dbclunie - My Electronics & Career Blog © David Clunie

MSP430 Launchpad Booster Pack!

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 10:53:50 PST

Just a quick post, I received the following email the other day in regards to a new booster pack for our MSP430's, its a Wireless Module! YAY! Now you can natively add wireless to your MSP430 Launchpad products! Looks like the max order is 5, I picked up 3 for my 3 modules. Check out the info below and pick up a few for your own projects!

Here is the official email below:

Make Your MSP430 LaunchPad Wireless

430BOOST-CC110L RF BoosterPack

The 430BOOST-CC110L RF BoosterPack is a sub-1 GHz wireless connectivity plug-in board for the MSP430 LaunchPad development kit - an easy-to-use, affordable, and scalable introduction to the world of microcontrollers and the MSP430 family. Snap the 430BOOST-CC110L RF BoosterPack onto your LaunchPad and you are all set for adding wireless capabilities to MSP430-based designs.

Order Now

430BOOST-CC110L RF BoosterPack

•	Low-power wireless transceiver extension kit for use with the Texas Instruments MSP-EXP430G2 LaunchPad development kit
•	Contains two ETSI-compliant and FCC certified RF module boards
•	Sub-$30 for complete development environment: RF BoosterPack ($19) + two MSP430 LaunchPads ($4.30 x 2)

www.ti.com/rfboosterpack

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The platform bar is a trademark of Texas Instruments. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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MakerBot TV Season1 Episode12 - Season Finale

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 09:00:07 PST

Well it looks like its the end for Makerbot TV for this season that is. This "season finale" ends on a whimper and give away a maker bot to someone who made a coffee cup topper with your (or whomever's) lips as the drinking spout! Um, Ew! Also, Creepy if you ask me, let alone driking hot coffee with something that may have imperfections and holes, leaks and bacteria just waiting to happen, let alone is is really safe to drink a hot liquid from? Yeah its the same plastic as legos but I'm pretty sure they don't recommend you make food utencils or dining plates out of the stuff for every day consumption, let alone at high temperatures!

The rest of the episode is again lack luster and ends with an "awards show" for various creations they've highlighted. Meh. Not sure if I'm going to watch for season 2 if this is going to be the format.

I still think they need to go the "make weekend project" route, with host Kip Kay!, well I'd rather see Bre take that mantel again. That is after all what a lot of people started with, the weekend projects from make magazine, and got them excited to actually go out and make things!

Except for a few episodes there wasn't a whole lot of "project" material other than "look what we did" or "we're selling this now". Call me jaded (but don't call me shirley) I just was hoping for more from this series and all I got was some fluff pieces with a few chunks of meat and gristle. Well here is the video in case you're curious:

Here is some bonus video that may help make up for the so so video above:

Now that's what I'm talking about (sort of), the botmobiles are especially cool! All these are at Makerbot Projects.

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MakerBot TV Season1 Episode11 - Educational Program

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 20:24:01 PST

Here is another episode from the weekly video series over at Makerbot Industries. This weeks episode is all about education and specifically the program they've started to get makerbot into schools called Curriculum. If you'd like to know more check out the video below and then check out the site Educational Curriculum: http://curriculum.makerbot.com/ or you can always Email the MakerBot Education Team: education@makerbot.com.

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MakerBot TV Season1 Episode10 - Lets Talk Plastics!

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 09:00:06 PST

Another great episode from the weekly video series over at Makerbot Industries. This weeks episode talks about the three main plastics that can be used in the makerbot ABS(Lego), PLA(corn based bio-degrade), and PVA (water soluble). There is also some info on the various settings you can start out with for each of the plastics and what you might expect for quality on some of the plastics and how to keep the PLA from wasting away from humidity! So without further ado here is the video:

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Makerbot TV S01E09 - The Practical Application Episode (Finally!)

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 23:28:54 PDT

Episode 9 of Makerbot TV, from the weekly video series at Makerbot Industries, is here! Finally an episode that includes some actual benefits of owning a makerbot and clues you into why you would want one around the house.

While most of the objects are indeed handy, and there are lots more on thingaverse, I believe its been stated on the forums for makerbot that the plastic, while "non-toxic" in its "cured form", shouldn't remain in contact with food stuff for lengthy times. Also I'm not sure how safe a spatula would be considering the heat factor and the "remelting of the plastic", unless they're printing it in food safe silicon or some other food safe material of course!

Regardless this episode illuminates what the future of small printable objects will be and instead of pop'n off down to the local hardware store for the latest "widget" to fix your "thingamabob" you'll just print out the item. Don't worry about the hardware store they eventually might sell the very plastic spools of filament you'll need to print your objects, and of course other basic fasteners for larger projects!

BONUS! Here is Bre Pettis in a video titled Makerbotting 101.

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Makerbot TV S01E08 - Halloween and Hermit Crab Episode

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 09:30:01 PDT

Essentially this episode is, again, a little "lite" on content, but focuses on what you could make for the upcoming Halloween holiday. If I were a kid and got some piece of "Halloween" plastic ghost or pumpkin instead of candy that house would get egged for sure! On the flip side, instead making a spider ring or other accessories for your costume I think is more appropriate and proper use of a makerbot.

The second half of the video details the efforts of a group trying to provide hermit crab shells for hermit crabs. Apparently there is a shortage of hermit crab shells "In the wild", I'm not sure if they mean pet shops or actually out in nature. While it might seem noble I'm not sure if putting more plastic into "the wild" is the right approach, not to mention that the hermit crabs will make their homes out of anything that "fits" their current size really. Also not sure how they came up with the data indicating the shortage. You can check out more details here about the project.

Update: Apparently they are just protyping the shells in plastic and the final shell material has yet to be determined, and at this time no shells of any kind have been introduced "to the wild". Again check out the above link if you would like more info on the project.

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Palantir Anyone? - Sphere Made Of LED's

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 09:00:02 PDT

I think I found my next electronics build! Behold this awesome mesmerizing light sphere made out of LED's! Nikolai Nikitin created this "Magic Ball" and put all the diagrams and schematics up on his blog, here. His site is originally in Russian but chrome browser/google translate does a good job deciphering it for us non Russian speakers. It's a pretty amazing build, and gorgeous to look at! Check out the video below:

The sphere is just so darn pretty to watch as it cycles through its patterns and sequences. One thing I'd like to try with my version is to make a sphere mold and place the project in the center then fill the mold up with some clear or translucent resin, safe for electronics, and encase the entire, with a seperate resin plug for the on/off and battery changing.

A Palantir !

I think translucent colors, or those colors swirled together, would be the way to go to mute the direct light flashes of the LED's, something akin to the palantir in the Lord of the Rings movies. I suppose you could make or find an acrylic "hamster" like ball and put it in "loose" or secure it rather than go with a full resin fill. Either way this is a great build and the ideas are flowing! Hopefully there is no "Dark Lord" on the other end!

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Makerbot TV S01E07 - Bot Your Bike! - Pimp Your Ride Parody

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 09:00:09 PDT

Episode 7 of Makerbot TV, from the weekly video series at Makerbot Industries, has just been delivered. This week the makerbot parody the "Pimp My Ride" MTV series and "Bot Your Bike!"

The episode is entirely about creating items for your bike and the conversion of one bicyclists ride with the inclusion of a few trim pieces, accessories holders, and a full fledged makerbot running on battery! Neat!

While the host this time around is a little "over the top", but "xzibit" was just as anoying on "pimp my ride", so I guess he's appropriate. I'm still hoping for more "projects" episodes, which this is somewhat, so we'll have to wait and see what episode 8 will bring us!
Runtime is 4:16.

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Makerbot TV S01E06 - Dual Extrusion MK7 (again?!)

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 01:07:55 PDT

Episode 6 of Makerbot TV, from the weekly video series at Makerbot Industries, has just been delivered. Hmm, while this weeks episode is a bit informational, its rather light on actual makerbot "awesomeness" and is trending toward "infomercial" territory. I would like to see more videos featuring the makerbot and something akin to make magazine "weekend projects" videos rather than just a 5 min video of "hey we have brown filament and here is the MK7 extruder, ooo wow awesome", again. I know I'd like it if the videos were longer and actually had projects featured.

One nice bit in this episode is they do mention the updates to replicatorG ( 0026) and that older replicatorG code isn't compatible with the new 3.0 firmware so you need the 0026 update.

This video series has its good episodes but I'm not sure how much longer I'm going to be watching these if the trend tends to be a 5 min info/fluff piece. It almost seems like they're sitting around on a monday morning and say "oh nos! we have to do a video!" Put some real substance in and if they run longer than 5min we'll be ok with that!

Oh well </rant>

Here is the video in case you want to check it out for yourself. btw a mere 3:46 this time around...yah, exactly...

Makerbot TV S01E05 - How Artists Are Using Makerbot

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 02:08:07 PDT

Episode 5 of Makerbot TV, from the weekly video series at Makerbot Industries, has just been delivered to the masses. This weeks episode features how two artists are using their makerbots in their artwork and there is also info on a contest where you too can win a makerbot! Its an entertaining 4:52 min, so be sure to check out the following video and get perhaps get inspired to do some makerbot artwork of your own!

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Wall Warts As Power Supplies For DIY Projects

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 09:00:06 PDT

Everyone's got them, an old power transformer or "wall wart" for some unknown electronic device that has been thrown away, was broken by the electronic gremlins, or lost into the sands of time.

Some might throw out these unmatched power supplies but most just wrap the cord around the chunky black plastic cube and throw it into a box, which is only pawed through when the power supply to your existing device goes missing.

One other use that might not have occurred to many is the use of those wall warts as the next power supply in your awesome DIY electronics project!

The folks over at digital-diy.com have a great, multipage, write up on how you can use these under utilized power supplies with your DIY electronics projects. The article, nine pages to be exact, covers the following topics:

Background and Use of AC/DC Power Supplies
Linear Supplies
Regulated Supplies
Switching Power Supplies
Practicality Of Using AC/DC Power Supplies
A Brief Look At 5v Power Supplies

It's a great article and has very useful info, especially if you have any questions on how to incorporate power supplies into electronics projects.

So go get that box of black cubes and twisted licorice strands and grab that chunky monkey one, you know from that one thing you had back in the 90's, that went "woop, woop woop" but now can't remember where you put it, yeah that one and put it back to use!

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Schuyler Towne FREE 24-Part Online Lockpicking Course

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 09:00:04 PDT

In a previous post, DIY Non Destructive Entry(NDE) - aka Lockpicking, Schuyler Towne gave a talk at Defcon 19 on the various ways, methods, and even a bit of history of lockpicking. Schuyler has now gone on to found openlocksport.com where you can find out more info on the art of lockpicking, the tools involved, and training needed.

Schuyler has also created a 24 part course, completely free of charge, on how to perform lockpicking and has placed this valuable info up onto youtube!

Below you can find the first video in the series as well as this link to the playlist on youtube for the entire 24 episode course . If you like these videos and would like to keep up on all things lockpicking and the locksport hobby you might also want to subscribe to his youtube channel as well!

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Makerbot TV S01E04 - MK7 Extruder

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 17:57:24 PDT

Episode 4 of Makerbot TV, from the weekly video series at Makerbot Industries, has just been delivered to the masses. While somewhat light on content this episode its still very entertaining. This episode is primarily about the MK7 Extruder and its use of the new 1.75mm filament.

The MK7 is the "next big thing" for the makerbot machines, or any 3D printer machine based on the rep-rap model, because they've compacted the design so you can fit two into the same build area as the old stepstruder! It should be noted that the MK7 itself doesn't have dual extrusion, you have to get TWO MK7's to do dual extrusion.

Dual extrusion, via the beta software, of two different colors of filament, or IMHO, two different types of plastics is a big jump forward for the home 3d printers! The main reason you'd want to print out and item with two different types of plastics is that one plastic would be your end product while the second plastic could be some water based plastic that can be washed/melted/blasted away after you're done printing that's used as a support structure. This use of a base plastic and a support plastic would allow for very complex prints in one go with out the need for assembly. Very Cool. Traditionally this was only available on high end 3d printers.

A Single MK7 is available for purchase and the dual extrusion software is still in beta(and requires two MK7's), but this new makerbot tech upgrade looks very promising. Here is the fairly short video:

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Password Cracking 101

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 09:00:08 PDT

Over on Tinkernut.com they've created a short video(which you can find below) on how passwords are easily hacked and what you can do to prevent the ease of your password from being compromised.

It's a nice simple video which gets the point across, which is that passwords, like most things, are faulty, prone to breakdowns and have inherent weaknesses. The video also provides you info on how to increase the difficulty of your password being compromised. You can also find at tinkernut the 500 worst passwords of all time, a pdf unlocker, and complexity hacking stats.

If you like the video and wish to dive into a deeper discussion, check out the previous post Passwords, Weak, Hackable, and Hard To Remember where you can find a link to an excellent write up by Jeff Powell on everything you wanted to know about passwords and were afraid to ask.

Hope you enjoyed this post and thanks for stopping by!

Makerbot TV S01E03 - Maker Faire NYC

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 09:00:00 PDT

Over at Makerbot industries they're now producing a weekly video series of everything "awesome" about anything having to do with the Makerbot.

Makerbot TV episode 3 heads to the Maker Faire NYC of course! Check out all the 3D printed goodness featured at the NYC Faire and and the turtle racing track in action! Also the big news is that the new makerbot extruder the MK7 is a Dual Extruder! You can see some of the results in the video below such as the 3D printed Blue and Green Earth!

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Blackhat 2010 DMCA and ACTA Abuse Discussion

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 09:00:01 PDT

A must see discussion from last years Blackhat 2010 convention of how the DMCA and the ACTA can be used to essentially squelch fair use, thwart competitors, and obstruct dissenting opinions.

Check out the video below, which weighs in at an hour and eleven min, then head over to project dod site, home.dod.net, for more info about them and to support their efforts to fight this abuse. You can head over to Chris Mooney's page, who is the current active executive director of project dod, and one of the presenters in the video, to snag the white papers (.pdfs) on the presentation.

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DIY NDE - Non-Destructive-Entry - AKA Lockpicking

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 09:00:08 PDT

This is an excellent talk given by Schuyler Towne at Defcon 19 on how various security devices can be bypassed with mundane items. Also he speaks a bit on some of the history of these devices and what items you can use to make your own lock picks of which includes of all things a Popsicle Stick!

The main point of all this is that if you know how your security devices can be comprised you can defend against those attacks or at the very least minimize the those risks. Also being informed how easily a device can be bypassed allows you to make better buying decisions when you do decide to purchase a security device.

Also as Schuyler states, don't pick any lock that you or others rely on because locks can and do break. If you do decide to pick a lock only pick a lock that you own and one you don't rely on, unless of course you don't mind screwing yourself over.

So check out the video, it runs about 42 min, and there is a little f-bombing in the beginning by the guy introducing Schuyler, but the rest of the video is ok to watch, after all Schuyler's Mom's will be watching this video. Hehe.

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8x8 Matrix LED and Solar Power Boards - Launchpad MSP430

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 09:00:06 PDT

For those of us with the MSP430 Launchpad Microcontrollers these two products may be of interest and can be found over at olimex.com.

The First is a 8x8 LED board that has connectors for the launchpad as well as other 8x8 Matrix LED boards. These left sided connectors allow you to chain a bunch together to form a scrolling readouts, animations, or other cool projects. You could configure them in alternate ways too with a bit of wiring or some bending, I'm thinking of a cube! Also each board has a buzzer and a microphone! Here are the specs:

Launchpad connectors
LED8x8 brick connector
Microphone
Buzzer
FR-4, 1.5 mm (0,062"), red soldermask, white silkscreen component print

SUPPORTED DEVICES: all devices which can be used on MSP430-Launchpad
DIMENSIONS: 66x51 mm (2,6x2,0")

You can find more info HERE.

The second product is a a Solar Panel Battery Charger. This looks like it is to be used with a 1.2v single battery and will fully charge a 800mAh battery in 10hrs of direct sunlight. So if you're designing a project with a lipo battery you can use this board to charge up your project when your power needs require it affording you have nice sunny days. This could be adapted for many outdoor projects, e.g., low power monitoring station for a mini-greenhouse, lighting for the greenhouse, etc. Here are the specs:

SOLAR PANEL 2.4VDC 80mA with DC/DC voltage boost converter
JTAG connector for direct plug in MSP430 2x7 JTAG connector to provide power for the target board
suitable for up to 800mAh rechargeble battery, 800mAh battery will be charged to 100% if MSP430-SOLAR is left for 10 hours on sun light
Dimensions: 56x48 mm (2.2x1.9")

You can find more info HERE.

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Makerbot TV S01E02 Is Live!

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 09:00:08 PDT

Over at Makerbot industries they're now producing a weekly video series of everything "awesome" about anything having to do with the Makerbot.

The second video is up and weighs in at 5:03 min. I was kind of hoping for a more in depth and longer episode, at least 15 min, but it looks like they're trying to fit everything into 5 min webisodes. Even so be sure to check it out after the jump.

This time around the video highlights the preparations for the upcoming Maker Faire NY, the developer of the turtle shell racer (irl mario cart anyone!) Skimbal, how to calibrate your Makerbot for optimal 3D printing, and a contest where the best design for a Makerbot mascot will win a Makerbot! (see video for details)

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Makerbot TV! - Episode 1

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 12:08:59 PDT

Over at Makerbot industries they're now producing a weekly video series of everything "awesome" about anything having to do with the Makerbot. The first video is up and weighs in at 5:46 min, so be sure to check it out after the jump.

I absolutely love 3D Printing and would certainly like to have a Makerbot, however I always wanted a larger build area and higher resolution that can be had with the Makerbot. The rep rap series, of which the makerbot was birthed from, does have larger build areas but they too have similar issues with resolution of the prints. As noted in the video you can sand and smooth the plastic with a bit of sand paper and then wiping down with acetone to smooth out the lines.

One new prospect of home 3D printing is using a normal projector and UV sensitive resin for really high quality and durable prints. The only drawback I see with this design again the size of the build area, as you have to have a wide "vat of resin" and since the printing occurs "upside down" you'd have to have a pretty tall z axis. The other questions regarding this method is how sensitive is the resin to light? In the videos its pretty clear the resin sits behind a protective plastic filter. Do you have to drain the resin when the printer isn't in use? The creator hasn't said too much but that it should be comparable to today's home 3D Printers in the $1000 price range. Here is a video of some of his work:

Of course you could always just print an object in pieces and then puzzle it together. To be honest most of my print projects wouldn't be anything more than an 8x10 ish size anyways. Regardless of which printer you use, or even if you use a service like shapeways or ponoko 3D printing is a great way to get your design ideas out and into the world and getting people thinking of new and exciting things to do with them. It is certainly the next step in custom manufacturing I think.

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Passwords - Weak, Hackable, Hard To Remember

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 21:45:12 PDT

For those of who love the comic xkcd will not be surprised to find multiple comics on passwords and their use in our everyday digital lives. The division I worked for, not the corporate overlords, were pretty serious on the creation of strong passwords and allowing the users who used our network ways to retrieve those passwords along with educating them on password security. Security was always top on the list when building new features into our systems.

One of my former colleagues, mentor, and friend, Jeff Powell, has a well written treatise on passwords. It's an excellent read and I've been recommending it to family, friends, and anyone who's concerned with password use in the modern age. So go check his blog post and then get ready to change how you use and create passwords!

Bonus: For some comic goodness, here are two xkcd comics regarding passwords after the jump.

On Password Strength

On Password Reuse

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Grand Rapids Michigan, One Hellava City!

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Sat, 28 May 2011 09:00:04 PDT

Its nice to see that not everything coming out of the state I was raised in isn't all doom and gloom. Here is a video from the people of Grand Rapids, Michigan singing (we'll lipdub'n) the classic song "American Pie" by Don McLean.

I guess this all started with an article in newsweek, which now claims they didn't write the article, see the story here @ salon.com, about how Grand Rapids was #10 of a list of american cities that are dying.

Here is the record breaking video!

Well played Grand Rapids! Congrats!

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Ubuntu "Unity" Shortcuts Wallpaper!

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 23:41:43 PDT

Over at askubuntu.com user Octavian Damiean created a quick ref keyboard shortcut wallpaper for the new Ubuntu 11.04 "Unity" interface. Click on the pic below and snag yourself a copy, it's a mighty handy tool for getting started!

click here for your own copy (1920x1080)

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Happy Pi Day! 3.1415926

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 02:54:08 PDT

So today is Pi day, March 14, 1:59:26 am/pm or 3.1415926 . You can celebrate via various methods listed below. Choose one or more and enjoy Pi Day to the 8th decimal place at minimum!

Wear a pi t-shirt. This idea can be taken further to include pi jewelry (maybe a necklace whose beads represent the numbers in pi), carrying around a pi mug or clock, or other pi paraphernalia.

Bake a Pi, Pie! Here is a tasty Apple Pi Pie recipe in the shape of the Pi symbol!

Spread the word of Pi Day! Most people who celebrate pie day participate by gathering in a circle who's circumference is Pi times is diameter!

Remember the other form of Pi Day which is Pi Approximation Day which is held on July 22 (or 22/7 in day/month date format), since the fraction22⁄7 is a common approximation of π.

Pay homage to Larry Shaw, the creator of Pi Day

For additional methods on how to celebrate Pi Day head over to wiki how!

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Its MAGICKER! - A IKEA LAMP CONVERSION / HACK

dbclunie@dbclunie.com (David Clunie) — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 06:34:49 PST

Light at Half Power

Magicker is the "style" of the Ikea Lamp, which I don't even think its available anymore, that I use for my bookcase lamps. The video explains why I did this conversion, which more or less was because these lamps were going through the $5.00 halogen bulbs like there was no tomorrow. I had to replace both lamps bulbs once a month and the last straw was when I had to replace three bulbs in a months time.

I have a suspect that it has something to do with the transformers the lamps used as they always ran very, very HOT and I even had one appear to have shorted out and scorched a power outlet not long after purchasing them! The transformers were just a step down transformer which went from 120V AC to 12V AC. My power in my apartment has never had a brown out or black out, which is surprising living in California, but I suspect that it has something to do likely being on the same power grid as the Hospital I live near.

So needless to say I decided to ditch the AC transformers and use a universal DC transformer, you know the kind that has a bunch of different barrels/connections on the ends for electronic games, and gadgets. This also saved me from having to wire up in my schematic going from AC to DC, which I was going to build my own LED board. Then after a quick fry's electronic store trip I stumbled across these kits from digitron (don't bother looking for them on their site, its not listed yet). The kits were $9.99, a bit pricy i know, but it had everything I wanted. They're super bright have 6 lights with 3 bright white LED's (so technically 18 individual LED's) and could be used for either 12V AC or DC! The cool thing is that if you want you could solder up a bunch together in various configurations and still only run one power source! You see they're designed with solder pads on each corner and once that connection is made power will flow along to all that are connected! NEAT!

Overall it was a fun conversion and i'm pretty happy with the outcome, the transformers no longer run HOT, and the light is a nice bright white which I can vary at a flick of a switch from just a faint glow for movie watching or full on "daylight" for reading.

What I'd like to do in a future hack is add maybe a small controller board and wireless so that I can program a time schedule and turn them on/off wirelessly or some other wacky idea, strobing perhaps!

So if you're interested in seeing my explanation, about 8 mins, and then build process, its in time lapse, take a look at the video!

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