Author Archives: GadgetNate

Learning SolidWorks

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My main goal for today is to be able to learn to do basic things in SolidWorks.  This is a popular CAD package that can be used for mechanical design.  I have some visions for some robotic devices, and I think the first step is to be able to get them into some tangible form.  The Artisan’s Asylum has a computer lab with SolidWorks installed.  And I have a class tonight on Analog Electronics that I have to go there for anyway.  So my plan is to buy a day pass, spend the day going through tutorials and creating some very basic physical designs.

 

At the present time I am on the Amtrak Downeastern to Boston, and I thought it would be good to find a few tutorials that I could work through while I’m there.  Here is what I found:

 

I found this “How to build a Robot” tutorial for Solidworks.   It looks to take someone from not knowing anything to doing something fairly practical: www.solidworks.com/sw/education/9959_ENU_HTML.htm

 

I also found a number of other tutorials and sites to check out:

 

SOLIDWORKS Product Modeling Courses

 

www.solidworkstutorials.com/

 

Lynda.com has some SolidWorks courses: http://www.lynda.com/Solidworks-training-tutorials/1157-0.html  I have taken some of their online courses before, and they were all of very high quality..  It is a paid service, but really reasonable.  (http://www.lynda.com/SolidWorks-tutorials/SolidWorks-2014-Essential-Training/143606-2.html)

 

Professional SolidWorks training: http://solidwize.com/

www.solidprofessor.com/training-plans/solidworks/

 

 

Great One Liners for Today

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I’ve been reading through: Great One Liners

Here are some really good ones from today:

 

To err is human, but to really foul things up requires a computer

 

Never do card tricks for your poker buddies.

 

Never mess up an apology with an excuse.

 

Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases:  If it moves, tax it.  If it keeps moving, regulate it.  And if it stops, subsidize it.  —Ronald Reagan

 

Inside every senior citizen is a younger person wondering, “What the hell happened?”

 

A will is a dead giveaway.

 

A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.

 

When I die, I want to die like my grandfather–peacefully, in my sleep.  Not screaming, like all the passengers in his car.

 

I think I know how Chicago got started: bunch of New Yorkers said, “Gee I’m enjoying the crime and the poverty, but it just isn’t cold enough.  Let’s go West.”  — Richard Jeni

 

Never be afraid to try something new.  Just remember:  amateurs built the Ark; professionals built the Titanic.

 

When someone says “penny for your thoughts” and you put your two-cents in, where does the extra penny go?

 

Why is it that if someone tells  you that there are 1 billion stars in the universe you believe them, but if they tell you a wall’s paint is wet, you will touch it to be sure?

 

A verbal contract isn’t worth the paper it’s written on. —Samuel Goldwyn

 

Television is a medium because it is neither rare nor well done.  — Ernie Kovaks

 

My husband and I divorced over religious differences.  He thought he was God and I didn’t.

 

The quickest way to double your money is to fold it in half and put it back in your pocket.

 

The quickest way to find something lost around the house is to buy a replacement.

 

Nobody is listening until you make a mistake.

 

For every action, there is an equal and opposite criticism.

 

A government big enough to give you everything you want is strong enough to take everything you have. — Thomas Jefferson

 

 

Conferences I Hope to Attend in 2015

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Quantified Self

March 13-15, 2015

San Francisco, CA

Registration Fee: $499

QS15 is a two-day working meeting of pioneering self-trackers, toolmakers, artists, designers and engineers, followed by a grand, day-long, public exposition. Please join us as we inspire each other with our self-tracking projects, try out new tools, and shape the future of Quantified Self.

 

International Space Elevator Conference

August 2015 (exact dates TBD)

Location: TBD

Registration Fee: TBD

 

100 Year Starship

TBD (in 2014 it was in Houston in September)

 

Mars Society Convention

TBD – In 2014 was in League City, TX in August

 

(keeping an eye out for others… leave a comment if you know of something really interesting)

 

Space ventures to keep an eye on

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There are quite a few things going on that have the potential of expanding people kind’s place in the universe. It is sometimes hard to keep track of them, so here is a list to get you started:

 

Space Elevator

 

 

Getting to Orbit (or close)

SpaceX

Blue Origin

 

World View Experience

Virgin Galactic

Space Adventures

XCor

 

 

Place to stay after you get there

Bigelow Aerospace

 

Exploring

Inspiration Mars

Planetary Resources

Golden Spike

 

Learning about the Universe

Google Lunar X Prize

Sentinel Mission

SETI

 

These are just a few.  If you know of other space projects and activities that we should be keeping an eye on, then please leave a comment.

 

 

Coming Soon: October Writing Contests

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I’ve been thinking, how to get people to read the books I am interested in and have them do something with it.  I have decided to try a writing contest based upon some of my favorite (or yet to be discovered) books.    Please join the Writing Contests Announcements mailing list to be kept up to date.

I am still working out the details, but right now I am thinking of a monthly contest with a top prize of $100 paid through Pay Pal.

Sign up to our Writing Contests Announcement mailing list:

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Project problems

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Really funny video about when the impossible (un-useful) things are asked for.

Also, the classic “project disconnect” cartoon:

Project Joke

Sleep Number – Sleep IQ Bed

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Makes a really good point

Quantified Self – tracking yourself

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Source on Git Hub.com: github.com/sachac/quantified

Running version where you can set up your own dashboard at quantifiedawesome.com/

Created by Sacha Chua (who I remember from years and years ago when I was researching wearable computing…Kind of neat to run across some of her more recent work. )  Sacha’s blog is at sachachua.com/blog/

There is a whole movement of people who track themselves.  You can learn more at quantifiedself.com/

 

Viewing the Total Lunar Eclipse from Houston, TX USA

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What time is the Lunar eclipse ( EarthySky.org):

Central Daylight Time (April 15, 2014)
Partial umbral eclipse begins: 12:58 a.m. CDT on April 15
Total eclipse begins: 2:07 a.m. CDT
Greatest eclipse: 2:46 a.m. CDT
Total eclipse ends: 3:25 a.m. CDT
Partial eclipse ends: 4:33 a.m. CDT

Wow! that is really late (early?!), How to see it.

 

Nasa will be providing live commentary (see details below).  Could record it on video.

Right now the weather in Houston is very cloudy, but looking at weather.com the forecast is to be clear starting at about 11AM.

But I am wondering if I could use a raspberry pi and web cam to capture the event.  Hopefully I will have more details to share.

April 11, 2014

MEDIA ADVISORY M14-067
NASA to Provide Live Coverage and Commentary of April 15 Lunar Eclipse

The public will have the opportunity to view and learn more about the Tuesday, April 15 total lunar eclipse on NASA television, the agency’s website, and social media. Coverage begins at 2 a.m. EDT and will last about three hours. The eclipse’s peak, when the moon will enter the Earth’s full shadow or umbra, will occur at 3:45 a.m.

The United States will be in a prime orbital position and time of day to view the eclipse. Depending on local weather conditions, the public will get a spectacular view looking into the sky as the moon’s appearance will change from bright orange to blood red to dark brown and perhaps gray. The eclipse is a phenomenon that occurs when the Earth, moon and sun are in perfect alignment, blanketing the moon in the Earth’s shadow.  The United States will not be able to witness a full lunar eclipse in its entirety again until 2019.

Leading up to the eclipse, NASA will host a Reddit Ask Me Anything (AMA) on Monday, April 14 at 2 p.m. with astronomers from the agency’s Marshall Space Flight Center. Various NASA researchers also will be available for media interviews. NASA Twitter, Google+, Facebook, and Instagram followers will be able to join the conversation and ask questions using the hashtag #eclipse.

The public will be able to tag and share their images of the eclipsed moon on Instagram and on the agency’s Flickr group at:

www.flickr.com/groups/nasalunareclipse

Lunar eclipse video resources are available at:

svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/Gallery/2014TotalLunarEclipse.html

Live NASA TV coverage and commentary will begin at 1 a.m. To view the coverage and access eclipse streaming video, visit:

www.nasa.gov/nasatv

For more information on NASA’s eclipse activities, visit:

go.nasa.gov/1kkfFXX

What happens when you like your job.

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Routine pre-flight safety announcement that is usually is usually a boring and is at best ignored, and at worst, endured. This flight attendant has turned it into a completely funny, and enjoyable experience that had everyone paying attention. Fun & Safe, enjoy

Of course this is not the only such example: