers
058 Make a Reflection Hologram
059 Wield a DIY Light Saber
060 Hack Your Magic 8 Ball
061 Go Anywhere with Virtual-Reality Glasses
062 File-Share with a USB Dead Drop
063 Build a Bristlebot
064 Make a Mini Whirling Motor
065 Rig an Animatronic Hand
066 You Built What?! The Electric Giraffe
067 Create Audio Art out of Cassette Tape
068 Scratch a Pizza-Box Turntable
069 Pirate a Vinyl Record
070 Craft a Boom Box Duffel Bag
071 Make Your Tie Glow in the Dark
072 Put Headphones in Your Hoodie
073 Use a Glove on a Touchscreen
074 Pump Jams through an Old-School Phonograph
075 Amplify Music with Paper Cups
076 Make Custom-Fit Earbuds
077 Put a New Spin on an Old CD
078 Get Your Air Drum On with Electrified Drumsticks
079 Amuse Yourself with a Flipperdinger
080 Play a Pocket Theremin
HOME IMPROVEMENTS
081 Customize Your Welcome Mat
082 Organize Your Entryway with Recycled Cans
083 Give a Doorknob a New Spin
084 Set Up a Secret Door
085 Make Invisible Speakers
086 Monitor Your Home with a Laser Security System
087 Snooper-Proof Your Wallet
088 Install an Electrical-Outlet Wall Safe
089 Carry a Film-Roll Keychain
090 Make a Musical Stash for Your Cash
091 Turn Your HDTV Into a Magic Window
092 Craft a DIY Digital Photo Frame
093 Give an Old TV a Rerun
094 Hack the Perfect Gaming Chair
095 Make a TV Oscilloscope
096 Hack a TV Console into a Seat
097 Install an Aquarium in an Old TV
098 Build a Boob-Tube Bar
099 Set Up a DIY Drive-in
100 Hang a Liquid Lamp
101 Mold a Retro Lamp Base
102 Create a Mesmerizing Persistence-of-Vision Clock
103 Tell Time with a Dart Clock
104 Make a Modern Mag Rack
105 Sew an Easy eBook Reader Case
106 Turn a Printer into a High-Volume Document Shredder
107 Sort Mail with Old CDs
108 Improvise a Postage Scale
109 Turn Your Roomba into a Sentry
110 Make a Robotic Artiste
111 Remove Rust with Electricity
112 Clean with a Toy-Car Broom
113 Rig a Superpowered Scrub Brush
114 Track Your Food’s Freshness
115 Mod a Crumb-Collecting Cutting Board
116 Harvest Fridge Magnets from an Old Hard Drive
117 Do Stuff with Bottle Caps
118 Avoid Burning Your Mouth with a Smart Coaster
119 Put an Old Coffee Can to Good Use
120 You Built What?! Dinner to Go in a Nitrous-Injected Dining Table
121 Improvise a Sous-Vide Cooker
122 Build a DIY Smoker
123 Set Up an Umbrella Solar Cooker
124 Construct a Toilet-Powered Zen Fountain
125 Double Your Showerhead Action
126 Craft a Toilet-Paper Dispenser
127 Hang a Magnetic Stud Finder
128 Turn Your Hard Drive into a Tool Grinder
129 Capture Screws with a Magnetic Wristband
130 Rig the Poor Man’s Laser Level
131 Kit Out an Instant-Charge Screwdriver
132 Make a Mini Screwdriver
133 Remove a Stripped Screw with a Rubber Band
134 Make a Rubik’s Cube–Inspired Chest of Drawers
135 Sand Tiny Trim with a Razor
136 Make Duct Tape Do Double Duty
137 Create a Life-Size Cardboard Cutout
138 Lounge in a Cardboard Hammock
139 Chat on a Cardboard Telephone
140 Hang Up Cardboard Blinds
141 You Built What?! Man’s Best Friend Gets a High-Tech Home
142 Make an Automatic Pet Feeder
143 Build a Cat Door
144 Put Together a Homemade Wind Mill
145 Hook Up a Solar Charger
146 Make a Geodesic Dome out of PVC Pipe
147 Reuse an Old Garden Hose
148 Make the Lazy Man’s Mower
149 Set Up DIY Grow Lights
150 Build a CD-Case Greenhouse
151 You Built What?! The Ultimate Snowblower
GADGET UPGRADES
152 Rig a DIY Polygraph Test
153 Listen In with a Foxhole Radio
154 Tack Up a Dipole Antenna
155 Craft a Cell-Phone “Cantenna”
156 Boost Wi-Fi with a Steamer
157 Hang HDTV-Antenna Art
158 Mod an Xbox 360 Controller into an iPhone Case
159 Make a Phone “Bounceable”
160 Build a Hands-Free Phone
161 Make a Remote Display for Your Computer
162 Rig a Smartphone Projector
163 Charge a Phone with Solar Rays
164 Make a Smartphone Tripod
165 Turn Your Old Netbook into a Touchscreen Tablet
166 Fashion a DIY Stylus for Your Touchscreen Device
167 Protect Your Touchscreen with Thin Vinyl
168 Stash a Flash Drive in a Cassette
169 Make a Pink-Eraser Flash Drive
170 Fake It with a Sawed-Off Flash Drive
171 House a Flash Drive in a LEGO
172 Hack a Foot-Operated Mouse
173 Trick Out Your Computer Tower with Engraving
174 Turn Your Laptop into a Whiteboard
175 Dye Your Laptop
176 Make a Steampunk-Inspired Laptop Case
177 Turn On Your Computer with a Magnet Switch