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…ribbon controllers are touch-sensitive strips that let you control pitch continuously (i.e., not fixed to the pitches of a keyboard). The original Martenot instrument of the 1920s had an early ribbon controller, but rocker Keith Emerson probably gets the most credit for popularizing the design.. Here are some DIY instructions for building your own ribbon controller. These aren’t just any old ribbon controller, either: not only are they much cheaper than commercial models, but they can play two notes at once. Link.

A black iPod photo with red wheel mod. This is my iPod U2 Photo Mod (aka Alk3 iPod). When buying a U2 Face make sure you get one with a working click wheel and has been tested. I didn’t use the U2 back plate because there wouldn’t be enough room for all the parts. These pictures were taken in reveres order so I already have the U2 face plate on it. [via] Link.

I really like these little chairs made out of Champagne parts. The winner is a neat little chair made from the cork and wire- runners up include “corky” a dual cork chair, “folding cotillion” a fold up chair version and my favorite- “The DaVidRo Chair” a melted bottle with a cork based that looks really comfy. Link.

Interesting article about how much electricity we use. That big screen TV might just be the SUV of power consumption in your house. With all the sales of big screen TVs we might need to develop more energy saving technolgies. The average US household used 10,656 kilowatt-hours of electricity in 2001- what used the most? [via] Link.

DVD ripping and transcoding with Linux. This is a very specific tutorial about the DVD rippping and transcoding, using Mplayer and Transcode. It is well organized and it contains specific information about the codecs, the aspect ratio, the audio and other specifics. Recommended. Mplayer HOWTO. The original Mplayer HOWTO. They are a huge and precious source of information of any kind about the video playing/encoding. Plus, the supported OS are Linux, Windows, MacOSX, FreeBDS… you got it. A must for any serious user, everybody should take a careful look at it. Link.

Dale Dougherty and Phillip Torrone from MAKE Magazine will be on the airwaves 8am PST 90.9 WBUR Boston, MA- NPR. The Makers of MAKE: A new quarterly magazine wants America to go back to the garage and get in touch with its inner geek. It’s a throwback to the how-to journals of the ’50s like Popular Mechanics…but using 21st century technology. Call in, ask questions and say hi! Link. Update: Show is here, thanks to everyone who called in!

SmartAz writes- This no-frames, no frills website is dedicated to those brave experimenters spending time in building their own backpacking stoves or modifying commercial made ones. New designs are added from time to time. Currently the site has 28 designs with costs ranging from zero to ten bucks, depending on whether you buy materials or find them. Link.