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HIGH-TECH DESIGN SERVICES
You can have a real GEEK designing for you. THE KING consults!

GEEK THOUGHT ....updated 4/20/09
Quick thoughts on the state-of-the-universe

GEEK FAQ
Find out all about geeks

THIS GEEK'S RESUME
What he does (and did) for a living

QUOTES FOR GEEKS
Cool, funny, witty, poignant

King of the geeks terry staler...at 2 years old...once a geek always a geek
Don't worry dad - I'll fix it
Terry at two years old

My dad passed away on March 13, 2007 at the age of 95.
I will miss fixing things for him.


Mr. Wizard (Don Herbert) passed away on June 12, 2007
He was a hero to millions, including me. The world needs more like him.


 

SOURCES FOR ALL THINGS GEEK
Stuff that the King of the Geeks likes to peruse on a regular basis. I use this chart to regularly visit my favs. Please have a look-about.

Geek humor - really, really funny!
The Onion
Science Jokes

Demotivators
Largely satisfactory cartoons
BREWSTER ROCKIT-Space Guy
Science Cartoons PLUS
Wellington Grey, physicist, cartoonist
Pseudoscience - BAD science and crooks
"BAD" Water
So Much More Then Astronomy

Read My Mind
Bad Science
Real science!
Massive Science
SETI
The Planetary Society
The history of the pocket protector
How Stuff Works
Discovery Center for Science & Technology
Mr. Wizard
Geek TV
How Its Made
Mythbusters
NOVA
Science fiction
Escape Pod - scifi podcasts
Podiobook
Sci Fi writers workshop
Science Fiction Writers of America
Engineering/design/software/hardware
MCU - Cublock
MCU - Basic Stamp
ART-TEC

Steve Wozniak
Old time radio - free downloads
Fibber McGee and Molly
Listen
Listen some more
Geek magazines
Nuts & Volts
Circuit Cellar
Technology & Invention

Business 2.0
MIT Technology Review
MAKE magazine
Journal of Irreproducible Results
Annals of Improbable Research
Geek News
CNN - tech
CNN - science
Slashdot

BoingBoing
Information Week

Business stuff
Venture capital


Hints from a geek
Scratched DVD's from Netflix/Blockbuster
Are you a geek?
Tired of spending big bucks on ink jet carts?
Get HELP
GETHUMAN.COM
Answer your SCIENCE QUESTIONS
Space Stuff
Mars rovers
MRO - Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter
Cassini-Huygens
SpaceX
SpaceShip1 - Burt Rutan
NASA TV
Stuff You Can Use
Lifehacker
Portable Applications - your life on a USB drive
MORE Portable Apps
Hacking and Gadgets
Hacked gadgets
Hack-A-Day
TechEblog
How to MAKE stuff
Gizmodo
Gadget Lab
king of the geeks



MY WEBSITES
- just to keep me busy and out of trouble

Specialty Concepts Inc. ....My company. We design and manufacture controls for photovoltaic solar energy.
EarthScenics ....My photography website showcasing some of my work.
WebSciFi ....The SCIFI CHRONICLES. A website showcasing the history of the golden age of science fiction.
OnLinePhotography ....A website for the fine-art photographer.
WebPhoto ....A web-based photo gallery highlighting some of the best photographers in the world.
Dynamic Media Concepts ....Website for the POS project below. This site not operational at this time.
The Geek Lab ....Safe science for kids. A conceptual website to teach science in a fun way.


 
"CURRENT" PROJECTS - "current" as in "I've touched this within the last five years"
These projects have seen a working prototype constructed. I figure that if I list these here, I'll be guilted into working on them. NOW WITH PICTURES....WOW!
RED=on hold, GREEN=working on it, BLACK=finished.

PROJECT: Generation of hydrogen from solar energy.
STATUS: Generates hydrogen. Generates insufficient oxygen. Suspect lack of oxygen due to use of pure carbon rods as electrodes, thus making CO2, I.E. soda water! Should replace carbon rods with platinum rods. Uh huh, maybe when I win the lottery.
UPDATE
: Replaced the carbon rods with stainless-steel mesh. Works like a champ but requires too much voltage to get a decent generation. Added some common table salt and production went WAY up. Now what? Don't know...had a bit of fun and learned something.



PROJECT:
Semi-automatic product tester for photovoltaic charge controllers.
STATUSExcellent progress. This thing actually watches all of the characteristics of the unit under test and automatically makes go/no go decisions. Eventually, this project will allow me to RULE THE WORLD (just kidding? Or am I?).
UPDATE
: GAWD, I love microprocessors! This thing works really well. Cuts test time in half AND tests more parameters.
The control head The "battery simulator" caps and control relays The "almost completed" unit



PROJECT:
High-efficiency, extreme low-voltage converter for low-power battery-less solar applications.

STATUS: Currently operational with some bugs. Will not start if voltage set high and load demand is high. Efficiency VERY low (expected but too low to make unit viable).
UPDATE: Switched to a different controller chip. While efficiency is still low, this unit sucessfully starts and runs with a load, and will operate down to .3 volts.

PROJECT: IMMORTALITY
STATUS: Yes, you read that correctly...I am working on immortality. I can't go into details now, but soon.
UPDATE: I have met with great sucess. I have replaced short-lived components with much sturdier ones. I anticipate 10,000 years as a minimum. Severe environmetal testing will have to be performed to ascertain actual life. I would like to shoot for 100,000 years. I know...you're saying "HUH?" I will reveal all. And no, I am not a crackpot.


PROJECT: Using LEDs as solar cells
STATUS: I came up with this idea 15 years ago but never persued it until recently. It turns out that LEDs will produce power. I even have a project were the LEDs supplied 100% of the operating power. Alas, while this does work, it is TERRIBLY inefficient. New thin-film solar cells are very cheap and are hundreds of times more efficient.
UPDATE: Well, blow me down. Micro-energy harvesting is all the rage.
100 surface-mount LEDs making a whopping 1mw WITH concentrating lens!


PROJECT: Interfacing a microprocessor to process temperature and voltage information to instigate various actions (a self-education venture).
STATUS: Completed and successful. Learned a lot.


PROJECT: Kinetic sculptures - a blend of high technology and kinetic art.
STATUS: Several working prototypes. Working on an actual unit that will  look acceptable. Still having problems making connections look "pretty". Sensors use light to initiate actions...this tends to not work well under bright room light.
UPDATE: My longest working creation just passed 47 million rotations, equivalent to the little 3/8 inch ball traveling 13,352 miles - halfway around the Earth.


PROJECT: Light sculptures - blinky blinky, flash flash.
STATUS:  Currently playing around with CCFL rope lights, RGB LEDs, and CCFL 4 inch tubes.


PROJECT: Design and coding of a new operating system overlay to allow simplified use of computers by non-tech users, I.E. death to Windows!
STATUS: Surprisingly well along, but VERY difficult and time consuming. Very complicated...requires long periods of time with no interruptions, usually impossible to find! Menu system functional and word processor 90% operational. Have just started on calendar module. Major problem is that it still needs to sit on top of (and hide) Windows. If Windows screws up, my software stops working. Not a good thing. And probably no way to get around.

PROJECT: Design of a semi-automatic epoxy dispensing machine.
STATUS: In progress. Weight translation table working well, repeatable, accurate and consistent. Software seems to be a breeze (famous last words). Now designing motor control module.
UPDATE
: Forget about doing this by weight. This project just got mondo-more complicated. Gonna go for the whole thing: meter/mix/volume. WOW! Does it get any more exciting?


PROJECT: Creation of a new and simple-to-use method for charitable donations via the Internet.
STATUS: Main donation page and intro pages completed. Need to contact backers (not financial in nature) to provide support in terms of PR and lending site/concept credibility. My first choices: Colin Powell, Buzz Aldrin, John Glenn, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, Nancy Reagan, I.E., people that people can trust and look up to (at least I do).


PROJECT: Design of PCB's to allow simple implementation of surface-mount technology for prototyping.
STATUS: Have designed and produced prototype units. Work properly but need some tweaking. Computer with files currently down, so project on hold.


PROJECT: Creation of a dynamic advertising system for use in POS.
STATUS: Prototype unit built with example presentation. Unfortunately, my graphics skills suck, so not much more I can do here without hiring some designers. Hardware OK but needs tweaking in terms of size; must be reduced in size by AT LEAST 50%.


PROJECT: Design of an inexpensive and simple method for short-range home broadcast of audio from mp3 players, satellite radio, and the Internet.
STATUS: Working. I can receive XM satellite or web-based audio anywhere in the house. Need to purchase higher-quality equipment for better sound quality.


PROJECT: A scientific method to repel gophers without the use of toxins.
STATUS: I give up...the little buggers win. Gotta rely on the exterminator man. AT best, they keep gophers in check, but do not eliminate them. Problem with this picture? It is in exterminators best interest to NOT completely delete gophers...no money in that.


PROJECT: Working on websites.
STATUS: Except for this site, haven't had much time to work on them. Some sites (onlinephotography, webphoto, webscifi) have not seen updates in years. The others are attended to on a random basis as time (and level of enthusiasm) allows.


PROJECT: Remodeling the house, the never-ending remodel of the house.
STATUS: Never-ending!


PROJECT: Writing...many short stories, articles, and humor, forever to be greeted with rejection slips.
STATUS: I'll keep writing. Rejection slips can make excellent wall paper.
UPDATE: They're also very good for starting fires in the fireplace.

 And, yes, I did wear pocket protectors and coke-bottle-bottom glasses with white tape on them. Who knew?

 terry staler geek king licplt

* Dr. Jeromy J. J. Flawd is a made-up character, and any similarity to actual persons living or dead is coincidental and unintended.

 

Last update: April. 20, 2009
All information contained within this website is copyright © 2009 by Terry Staler, The King of the Geeks