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RainyDayMagazine's content can now be licensed for your print magazine or web site. Please contact us directly here. If you want to see something reviewed, then drop us a note with a link and we'll be happy to take a look.
NOTE: Click here to read more about our approach to product reviews. |
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August 31, 2011- Raen Sunglasses... |
High tech materials and exotic lens coatings have taken sunglasses from just a pair of "shades" to performance "gear." The styling of sunglasses have followed suit. Oakley has developed a billion dollar business by taking it to the extreme. While not just anyone can rock the look of iridescent lenses in a X-metal frame, everyone looks great in a pair of Wayfarer . Even better if they incorporate the latest tech along with the retro styling. The interns are always on the look out for modern sunglasses with the Wayfarer sensibilities. Recently they happened upon a boutique brand that may just have us reaching for them before our Oakleys.
Raen Optics is a relatively new entrant in the eyewear market. RAEN, headquartered in Encinitas CA, was created in 2008 by the designers at Libre Design. In three short years, they have managed to... [more] - Raen Sunglasses
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August 30, 2011- New Boogie Boards... |
Last September we did a write-up on Improv Electronics' Boogie Board. The item was a huge hit last Holiday season. The original Boogie Board was 8.5" and was perfect for the fridge, dorm doors, and just about anywhere someone would want to leave a note. It came in any color you wanted as long as it was black. This year there are more models, new accessories, and a rainbow of colors to choose from. The new models are based on the same Reflex LCD technology. We think they will be as popular, if not more so, this season.
Version 1.0 of the Boogie Board is thin and very portable, but iMPROV Electronics has made it better for students by making it "binder-friendly." They have also listened to customers who wanted a... [more] - New Boogie Boards FirstLook
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August 29, 2011- Sugru FirstLook... |
We battened down all the hatches this past weekend and managed to weather Hurricane Irene without incident. Rainy days are good for watching TV or doing projects. We spent two days watching back to back episodes of the BBC series MI-5. If we had gotten off our butts and looked at some of the stuff which came on Friday, we would have seen that we had received a shipment of Sugru. If we had, how we spent our weekend might have taken a completely different turn.
The name Sugru is an Irish word "sugradh" for "play", but what is Sugru? The better question is not what is it (silicone elastomer), but what you can do with it. According to the instructions, Sugru is designed to... [more] - Sugru FirstLook
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August 26, 2011- NextBolt NX3... |
Last Summer we renovated the front entrance of the RainyDayMagazine office. This year we hired painters and did the outside of the entire unit. As part of the refresh, we are looking at upgrading the security around the place. Even though there are video cameras and somebody is in the office 24/7, we still keep the doors locked. We are in the city after all.
The security review revealed to us that the biggest bang for our buck is upgrading the access control to our office. The interns did some research on the various options and made a recommendation: biometrically-controlled deadbolt. We will no longer need to give keys out to everyone or have to change the locks when a key has been lost. All we need is to add their fingerprints to the lock's database and delete it when... [more] - NextBolt NX3 FirstLook
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August 25, 2011- Nixie Tubes... |
The photo of the Digital Readout unit from our Craigslist purchase got the emails flowing. Many of you were eager to share your stories of nixie tube projects. Apparently, nixie tubes are very popular for DIY project and are all the rage with the Steampunk crowd. We didn't know :-)
We did a bit more research on nixie tubes and learned that while they may look like vacuum tubes, they are actually closer to neon lamps. They are often used to display numbers, but can be made to display other symbols. Their popularity as numberic indicators was because all ten numerials (0-9) can fit inside a tube, one behind the other. A number is made to glow by... [more] - Nixie Tubes
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August 24, 2011- Toolmaker's Microscope... |
The RainyDayInterns are tasked with scouring Craigslist and flagging anything which may be interesting to use for DIY projects. We never know what they will find, but they often come up with some pretty cool stuff. A few months ago, they saw a listing for an intriguing microscope. The seller had acquired the scope as part of a purchase of an entire machine shop. The new owner was clearing out equipment which were of no use to him, and so the scope was for sale. We made an offer, but couldn't come to an agreement on the price. Last Sunday, the interns came across the same listing, now priced lower than what we had originally offered. The owner was happy to sell it to us as he did not want to see it go to a scrap yard.
The microscope is a toolmaker's microscope. It is model 98-0001 made by Scherr Tumico. Toolmaker microscopes are used for many purposes. They are used by machinists to... [more] - Scherr Tumico Toolmaker's Microscope
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August 23, 2011- Two Hundred Light Years... |
Perspective: One can get it when one looks at things from a new or different vantage point. Having the proper perspective is important in contemplating everyday things. It is also helpful when thinking about somewhat bigger things.
We StumbleUpon-ed the image above while "working." The image is of a spiral galaxy similar in size to the Milky Way galaxy in which our solar system resides. What really put things into perspective for us was what it was illustrating. Our own Milky Way galaxy is about... [more] - Two Hundred Light Years
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August 22, 2011- The Ultimate Night Vision... |
Wild Planet's SpyGear line is an amazing collection of gadgets for the James Bond/Lara Croft in all of us. So we are always thrilled when a box labeled "SpyGear" shows up on our desk. While we never know what we are going to find, but if it is from Wild Planet, we know it will be fun.
This time, the SpyGear box contained a pair of Ultimate Night Vision (UNV) binoculars. Unlike the Wild Planet SpyVision goggles we've looked at previously, these use infrared to (invisibly) light up the scene. The box states that these binoculars are the ultimate in... [more] - SpyGear: The Ultimate Night Vision
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August 19, 2011- The Hundred-Dollar Tablet... |
Yesterday HP announced their exit from the tablet and smartphone markets. We have been having a few lively discussions online about the implications of this event and how it may affect the tablet ecosystem going forward. Our contention has always been that it would be difficult for new entrants to make a mark if they only have "me-too" offerings. Even if they were as good as Apple's iPad, they wouldn't have the huge library of software, the App Store, or integration with OSX.
However, after giving some thoughts to how WE would go after Apple if we were in charge of product strategy at a tablet-making company, we realized that of the parameters available (size, features, price) for us to manipulate, the only viable one at this time is... [more] - The Hundred-Dollar Tablet
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August 18, 2011- Another one bites the dust... |
Since we got our first iPad on April 3rd, 2010, we have not been shy about our thoughts on the chances of other tablets going up against Apple. Today, HP announced that they are killing their WebOS platform, cancelling the TouchPad, and discontinuing the smartphone line. We can't say we didn't see it coming, we just didn't see it coming so quickly. However, good for HP. Don't dump good money after bad. If this was still 2000 and companies were flushed with cash, products like the TouchPad would have been kept on life support for another 18 months before they finally pulled the plug.
The HP TouchPad has been on the market for less than two months, but it was clear to the sales channels that it was pretty much a complete failure after the first month. Best Buy has taken delivery of 270,000 TouchPads and has so far managed to sell only 25,000 (even THAT figure might be generous). The same story is repeated at all of the big box stores (Wal-Mart, Micro Center, Fry's, etc...). The numbers didn't budge even with the last ditch effort of a... [more] - HP's WebOS Bites the Dust
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August 17, 2011- Manga Guide: The Universe... |
We have read a few of the books (Electricity, Molecular Biology, Databases) in the Manga Guide collection and have found them to be both entertaining and educational. In June, we recommended the Manga Guide To Relativity as one of the books for our Summer reading list. It was a great read and it did not take long to finish. We were left wanting. Fortunately for us, the Manga Guide to the Universe showed up in our mailbox soon after.
The Manga Guide to The Universe is for anyone interested in cosmology, from high school students to adults. Like the other books in the Manga series, the subject matter is told in the style of a graphic novel.Unlike a typical comics, there are more detail treatments of the subjects along with the fun storyline. The story follows Gloria and her friends Kanna and Yamane as they try tol... [more] - Manga Guide: The Universe
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August 16, 2011- Solar House Number: Update... |
Five years ago we did a RainyDayProject where we installed a solar-powered LED-lit house numbers at both our Boston and NY offices. A few readers asked how they have held up over the years. We thought it was a reasonable request so we decided to post an update.
While the aluminum numbers still look great, some of the protective clear plastic on the solar cells have not fared as well. Both the #2 and #35 panels were installed out in the open. The difference is the #2 panel was not in direct sunlight most of the time. The effects of constant sun exposure is clear. The #35 panels yellowed and cracked much more severly as a result of five years of direct sunlight. To their credit, all of the LEDs still... [more] - MatterInc: Solar House Number InTheWild Update
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August 15, 2011- SodaStream: Fizz... |
It has been years since we purchased commercial soft drinks like Coke and Pepsi. The reason is SodaStream. Having a SodaSteam machine in the office has changed the way we think about soda. Soda is something we make when we want it, not something we buy when we run out.
The only time we can't make soda is when we run of CO2 in the gas cartridge. This is not a big deal as a quick call will get a fresh bottle delivered the next day. However, to keep even that from catching its customers by surprise, SodaStream has created a new machine called the FIZZ. This new machine has a... [more] - SodaStream: Fizz FirstLook
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August 12, 2011- BlueChick: Final Assembly... |
Today we will finish up the assembly of the BlueChick v4.2 CNC machine. The only tasks left are: mounting the X-axis motor and installing the two drive chains.
The motor for the X-axis is housed inside the gantry. Those with larg(er) fingers may have some trouble getting the screws and nuts in the back to connect. The space for mounting it was a bit tight, but manageable. Note how we... [more] - BlueChick Assembly Completed
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August 11, 2011- BlueChick: Motor Mounts... |
For the past three days we have been discussing the assembly of the frame and axes of the BlueChick v4.2 CNC machine. Now that most of the structure has been assembled, we now shift our focus to the installation of the motors and the associated drive mechanisms.
The next order of business in the build was to install the holder for the router. The holder for the BlueChick was designed specifically for the Porter Cable 892 series router. That specific router was chosen because of its straight cylindrical housing, which enables the use of two rings for a rigid mounting. The rings are mounted on a plate which travels... [more] - BlueChick Motor Mounts
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August 10, 2011- BlueChick: Z-Axis Assembly.. |
We have been building the BlueChick V4.2 CNC machine this week. Yesterday, we looked at the assembly of the X/Y-axis. Today, we will go over the assembly of the Z-axis. The Z-axis assembly was a bit more complicated than the other pieces up to this point. It is more complex because it is the piece which must hold the router, slide the router back and forth on the Y-axis, in additition to allowing the router to travel up and down in the Z-direction.
While this piece is more complex due to having more components, the individual items mounted on it were not any more complicated. The sequence of... [more] - BlueChick Z Axis Assembly
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August 9, 2011- BlueChick: XY-Axis Assembly.. |
Yesterday was the start of the series on assembling the BlueChick v4.2 CNC machine. We gave some suggestions on the general assembly process and showed how to assemble the deck for the machine. Today, we'll talk a bit about our experience with putting together and installing the X and Y axis.
V-groove bearings are specialized bearings found in many linear motion systems. They generally ride on a rail or track. The BlueChick design pair the V-groove bearings with hardened aluminum rails for moving the gantry along the X-axis (the main deck). The sequence in the image above is typical of that used for mounting the bearing onto the frame. The item to note is... [more] - BlueChick XY Axis Assembly
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August 8, 2011- BlueChick: Deck Assembly.. |
Last week we gave a quick FirstLook of the BlueChick v4.2 CNC kit. Today we'll walk through the assembly of the deck portion of the build. There is an excellent video on how to put the deck together so we won't go into detail on the process. What we will do is to give readers some of our observations on the process and provide some suggestions which may make the task easier.
The first tip is to make sure you have plenty of room to work. While this may sound obvious, it may not be if you have never put together a kit this large. We used a (dining room) table which was twice the size of the CNC machine. We find it best to lay out all of the pieces so they can be accessibled. We also find that sorting the parts based on similarity (screw pile, washer pile, etc...) will help quite a bit when trying to find what is needed. It is also helpful if the table is not up against a wall so one can walk around it during the assembly process. The final suggestion is, if... [more] - BlueChick Deck Assembly
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August 5, 2011- BlueChick Unpacking.. |
After doing our research on DIY CNC kits, we decided that the BlueChick V4.2 was the one which best fit our needs. The complete kit ncludes: frame, hardware (screws, cross dowels, etc...), mechanical components (gears, bearings, etc...), and electronics (motors, driver boards, etc...). Purchasers of the kit need to provide: computer, cable/wires, and a Porter Cable 892 series router. When assembled, the BlueChick v4.2 CNC machine will have a routing area of 12"x36" with 3" of Z-axis travel. It should be more than sufficient for us to cut all of the pieces required to make the various Boyer kinetic sculptures.
The kit came in three separate shipments and took about a week for it all to arrive. That is actually fast, considering they don't cut the frame until an actual order has been placed. The frame is, of course, cut using a CNC machine. We unpacked everything and laid it out so we could... [more] - BlueChick Unpacking
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August 4, 2011- DIY CNC... |
When we decided on two of Clayton Boyer's clock plans in June we thought they were going to be our only RainyDayProjects for this Winter. However, when we saw Clayton's latest kinetic sculpture, we knew we had to add one more to the project list. This outrageously ingenious creation is called Space Time Continuum. Three projects are a lot and we realized that we may need some help if we wanted to get them all completed before next Spring.
As most experienced project managers know, there are only three "levers" one can manipulate when managing a project: time, quality, and resources. One can always extend the deadline, or not be as exacting in the work before calling it "done," or add more "hands" to the team. As the first two are not something we are willing to change at this time, the only option to adjust is adding some resources. We expect that cutting out the wooden gears and such will be a... [more] - DIY CNC
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August 3, 2011- LifeProof iPhone4 Case... |
No matter how careful you are with your mobile gadgets sooner or later you WILL drop them. If you believe Plaxo, a full 19% of you will drop them into the toilet. Whether you believe Plaxo or not, the fact is that most gadgets do not bounce well. When dropped, it is likely that there will be damage...a scratch, a cracked case, or in some instances a broken LCD screen.
We have looked at a lot of protective cases for all different kinds of gear (camera, iPad, etc.) over the years. With our recent upgrade to the iPhone4, we have been busy checking out cases for it. A few of them (Otterbox, InnoPocket, etc.) have even made it through our selection process and received FirstLook/FirstUse reviews. If you really want your iPhone to survive a drop, you need to... [more] - LifeProof iPhone Case: FirstLook
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August 2, 2011- Sjobergs Workbench... |
We found this SJÖBERGS workbench for sale on--where else--Craigslist. Those who know workbenches know the name SJÖBERGS. This Swedish company has been making top-quality workbenches for over 80 years. Their workbenches are prized by woodworkers the world over. The one up for sale was a much older design. In fact, SJÖBERGS no longer produces this particular model.
After a bit of negotiation, we got the price down to something we could afford, sealed the deal, and arranged a time for pick up. As the bench was in Lakeville (about 40 minutes south of Boston), getting it back to the office required some help. Fortunately, one of our writers, Jay, was able to lend a hand. Transporting it was made a lot easier because we were able to... [more] - SjobergsWorkbench
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August 1, 2011- PanAfrican Acupuncture Project... |
"The sword that gives life…" Kim Wutkiewicz heard this phrase echo through her years of aikido training. At the time, she did not know that, years later, she would find her "swords" to be hair-thin and only one inch long. This summer, Kim Wutkiewicz, owner of and acupuncturist at Spring Point Wellness in Cambridge Massachusetts, was asked to help train health care workers in Uganda through a non-profit organization called the PanAfrican Acupuncture Project (PAAP). Although she no longer formally practices aikido, Kim is deeply grateful for this opportunity that allows her to embrace the spirit found at the heart of this martial art - the art of peace.
Founded by Richard Mandell in 2003, PAAP embodies this spirit by introducing a powerful and gentle healing modality to areas of Africa devastated by HIV, AIDS, malaria and TB. In Uganda, AIDS alone has taken roughly 1 million lives and left an equal number of children orphaned. PAAP volunteers from all over the world train health care workers, including doctors, nurses, mid-wives, physiotherapists, and traditional healers, to provide simple and effective acupuncture treatments to community members suffering from these debilitating diseases. Acupuncture, originally practiced in China over 2,000 years ago, works by tapping into the human body's inherent intelligence. Practitioners insert small needles into acupuncture points located on the surface of a patient's body. By working to return a patient's body to a state of homeostasis, these treatments are tremendously effective with... [more] - PAAP: Kim Wutkiewicz
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