Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone!

I feel pretty guilty about not writing up some more fun stuff, however we all need a break sometime. I'm out of town (and thus away from my equipment), but I do have my computer with me. So, here are some new articles coming soon:

Before the end of break

1) html tutorials

2) Xcode/ iPhone SDK updates, info, etc.(sorry, because of the "NDA" I can't legally put up tutorials, and I'm really not in the mood to get sued by Apple).

3) How to upgrade your macbook to make it better than the newer models for much less.

And after Break

1) How to build a full-on computer about the size of your fist.

2) Science Quarterly articles

3) and much, much more!

I've been having a great time with my family, reading up on Xcode, learning html, working on Science Quarterly, reading my cousin's blog on how to annoy your older sisters.

Coming Soon: A BW Science Labs App on The iTunes Store!

I understand it has been a while since I've updated, and I apologize for that. However, I have not neglected BW Science Labs. On the contrary, I've been working more than ever on it.

I was curious to see how well the iPhone could load BWSL, so I borrowed a friend's iPhone, opened Safari, and typed in www.bwsciencelabs.com. I was very disappointed. It took an extremely long time to load, at lease a few minutes. "This is no way to periodically check for updates," I told myself. I had to do something...

Using the iPhone SDK (or Software Development Kit) I have been developing a BW Science Labs application that will display all of the most recent articles in an easy to access format. It automatically updates its self, and will only open up safari when an article is clicked. I wrote it in Objective-C, and made sure there would be no memory leaks, however, it not very pretty and it still has to open up safari and take a while to load once tapped. So, I created another version in Dashcode, rather than what I just made in Xcode.

As it turns out, the Dashcode version is beautiful. It's very aesthetically pleasing to look at, its simple, and fast. It does not need to open up Safari, it loads all text and images swiftly when a single article is tapped, much, much faster than the previous version.

However, since I made it in Dashcode, and not Xcode, it will be much harder to put on to the app store. Believe me, I'm currently working as fast as I can to test it on my own iPod Touch, debug it, and later upload it to the app store. The are several hoops I have to jump through, lots of legal stuff to deal with, and so on, so please be patient. There is also a tiny chance that Apple will reject my App altogether, so it will never be on.

So how much will it cost?

To cover the expense of licenses(very pricey), labor, etc. I may charge $0.99 if I end up using the Dashcode version, but it will more likely be FREE if I end up using the Xcode version, which is not nearly as good.

Keep your fingers crossed that it all works flawlessly!

Meteorites and Computer Programming

Today I gave a small, fun presentation in Science class on meteorites. More importantly, I used Scratch to make a meteorite trajectory simulation. A few years ago MIT created a simple program called Scratch that kids could use to create games, animations, etc. This program was what first got me interested in programming, and inspired me to move on to other programming languages. Its simple building block style makes it a joy to use, as kindergartners can make programs as well.

One of the best things is that on the Scratch Website you can post everything you make in a single click. For me presentation, I made a short quiz on meteorites, and put it online. Then, the students used laptops and took the quiz. It worked flawlessly. You can take my quiz here.

Jailbreak the Ipod Touch

I've heard a lot about Jailbreaking the IPhone and the Ipod Touch, so I wanted to see for myself how cool it really is.

So firstly, what is Jailbreaking?

When you "Jailbreak" an Ipod Touch you usually put two new apps on it: Installer and Cydia. These programs in turn let you install many more games, utilities, etc.

I downloaded Ziphone (visit the site here) for my mac to see if it would work, but unfortunately after several tries it would only keep making me restore my ipod touch.

Kevin Lin has a video on Youtube promoting his jailbroken Itouch on ebay, so I asked him what program he used. Apparently, QuickPwn (visit the site here) works, so I installed and ran it. Surprisingly, it worked almost flawlessly, though there is supposed to be a small risk involved.

I make my slider look like a Space Invaders game, and I changed all my app icons to Star Wars images. However, I didn't get any new quality applications. I was pretty disappointed.



[Please excuse the low-quality images]

So was it worth it?

I honestly don't think that Jailbreaking an Ipod (or Iphone) is worth the time or risk. Though you get some bragging rights and a better looking GUI the available
applications can't do a whole lot. Most of the applications in the iTunes store are great, and usually low cost. Also, during the holiday season some games and apps are on discounts of up to 80% off. I think I'll stick with iTunes.

The Night Sky in a Shoe Box

I know its been far too long since my last update, however we all need a break every once in a while.

According to the polls, a slight majority of readers wanted more posts on Astronomy, which honestly surprised me. So, I took a look at what I could do that would be fun, interesting, and relatively easy so readers at home could follow along.

I decided to use the concept of using LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) to represent stars, and put that idea to the test. You can take any star constellation you wish, but I choose the Big Dipper because of its fame, and it could be done quickly and efficiently. I chose these little green LEDs because they don't break or blow out as easily ans others, and they are extremely inexpensive. I bought them from Mouser Electronics (see them here) for $0.06 each, but that's partly because I buy by the hundred.

You will need to solder for this project, so please follow the safety instructions here. I burned a hole through my rubber glove doing this project, so please, for your sake, do not skip the safety part.

So, let's get started. You can print out any astronomy picture you want, but make sure you plan where you want to put the LEDs ahead of time. This makes constellations ideal, and many of the LED locations are already marked for you. Also, be sure that the LEDs are not too far away from each other, otherwise you will need to use additional wiring to connect the LEDs.

Glue your image onto the top of a shoebox, make sure you have plenty of room for the LEDs and wires. I tried to use the tip of my soldering gun to puncture holes in the box, however I ended up using my trusty dremel tool to drill the holes.



Place your LEDs inside the holes, facing outward. Be sure to test each LED before inserting them in, I ended up having to replace a few after I soldered, which can be a real pain.



Make sure each anode and cathode are aligned (positive and negative). You can do this easily by remembering to connect them from the short leds coming out of the LEDs' bottom to the next LED's long one. Short-to-long, otherwise it will not work at all. Before soldering, use a glue gun to make sure the LEDs will not fall out.

Solder the LEDs together one by one (remember short-to-long). Once again, please work with adequate protection against the fumes and the very hot soldering gun. As stated earlier, instructions can be found here.





I chose to use alligator clips to connect to batteries. Be sure to experiment with different power supplies based upon what LEDs you used and how many.

Now, you can package it all up into the original shoebox and flip it on.



Be sure to let me know what you want in future posts by voting on the poll!