Repeat Until False

When you are in Rome, do as the Romans do... avoid carrying your wallet in the back pocket of your jeans. But no matter what city or country you are in, there are several easy precautions you can take to keep yourself as pickpocket-proof as possible so that your amazing travel memories won't be sullied by the experience of having your camera or passport stolen.

Take the time to make yourself a decoy wallet. Use your money belt—just be sure not to take out your money belt, which defeats the purpose of having a concealed wallet beneath your clothes. Use basic common sense, such as not advertising your fancy video equipment or leaving things unattended. Last but not least, avoid thumbing through your dog-eared copy of Lonely Planet in crowded public places as much as possible. I know, easier said than done.

Got your own tips for avoiding pickpockets and thieves while traveling? Share with us in the comments below!

Click on image to enlarge.

Minecraft's monsters are so annoyingly tenacious and effective that anyone who plays in survival mode can't help but hate them. That's why we're here to tell you how to kill them!

In this tutorial, we'll teach you how to harness a unique property of lava to create blades that can be both deadly and controllable. Lava flow can often be stubborn and unpredictable, which is why lava blades are the best way to use lava to your advantage.

Here's how to do it!

Step 1 Built a work platform

You can make it as long as you want, but it needs to be exactly 4 blocks long. This particular platform is 5 by 4, but you could just as easily make it 10 by 4. It should only be 1 block high, though.

It can be made of any non-flammable material, not just stone.

Step 2 Add some containing walls

Add walls around the sides you don't want lava spilling out of. The area inside my walls is now 3 by 3. This is important, because you need a distance of 3 from the back wall to the front.

Step 3 It's a sign!

Add signs along the front where you would like your lava to go. Make sure that the signs are attached to the blocks, and not sitting on the floor. This is important, because it's necessary for the blades. You could also use ladders, but signs are just generally better because they're smaller and inert.

The signs don't have to say anything, but you can add things like 'BURN, FIENDS' if you'd like.

Step 4 Add lava and stir

At this point, you could add lava and just be done. Put lava along the back wall and nowhere else. Make sure that there's lava at each block against that wall, and that it's flowing outward, rather than sideways.

If you've done it properly, the lava will create a thin 'blade' that hovers in the air. It will easily toast any monster that happens into it.

But what if you don't want a big blade of lava just hanging out all the time? What if you would occasionally like to welcome guests into your house?

Then proceed to Step 5, my friend!

Step 5 Put your lava away

Wall your lava in. Use non-flammable blocks only 1 block high.

Step 6 Build a temporary scaffold

Make sure there are 2 empty spaces between your scaffold and your lava-containing wall. This is only temporary, so it doesn't matter what blocks you use.

Step 7 Add pistons!

Everybody loves pistons. Add sticky pistons facing down, and then optionally get rid of your scaffold.

You can keep it, if you like how it looks, but I'm going to get rid of it like so:

Step 8 Redstone time!

It's like adventure time, but with redstone.

Add blocks behind each piston and put redstone on them.

Then make one more, and put a switch on it. Or, alternately, run the redstone to a switch inside your house. Your call.

Step 9 Time to cut someone

You're done! You now have a functioning lava blade. Here it is, clamped off:

And then turned on!

Tips

• While you can use only one lava blade, they work best in pairs. Simply repeat these instructions so that both lava blades face each other, and you'll have something that looks like this:

Simple-looking corridor, right? But with the flip of a switch...

Blades of lava spring out from the walls and annihilate your foes!

I don't know about you, but that's a corridor I sure don't want to walk down!

The DIY industry is booming, despite the desperate blackmailing of society by finance capitalists. Companies like Adafruit and Makerbot are grossing well over a million dollars a year, and Evil Mad Science Laboratories just recently dedicated themselves to running a full-time kit business. Making kits is fun, but starting a business can be scary. If you already enjoy making gadgets and want to take the plunge into selling your own kits online, this article is for you. 

First, have no illusions. You probably won't make much money off of your kits for a while. Accept it. Know it is true. Okay, now that you have your mind right, we can start learning how to design an Arduino shield! You can sell whatever type of kit you want, but Arduino shields are particularly marketable and easy to make.

Step 1 Arduino Shields with Fritzing

Luckily, the open source gods at Fritzing have included an Arduino shield pattern in the Fritzing parts library. If you are new to Fritzing, check out this tutorial for beginners.

Navigate to the PCB view tab. Click on the green PCB rectangle to select it and bring your mouse to the bottom-right of the screen. Go to the shape scroll-down menu and select Arduino shield instead of rectangle. If you are making prototypes at home with single-sided copper-clad boards, be sure to select "single-sided" from the layers drop-down menu.

There we go... one Arduino Shield ready for components!

Notice that the shield template even has indicators for header placement.

Now that we have the shape, it is time to add functionality. You can put whatever you want on your Arduino shield, but to be a shield it will have to at least have long lead female headers on the sides. These are the pins that are plugged in when the shield is sandwiched onto the Arduino board.

Select the header component from the "connections" parts menu and drag it onto the work area. Use the customization menu on the bottom-right of the screen to make your component 8 headers long.

Right-click your headers and rotate them 90 degrees clockwise. Place them in indicator boxes on the bottom and top of the Arduino. Do this until you have a header for each Arduino socket.

A quick way to tell it your headers are lined up is to drag an Arduino board from the components menu and try to line up the component holes. Below, I have dragged an Arduino board directly over my header pins. They all line up except the ones on the lower left.

Perfect! Your Arduino may have more or fewer pins depending on what version you have. The UNO has some extra pins. All shields are compatible with both kinds of Arduino, so don't worry.

Once everything is aligned, remove the Arduino from the work area and start wiring up your parts!

I decided to make an LCD shield to make interfacing with a screen easier. LCDs require a bunch of Arduino pins and having a pre-made shield will cut down a lot on prototyping time.

Drag your components over the board and orient them.

Now, start wiring it up! You can do this in the breadboard, schematic, or PCB tab, but I find it is easiest to just stay in the PCB tab for this step. I used this wiring diagram from the official Arduino website to hook up my screen.

Make connections by clicking and dragging from one lead on the board to another until all of the connections have been made. It doesn't have to look pretty.

Click "Autoroute" and let the computer sort out the rat's nest.

Now you can go in and clean up the design. Depending on how many traces you have, you may be forced to use a jumper wire somewhere in your circuit. The light blue line above is a jumper wire for a trace the computer could not fit onto the board.

Here is the board after I manually tweaked the trace placement:

Make sure the trace widths are to your liking and click "Export For PCB" at the bottom of your screen. There you go! A perfect pattern for etching your first prototype shields! Etch, solder, and test your new shield to see if it will work for your future customers.

Remember that when you get the boards professionally made, the silk screen layer will look awesome! Label everything with silk screen including the Arduino pins on your shield.

Step 2 Professional PCB Orders

DIY is sufficient for all of your personal needs, but when it comes to selling kits, you're going to want the best board quality possible. 

   Image from dorkbot

There are innumerable PCB factories you can choose from. Here are the two cheapest and most reliable services I am aware of:

• BatchPCB: Run by SparkFun Electronics, BatchPCB is a place to order custom boards, as well as buy and sell other's board designs. BatchPCB gives you the option of 2- or 4-layer boards, which means you can get some really complex circuits going on! The price is reasonable and SparkFun is great to do business with.
• DorkbotPDX: Similar to BatchPCB, Dorkbot offers a service whereby many board designs are accumulated and sent into the manufacturer as one giant order. They cost a dollar more per square-inch than BatchPCB, but there is no setup fee. I have heard many people say they were pleased with the final product. All the boards are purple, so keep that in mind.

Step 3 Kits

Your PCBs are just one part of the kit that you'll eventually sell. Put together a practice kit of all the components needed for your gadget. Try different kinds of switches, knobs, LEDs, etc. to see what works best in your project.

Once you have a finalized parts list, gift a kit to a friend and see if they have any trouble putting it together. Revise the parts and if needed, include a website URL with directions for assembling your kit. Repeat until your friend can assemble your kit without any help from you. Now you are ready to think about the uncomfortable part—business.

Step 4 Pricing

Luckily, Arduino shields have an average price from 30 to 40 dollars. Your shield price will depend on what kind of components you used. If you made a GPS shield, your cost and price will be higher than if you made a shield with a single LED light. Count the cost of your shield and write it down!

   Image from youthoughtwewouldntnotice

• Component cost: Add up the price of all your components including thePCB. If you end up selling a lot, you can eventually lower the cost of components by buying in bulk, but for now, calculate the component cost based on the individual unit price.
• Labor Cost: How much time do you put into making kits? Sorting, packaging, mailing, and receiving all take up hours of your time that you need to be compensated for. Calculate how many hours you work per kit. Here is where you have some leeway. I calculate my hourly rate at 15 dollars. You can change yours depending on need, customers, average cost of reproducing labor, power in your area, and whim.
• Shipping: Shipping costs money. Choose the class of mail you will use (First Class, Priority Mail, etc.). Find the cheapest packaging available that still sufficiently protects your components. You may want to get some static-free bags for the kits to prevent static discharges from frying your components en route. Add up packaging and shipping charges, then add to your total per kit.

Now that we have a final cost for each kit, multiply that number by 1.66 to get your selling price. Capitalism is a tricky con and you can mess with the price all you want. It's easy to lose money if you buy too many kit materials or give away a lot of kit packages. The bottom line is that you are working for yourself and any money you make is going to come directly from exploiting yourself. Work hard and you may make money!

If it is too much work for one person, join up with other makers and start a kit cooperative. A cooperative is a business wherein all workers are also owners and all decisions are made democratically. It's a lot like a hackerspace.

Step 5 Website

We are all ready! We have a gadget, we have a board, we have components, we have packaging, we have everything we need but customers! Patience. They will come.

My website is hosted by WordPress. There are some differences between wordpress.com and wordpress.org, so make sure you read about each if you are considering a WordPress site. I find that WordPress has just the right balance of pre-made templates and easy customization. They have many good layouts and would more than suffice for a kit store.

Setting up a website for your kit store is a great way to reach a lot of people. PayPal makes it simple and safe to accept payments online and can be integrated into most blogs. You can use any site to sell your kits from LiveJournal to Tumblr, but here are some things to think about when deciding on a web host.

• Is e-commerce allowed? If not, find another site. Wordpress.com does not allow e-commerce. My actual store button links to a Google site.
• Can I link to my kit site with a custom URL? Say, fakekitsite.com? This is a great way to look more professional and help people find your kit. Most blog hosts will let you use a custom URL.
• Does anyone still use this host? If you are on LiveJournal and your kit has nothing to do with fan fiction, you may want to look elsewhere.
• Is the blog customizable? Having a custom look will make your kit seem even more special and consumable.

Step 6 Advertising

This is where most people get stuck. You may have a kit for sale, but nobody will take a look at it. There is nothing you can do to specifically get your one kit more traffic. You should be constantly making new stuff even if you are not preparing full kits. If your projects are interesting, they will get attention. The only surefire way to build up Internet traffic is to keep publishing interesting stuff. Once a few of your more badass projects gets picked up by some bigger websites, you will begin to get traffic on your kit site.

Do not pay for advertising. Modern advertising is a study in creating false needs by manipulating subconscious emotions. It works for the benefit of those who already own productive property, tons of money, public offices, guns, or more usually, all of the above. Your work is your best advertisement. You don't need to sink to the level of a corporation.

That's It

There you have it, the basics of how to design and sell your personal Arduino shield project. Do not forget to save all receipts and order forms for your taxes! If you end up making over 2000 dollars in one tax year, first off you are a lucky *****, and second, you will probably need to register as a business.

Look up the laws where you live to make sure you aren't inadvertently dodging taxes.

Final Thoughts

If you are going to dive all the way in, you will want to register as a business right away and open a bank account under that business name. Get a credit card under the business name, as well, and make all purchases on that card. Your expenses will be easier to track this way.

Some kits don't sell. If you have gone through all of the steps and find that your kits still are not selling, keep at it! Some projects just aren't received well by customers, but if you keep making new kits, some will sell.

Are you thinking about starting a kit business and want to ask for some advice? Ask away in the comments below or on our forum. Do you have experience selling your own kits? Share you experiences with us so we can make the right choices! We love hearing from you all.

Don't forget! We are currently accepting entries into our photo contest for a chance to win your very own lucid dreaming goggles kit! Just post a picture on the corkboard of a project you have made or are currently working on. All projects are welcome. Here is my example entry.

Main photo by biobug

It's been awhile since the last Staff Choice Awards, partially because no one has been posting their work on the corkboard and partially because I just took over as head admin from Maroselis and I needed some time to acclimate to the server.

However, one piece of non-contest work really stood out this week and it was a clear favorite for the award. So without further ado, I present to you...

Freakje118's Parthenon

What I really liked about this build was that it was more than just a mostly-faithful reproduction of the Ancient Greek Parthenon, but it really captured the feeling and spirit of what the real Parthenon must have been like in antiquity.

The inside used lighting to dramatic effect, just as it would have been in Ancient Greece. The Parthenon is often reproduced both in Minecraft and elsewhere, but most of the reproductions are based on what the Parthenon looks like now, rather than what it must have looked like when it was being actively used.

Temples were always the most impressive buildings in antiquity because they were designed to impress the average person with the power of the gods. What many forget today is that the lengths that they went to were impressive even by today's standards.

Did you know that the steam engine was first invented in Ancient Greece, and was used in religious ceremonies to impress people? Additionally, they had gears, levers, hidden mechanisms and all kinds of things that were meant to demonstrate divine power.

Moving statues, "flying" gods on wires, and many other techniques were used to impress the populace. Freakje118 incorporates this style by including redstone lights that light up as one walks down the center aisle. Paired with the dramatic lighting, it really recreates what an Ancient Grecian must have felt when entering the real Parthenon over two thousand years ago.

This is the sort of thoughtful, well-executed build that really makes me happy. Well done, Freakje118!

What She Won

• Contributor rank in game + DisguiseCraft: Your choice (you can pick any available creature)!

* Contributor rank in game allows you to change your gamemode (survival/creative), put yourself in godmode (/god), set 20 homes, claim 50 (16x16) plots and wear hats with /hat!

* DisguiseCraft is the exact same thing as Mob Disguise, but since Mob Disguise wasn't updated for 1.2.3, we are using this new amazing plugin. Not only does it have the option of colored sheep, but also baby animals/mobs! DisguiseCraft allows you to turn into a mob in Minecraft.

Coming Up...

This was a great build, but only one of many on the server. If you didn't win this week, don't worry! We'll now resume regular, weekly Staff Choice Awards, so please don't forget to post screengrabs or videos onto the corkboard to let us know what work you're especially proud of!

Additionally, there are plenty of other chances to win prizes in our Weekly Challenge, as well as our Weekly Redstone Competition. That's a whole lot of chances to win prizes!

One of the most popular and basic origami geometric shapes is the "Water-Bomb", which is a simple inflated cube. With a few extra folds and only a minor shift in approach, a more complex geometric shape can be achieved.

This 24-faced, 3-dimensional object is formed using 8 identical tetrahedron shapes, all being folded out a single square of paper.

Supplies

• Paper (A4 letter paper works well)
• Scissors 

Forming a square (if required)

If you are using A4 (or other rectangular shaped paper), you must first form a square. This is easily achieved by aligning the short edge of the page with an adjacent long edge. Form the diagonal crease and cut off the area outside the folded triangle.

Lets begin with...

Pre-folds

Tip

• Sharp and accurate creases in the next steps will ensure a quality finished project.

Step 1 Center folds

We must mark the center of the square with a crease in horizontal, vertical, and both diagonal directions. With all the folds complete, your page will look like this:

Step 2 Quarter folds

Using the center folds from step one as guidelines, fold, crease, and unfold each edge and corner to the center. A total of 8 creases should be made in this step.

Step 3 Eighth folds

In a similar fashion to step two, we now use the new creases to guide the next set of folds (a total of 16 this time, 2 for each edge and corner). Use the pictures as a reference for where the folds need to be made.

Once all 16 new folds are complete, your page will look like this:

Now we can move on to...

Assembly

Step 4 Fold the corners

Using the creases closest to the corners that we made in the last step, fold the corner so they point toward the center.

Step 5 Fold in half diagonally

Bring the upper left-hand corner down to meet the lower-right using the pre-formed crease as a guide.

Step 6 Water-bomb base

If you are familiar with origami, we are now folding this into a water-bomb base that has the corners tucked in. To accomplish this, we take the top-layer lower-right corner and align it with the lower-left using the vertical center crease as a guide.

In flattening the folds, we create a new upper-right corner. This new corner will be brought down through the layers to create two flaps on the right side to match the left side.

You should now have a triangle with "clipped" bottom corners.

Step 7 Create a pocket

Looking at the left side of the created shape, fold the top layer to the right using the first crease left of center as your guide.

Now fold the portion that is past the center-line back to the left, again following the crease provided.

In doing this, you will have an opening on the bottom edge of the triangle that makes up the top-most layer. We will use this in the next step.

Step 8 Insert tab

Below the triangular shaped pocket that you just created is a "tab" consisting of multiple layers of paper. Lift the tab and crease it along the edge of the pocket, then return it to it original position.

Carefully open the small pocket made in Step 7 and insert the tab inside. Gently massage the two together to achieve a flat object.

Step 9 Repeat steps 7 and 8

Repeat the steps on the right-hand side of the object and on the backside. When complete, your folding will look like this:

Step 10 Inflate

Pick up the object and separate the 4 individual sections to create an 'X' shape when looking at the end.

Locate the small hole and blow into it with a quick short burst of air (it my take more than one). This will bring your object into the 3D realm.

Step 11 Refine the shape

Look for odd shaped faces. Each face on the finished product should be triangular in shape. Gently massage the inflated object, using all the pre-formed creases as guides, until all faces are correct.

COMPLETE!

Congratulations on creating a complicated tetrahedron-based shape!

Enjoy!

Some of the most popular cellular devices on the market today are the iPhone 4 and 4S models. Seeing as they are made of glass, it's not uncommon for the back panel to break.

Also, with the popularity being so high, you might just be looking for a way to set your device apart. If you have had the unfortunate luck of cracking your iPhone's rear glass panel, this could be your opportunity to kill two birds with one stone!

The photos in this guide were taken while I was switching out my OEM panel for a clear panel.

Supplies

• #00 Phillips or 5-point pentalobe screwdriver
• Replacement panel

Links to both of the parts and tools are available at the bottom of this article.

Before we begin...

Before opening your device, ensure that you are working on a static-free surface and that your device's power is off.

Warnings

• Open your device at your own risk.
• Failure to use the proper tool can result in permanent damage to your hardware.
• If your rear panel is broken or cracked, be careful while handling it.

Let's get started...

Step 1 Determining screw type

With the design of the iPhone 4 and 4S having 2 glass panels and a stainless steel band, it may be a mystery how to get inside the device.

Looking at the dock connector at the bottom of the phone, you will see a screw on each side of the connection port. The iPhone 4/4S shipped with 2 different screw types: #00 Phillips or a 5-point pentalobe. These screw heads are very small; identify them carefully. In the photo below, the 5-point pentalobe is on the top and the #00 Phillips on the bottom.

Once the screw type has been determined, obtain a proper driver and get ready for the next step.

Warning

• Failure to properly identify the screw type can result in permanent damage to the screws.

Step 2 Remove the screws

With your correct driver in hand, remove the screw on either side of the dock connector. 

Tips

• Take note of how tight the screws are when you remove them. Remember this for when you replace them later on. Over-tightening can damage your device.
• The screws are very small. After removal place them in a bottle cap or shallow dish to keep track of them.

Step 3 Slide the panel upward

With screws removed, hold your device with both hands placing your thumbs near the edges of the rear panel just below the Apple logo.

With only slight pressure, push the rear panel toward the top of the device. It should move about 1/8" (3mm).

Step 4 Remove panel

Gently grab the newly exposed top portion of the rear panel and carefully remove from the device.

Step 5 Replace with new panel

Now grab your replacement panel and simply follow the steps in reverse. Be mindful not to over-tighten the screws!

Congratulations!

You have just completed a very simple repair on you iPhone. Enjoy your replacement, whether it be a repair, replacement, or both.

Here is how mine turned out:

Links

Here are two great places for both replacement parts and tools:

• iFixit  (also has instructional videos)
• SW-Box