MAKE Asks: Treasures from the Trash
MAKE Asks: is a weekly column where we ask you, our readers, for responses to maker-related questions. We hope the column sparks interesting conversation and is a way for us to get to know more about each other.
dumpster diving
Drum Controller Parts Harvesting
Today’s dumpscore included a Guitar Hero drum controller. I don’t have any use for it as a controller at this time, but I’ve been curious what is inside this category of devices. There were also about a half dozen guitar controllers for various game systems, but I wasn’t as interested in those today.
When I got home, I cleared off the table and grabbed a screwdriver. A half hour later, I had a nice neat pile of the electronic parts, and the rest of it was stashed away in the recycle bin. There was some neat telescoping tube in the stand, but I don’t have an immediate use for that stuff, and don’t have enough of it to create a storage category for future use.
ThinkGeek Giving Away Damaged Stock to Hackerspaces, Schools
How cool is that? From Blurgh! The ThinkGeek Blog:
We have a problem. And it’s growing at a rate proportional to our return pile. We can’t, in good conscience, resell damaged electronics. And we can’t donate them to charity–the saddest kid in the world is one with a handheld video game that won’t turn on. Garbage, then? Not good for the environment. Luckily for us, there’s an entire class of scavengers out there ready to pick the bones of our helicopters, keyboards, and interactive t-shirts: hackers, makers, and crafty techy types.
They’re even polling interest in a possible subscription service. [Thanks, John!]
Abundant Waste: The Gleaner’s Role & Tips for Dumpster Diving
(Photo: Freegan.info, Dumpster divers in Australia) Abundant Waste: The Gleaner’s Role & Tips for Dumpster Diving By Wendy Tremayne A Herman Miller chair, an iPod, a commercial juicer, Charles Russell prints, a china cabinet, used vegetable oil (for fuel), 400 USB thumb drives, and a 5-foot-diameter fiberglass globe. This is a short list of items […]
