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Taking things apart to see how they work is always a joy, but in modern electronics miniaturisation has made that a challenge for the hobbyist. Even ignoring devices like integrated circuits, which can't be properly analysed without a bath of acid and a microscope, taking some components apart to understand their inner workings can be a challenge - and can leave you with a pile of parts and no hope of restoring them to working condition. That's one of the reasons we're so taken with Anthony Garofalo's latest project: a super-sized home-made stepper motor. Built to demonstrate how a stepper...

Choosing an input method for interacting with your projects can be a challenge. Many hobbyist projects need little more than a few buttons, a switch or two, or a keypad or keyboard. When you start getting into the realm of robotics, you begin to need something a little more flexible: joysticks, typically, with a variable range of motion to control the speed. A US start-up company has come up with an alternative option: a touch-sensitive surface with an incredible amount of sensitivity. Dubbed the Morph, much of Sensel's demonstrations revolve around its use as a computer input: it can be...

Our friendly journalist Gareth Halfacree recently attended the Manchester MakeFest on our behalf, talking to the thronging crowds find out what's hot in the maker world at the minute. This series of Focus On features takes a look at some of the event's exhibitors, finding out what they're up to and what makes them tick.There's plenty to see at the Arduino Manchester table, located in the main hall of the Museum of Science and Industry over the two-day MakeFest. Although the group's primary theme of 'awkward arcade' - "games that are awkward or tricky to play," Chris Ball explains, waving...

Our friendly journalist Gareth Halfacree recently attended the Manchester MakeFest on our behalf, talking to the thronging crowds find out what's hot in the maker world at the minute. This series of Focus On features takes a look at some of the event's exhibitors, finding out what they're up to and what makes them tick.If you're a regular Maker Faire visitor, the chances are you'll recognise the face of Tim Wappat - although perhaps not his get-up, a safari ranger's outfit complete with pith helmet. "I've been doing Maker Faires for a few years now, and do a different project...

Our friendly journalist Gareth Halfacree recently attended the Manchester MakeFest on our behalf, talking to the thronging crowds find out what's hot in the maker world at the minute. This series of Focus On features takes a look at some of the event's exhibitors, finding out what they're up to and what makes them tick.There's plenty to distract visitors to the first Manchester HackFest at the Museum of Science and Industry, from light shows and fabric workshops through to Noisy Toys and their Audio Assault Buggy, but there's one auditory experience enjoying a constant stream of visitors: the B0rkestra, a...