Announcing Three New Builds! -- Episode 279

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The Ben Heck Team announces a major change on the show after receiving a lot of interest from community members who would like to see more detail in each episode and longer term builds. By focusing on three long term builds they can give community members what they want to see, a more robust design and detail build. In this episode you’ll see which builds they will be focusing on over the course of the next year and set the stage for their next major challenge in the evolution of the show.

Great Glue Gun Episode

Hackmanji Episode

Teensy Pinball Portable Episode

Over the next year the Ben Heck Team will be focusing on three long term builds. Two were chosen by Ben while a third was chosen by community members by a poll.

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DAB over 8 years ago

Looks like a good plan for the coming season.

For the Hackmanji, I would use a LCD with virtual wires using a touch screen.
You could greatly reduce the cost, keep the utility and usability fairly easy.

Using the wires will just keep the expense high, and open up a wide range us user problems. Keep it simple.

DAB
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DAB over 8 years ago

Looks like a good plan for the coming season.

For the Hackmanji, I would use a LCD with virtual wires using a touch screen.
You could greatly reduce the cost, keep the utility and usability fairly easy.

Using the wires will just keep the expense high, and open up a wide range us user problems. Keep it simple.

DAB
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cstanton over 8 years ago in reply to DAB

Wouldn't that shift the skillset required to make it though? At present the project can be made and understood from an electronics perspective, what you're suggesting would require software development knowledge so a different skillset?
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beacon_dave over 8 years ago in reply to cstanton

It would perhaps be one step away from becoming a mobile app.

Wires should help make it a bit more tangible. I remember using similar style logic boards back in college and after weeks of theory it was quite a relief to be able to physically grab some patch cords and start plugging them into a PCB containing some real logic IC's, and be able to attach a scope and observe that the signals actually aren't as uniform as the theory up to then had suggested.

However I guess it's swings and roundabouts - if it was an app, then you could perhaps include some logic theory along side the game play.
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DAB over 8 years ago in reply to cstanton

Perhaps, but from my observations, it would make a user interface more accustom to what current game players know.
After all, how many games do you see any more where physical pieces need to be moved?

The wire board is great for us retro types, but totally foreign to the newer generations.

DAB
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cstanton over 8 years ago in reply to DAB

Perhaps that's a problem, people need a break from what their norm is to transition into a different field where it isn't the norm?
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makerkaren over 8 years ago in reply to DAB

Without turning it into a tablet game, I'm not sure how to show which wire is connecting which inputs. If you wait for Pt.1 of the new build, you will see what we have in mind in terms of I/O. It makes it tricky to make everything digital.
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