Voice controlled smartphone robot
Looks like the folks over at cellbots.com have been keeping busy. The truckbot has been souped-up with neon green acrylic and voice commands. This project just keeps getting better with age.
Android
Run Java apps on Android
Zurich-based Myriad has announced a new tool called J2Android that converts Java MIDlet apps to run on Android.
Dirt-cheap robotics prototyping environment with Android
Tim Heath and Ryan Hickman’s Truckbot could be built for under $20 (excluding mobile). That’s pretty impressive for such an open and accessible robotics prototyping environment. Using a laser-cut cardboard chassis, $3 micro servos, and a bare bones Arduino, the duo have assembled one of the cheapest platforms to come along in some time.
Android controlled door opening Linux WiFi router
Sunlight Labs, known for opening America’s government, had a problem when they recently moved facilities. Creating new keys for team members was becoming costly, so they figured out an alternative method of providing secure access using a WRT54GL, easily sourced components, and a trusty copy of Make: Electronics.
Maker Birthdays: Charles Darwin
You may have heard of this guy. Born on this date in 1809 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, Charles Robert Darwin would go on, in 1859, to publish On The Origin of Species, a book which is surely among the most influential ever written. In it, Darwin first proposes the idea that all of life descends from common ancestors, and that its diversity can be explained by a process of evolution driven by natural selection. He died in 1882, aged 73, and was afforded the exceedingly rare honor, especially for a scientist, of internment in Westminster Abbey.
Firefox fires up on Android
It’s not quite ready for an alpha release, but it’s nice to know that development of Firefox on Android has progressed to the stage where they’ve actually got a screenshot.
Android Market running on Archos 5 tablet
If you have an Archos 5 IT tablet and are interested in accessing all the wonderful apps available on the Android Market, JKKMobile has step-by-step instructions.
