Side Quests: Satisfy Your Distracted Self
summary
Builds a 2-axis plotter in a basement, prototypes a party glove (a palm transducer that blasts music), and designs an open-source light bar used for long‑exposure pride photography. Uses 60 LEDs per meter strips, later replaces off‑the‑shelf controllers with a custom ATtiny85 PCB to animate bars. Runs a year‑long “Pride everywhere” project, sells prints to raise roughly $3,000 for LGBTQ+ groups, shoots about 150 WWE talent over two days, and applies ESP32s for a fish‑farm automation job — things actually made, shipped, funded, and photographed.
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chapters (9)
- 0:00Introduction and side quests
- 2:55Creative path and career
- 7:39Developing the light project
- 13:47Pride project evolution
- 20:48Impact and advocacy
- 26:48Refining technical builds
- 30:36Collaboration with WWE
- 36:51Lessons in creativity
- 41:08Future goals and closing
related talks
46mInteractive Light
46mThrough Technology, into Imagination
49mHack to the Future
19mAdventures with blinking lights
45mGetting artistic with code
17mI can stop adding more LEDs anytime I want, I just choose not to
15mObelisk and the Known Unknowns (Or: The Art of Fumbling Through your...)
21mUsing comedy as an excuse to play with python-programmed microcontrollers