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Tag Archives: Arduino

Internet of Things begins with Ninjas

Posted on December 10, 2012 | Leave a comment

I wanted to connect two of my previous posts about electronic tinkering with Arduino and the fabulous Kickstarter project LIGHT by Moore’s Cloud (a web-enabled, interactive lamp so to say). NinjaBlocks come at AU $199 a pop and contain an Ubunta-operated mini computer (similar to the LIGHT). And you can control the Ninja’s LED eyes for extra geek appeal. Ninja Blocks hardware Ninja Blocks allow you to hook up any sensory input in an “If This – Then That” fashion. You can use Arduino’s microcontroller language or a ready made sensor, and operate everything from the NinjaBlocks dashboard.

NinjaBlocks dashboard

Check out their little summary here: http://new.ninjablocks.com

A mate of mine, Nick Clark, who was also part of the ‘Snake The Planet‘ mobile projection, is helping to promote these Ninja blocks. And they are selling like hot cakes. Get amongst it.

Electronic Tinkering in The Rocks

Posted on August 28, 2012 | 3 comments

The Rocks is a very pretty and tourist-friendly destination. And as I keep discovering through the council’s pop-up initiative, it is also fertile ground for creative experimentation. The case in hand is ‘&Company’ who have temporarily taken over a store next to the MCA.

Apart from showcasing emerging design talents they are offering quality hands-on creative workshops. Courses range from ‘Powertools for Girls‘ (no, nothing kinky going on here) to ‘Interactive Electronic Objects‘.

I took the latter which was an introductory course into Arduino, the open-source microcontroller / software suite for programming. And I had a blast tinkering away my Sunday, plugging cables into speakers, triggering LED lights and getting my hands dirty with (processing-based) code. There is an intermediate course still available – get amongst it!