The Rusty Rocket

I've found that over the years, some of my larger builds, especially the ones that contain electronics, don't survive the winter months being stored in a cold garage. I've recently started to fire up my cabinets again after the winter, thes include my large Gameboy, the Crazy Taxi arcade stand and my Zoltar cabinet. The large Gamboy build hasn't made it and I'm working through the issue in the hope that I can get it up and running soon. It also looked like my Zoltar cabinet suffered the same fate but after looking at the (awful) wiring, I found there were a couple of loose connections. The Crazy Taxi arcade stand worked first time. It all runs off an old PS2 console and they're built like bricks. I'm very fond of my Zoltar cabinet and really proud at how the two of use have been to events , telling people's fortunes but also he's been educating people and children on creative coding, which I love. My favourite fortune teller is getting tired and if I

My game, Squirrel Falls is finally over the finishing line! It's been hard, if I'm honest. Hard because, like with any project, the novelty and excitement of starting it soon disappears when the real work and the tedious task of producing documentation begins, and it was the same in this case.  Sourcing artwork for the game box and documentation was equally frustrating. My drawing skills aren't up to it, so I set about asking friends but sadly no joy. I contacted the local schools and colleges too but nothing. In the end I had to check with my publisher that it was OK to use AI to generate all the artwork. They were fine with it and so I used Midjourney to help me. It took a while to practice writing the prompts to get somewhere close to what I was after but I'm really happy with the results. Some of the artwork can be found on the game's page here . I really want to thank everyone who took the time to repeatedly test the versions of the game as it evolved and prov

I'm a collector of niche online radio stations and have been for quite some time now. I'll list a few of my favourites further down this post. I've decided to start my own niche radio station that incorporates my hobby of amateur radio and shortwave listening. What I do is, I scanned the HF and VHF bands in the hope of discovering a few nice transmissions. These are then placed over an ambient soundtrack resulting on an oddly satisfying blend of radio transmissions and chill pop. I', a few episodes in now, broadcasting live every Sunday evening at 6pm but I'll never forget how lucky I was on the initial broadcast to receive transmissions from Croatia, Italy and the US, as well as the UK. You can listen to the live show on Sunday evenings at 6pm here . Alternatively, you can visit the Number Station website to hear a selection of pre-recorded tracks. There's an episode you can listen to below. In this episode, I go hunting for numbers stations around the world.

WebSDR (Web Software Defined Radio) introduces a revolutionary way for individuals to explore radio frequency spectrums globally through a web browser interface. It offers an accessible platform for anyone interested in tuning into various frequencies, from amateur radio bands to shortwave broadcasts and beyond, without requiring specialized hardware. Users can remotely control receivers located worldwide, adjusting frequencies, modes, and bandwidth settings to listen to distant stations, monitor propagation conditions, or delve into the intricate world of radio communications.  You can access Hackgreen's WebSdr here:  http://hackgreensdr.org:8902/ The Jodrell WebSdr can be accessed here:  http://g0xbuwebsdr.ddns.net:8902/ HamSphere 5 stands as an innovative virtual amateur radio communication platform, simulating real-world HF (High Frequency) radio operations through an online environment. It offers a unique digital experience, allowing enthusiasts to operate virtual transceivers

I've been putting in the hours with regards to bug fixing and polishing my Game Boy game, Squirrel Falls. I came up with the idea of handing out a version of the game to my pupils as I know they wouldn't hold back with regards to their feedback. I've been reading up on the whole feedback process and there seems to be a common theme developing recently. That is, that people testing and playing the games don't want to hurt the developer's feelings and so are selective on what feedback they provide. This results in the quality and standard of games dropping. As I thought, my pupils were honest, really honest. They did actually pick up on a couple of issues that I'd overlooked and so more time and effort has been spent ironing out the issues. I'm really happy with the current version and I've recorded a bit of gameplay, stepping through the major changes. It's now a case of adding in little extras. As I would like the player to explore the map more and t

After a recent trip to Berlin, I was really impressed with the graffiti and the love the city has with stickers. Both were everywhere, some political, some just purely vandalism, but most were arty and for fun. I have also acquired a collection of NFC tags that I would like to pay around with and put together a little art project. After a little thought, and inspired by my trip to Berlin, the interactive graffiti sticker was born. The idea is that once you've designed your sticker, you slip an NFC tag behind it. The tag can then be programmed with a message, or even a website, when read by a mobile phone. Testing these stickers have been a lot of fun and I'm getting better at drawing graffiti lettering. They've been so much fin that I've put together little graffiti sticker kits to sell over on that auction site. CLICK HERE to take a look and get NFC stickering too!