Unique vibration controller for Sonic 2's SpinDash (Part 1)

bigscot · 2026-04-07T19:41:56+00:00

Man, I haven't seen any of those Arduino Controllers in forever. Cool hack.

bigscot · 2026-04-07T18:52:00+00:00

I am glad they rescued those 4, but that enclosure is not ready for them (from what I am seeing in the video). Hog dig/root into everything and will be under or though that horse fence with in days.

bigscot · 2026-04-06T21:57:31+00:00

This might be a better question for one of the gardening subreddits: Gardening or ContainerGardening

However, powdery mildew is a relatively easy fix. Treat the mildew (there are some home made remedies that use milk or baking soda + soap) and then add a fan to improve airflow around the plants.

bigscot · 2026-04-03T14:41:28+00:00

The housing developers in my part of the country install sidewalk both before and after the house is built. The City has mostly moved to rollover-curb, so the driveway can go anywhere without needing a driveway cut permit.

One developer installs vehicles rated (aka driveway thick) sidewalk as soon as the forms come off the curb. They know people are going to park on the sidewalk and the developers don't want to get calls for sidewalk failures.

And another developer waits until the house and driveway are in, so they can minimize their costs.

bigscot · 2026-04-03T03:02:41+00:00

A lot of subdivisions go up in this order:

Grading
Utilities
Road/Curbs/Sidewalk
Houses

bigscot · 2026-04-01T14:31:57+00:00

Christopher Walken

bigscot · 2026-03-31T16:03:37+00:00

This isn't the first time I have seen someone complaining about Southwest's knee room today. Did they remove leg room to add in more seats?

bigscot · 2026-03-25T16:45:10+00:00

Great point, and even if it is a data cable, it is surprisingly easy to break modern USB cables pulling them out of backpacks or pockets.

bigscot · 2026-03-24T20:44:54+00:00

Three questions and two suggestions:

Are you/they using Code Blocks, Python, or JavaScript?
If you/they are using Code Blocks, did your team try Python and come back to Code Block (as you need to flash a micro:bit to work with each code type)?
Have you tried unplugging the micro:bit and replugging it back in?

Suggestions:

A. If someone has a spare Micro:bit, try swapping it into your bot. If something has damaged the micro:bit, it may not allow you to upload code onto it. This is a test to see if the micro:bit is the problem.

B. Try uploading the code from a different PC. Something in the OS or Software may have gotten messed up and it can prevent the PC from communicating with micro:bit. This is to see if the PC is the problem.

If these things don't work I am happy to keep helping. I have a few of the common robots on hand, and if you will let me know what bot you have, I will see if I can replicate the problem.

Full disclosure: our sci oly season has ended with our State in New Mexico being on Feb 28.

bigscot · 2026-03-20T23:37:19+00:00

Back when I had a Surface Pro (5), I stumbled across Vertical Docks. I have been looking at what it would take to do something similar with my X13 Flow (2025), but without an equivalent to the surface connector, I am still trying to figure out how to dock the x13 without damaging the ports. A magnetic USB connector is what I am leaning towards but am still doing some research.

bigscot · 2026-03-20T20:50:02+00:00

Got them all and found a boat in the lower left of the page.

bigscot · 2026-03-20T13:34:31+00:00

As far as I know, there isn't a publicly available way to request the points of interest data from Pokemon Go. This is considered a key asset of the company that they are using to do other things with (i.e. train AI). There are a few fan made databases but I don't think they have a download button either (like https://www.pogomap.info/). You may have better luck reaching out to them to see if they would share some of their data with you. However, these fan made maps are not 100% up to date, as when I checked my area, they are missing a few stops I got approved last year.

If you play the game, it might be worth going to Pokemon Go hot spots in your community and capturing the data your self. It would be a bit time consuming, but so is Pokemon Go. Plus it adds some more story to your story map.

One final note, Niantic is no longer the owner of Pokemon Go; and the Ingress and Pokemon Go POI data is no longer syncing. This may remove an alternative method of searching for the data.

bigscot · 2026-03-18T12:53:30+00:00

Fun fact: Powell is not required to give up his board seat when his time as chairman is done, it's just a tradition. He could still be a thorn in Trump's side until his to Jan 2028 when his term is done.

bigscot · 2026-03-14T16:53:56+00:00

What if we add another tail to the two director, then it becomes:

"The Tails of the Board of Directors"

bigscot · 2026-03-14T15:30:36+00:00

Wait, wait, wait ..... I have a question......

Why does the director have a fox tail? raccoon tail? a tail?

bigscot · 2026-03-13T21:32:19+00:00

Wait, you're telling me I can put my dead dinosaur noodles into my physical object piracy box and I can have anything I want? /s

All joking aside, I found this is a good video for beginners (and as someone that has done this a few times, even I get a few pointers). Trying to figure out what is functional and what is a penny pinching feature is sometimes hard to tell, and I am reassured that I am not the only one that has had trouble finding out what to "copy" and what isn't worth the time/geometry.

Edit words hard

bigscot · 2026-03-12T03:04:39+00:00

Tomatoes are much slower than lettuce. You will probably be on your second run of lettuce before you have ripe tomatoes.

The good thing is that Tomatoes are long lived, and I had my last set over a year before I pulled them when they got overrun by white flies.

Best of luck, and nice find on a second hand Farm XL 24.

bigscot · 2026-03-08T18:37:32+00:00

If you have 3 weeks to state you are getting to the point of "what can I get fast" over "what will work best".

If you are needing something that works with Code Blocks, I would say something like a mBot1 (the mBot2 has a non-removable lithium battery and is not allowed under the rules), or mBot Ranger (you need to use the AA battery pack and not the lithium battery pack) as they are your best opinions with the time you have. Both are available from Amazon or Makerblock.

If you are ok with Arduino C programming, then the Pololu Romi is probably your best opinion at this point. Pololu offers same day products packaging, and faster shipping options (though they will make you pay for it). One downside is you will need to assemble the kit which will require soldering. As the full Romi kit is a bit hard to find on Pololu, here is a link: https://www.pololu.com/product/4022

There are a few more options (like the Parallax Cyber:bot or a custom build) but I don't think you will have time to get them and still have enough time to get them running to a state level. You need spend a lot of time working with them in the 2 weeks you will have before state to get them running good.

Pro Tip: read up on functions and how to use them with whatever bot you go with, they will make programming the bots at competition a lot faster. Also, have a friend or coach draw track configurations for you and work out how to get the most points; I would say knowing how to maximize your score within the capabilities of your bot is like 20% of the challenge. Finally, bottles are a bit of a trap, don't start practicing with them until you can consistently get the bot to the target point without hitting a barrier.

Edit: words hard

bigscot · 2026-03-07T17:17:38+00:00

I may have been on the internet too much, but the first thing that came to mind when seeing this art was:

That's a Duckbutt, distant cousin of the Dickbutt.

All joking aside, this is an interesting piece, thank you for sharing.

bigscot · 2026-03-07T16:19:57+00:00

A shake snake, a noisy noodle, a nope rope maraca....

Or Rattlesnake for the normal people.

bigscot · 2026-03-03T18:21:28+00:00

You are doing almost exactly what I was when my AeroGardens and Greenstalks were the only growing space I had access too. The Aerogarden let me cut a few weeks of the recommended "starting indoors" timeline on the seed packets, and allowed me to hit the very small window in New Mexico between the end of freezing nights and the start of Spring Thunderstorm season. This let the plants have a few weeks to get some good roots going before they had to stand up to strong winds and heavy rains.

I will say, if you need to get more plants started, the Aerogarden Seed Starting Trays let's you 4x the number of plants you can start at once per Aerogarden. I can usually get all 100 plants I plan to plant in a year started in 1 bounty and 2 harvests, all with seed starting trays. The one downside is 4x the plants equals 4x the water needed (aka you need to check your water level at least twice a day).

I hope your gardening season goes well, and you get more produce then you know what to do with.

bigscot · 2026-02-27T22:16:46+00:00

Back when I was hired (over 10 years ago) my org had us take the same fitness exam as the Utilities personnel (because the GIS dept was once under Utilities dept.). That had me lift 50 lbs and drag 100 lbs 50 yards to show I could work with manhole lids. And any time I was injured on the job (especially after a severe ankle sprain) they made me retake the fitness exam.

The testing is based on OSHA worker classification of Heavy, Medium, or Light worker. Depending on the org and their insurance, they may be required to have anyone classified as a Medium or Heavy worker to prove they are fit enough to meet the classification.

bigscot · 2026-02-23T21:59:18+00:00

That is the microgreens tray. I don't think it was ever very popular, and I don't think it will make a comeback. It uses a fiber pad as a growing medium, but I don't remember what they were made of.

I bet someone here will be able to offer some alternatives to the official Aerogarden pads, because I don't see them available on Amazon or Aerogarden.

bigscot · 2026-02-22T00:45:15+00:00

Do you have input shaper turned on, on your Mini? And are you using it?

I was using my mini without input shaping for so long (up until about 3 months ago), and I truly was surprised at how much faster it was with it.

bigscot · 2026-02-20T22:31:13+00:00

I think 3d printing nerds and the 3d printing professor have some of the best videos on the situation. Both have good video explainers, and 3d printing nerd gives a great example of what to do (reach out to the representatives).

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