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Got home too late for woodworking after dinner, so instead I spent about an hour on networked data logging. Really I got looking at what it would take to refer to systems by name so I could skip the whole ip address changing challenge. And by that, I mean I got looking into an almost totally unrelated DDNS system so I could self host.
Honestly, I need to get back on track with project every day. Small steps every day.

Tonight I’ll use the router to straighten a board to use as my cutting guide. Then I can just clamp things for a straight cut. Next will be measuring out my master for the cut outs. Doing things ghetto can be fun and difficult at the same time. I figure at a later point I’ll start looking at how to do things right with more better tools. I just didn’t want to spend money until I knew what I was really looking at.

I was feeling cheap and lazy (er both) so I got a little trim router instead. Also got wood and stuff. Tried using the Wif’s battery powered circular saw on the plywood, but it was binding up. I’ve never really liked the thing. It also was tearing the living daylights out of the edge, so I put that away. Our came the router. After poking at some stuff, got it going. It was also trying to bind and jump and whatever, so I backed off. Raised the bit, and it went through like butter. Listed the blade a bit, ran another pass like butter. So tomorrow, it looks like I’ll mount on a straight line, and cut like an emo teen. Not deep, just over and over.

Router table
Wood glue (have some, need less dried out)
Level
Plywood sheet
Posts (5×3′ ?)
Dowels
Clamps? Wouldn’t hurt

So the Wif wants me to build a cat tree, something like:
this picture
So tomorrow we’re planning to hit Harbor Freight. I was looking at a router at the Despot. Then I realized I could get the same damn thing (plus or minus) at half the price.
Yay! I’m getting a router table!

So Inkscape can’t print for me, but Inkscape can save a pdf which I can print. The I’d bit is that when it fails to print, it locks the printer as well. I should look into a firmware update, or I should look into what kind of data that Inkscape is trying to send. I’d have to guess that it’s… hmmm… an end-of-line mismatch? That might make sense.

Huh. Will that’s crashing pretty reliably. It doesn’t help that Ubuntu is actually on the current version. I figure out might be something I’m doing, but who knows what. I think I might just go old school designing the keyboard.

So my old keyboard (the one I style the switches from) had a spread of close to a waterer out looks like. I’m thinking go an eighth.
0.61″+0.125″
Next, keys need to be in rows. I want a number pad, but I don’t want the foot print (by the way, my phone just interpreted my swiping of foot print as shit urine, to clarify I also don’t want the shit urine) that entails. The pebble is I also don’t like how over purposed keypads in the jkl; region have that terrible offset. So, the easy stilton is don’t offset them or… just streaming some consciousness here, what if I still used the real estate across the side, but not the top. No, stick with the original plan, rows are on a grid.
2 position keys are:
Tab
Caps
L. Shift
L. Control
Backspace
Enter
R. Shift
R. Control
Space will be odd man out at 4 or more spaces
I never liked the Fn key on midst laptops, so I think I’ll call it Mod instead.

Baby steps.
Went looking at laptops yesterday. I really wasn’t feeling the ones I looked at. Some were big and shiny. Some were small and gutless. Some wee ugly as sin. Some were out of the price range I felt. While I’m looking at System 76, I’m not feeling them as really fitting my needs. I’m not sure why, the build quality sounds good, the price on the one I’m looking at seems legit, just something. I think it’s the sustainability.
I want supply chains I own. I want to be able to upgrade the hardware I have. I want to own my hardware.
So in that light…
I still have the Beaglebone Black. It’s older than some of the other options that are out there, but a) I have one that I’m not using b) it’s (if I remember correctly) open source for hardware and drivers. This will already put me miles ahead of other options that I’m seeing. I’ll need to add other hardware into the mix. Wifi, video, storage, keyboard, pointer, usb hub, and battery charging for a start. I’ll start with the keyboard, pointer, and usb first. They’re all closely tied together. Or at least two of the three are closely connected. I should start by starting to do the keyboard. I’ve got the does and the switches. I think I have enough switches. I guess I’ll find out. In memory of the Compaq Aero, I’ll add a thumb stick and buttons to the right edge. So I can rock all this using a Teensy (which I have) or (a Pi Zero? I think a Pi Zero can be a hub). Pop in a Thing for…
Nope. Getting ahead of myself. Right now. Start dicking around with switches. Now.
(Slightly delayed plans as we have a new kitteh arriving tomorrow)
Now.

I have given up on the combo of a TMP36 with that particular Thing. It isn’t meant to be. At least for now. On the other hand, it’s currently 82.03°F next to my computer, and I know this because I just looked it up. From two stories away.
The BME280 breakout is playing nice, I have the Thing serving a webpage, it’s going good. Next.
I need to get node up on my system, and push the data from the Thing. This will mean that I’ll be able to log data over time, so I can see what resistor ranges I get in a location.
I think, once I move the sensor away from the desktop itself, I’ll probably get a much wider range of temperatures. If I can get a range going a little below optimal fermentation I might be able to just add enough (thermal mass? heat sink?) that the overall temperature stays consistent over time. This might be a pipe dream though.