This is another entry in our $600 Gadget contest, CG reader Mark explains how he made his own digital picture frame (sort of a review I suppose). Over to you Mark.

This is my version of a digital picture frame, but better. First I bought this Mintek HD LCD TV & DVD player (model DTV-173 1,280 x 768 native pixel resolution; high 400:1 contrast ratio and high 400 cd/m2 brightness ). Then I came up with the idea that I could use it as a digital picture frame and lots more. So then I began looking for a place to put it. I have a entertainment “closet” which used to be a pantry that I’ve converted into my personal gaming/video control room. So I figured what better place to put it but in the door it self.

I called my carpenter friend (Dick T.) and told him the details of how I would like it placed and where to leave a small opening for the remote to see the IR reader, and also that I wanted the side speakers hidden by the door. My objective of the work was to have the TV placed so it would be flush with the door, to make it as slick looking as possible After ordering a solid door (for support) and locked hinges (so no one can pop them to steal the goods) we were on are way. A week later here it was. This “digital wall player” does all kinds of cool stuff for me, first (but not really necessary because of the connections it has and a DVD player right behind it) it has a DVD player built into it so I could play movies or visuals for parties.

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Yeah, you’ve always wanted it, clean, pure energy, that’s cheap as free.

Well you can,,,

Ok,, do you have $50,000 USD lying around? If so, here’s the deal for how to generate your own power through a combination of solar power, electrolysis, and fuel cell power generation.

Thanks to a great article from the folks at Wired Magazine.

A guy named Stephen Friend, who is obviously a friend to the environment (what, if I don’t do the pun, it’ll just go to waste) put together a complete energy generation system that uses local water and solar power to generate energy.

He used his smarts to put together a complete mail order power generation system from the folks at the FuelCellstore.com. There they have all the stuff you could need to generate, store, and release naturally generated power in a safe and managable way. Read the rest of this entry »

This is the perfect example of what student man can achieve when they have enough time, patience, money and love of beer; the beer launching fridge.

Invented and created by John W. Cornwell this is what he had to say about his amazing creation:

Have you ever gotten up off the couch to get a beer for the umpteenth time and thought, “What if instead of ME going to get the BEER, the BEER came to ME???” Well, that was how I first conceived of the beer launching fridge. About 3 months and several hundred dollars later I have a fully automated, remote controlled, catapulting, man-pit approved, beer launching mini-fridge. It holds 10 beers in its magazine with 14 more in reserve to store a full case. It is controlled by a keyless entry system. Pressing unlock will start the catapult rotating and when it is aiming at your target, pressing unlock again will stop it. Then the lock button can be pressed to launch a beer in the selected direction.

To really appreciate this piece of beer fuelled engineering check out the video after the jump Read the rest of this entry »

So everyone has one, some call it a purse, some call it a satchel, just just call it, “My darn bag.”

Either way, you’ve got one. You use your bag on the go. Most of all, you’ve got a bag filled with stuff you think is useful enough that if it all went down, you’d be the one swinging from the trees, able to make fire, and live high off the hog while the rest of us can barely remember how to talk.

To add a layer of transparency to this, I’ve started with my own daily dragger. Here is the list of what I keep in there and why. I can’t wait to hear what everyone else is lugging around, it’s always been a mystery to me.

First off, I’ve got a bag I’ve had for years here from Dana Gleason the former owner/creator of Dana Design bags from Bozeman Montana. Now he’s got a new company Mystery Ranch. It’s the best bag you’ll ever own, (I’ve got a Dana Backpack still as well, they’re bulletproof man!) Plus Dana himself is one heck of a guy, irrepressible and will always stand out in a crowd, (he’s about 6′5″ with a flaming red beard) you can’t miss him! They just make the best bags, period.

Now on to the internal goodies!

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You might remember hearing about a wave of wounded people when the Nintendo Wii first came out last November. A combination of physically unfit Wii owners and a weak Wiimote strap was causing people to accidentally do things like punch their dogs or dislocate knees. Well apparently everyone’s wounds have healed and they’re starting to experiment with their new gaming systems.

One ambitious Wii owner even decided to make his own steering wheel and upload a picture of it to GoNintendo.com. The official Wii steering wheel is included with most racing games like GT Pro Series and Monster 4X4: World Circuit; but why pay extra for a game bundled with a wheel when you can just make your own?

While this particular DIY wheel leaves a lot to be desired (especially when it comes to style points), I’ll give this lumpy homemade masterpiece an A+ for effort.

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It’s another robot with a cutesy name, SPYKE the WiFi Spy Robot. It’s due to be sold under the Meccano brand name which is pretty appropriate as you’ll have to make him your self.

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The Heatwave Wood Stove Fan from Northlineexpress.com which, from what I can tell, is where hot things come from. They’ve got fireplace and heating things of all kind. More importantly though, I’m focusing on the aftorementioned Heatwave Wood Stove Fan.

Here’s the reason we’re looking at it,, it’s got a Stirling engine inside!!!

So as not to confuse it with the crazy-insane commentator on the NFL Stirling Sharpe, it is not bipedal, nor crazy.

It is however a heater that is powered by the heat given off from your wood, gas, or pellet burning stove. This is interesting because it is taking advantage of exisiting thermal energy and does not require anything but a hot surface to activate.

While Mr. Sharpe does blow a lot of hot air out his mouth hole, it is likely below the 390 degrees F needed by the fan to blow 200-300 CFM (cubic feet per minute) around the room.
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It never ceases to amaze me what men (and women, of course – I’m just talking in an extremely general manner, so please don’t get overtly PC on me) can do with a little bit of imagination, some D.I.Y. skills, and a passion to create something totally new that blows our collective minds away. Lou Reimuller obviously had more time on his hands than the rest of us by lovingly fusing an armless mannequin of yesteryear with a modern electronic guitar. He has dubbed her Teenar, and she has this sultry look that casts a pall of gloom whenever you look at her direction, but nobody is stopping you from stepping up, cradling your arms around her, and start pulling the right strings to bring a cheery disposition to the sombre mood all around.

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