Category Archives: things that don’t work

Don’t Do This to Your Aeron

Posted on December 21, 2025 by paulwallich

Last year we got the teenager a computer chair that was supposed to last a long time, in place of the computer chairs he destroyed about once a year by leaning back or swiveling around or rolling back and forth … Continue reading →

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Who knew electricity and water don’t mix?

Posted on May 31, 2025 by paulwallich

It’s a rainy dont-go-out saturday, so my spouse is cleaning while I argue with software. A couple hours ago she brought the wetmop spray thingie in to me to ask whether I could figure out why it wouldn’t spray any … Continue reading →

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Does windshield wiper fluid expire?

Posted on December 22, 2024 by paulwallich

I don’t know for sure, but today’s drive (welcome, winter) suggests that it might. Went out for some late-season shopping (fancy meat, fancy chocolate, candies, a few gifts), and the roads being what they are, one of the first things … Continue reading →

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Lightning is weird

Posted on August 9, 2024 by paulwallich

Or perhaps electronic devices are really variable in their response to surges. Anyway, last week we had a thunderstorm with a lightning strike close enough that the roof rattled, and the internet went out. Power didn’t even blip, but no … Continue reading →

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Snap for the loss (again)

Posted on July 1, 2024 by paulwallich

The other day I noticed that someone is developing a web editor for Circuitpython (independent of the web-based editor intended mainly for boards that speak WiFi) and thought it would be worth a try, especially because it would mean I … Continue reading →

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The Pin Dance

Posted on March 6, 2022 by paulwallich

Don’t get me wrong, I love Circuit Python. Sure, I could get stuff done in the ugly stepchild language that is Arduino, but the niggling details, the mediocre IDE, none of it was my friend. And truth to tell, it’s … Continue reading →

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Posted on February 6, 2020 by paulwallich
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Failing to fail

Posted on February 6, 2020 by paulwallich

I’ve been working on and off with Blinkinlabs’ BlinkyTape and pixels, which means also with their nice little app PatternPaint, which lets you create little light shows to download to their LED strands without all the annoying number-fiddling that is … Continue reading →

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The short happy life of a Popup Makerspace

Posted on February 20, 2019 by paulwallich

We’re out of empty offices at Local 64, so it’s time to pack up the laser cutter, the 3D printer and all the other toys. if you build it, it turns out most people are too busy to come. Six … Continue reading →

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Arduino on Windows: not ready for prime time

Posted on July 10, 2017 by paulwallich

I’ve been teaching a little middle-school mobile robot workshop at the 12-year-old’s school, and it’s been a mess. The kids did pretty well assembling the bots and wiring them up, but clearly I needed to spend much more than the … Continue reading →

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