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The UK Maker Belt, an area roughly contained in a a box drawn from Hull through the canal to Nottingham then via the canal back up to Liverpool and home to some of the most exciting makers in the world, is to have a higher-than-usual concentration of excellence next week when the second annual Wuthering Bytes festival kicks off in nearby Hebden Bridge. We've already mentioned the OSHCamp talks taking place on Saturday, but the three-day event also includes some familiar faces displaying their expertise on Friday the 15th. The whole schedule is impressive in its splendour, but as hands-on...

Our friends at Freetronics have brought to our attention a project by Dimitrios Kalfakis that uses the Arduino and its ATmega328 microcontroller in an interesting way: as the heart of an 1980s-style microcomputer. Like its three-decade-old inspirations, in particular the Epson HX-20, the DemUino is built into a keyboard and features a small character-based liquid-crystal display. Its well-documented successor, the DemiUno2, offers considerably more features, while Dimitrios has published an Instructable for building the original. I've always wanted to build my own home computer, kind of retro-style, nothing fancy but with particular capabilities tailored to my preferences. So, I got...

Powering projects away from the bench can be a pain, but engineers Pete Carpenter and Vicki Henderson have what they claim is a solution: the Small Systems PWRLNK. Its slightly awkward name notwithstanding, the PWRLNK is a smart power adapter capable of taking AC or DC power from old laptop bricks, solar panels, hand-cranks and more and turning it into a stable 5V supply perfect for all USB devices and many microcontrollers.While its relatively high price of $45 shipped from the US means it isn't suitable as a permanent power supply for most projects, it could prove a handy addition...

Vintage computing enthusiasts are often aware of how modern technology can breathe new life into classic devices, and Peter Edwards is no exception. He has recently completed an Arduino Nano-based tape drive emulator for the Commodore 64 - the world's biggest-selling single model of computer - that cost less than AU$20. As well as a build log, Peter has posted a great tutorial for building the device onto Veroboard, and his Arduino code can be found on GitHub.Inspired by the Uno2Tap firmware, I wondered if I could move the PC part of that solution onto an MCU and create something...

Here at oomlout we're enthusiastic - obsessive, some might say - about the humble light-emitting diode, so it was with great joy we clapped eyes on computer science student Yannick Richter's latest project: a ridiculously overpowered hand-portable torch based around a 100W LED and capable of putting out a beam measured at over 8,000 lumens. For perspective, that's around four times brighter than the average small-office projector and four thousand times brighter than our 5mm RGB LEDs.All LEDs need a constant current source, so I mounted a big 600W constant current boost converter in the case supplying 3,2A at >32V....