For the next few months, in concert with our "Your Desktop Factory" themed issue of MAKE (Volume 21), we're going to be exploring the world of "maker business," turning your passion for making things into a means of making money. We'll look at everything from casual commerce, selling small numbers of goods online, at places like Etsy and the upcoming Makers Market, to the running of a more serious and sustainable small business. We'll be talking to, and have guest articles by, maker businessfolk across this spectrum, from those just starting out, to those who are making a comfortable living as self-employed makers. We'll also be touching on everything from the most philosophical questions of why to the more pragmatic nuts and bolts of how.
Do you run a small "maker business?" If so, we'd love to hear from you. If creating such a business is something you've thought about, what questions/concerns do you have? What would you like to see us cover in this series? Let us know in the comments, or email me (gareth at makezine). We'd love for this series to be a useful service to you, especially if going into such a business is a fantasy, but you have nagging questions or reservations that hold you back, or just need a little encouragement from those who've made this sort of career change work for them.
From MAKE magazine: MAKE Volume 21 is the Desktop Manufacturing issue, with how-to articles on making three-dimensional parts using inexpensive computer-controlled manufacturing equipment. Both additive (RepRap, CandyFab) and subtractive (Lumenlab Micro CNC) systems are covered. Also in this issue: instructions for making a cigar box guitar, building your own CNC for under $800, running a mini electric bike with a cordless drill, making a magic photo cube, and tons more. If you're a subscriber, you may have your issue in hand already, and can access the Digital Edition. Otherwise, you can pick up MAKE 21 in the Maker Shed or look for it on newsstands near you!
The delays of the Barnes & Noble nook seem to be coming to an end. The news comes by way of a Barnes & Noble press release which spills the details of the availability, the timing with Valentine’s Day and some additional in-store content.
True to the press release, a quick check of the Barnes & Noble website reveals that the nook is listed as being “in stock now” and also accompanied by free shipping. As far as in-store availability, the nook is expected to be in the “majority of Barnes & Noble stores beginning mid-week.” And just in case anyone did not notice—that is “just in time for Valentine’s Day.” What a coincidence.
Wrapping up the nook news for the day is the exclusive in-store content. In-store visitors will be able to take advantage of the free Wi-Fi and browse ebooks, magazines and newspapers. Additionally, you can enjoy a short story by Adriana Trigiani, get a Valentine’s Day recipe for red Velvet cupcakes from Anne Byrn, the Cake Mix Doctor as well as check out “Read Between the Wines” which is a regular feature by wine expert Kevin Zraly.
Keep reading to check out the full press release…
Barnes & Noble Launches Exclusive In-Store Content and Promotions
Barnes & Noble, Inc., the world’s largest bookseller, announced that its popular nook eBook reader—the ultimate gift for book lovers—is in stock online at nook.com and will be rolling out in the majority of Barnes & Noble stores beginning mid-week, just in time for Valentine’s Day. While in-store, nook customers will enjoy exclusive holiday-themed online content, kicking off this month.
Barnes & Noble quickly sold out of nook stock online over the holidays due to unprecedented customer demand. Since then the company has ramped up production and is shipping stock to the majority of its stores, beginning this week. Customers can visit the Barnes & Noble nook In-Store Locator at www.bn.com/nook/instore, updated daily beginning February 10, to find local stores with devices in-stock.
Enhanced in-store connectivity allows nook customers to seamlessly access fast, free Wi-Fi in Barnes & Noble stores. There, they can browse the extensive library of more than a million eBooks, magazines and newspapers and enjoy exclusive “More In Store” content and promotional offers, officially launching in February, which include: —A short story by bestselling favorite Adriana Trigiani featuring characters from her newest blockbuster, Brava, Valentine. —A Valentine’s Day recipe for red velvet cupcakes from Anne Byrn, the Cake Mix Doctor. —“Read Between the Wines,” a regular feature by renowned wine expert Kevin Zraly, guides readers and wine lovers through the mystery of pairing books with the perfect vintage.
“nook is the perfect Valentine’s Day gift for anyone who loves reading. Demand for nook continues to be very high, and we’re pleased our customers will be able to try and buy nook in our stores and online and enjoy it in time for the holiday,” said William J. Lynch, President of Barnes & Noble.com. “In Barnes & Noble stores, nook owners will enjoy exciting nook-only content from their favorite authors and other valuable offers, along with fast and free in-store Wi-Fi, which nook customers have been accessing in droves over the last few weeks.”
New Barnes & Noble in-store content will be updated weekly and available for a four-week period. nook users can stay apprised of upcoming exclusive More In Store content at www.bn.com/nook/moreinstore. Also in February, nook users in Barnes & Noble stores can enjoy 10 percent off any CD. nook customers need only show the special offer on their nook to the cashier to redeem.
Barnes & Noble has continued to optimize nook software for an improved reading experience with the newly updated nook v1.2. Automatic over the air (OTA) updates, which do not require any action from nook customers, are underway and will be conducted seamlessly through this week. nook customers currently using the previous version can also immediately download v1.2 at www.nook.com/support, where additional update and technical support information is available.
nook marries innovative technology and sleek minimalist design with access to the Barnes & Noble’s digital store of over one million eBooks, newspapers and magazines. nook’s color touch screen for navigation along with a best-in-class E Ink display offer an immersive, enjoyable e-reading experience. It offers both 3G wireless and Wi-Fi access and is the first to offer digital lending for a wide selection of eBooks through its LendMe(TM) technology.
To learn more and experience nook, visit www.nook.com. Follow our eBooks and other updates on www.bn.com/twitter. To learn more about the free Barnes & Noble eReader software and Barnes & Noble eBookstore apps, visit www.barnesandnoble.com/ebooks.
The occasion of Dmitri Mendeleev's birthday seemed like a good opportunity to recognize another great hero of the periodic table and to relate one of my favorite anecdotes about him: Glenn T. Seaborg (Wikipedia), who, among his various stellar achievements, won the 1951 Nobel Prize for "discoveries in the chemistry of the transuranium elements." By the time of his death in 1999, Seaborg had participated in the discovery and isolation of ten superheavy elements. Shortly after the official 1997 recognition of the name seaborgium for element 106, Jeffrey Winters, writing in the January 1998 issue of Discover Magazine, made the following observation:
Not only is Seaborg the first living scientist to have an element named after him, he's also the only person who could receive mail addressed only in elements: Seaborgium, Lawrencium (for the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory where he still works), Berkelium, Californium, Americium. But don't forget the zip code.
Naming an element after a living scientist generated significant controversy among the international chemistry community of the time. At a talk in 1995, Seaborg himself famously quipped: "There has been some reluctance on the part of the Commission for Nomenclature of Inorganic Chemistry of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry to accept the name because I'm still alive and they can prove it, they say."
I think I could watch this ball-launching sculpture for a long time. Called parabola, it was created by youtube user MechanicalSculptor. I wonder how long it took to design a system that can launch balls with such precision? [via Hacked Gadgets]
The folks over at Pocket-lint scooped up some really interesting info about the upcoming announcement of Inbrics’ Android-based M1 MID, scheduled to be revealed at the Mobile World Congress next week.
The M1 is really a little bit of everything. It is a “smartphone-like device” sporting a 3.7-inch AMOLED touchscreen display, a 3-megapixel camera and a front-facing VGA camera (probably for video calls). It also has a slide-out 5-row QWERTY keyboard. Other specs are GPS, 16GB of internal flash memory and a microSD card slot. Connectivity options include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 3G or WiMAX. Inbrics aims to make the M1 a media controller as well. It sees media convergence from TVs, DVRs, mobile phones, digital cameras, laptops and desktops, where the M1 MID acts as the controller that pushes data to any device the customer chooses.
If all goes well, the MID M1 will be introduced in Europe in 2010, or early 2011.
SamsungHub has it that a Samsung phone with a Super AMOLED touchscreen display (possibly WVGA) will be unveiled at MWC. Reportedly, Super AMOLED displays integrate a touch sensor, have better direct sunlight visibility, and are five times more vivid than AMOLED screens currently on the market.
There’s no image of the Super AMOLED Samsung phone yet, but I think this is the same handset that appeared at GSM Arena next to an iPhone. The supposed Samsung device is on the left (both displays have been set at maximum brightness):
Of course, the Super AMOLED phone could run Bada OS, so then Samsung might announce just one new handset at MWC. In fact, Samsung officially says that it has only one “new mobile” ready for MWC – although we can’t be sure of anything until the show actually debuts.
French author Jules Verne was born on this day in 1828. His father wanted him to be a lawyer and circumstances forced him to work as a stock broker, but eventually he shook off these humdrum vocations and became the world's first professional science fiction author.
Verne quickly gained a reputation for combining ultramodern technology (of the time) with clever guesswork and an affinity for adventure writing. His most celebrated works are found in a 54-piece canon of science fiction and adventure novels called Les Voyages Extraordinaires.
While most of these stories were rousing adventure yarns, what is most remarkable about them was Verne's ability visualize futuristic devices. He wrote about submarines when the technology was merely a curiosity. In his lost work Paris in the 20th Century he predicted that air conditioning, the Internet, television and electricity would become everyday conveniences. In From the Earth to the Moon he imagined a space program that would launch three astronauts from Florida, who were recovered after an ocean splash-down. In The Steam House he created one of the first visions of mecha,
He did it by imagining the possible, and defining it in terms his contemporaries could understand, a mission many of us undertake when we visualize a new project. And so, Jules Verne, happy birthday!
Thirty two shish kabob skewers and 176 small rubber bands are all it takes to make a beautiful hyperbolid of revolution. This is an example of what is called a "ruled surface," meaning even though it is curved, it is made of straight lines.
Below is the same object seen from the top. Make one of your own following the instructions here, but be careful not to skewer yourself!
The delays of the Barnes & Noble nook seem to be coming to an end. The news comes by way of a Barnes & Noble press release which spills the details of the availability, the timing with Valentine’s Day and some additional in-store content.
