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RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

mayermakes — Sat, 21 Apr 2018 16:25:40 GMT

I try to do as much in a straigth session as possible, but I don't count paint drying time, so the
last 24hour thing was built in about 22hours on 3 individual days of a weekend.(the outdoor scenes were shot a while later).
most of my builds were done in less than 24hours but I just announce it since the last german video.

I'm currently thinking about switching back to english again...

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

binaryben — Sat, 21 Apr 2018 16:22:27 GMT

I'll bet they are exhausting. Even as I wrote it I was remembering previous times I've been awake over 24 hours...

What's your favourite 24 build you've done? I'd be keen to go watch it. Also, do you build over 24 hours straight, or in split time periods?

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

mayermakes — Wed, 18 Apr 2018 19:35:49 GMT

I like your idea of a 24hour challenge maker VS maker..that could make for some exiting content.

But i have to say that my first 24hour challenge was very exhausting..but rewarding, so keep in mind it is not for the weak... ;-)

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

takieda — Fri, 13 Apr 2018 18:15:52 GMT

Thank you for reaching out to us, the wayward sons of The Ben Heck Show. Not fully participating in this contest was painful to admit to, but I'm really glad I was given the chance in the first place.

What motivated you to enter the Hack Like Heck contest?

Shortly before Ben announced that he was leaving TBHS, I had started planning on a youtube channel of my own with similar content but approaching it from a bit of a different angle. Because of channels like TBHS, Electroboom, and others, I've grown an increasing interest in starting a channel like TBHS, but with the premise of starting from scratch. I originally came up with the name "The Heckin' Ben Fan Show" but opted for "A Fat Man Making" in lieu of the potential lawsuit(s) (and to develop my own style, rather than try to steal some of the style and/or fame of TBHS). When I heard about the challenge, I was very excited, as it brought me back to the original idea of the Fan Show, but now I'd be officially sponsored (if I won)!

Are you still interested in Hacking Like Heck?

Absolutely, and I think anyone who took part in this contest will answer similarly. In the end, the Maker community has grown tremendously because of TBHS and efforts like his, and anyone that can add to the fold, often will add to it. I am still going forward with my original plans, and if I get good enough I'd love to see Element14 as a sponsor, but I'll brave those negotiations when I have some clout.

Would you like to share why you weren't able to submit a final video?

I did make a post stating my reasons, but in case some wanted to know that didn't see the post, I'll explain in more full detail here. For the past couple of years I've been a truck driver, which has helped me out in numerous ways, but stopped me from having any kind of real hobbies at home. As a result, I've had a 3d printer sitting at home, waiting for me to make use of it (and fix one software glitch I knew about when I bought it), as well as set up a work room, etc. I had planned on getting out of Truck driving at the end of March, with hopes of stopping sooner, if I could find a job, and the TBHS challenge really motivated me to do so. However, as other's have said in the past, unfortunately, finding a job after being a truck driver is not an easy thing to do, and as I'm now officially unemployed, finding a job is my full time job. Fortunately I do have a savings, and I have a solid prospect in June, so I can get a temp job until then.

What this all means is that now, I'm home, but too late for the Hack Like Heck challenge, but I'm still going to do the original project I tasked myself with, and going to go forward with my intentions of my youtube channel.

Thank you Karen, The Ben Heck Show, and Element 14 for providing us with years of wonderful content, and this amazing opportunity to be a part of it all, and though I was unable to jump into it as much as I'd hoped, I will get there, and I hope to see all of you guys in the future, if not on youtube, then at one or more MakerFaire's that, assuming I can convince my wife, I will be attending in the not too distant future.

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

binaryben — Fri, 13 Apr 2018 11:40:32 GMT

Hey Karen, thanks for giving the opportunity to share where we are at! There has been some very interesting and insightful responses so far. My response is pretty lengthy. Unfortunately I wear my heart on my sleeve in many ways, but I am working on making my writing more succinct! In my defense though, each question asked is just about the exact prompt I have been using for a few separate blog posts I've been working on to share more on who I am and what I hope to achieve by being here. So now those blog posts are (edited and) posted here.

What motivated you to enter the Hack Like Heck contest?

If not The Ben Heck Show, I would love to host The Binary Ben Show. Until this contest though, I didn't really know how to start without the opportunity for some form of financial backing. My lack of finances to buy tools has certainly been a big motivator in terms of my current involvement within the local maker community. That's something I wish I initiated earlier in life and a valuable lesson I can share with potential followers in the future. By doing that, I hope the viewers won't feel like they don't have the resources they need to make electronic devices when they see me using laser cutters, CNC mills and 3D printers, as well as your typical electronic testing equipment (I personally have an especially excessive Hakko FM-206 as a soldering station as another example). There was also this ongoing thought in the back of my mind that I wouldn't succeed, because any video content I produce would be constantly compared to Heck's ongoing show... (similar name, similar gig - easy comparison to make). Obviously my potential audience isn't just limited to Heck's current fan base, but he's been a big enough influence on my view of makers and engineers for that idea to be there anyway.

With Ben's retirement from producing videos (as a maker/hacker at least... looking forward to seeing the films he's involved with!), and the launch of element14's Content Partner Program - there is a brilliant opportunity to launch something similar enough to Heck's original series to fill the gap, but also something with enough fresh elements to bring more viewers into this community. The contest provided the exact framework I needed to actively learn what it will take to "Hack Like Heck", and I knew it would. That's why I entered and have spent a large part of the past month or so fixated on completing it, even if I knew I wasn't quite in a position to get to the finish line (yet).

I am very encouraged to pursue this potential partnership with element14 after having taken part in the contest, and having spoken briefly with the Ben Heck team after winning the audition round with nine others. I personally have the ability to make working projects, but I also have a lot to improve. My vision is that I can position myself as someone who is easiliy relatable to new makers and engineering students in early seasons, and essentially teach viewers more advanced skills as I learn them. The ability to teach others skills as I learn them is a skill I've had for a long time now, and I think it will be quite similar to the same journey Heckendorn took when he started the show as a graphic designer. I am also in a fantastic environment surrounded by incredible people who know such. a. variety. of skills that I would be delighted to share with others. In the longer term, I am keen to make more advanced projects than what I am already capable of (such as an open source desktop R2-D2), and even potentially teach viewers how to open source and/or commercialise their projects if there was an interest (possibly via a side channel).

Are you still interested in Hacking Like Heck?

Uhh.. heck yeh! It would be very hard to just let go of a dream that's been forming over a few years now, just because I didn't get a video up the first time I tried. Please let me know what the next steps might be to be able to work with the existing Ben Heck and element14 team, specifically in terms of getting a new (or reboot of an existing) show launched? Obviously I'll need to finish up a few projects and video screen test episodes to demonstrate I can "Hack Like Heck" and I'm not just some hack.. but I know that I can set myself up to be able to do this for the long haul within a couple of months or so, given the opportunity.

To make my intentions crystal clear, I would love to talk with someone(s) within the existing production team about potential pathways that would take me from my current situation, to being the front runner for a weekly show sponsored by element14. I'm very aware of the serious commitment that would be, as well as the well liked personality that would precede me. But I'm also confident I have the personality and skills to take on the challenge and meet the high standard set by Heckendorn and Co., or to even exceed it with time. I'd especially be interested to talk more about whether it would make more sense to consider using the existing "Ben Heck" brand if it belongs to element14, or to use new branding to help me understand how to best frame a proposal. I'm personally comfortable with either option - but I say this here because I'd also be keen for the communities input on what they might prefer.

That's obviously a big statement to make without a video, but the experience so far has ignited the passion to start regularly making videos designed to inspire others to pick up tools and learn how to make things again. It has also significantly helped me clarify what is needed to get that job done. I'll get a Part 1 and Part 2 episode published here that is based on the SN35 Mini project using my own resources in the not too distant future (possibly after the below "issues" are fixed). It would be great to have the chance to kickstart formal conversations sooner though if that opportunity exists.

Would you like to share why you weren't able to submit a final video?

As mentioned in a previous post, I think it's important to reflect on both barriers outside of your control, and those within your control to work out why something didn't go the way you wanted it to.

Outside: Two main things were that is was unfortunate timing to be making the SN35 Mini, and getting parts to me is a little slower than it is for others due to where I live. Thankfully, both shouldn't be such major problems in the context of making videos for a living, as I'll have the opportunity to plan out possible projects prior to producing the actual builds and footage for each season (along with backup content! thanks for the pro tip Ben Heck and team). Currently, a large portion of my time is dedicated to setting up a local makerspace (both the community and the facilities). Right now, we're in the process of moving and are currently without access to a lab. This means I've been very busy overseeing the construction of the new facilities, as well as having been without a few tools I certainly would have normally made use of for the build. That said, we're expected to be moving in within the fortnight, and I look forward to being able to share not only my knowledge, but the knowledge and skills of that community with this one... and to use the equipment again of course.

Within: My pride got in the way a little, and I underestimated the effort needed to produce a longer video. I really like making things of high quality, possibly evident by the front case panel I designed for the contest. Because of the above issues, I didn't have a finished project, but I had enough content to at least create a "Part 1" video. The extension should have given me enough time to make up for underestimating how long it would have taken to put that video together. However I didn't want to publish a video without something more substantial completed (despite the fact Heckendorn routinely has Part 1 video's without much working at the end of it, but a strong foundation ready to finish the project...), so I put way too much time into trying to make the PCB instead. This was despite not having tools I might ordinarily be able to make use of. It was a really poor call on my part.

Again, it's something I can fix pretty fast. Given a bit of support to get set up to film and hack simultaneously and in an ongoing manner, I won't have any problem sharing the successes and the failures as they happen. It was a bit much trying to cram everything I wanted to achieve into one episode this time round. Having viewers see both the successes and the failures in the future though is important to myself. That way the more experienced viewers can offer advice on how to improve, and the new makers out there won't by discouraged when they don't succeed the first time as well.

[Added Bonus] Going Forward.

Given the announcement of winners is super close, I'm excited to see who takes out the grand prize. Hopefully they are as eager to frequently publish educational videos as I am! Based on what we've seen so far, the new content will be very interesting and informative to watch. I am very optimistic about the future of original content here, even as sad as it is that Heckendorn is moving onto different things.

I am imagining if the winner does start their own show and I get a similar opportunity as well, some friendly competition might be an exciting thing to watch? I love the idea of Mayer's self-imposed 24 hour challenges for example. Maybe we can organise something like that with several "web personalities" who are backed by element14 to build a project based on a viewer challenge, have live streams over the 24 hours, and then let the community decide who won. Better still, have a major financial prize that goes to charity - and viewer prizes as well.

In the mean time, I am wishing every contestant who has a video published the best of luck!

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

zamek — Fri, 13 Apr 2018 09:03:26 GMT

Hi,

thank you for your post. My answers to your questions:

What motivated you to enter the Hack Like Heck contest?

I love to code, hack, build, engineer, solder and design to the point that my wife is almost jealous because of my soldering station. I spend a lot of my free time on this hobby and was thinking about starting video-blogging about it for quite some time. It's just when I finally find some time to "play" (kids are in beds and other important stuff is taken care of -you know, life ;P) I want to get to the fun part right away, not start setting tripod, lighting and other things.

Hack Like Heck sounded like great opportunity and motivation to get into video making. I definitely believe I have the hacking skills.

Are you still interested in Hacking Like Heck?

Sure!

Would you like to share why you weren't able to submit a final video?

I greatly underestimated time and effort it takes to make a video of myself hacking. Getting right framing, lighting, sound (especially with no experience it those fields) turned out to be quite challenging and time consuming. Plus the usual problems that are expected to occur during work on a complicated project, like one I was thinking about, were enough to make deadline unreachable for me. (Now I read in this thread that deadline was pushed, which I didn't know earlier, but I don't think it was enough to meter for me.)

Yes, I'm still interested in becoming an element14 Video Content Partner. I plan to start posting my hack in episodes later this month.

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

mrvolt — Thu, 12 Apr 2018 22:41:29 GMT

What motivated you to enter the Hack Like Heck contest?

TBHS has been a huge personal inspiration and source of knowledge for many years now and I wanted to add my little slice of knowledge and content for the community too.

Are you still interested in Hacking Like Heck?

Yes! I'm still full steam ahead on my YouTube channel and have decided on a format that covers quick demos and more step-by-step tutorial content to engage the community. I would like to talk more about the content creator program

Would you like to share why you weren't able to submit a final video?

The contest deadline coincided with the deadline for a private commission that I had to prioritize. That ended up requiring a great deal more finishing work than expected (as all projects do) and by the time I had "free" to work on the HLH project, I encountered a hardware issue that required more components which would have arrived too late.

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

makerkaren — Thu, 12 Apr 2018 19:47:26 GMT

Hi Rory,

I really enjoyed your audition video and how wacky it is. If you ever feel motivated to move from blog to video, I would love to see what a project build video would look like from you.

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

makerkaren — Thu, 12 Apr 2018 19:44:32 GMT

Great to hear the video is still coming together. Like I said, we all understand that life gets in the way sometimes. I look forward to seeing the conclusion to your build!

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

makerkaren — Thu, 12 Apr 2018 19:41:36 GMT

Sorry to hear about so many things breaking. I hope you still finish your build and post about it here on the Community. I'd love to see what you put together!

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

rocits — Thu, 12 Apr 2018 06:36:19 GMT

Thought I'd attempt to lighten things up!

...anyway...

What motivated you to enter the Hack Like Heck contest?

Being a Ben Heck Fan for many years just never joined the community because I suspected it was intermediate to advanced engineers etc.. As an electronics noob essentially and having little time for getting practical experience, but I release I must have picked up lots of knowledge from the TBHS so why not try. Making a silly manic audition video really turned out to be surprisingly fun playing with raw humor, the humor/play takes a little pressure off the process so I thought maybe I could actually handle the build and video too!

Are you still interested in Hacking Like Heck?

Yes I will be finishing the blog and video. Blog Teasers/Updates : Pi Play AR (I & II) Foto-Bloggin' a Zombie Horse.. in AR!!!? I'm convinced there is great potential in a cross platform of electronics and next generation data/cloud like IOT/AI/VR/AR etc.. My large focus will be AR and electronics in the near future, full time and for the long term, largely through 3D design in VR which lends itself to engineering design & presentation perfectly, I believe! I don't know if the Video Content Partners Program is going in the IOT/AI/VR/AR direction, but studying many technologies myself, I know that it's the new platform, it is obvious to me, and it is a merging of many advanced technologies, creating unparalleled crossover and exponential technology growth.

Would you like to share why you weren't able to submit a final video?

I didn't share the final video because I hadn't got the final build and parts on time [some still haven't arrived] but I believe It's was really late planning on my part, No real experience of a build and recording requirements I didn't take seriously enough the pace necessary and required dedicated space you need for both filming and logistically progressing a build. In the back of my head I was thinking "just do the blogs" the entire time, because it would have sensibly guided the video format and added value to the community simultaneously. I'm very happy with my achievements , I pushed myself to near exhaustion to learn/troubleshoot & manage evrything, which I wouldn't have without the competition pressure, but very satisfying to see video/audio/engineering & electronics all come together, I get the bigger picture now so I'm much the wiser in planning out everything in future!

Overall I'm glad I got involved in the "Hack Like Heck" Competition! I hoped there would be more video/build noobs like me taking part , but also in awe of the high standards, skills, talent , humor and great characters throughout the element14 community!

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

baldengineer — Thu, 12 Apr 2018 04:25:31 GMT

As I explained in a post, I was having some engineering trouble at the very end and knew I couldn't complete the project and a video on time. While the extension is exactly what I needed, a life event got in the way. In the past few days I have made progress and hope to have a video soon. That said, I'd like to have a private/offline conversation about the content creator program.

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

fyaocn — Thu, 12 Apr 2018 04:12:41 GMT

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

tariq.ahmad — Thu, 12 Apr 2018 04:05:18 GMT

Hi fyaocn ,

Voting is now closed and to qualify for prizes the submission needed to be an unpublished YouTube video by April 5th.

There was some confusion as the form was not behaving as intended so this deadline was pushed but only enough time to reach those who may have experienced technical difficulties.

With that said, I moved your video to Maker Film Festival where it can be enjoyed with the rest of the project videos!

:-)

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

rocits — Thu, 12 Apr 2018 03:55:04 GMT

"Left in the dust" is very similar! like "left behind"/"left in the dark" etc.. I think you should contact Karen directly about the issue!

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

fyaocn — Thu, 12 Apr 2018 03:49:14 GMT

"In the dark", not "In the dust".

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

samdiyfreeman — Thu, 12 Apr 2018 03:25:31 GMT

Hey Karen,

Glad to see a great selection of talent made it in on time

To help with your questions - I love making things. And making a video about hacking things is something that's been on the list for a while. I figured this was the perfect excuse to get started. I would still like to wrap this one up, and maybe do something in the future. And well, if I had to guess what held up this build, it might've had something to do with the house breaking, then the car breaking, then the dryer, and then the car again. At some point you have to assume the universe is trying to tell you something.

But on the plus side, it was a lot of fun!

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

rocits — Thu, 12 Apr 2018 03:09:15 GMT

I think we'll all be left in the dust after BENEXIT ! Considering the popular dropout vote of 18/17 we must respect these populist democratic anomalies that gave us the wonder of drumpt-ski , br-not-london-scotland-or ni-exit and the freedom of interwebz sp3lling!

I think the community will agree 100%, We must start from scratch again, recreate BEN HECK in VR combined with the most statistically popular projected espurt game of the future GOLF, & evolve original projects through the community into a new era of VR/AR ..and AI/IOT ..and cats/sloths/cute looking insects!

>>>>>>>>>>>>> 3 words : Ben Heck's Electro-golf-tronix <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

BENEXIT means BENEXIT !

Still Hacking Like Heck

makerkaren — Wed, 11 Apr 2018 19:11:48 GMT

Hey folks,

The Hack Like Heck contest is coming to a close. We have 17 wonderful final video entries. (Check them out here!) I hope you all have had a chance to view them. I know I enjoyed watching them all!

Those of you who have been with us since the beginning of the contest saw the Declarations of Intent and audition videos come in throughout March. We had a total of 35 makers declare their intent to participate. What we want to know is, what happened to the other 18 people who didn't quite get a video in for the final phase of the contest?

I'd like to ask those 18 individuals:

[mention:57a79c8ceae84c06b59d42e67a0ded50:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05], [mention:6a99290f77334512ab5c6acbcf957162:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05], [mention:aa7a2d4cc478449a8e1487506089aba4:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05], [mention:edfea85fb153404581a8fc47203fb56d:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05], [mention:486565e570e042318de630cc99a2bf8c:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05], [mention:727c8fc440d942f6bb2f57cc0476b2d7:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05], [mention:8c0e3e507cd742d38997f167150d9af3:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05], [mention:ea1cd9d4514b4dc891e01effad128e3c:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05], [mention:f9f659fb31844e2193fcc98229dc1d34:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05],[mention:ea13d4e964ed434197a5dcabe7c78edf:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05], [mention:37bf672b4d25432ebfb5e99f56340eb4:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05], [mention:d3cee3218459409594cd6fe328574cbd:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05], [mention:95694a905d4f4db3ba0206746a65273c:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05], [mention:a3eeaa0fcacd4ebfbb530cede1034f51:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05], [mention:533caaa795724e8e98fbae5271906728:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05], [mention:79c2c6927ea44a1d90700044d3b41bdc:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05], [mention:2553b5215644476cb1686046c82f4981:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05], [mention:eda7c8a3819844149d9ba5d81cca18f0:e9ed411860ed4f2ba0265705b8793d05].

What motivated you to enter the Hack Like Heck contest?

Are you still interested in Hacking Like Heck?

Would you like to share why you weren't able to submit a final video?

element14 is still looking for Video Content Partners. We understand that life happens and don't want anyone to miss out because of that. You haven't missed your chance. If you're still interested in becoming an element14 Video Content Partner, please tell us about it in the comments below. Here's your chance to show us your stuff, your time to shine!

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

ajkatz83 — Thu, 12 Apr 2018 01:19:42 GMT

It did. I figured I knew more than I anticipated that I did; I just had never created an original design until this moment lol.

Seeing I have all the parts, some shot recorded and made a design, I'll likely follow it up and finish it out.

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

fyaocn — Thu, 12 Apr 2018 00:54:07 GMT

Video casting is more challenge to me than Hacking and Coding. But it is really interesting. I realize now Making some ideas into video is much better than blog only.

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

fyaocn — Thu, 12 Apr 2018 00:48:02 GMT

I am still in the dust.

I enter the submission page and the submission button returns error again and again. I have to post the video in Pin Ball Table

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

makerkaren — Wed, 11 Apr 2018 21:38:51 GMT

Sorry to hear that life did, indeed, get in the way for you. You could still finish your video and post it to the community. Or if not the video, I'm sure many would find even a blog post of your build fascinating. I hope you continue to share your builds and look forward to seeing it if you do!

RE: Still Hacking Like Heck

ajkatz83 — Wed, 11 Apr 2018 20:00:08 GMT

Hi Karen:

When I saw that Ben was leaving it was almost unreal to me. I have enjoyed what he was doing and felt like an online mentor to me.

I figured I had a chance just as much as anyone else to enter this contest and "shine" just like anybody else in this electronics field--I was driven to make this happen and was so determined to come up with an end product, I didn't think of the few factors against me:

In the month of March, I had multiple trade shows with work and the Coast Guard, so I was from Orlando, Dunkirk, NY and Goshen, IN, and so on for the month March with about less than a week to prep for each.
I realized for the rest of March, I should have been working on the portable project and filming as well. A lot of my issue was learning on the fly, meaning learning Fusion 360 in great depth and figuring out how to the time-lapse in my 3d printers to work, let alone making a second design to work out properly and more realistically.
In the end, I didn't know nearly enough as I had figured with Fusion 360, and the design ultimately fell apart due to dimensioning issues, which I figured were good but certainly did not house everything properly. Either it was improper use of my calipers, dimensioning things piece by piece or I was inputting it wrong in Fusion 360.

Overall, the time lapsing all came out fine in the way of filming, but everything stated above was why I final film could not be done at all. There was still a lot of video capturing and videoing that needed to be done and there wasn't enough time between full time work and duty.

Even still, with this experience, I would like to produce and make technical videos still, like I was doing on my channel, as you see, it may take me extra time with all that is going for me. At times it's difficult to give a project the time it needs especially when some skills are not as sharp as others, so with me it can drag on sometimes until a solution can be found. Even though that's may be, I still would like to make videos share what I am doing. I was thinking releasing some older content however the cringe is too much and the syncing on some is off too.

ShockSlayer intends to Hack Like Heck

shockslayer — Tue, 13 Feb 2018 10:51:04 GMT

[View:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6t1Iw40ABEk:740:466]

Here's my audition; the video is just a little over a minute long, but that's just for the rest of my subscribers who won't be up to date with what's going on. I've also uploaded a shortened version here, if the first video is a problem.

This is the first time I've posted here on e14, so here's my introduction:

I'm ShockSlayer. It's the username I've kept ever since I first signed up on the BenHeck Forums back in 2006, and that's how most people know me. I got into the related engineering because of the early N64 portables, one of the notable ones being Ben Heck's first foray into modding the console. I was entranced by what I'd seen, and shortly after I joined the community there, I started building one myself. Ever since then, I've been building and developing a variety of skills, and have been a part of many different communities as a result. This has led me all over the world to different meetups, conferences, and conventions, all of which have been a huge part of developing my current mindset.

Naturally, as I've learned things, I've also taken the time to teach others what I've learned. This has included a variety of tutorial videos, guides, and other resources that I've helped develop for the portablizing community. Unfortunately, over the years they've become scattered across a variety of different media, but I'd like to think that I've made a positive impact on at least a few people. My approach to explanation has always been from the perspective of an average Joe; I firmly believe that there's nothing I've accomplished that someone else can't learn to do themselves through either my example, or direct teaching.

I'm interested this contest, because it's offering something that I've been looking for: a medium to teach, a theater for entertainment, and a legacy to continue. I'm confident in my abilities to build the unit, and the prizes are cool, but what I'm looking for here is the opportunity to do something important with the abilities I've developed simply out of love for the hobby that got me into this.

Required declaration of intent:

I intend to make a video that shows me creating a working project
I will post the video on the element14 Community by the submission deadline
If my video is one of the top 10 finalists I will receive $500 for my video

Thanks.