Here’s the short version: I created this by gutting out a $7 power strip from Wal-Mart. A carefully selected DC power supply was fitted into the left portion of the power strip to get me +15VDC from +120VAC. The voltage outputs, as shown in the picture, are +15 (straight from the DC supply), +10, +5, +3.3, then two adjustables from +1.25 to about +13. Each of these is connected to a SPDT power switch threaded straight into the gnd plug on the adapter. LEDs serve as indicators when a certain voltage is active. Each output voltage has a stranded wire with a pin header soldered to the end for easy connection to a breadboard. It turned out very nicely.

Want to learn how to make one yourself? Here’s what to do:

Supplies:

• Power strip
• (x6) SPDT switche (I used mini guitar toggle switches with a thread diameter of around 6.5mm or so)
• (x6) LED
• (x2) 1k pots (Keep them as small as possible, I used the 392JB1K)
• (x2) Dial of your choice to go on top of the pots
• A bunch of header pins
• A good length of stranded wire
• (x3) LM2937 (+10, +5, and +3.3 versions – one of each)
• (x2) LM317
• (x5) Heatsinks for your regulators
• Resistors – 1/2 Watt: (x3) 750 ohm, 510 ohm
• Resistors – 1/4 Watt: 240 ohm, 160 ohm, (x2) 110 ohm
• Capacitors: (x5) .1 uF, (x5) 10 uF
• 15 V DC Power Adapter (I used the EPS150080UPS-P5P-KH)
• Other connecting wire
• Hot glue gun/glue
• Semi-opaque paper
• *You may need other supplies – I’ve tried to cover them all but could have missed some

Tools:

• Dremel/Cutting Bit
• Soldering Iron/Solder
• Wire strippers
• Wire cutters

Safety:

• Safety glasses
• Protective gloves

SAFETY NOTE: You will be dismantling a power strip and likely be plugging it in while it is open so you can test your circuit. This is very dangerous and can cause death or serious injury. Take every precaution when handling the live nodes and ideally do not leave them in the open when live at all. Also, don’t cross the wires…the Ghostbusters may be able to get away with it, but real people can’t – I only tripped the breaker once…

Step 1: Plan

Yes, plan what you want to do. It’s unlikely you will do it the exact same way I did…and you probably don’t want to either . Learn from my mistakes! Make some sketches and get an idea of what specifications you need. Do you want to do digital logic only or do you want to do crazy op-amp stuff with negative voltages?

Step 2: Gather Some Supplies

The first thing you need to do is pick up a power strip and a DC power supply. You probably want a larger power strip made of plastic to make things easiest. Mine was made of ABS plastic, which is very soft. You may choose a metal strip, but be prepared to be extra careful…although you could make a VERY nice one enclosed in metal if you do it right. Once you get the power strip, carefully pry it open. Mine didn’t have any screws and so it just took a bit of patience. Make some careful measurements and search for a DC power supply that will fit inside. Don’t plan on having a lot of extra room when you take the casing off your power supply – they don’t build them with a lot of space to spare. My choice adapter was roughty 45×61 mm.

Step 3: Get the Rest of Your Stuff (& breadboard)

If you have a power supply that fits in your power strip, then you’re set to go. Go ahead and order the rest of your parts, then breadboard them. You want to actually be sure your circuit works before you spend all that time putting it together.

Step 4: Dremel Out the Inside of the Power Strip

In order for all of the electronics to fit, you’re going to have to dremel the extra plastic out. I used a simple cutting bit (it was actually a bit too large) and did my best to cut things away. The soft ABS tended to melt and smell, but it wasn’t terrible if I worked quickly. IMPORTANT: Always wear proper safety gear including safety glasses and protective gloves. A dremel is a dangerous tool. I recommend putting the power strip in a vice if possible before cutting so you can control the dremel with two hands.

Partially dremeled out power strip. Oh yeah, it produces a lot of dust, too.

Step 5: Solder Everything Together

At this point it’s really all about putting the electronics in. Technique here is sort of up to you, but I’ll share a few tips.

While it would be a whole lot easier to remove the bulky power cord while you’re working, you probably want to test your work as you go. Try to secure the power strip so it doesn’t move while you work.

As mentioned: test as you go. Finding problems early is key!

I used some nice semi-opaque paper over one of the “eyeholes” on each of the 6 power strip outputs to diffuse the LED. I also placed the LEDs in parallel (physically, not electronically…although both are true) to get a unique “square” light source. (See image below)

If you get the right type of toggle switches they will actually thread nearly perfectly into the ground holes. Mine fit perfectly with no additional support and they are quite sturdy.

Use protoboard if you like. I opted to use air…which was kind of difficult, but it worked out OK. Everything is basically floating around and my power strip is sort of a mishmash of wires soldered together. It worked out OK for me, but you may want to solder a bunch of “units” together. That would actually probably be better…

Before you start putting all the stuff in, figure out where you want your pots to stick out and dremel or drill out some holes for them. This is a lot harder when everything is already together, trust me.

When you run your output wires, use some nice stranded wires. If it’s thin enough that it slides around easily, tie a knot in the end so you don’t pull on your solder joint. I used some coaxial RCA cables I had lying around. I don’t really need coaxial , so  Just used one of the layers. It’s thick, sturdy, and worked quite well. I soldered some pin headers onto the end and secured it with some electrical tape for good measure. This way I can plug them into a breadboard very easily.

Well, that’s it! This is my second DIY project. You may be interested in reading about my

DIY Light-Up Picture Frame

Feel free to leave me a comment if you have any questions, suggestions, critique, etc! Thanks!

A neat looking utility that acts as a Front End for previously mentioned RoboCopy. Check it out!

Well, the other day, my sound simply stopped working. At first I thought this was due to Windows Updates as some updates had just been installed. So I did a system restore…and they came back! Unfortunately, I’m on a Windows domain and group policy dictates my updates automatically install (doh!). So updates go again and I proceed to do a system restore. But this time, I remove myself from the domain quick like a rabbit so I can manage my own updates. Except…now the sound device fails…again.

So it wasn’t the updates that did it, which is weird. I decide to get the hardware checked…my hard drive in another laptop: sound fails. Another hard drive in my laptop: sound works. Ok, so it’s not hardware. Now, by this time the errors have gotten worse. At first I could install drivers to my heart’s content and I would simply get error messages when I try to play any audio and the little red “X” by my sound device in the system tray. Now the errors are more along the lines of “Something is WAY messed up, I can’t install that driver.”

Fine. Windows Vista CD, coming right up. I don’t want to reinstall Vista…that’s a pain and I would have to reinstall and configure all my software, which I don’t want to do. After reading up on a couple online suggestions, I try doing an sfc /scannow (just in case), which does some stuff, but doesn’t really work.

So I boot up my CD and open up the recovery console. Too bad I can’t figure out how to restore system files. I’ve done that once but I forgot what I did. Instead, I opt for an repair install by booting into Windows and choosing “Upgrade” when the CD autorun pops up. This allows you to “Upgrade” Windows Vista to Windows Vista. I go through all the stuff and then I can’t upgrade…because my version of Windows is newer than the one I want to install…because I have SP1 installed.

So, an hour later, SP1 is gone and I try again. Finally I can do the upgrade! (No, uninstalling the service pack did not fix my sound). The upgrade takes like an hour and a half and replaces all my system files. BUT, my sound finally works…sort of. Now my audio jack doesn’t work! Yes, those are somewhat software controlled. My laptop speakers work, but no external devices get audio – it just turns off the speakers. So the Vista driver failed miserably. After about another half hour of trickery I manage to get the Vista drivers gone and install the official XP drivers for the card, which actually works!

After something like two system restores, domain removal, customizing Windows updates, several driver install attempts, swapping hard drives, SP1 uninstall, repair install, about 100 more Windows Updates destroyed by the repair install, and a cumulative total of way too many hours (like 10 or 15), my sound finally works. Maybe it would have been quicker to reformat…

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FOR /F "tokens=*" %%G IN ('DIR /B /AD /S *.svn*') DO RMDIR /S /Q "%%G"

*******************************************

DynamicTreeDemo.java

*******************************************
/*
 * Copyright (c) 1995 - 2008 Sun Microsystems, Inc.  All rights reserved.
 *
 * Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without
 * modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions
 * are met:
 *
 *   - Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright
 *     notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
 *
 *   - Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
 *     notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the
 *     documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution.
 *
 *   - Neither the name of Sun Microsystems nor the names of its
 *     contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived
 *     from this software without specific prior written permission.
 *
 * THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS "AS
 * IS" AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
 * THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
 * PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED.  IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT OWNER OR
 * CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL,
 * EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
 * PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR
 * PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF
 * LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING
 * NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS
 * SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
 */

//package components;
/*
 * This code is based on an example provided by Richard Stanford,
 * a tutorial reader.
 */

import java.awt.BorderLayout;
import java.awt.Dimension;
import java.awt.GridLayout;
import java.awt.event.ActionEvent;
import java.awt.event.ActionListener;
import javax.swing.JButton;
import javax.swing.JFrame;
import javax.swing.JPanel;
import javax.swing.tree.DefaultMutableTreeNode;

public class DynamicTreeDemo extends JPanel implements ActionListener {
    private int newNodeSuffix = 1;
    private static String ADD_COMMAND = "add";
    private static String REMOVE_COMMAND = "remove";
    private static String CLEAR_COMMAND = "clear";

    private DynamicTree treePanel;

    public DynamicTreeDemo() {
        super(new BorderLayout());

        // Create the components.
        treePanel = new DynamicTree();
        populateTree(treePanel);

        JButton addButton = new JButton("Add");
        addButton.setActionCommand(ADD_COMMAND);
        addButton.addActionListener(this);

        JButton removeButton = new JButton("Remove");
        removeButton.setActionCommand(REMOVE_COMMAND);
        removeButton.addActionListener(this);

        JButton clearButton = new JButton("Clear");
        clearButton.setActionCommand(CLEAR_COMMAND);
        clearButton.addActionListener(this);

        // Lay everything out.
        treePanel.setPreferredSize(new Dimension(300, 150));
        add(treePanel, BorderLayout.CENTER);

        JPanel panel = new JPanel(new GridLayout(0, 3));
        panel.add(addButton);
        panel.add(removeButton);
        panel.add(clearButton);
        add(panel, BorderLayout.SOUTH);
    }

    public void populateTree(DynamicTree treePanel) {
        String p1Name = new String("Parent 1");
        String p2Name = new String("Parent 2");
        String c1Name = new String("Child 1");
        String c2Name = new String("Child 2");

        DefaultMutableTreeNode p1, p2;

        p1 = treePanel.addObject(null, p1Name);
        p2 = treePanel.addObject(null, p2Name);

        treePanel.addObject(p1, c1Name);
        treePanel.addObject(p1, c2Name);

        treePanel.addObject(p2, c1Name);
        treePanel.addObject(p2, c2Name);
    }

    public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent e) {
        String command = e.getActionCommand();

        if (ADD_COMMAND.equals(command)) {
            // Add button clicked
            treePanel.addObject("New Node " + newNodeSuffix++);
        } else if (REMOVE_COMMAND.equals(command)) {
            // Remove button clicked
            treePanel.removeCurrentNode();
        } else if (CLEAR_COMMAND.equals(command)) {
            // Clear button clicked.
            treePanel.clear();
        }
    }

    /**
     * Create the GUI and show it. For thread safety, this method should be
     * invoked from the event-dispatching thread.
     */
    private static void createAndShowGUI() {
        // Create and set up the window.
        JFrame frame = new JFrame("DynamicTreeDemo");
        frame.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);

        // Create and set up the content pane.
        DynamicTreeDemo newContentPane = new DynamicTreeDemo();
        newContentPane.setOpaque(true); // content panes must be opaque
        frame.setContentPane(newContentPane);

        // Display the window.
        frame.pack();
        frame.setVisible(true);
    }

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        // Schedule a job for the event-dispatching thread:
        // creating and showing this application's GUI.
        javax.swing.SwingUtilities.invokeLater(new Runnable() {
            public void run() {
                createAndShowGUI();
            }
        });
    }
}

*******************************************

DynamicTree.java

*******************************************

/*
 * Copyright (c) 1995 - 2008 Sun Microsystems, Inc.  All rights reserved.
 *
 * Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without
 * modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions
 * are met:
 *
 *   - Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright
 *     notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
 *
 *   - Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
 *     notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the
 *     documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution.
 *
 *   - Neither the name of Sun Microsystems nor the names of its
 *     contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived
 *     from this software without specific prior written permission.
 *
 * THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS "AS
 * IS" AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
 * THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
 * PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED.  IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT OWNER OR
 * CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL,
 * EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
 * PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR
 * PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF
 * LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING
 * NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS
 * SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
 */

//package components;
/*
 * This code is based on an example provided by Richard Stanford,
 * a tutorial reader.
 */

import java.awt.GridLayout;
import java.awt.Toolkit;
import javax.swing.JPanel;
import javax.swing.JScrollPane;
import javax.swing.JTree;
import javax.swing.tree.DefaultMutableTreeNode;
import javax.swing.tree.DefaultTreeModel;
import javax.swing.tree.MutableTreeNode;
import javax.swing.tree.TreePath;
import javax.swing.tree.TreeSelectionModel;
import javax.swing.event.TreeModelEvent;
import javax.swing.event.TreeModelListener;

public class DynamicTree extends JPanel {
	protected DefaultMutableTreeNode rootNode;
	protected DefaultTreeModel treeModel;
	protected JTree tree;
	private Toolkit toolkit = Toolkit.getDefaultToolkit();

	public DynamicTree() {
		super(new GridLayout(1, 0));

		rootNode = new DefaultMutableTreeNode("Root Node");
		treeModel = new DefaultTreeModel(rootNode);

		tree = new JTree(treeModel);
		tree.setEditable(true);
		tree.getSelectionModel().setSelectionMode(TreeSelectionModel.SINGLE_TREE_SELECTION);
		tree.setShowsRootHandles(true);

		JScrollPane scrollPane = new JScrollPane(tree);
		add(scrollPane);
	}

	/** Remove all nodes except the root node. */
	public void clear() {
		rootNode.removeAllChildren();
		treeModel.reload();
	}

	/** Remove the currently selected node. */
	public void removeCurrentNode() {
		TreePath currentSelection = tree.getSelectionPath();
		if (currentSelection != null) {
			DefaultMutableTreeNode currentNode = (DefaultMutableTreeNode) (currentSelection.getLastPathComponent());
			MutableTreeNode parent = (MutableTreeNode) (currentNode.getParent());
			if (parent != null) {
				treeModel.removeNodeFromParent(currentNode);
				return;
			}
		}

		// Either there was no selection, or the root was selected.
		toolkit.beep();
	}

	/** Add child to the currently selected node. */
	public DefaultMutableTreeNode addObject(Object child) {
		DefaultMutableTreeNode parentNode = null;
		TreePath parentPath = tree.getSelectionPath();

		if (parentPath == null) {
			parentNode = rootNode;
		} else {
			parentNode = (DefaultMutableTreeNode) (parentPath.getLastPathComponent());
		}

		return addObject(parentNode, child, true);
	}

	public DefaultMutableTreeNode addObject(DefaultMutableTreeNode parent, Object child) {
		return addObject(parent, child, false);
	}

	public DefaultMutableTreeNode addObject(DefaultMutableTreeNode parent, Object child, boolean shouldBeVisible) {
		DefaultMutableTreeNode childNode = new DefaultMutableTreeNode(child);

		if (parent == null) {
			parent = rootNode;
		}

		// It is key to invoke this on the TreeModel, and NOT
		// DefaultMutableTreeNode
		treeModel.insertNodeInto(childNode, parent, parent.getChildCount());

		// Make sure the user can see the lovely new node.
		if (shouldBeVisible) {
			tree.scrollPathToVisible(new TreePath(childNode.getPath()));
		}
		return childNode;
	}

	class MyTreeModelListener implements TreeModelListener {
		public void treeNodesChanged(TreeModelEvent e) {
			DefaultMutableTreeNode node;
			node = (DefaultMutableTreeNode) (e.getTreePath().getLastPathComponent());

			/*
			 * If the event lists children, then the changed node is the child
			 * of the node we've already gotten. Otherwise, the changed node and
			 * the specified node are the same.
			 */

			int index = e.getChildIndices()[0];
			node = (DefaultMutableTreeNode) (node.getChildAt(index));

			System.out.println("The user has finished editing the node.");
			System.out.println("New value: " + node.getUserObject());
		}

		public void treeNodesInserted(TreeModelEvent e) {
		}

		public void treeNodesRemoved(TreeModelEvent e) {
		}

		public void treeStructureChanged(TreeModelEvent e) {
		}
	}
}

Why am I glad? Because my Trac Phone is 3.5 years old, tends to freeze, has the battery life of a grape (well, maybe an onion), has a taped together case, gets terrible reception (despite already using the verizon network), has a low resolution screen, and probably more. It has served me well, though, and I would have been “happy” to keep it for another year.

Granted, it is in pretty good condition. I’ve always kept it in the case and the only scratches are on the corners where I’ve dropped it…

Trac Phone - Top View. See the tape holding the case together at the bottom?

Trac Phone - Side View

The intro menu for the game.

An in-game look. The cycle on the left was just destroyed.

There are some problems running on Windows Vista, but I was able to convert the application to run OK using a program written by the creator of Game Maker. Be sure you download the correct version. There are no installers or anything like that, but the game does require that you have both the .exe and the .ini file in the same directory.

Download Link for both XP and Vista