MAKEbot…testing, 1, 2, 3…
Ok, we think most of the logistics have been solved with our AOL Instant Message bot, the MAKEbot. The MAKEbot delivers the best of MAKEZine.com, Flickr, Instructables and del.icio.us all via your buddy list. Click here to add the MAKEbot to your buddy list, then type help for a list of commands or just click here to subscribe. I’m also trying out this AIM code – it should tell you the status of the MAKEbot right in this post, so let’s see how it goes…There should be a little icon here –> 
. If there is, click’em and add’em. Lastly, the MAKEbot has a secret code if you can figure it out, it gives you a discount on MAKE and our new book Makers.
Ravi has a good round up on why Ubuntu Linux is a good way to get started with Linux, I usually hand out the live CD version to friends who want to tinker or install on an old computer, he writes “Ubuntu is fast on its way to becoming a peoples OS. I have always wondered what is it that makes people embrace Ubuntu over other Linux distributions. After some pondering, it struck me that the USP (Unique Selling Point) of Ubuntu is its user friendliness. Ubuntu is a distribution targeted at the non-techie crowd – those that want to get their job done and not spend time tinkering with the OS.” 
Brian writes in with the best and only resource I’ve seen that has most of the Head Mounted Displays / VR-Helmets in the market – “No instructions on how to make your own, but if you were going to make your own, you’d probably want to start here…” 
Sean was looking for a service that would automatically call his phone with a text to speech message at a specified time “I would like to be able to program my computer to call my cell phone or a regular phone with text to voice messages–eg reminders, important appointments or wake up calls and for pranksters…The catch is that the other person should not require the same software to receive the call. Anybody know of any software that does this univocally?” I found a web service that does this (some free and some fee) 
Want to study sharks? Build your own Tintin-esque sub – “The grandson of famous oceanographer and filmmaker Jacques Cousteau believes the best way to learn about sharks is to become one. Fabien Cousteau, inspired as a child by the comic book Red Rackham’s Treasure, where the main character, Tintin, adventures underwater in a shark-shaped submarine, decided as an adult to build his own.” Thanks Saul! 
Here’s a great new Instructable in the Make group on building a five foot tall Jacob’s ladder from Ewilhelm, he writes “This classic climbing arc completes any mad scientist’s dungeon. Don’t touch the electrodes: they’re at 12 kV! Get a neon sign transformer rated for 9 – 12 kV and 30 mA. Make sure it’s an old style, heavy coil transformer and not solid-state. The solid-state transformers won’t start the arc. I got a Transco 12 kV 30 mA transformer on Ebay for $35. It didn’t have a wall plug, so I wired one on.”… 
I asked Scott and Bjoern to write up what they’re up to when I saw the challenge of making a functional music player in 30 minutes, they write “d.tools is a hardware and software system that enables designers to rapidly prototype the bits (the form) and the atoms (the interaction model) of physical user interfaces in concert. d.tools was built to support design thinking rather than implementation tinkering. With d.tools, designers place physical controllers (e.g., buttons, sliders), sensors (e.g., accelerometers), and output devices (e.g., LEDs, LCD screens) directly onto form prototypes, and author their behavior visually in our software workbench.” More info and downloads 
