Normally, you have a choice with PCB prototypes: fast or cheap. [Stephen Hawes] has been trying fiber lasers to create PCBs. He’s learned a lot which he shares in the …read more (https://hackaday.com/2025/01/05/perfecting-20-minute-pcbs-with-laser/)

Shining Through: Germanium and Gold Leaf Transparency
https://hackaday.com/2025/01/05/shining-through-germanium-and-gold-leaf-transparency/

Germanium. It might sound like just another periodic table entry (number 32, to be exact), but in the world of infrared light, it’s anything but ordinary. A recent video by …read more (https://hackaday.com/2025/01/05/shining-through-germanium-and-gold-leaf-transparency/)

Mechanical Calculator Finds Derivitives
https://hackaday.com/2025/01/06/mechanical-calculator-finds-derivitives/

We like mechanical calculators like slide rules, but we have to admit that we had not heard of the Ott Derivimeter that [Chris Staecker] shows us in a recent video. …read more (https://hackaday.com/2025/01/06/mechanical-calculator-finds-derivitives/)

Turns Out Humans Are Terrible At Intuiting Knot Strength
https://hackaday.com/2025/01/06/turns-out-humans-are-terrible-at-intuiting-knot-strength/

We are deeply intuitively familiar with our everyday physical world, so it was perhaps a bit of a surprise when researchers discovered a blind spot in our intuitive physical reasoning: …read more (https://hackaday.com/2025/01/06/turns-out-humans-are-terrible-at-intuiting-knot-strength/)

One Small Step: All About Stepper Motors
https://hackaday.com/2025/01/06/one-small-step-all-about-stepper-motors/

The primary feature of stepper motors is listed right within their name: their ability to ‘step’ forwards and backwards, something which they (ideally) can do perfectly in sync with the …read more (https://hackaday.com/2025/01/06/one-small-step-all-about-stepper-motors/)

Cassette Tape Plays MP3s
https://hackaday.com/2025/01/06/cassette-tape-plays-mp3s/

Cassette tapes were a major way of listening to (and recording) music througout the 1980s and 1990s and were in every hi-fi stereo, boom box, and passenger vehicle of the …read more (https://hackaday.com/2025/01/06/cassette-tape-plays-mp3s/)

Before GPS There Was LORAN
https://hackaday.com/2025/01/06/before-gps-there-was-loran/

We found it nostalgic to watch [ve3iku] fire up an old Loran-A receiver and, as you can see in the video below, he got it working. If you aren’t familiar …read more (https://hackaday.com/2025/01/06/before-gps-there-was-loran/)