MAKE: Newsletter

Tuesday July 18, 2017

MegaBet: Inside MegaBot's Journey to Launch a Giant Combat Robot League   MegaBots' Mk.III is a towering, $2.5 million dollar fighting robot that, its creators hope, will kick off a new form of live entertainment, a wild mix of UFC bouts and monster truck rallies. Make:'s Executive Editor Mike Senese went behind-the-scenes with the team in the days leading up to the robot's first (and only) public appearance — at Maker Faire Bay Area — before its much-hyped battle with Japanese opponent Kuratas.

READ MORE           Sponsored by:             Cultivating a Neighborhood Garden as a Community Organizing Hub   Bottom's Up Community Garden in West Oakland, California, grows more than just healthy produce. It's become a jumping off point for strengthening community, organizing events, and DIY living.       Read More           Sponsored Content       ESP8266, Arduino, and Pi Projects Made Easy   Cayenne is a free project builder for makers to easily create and control ESP8266, Arduino, and Raspberry Pi automation projects. •  Remotely manage and control sensors and actuators •  Create and visualize data with custom dashboards and drag-and-drop widgets •  Built-in automation with triggers and alerts •  Get started from the Android and iPhone apps Jumpstart your project in minutes!       Get it Free           Making Your Own Custom Shortcut Keyboard   SparkFun engineer Alex built a custom keypad populated with shortcut commands for the Autodesk Eagle CAD software program he uses to design circuit boards, but you could easily modify it for whatever keyboard commands you want!       Read More           Sponsored by:             Twist Fabric Scraps into Colorful Twine   Upcycle your fabric scraps and offcuts, and make a colorful alternative to rope and cord for your future weaving and craft activities.       Read More           Sponsored Content       Create the Next Great Fat Brain Toy   Fat Brain Toys has launched the Kidventor Challenge, which gives kids the opportunity to submit their unique and creative design ideas for new toys and games. The winner will get a $2,500 scholarship, $500 in toys, a prize pack from Make:, and his or her invention presented at the New York City Toy Fair and potentially sold around the world!       Learn more           Family Project: Paint with Light   Explore simple circuits and long-exposure photography to create beautiful light trails and designs in your photos. Build LED wands with different sizes and shapes to create dramatic effects. Best of all, it's really easy!       Read More           Sponsored by:             Tips of the Week: Tool Layout, Parachute Bags, Glove-Love, and Bendy Sticks   Tips of the Week is a weekly peek at some of the best making tips, tricks, and recommendations we’ve come across in our travels. Check in every Friday to see what we've found and share your tips, shortcuts, best practices, and tall shop tales in the comments!       Read More           More from Make:   Sparkfun's ESP8266 Thing (as in “Internet of Things”) is an inexpensive board for creating a Wi-Fi enabled electronics project. Check out our mini review!   Carlos Navarro shared his very cute pet robot, Zappy, over on Maker Share. Zappy can autonomously rove around and follow or avoid objects in its path. Watch the video to see it in action.   The Call For Makers is now open for the 8th annual World Maker Faire in New York! Number eight is going to be bigger than ever as we return to the largest city in the U.S. and fill the New York Hall of Science with incredible innovation and creativity. Apply today!           Upcoming Maker Faires   »  Maker Faire Singapore (Republic of Singapore): July 22–23 »  Wichita Mini Maker Faire (KS): July 22–23 »  Institute of Imagination Mini Maker Faire (London, UK): July 29 »  Maker Faire Detroit (Dearborn, MI): July 29–30 »  Chicago Southside Mini Maker Faire (IL): August 5 »  South Bend Mini Maker Faire (IN): August 5 »  Dayton Mini Maker Faire (OH): August 5–6 »  Maker Faire Tokyo (Japan): August 5–6   Find a Maker Faire near you on the Maker Faire map.     FIND A FAIRE         Maker Media, Inc | 1700 Montgomery St, Suite 240 | San Francisco, CA 94111