Teardown 2024 with Debra Ansell
The Bootloader Episode 11
Welcome! We have an episode 11 wrap-up and an update for you, some leftover links, what we've been up to since our last episode, and an exciting announcement.
Thanks for subscribing and you can follow The Bootloader on Mastodon or follow Paul or Tod.
We want to hear from you! Know a cool maker, product, or project we should discuss? Have comments or feedback? Feel free to email Paul.
CircuitPython Day 2024
Friday, August 16th, is CircuitPython Day 2024 when the community comes together to celebrate all things CircuitPython. Tod and I will be hosting a live stream of The Bootloader on Adafruit's YouTube channel. Keep an eye on the Adafruit Blog for the schedule and see you there!
Show Highlights
Buttowndown, our email newsletter provider (whom I strongly recommend), just added support for embedding podcast episodes in the newsletter, so of course I just had to try it. If you haven't listened to the latest episode yet, give us a listen:
I hope you've enjoyed the interviews with Justin and Debra the last two episodes. Next month we'll have our first guest on the show!
Tod has already ordered a Tulip Creative Computer. They've sold out of the first batch and according to their homepage, the next batch will be ready around August 20th.
Scott Shawcroft, CircuitPython's lead developer also working on CircuitMatter, was kind enough to update me that he hopes CircuitMatter will work on any microcontroller with Wi-Fi that supports IPv6. BLE is only needed if the device isn't on WiFI already. Thanks Scott!
Leftover Links
These are interesting things we found but didn't make it into the show.
- What is your favorite Synth Bass in any song, any era? - Reddit thread
- If you liked Radio Free Fedi from Episode 9, check out Bonkwave if you're into electronic music.
- Everyone should have an autotune kazoo with wireless MIDI, created by Guy Dupont (GitHub repository).
- Communicate with your Pinecil soldering iron using Python with this Python library. It also powers a new upcoming Home Assistant integration.
From the hosts
Tod
What I'm working on: I'm making yet another DIY synth PCB! When #CircuitPythonDay2024 was announced a few days ago, I decided to make a custom board, basing it on the "picotouch_bizcard" I did in July. That's a business card-sized USB MIDI controller / Macropad keypad that's super cute and tiny.
But I wanted more from that form-factor. More buttons, more sequencery. My "picostepseq" CircuitPythonDay2022 project was also a sequencer, so it felt right go that direction.
I'm calling the new PCB "picotouch_drumcard": a playing card-sized drum machine. It features audio out, MIDI in/out, and can be battery powered. I only spent two days on the design before sending it off to PCB fab, so who knows if it actually works. But if it does, I'll have code and videos of it by CircuitPython Day and maybe have some in the Tindie store if anyone else wants to try it out.
What I'm watching: For the last week I've been watching "The Great", a fairly fictionalized and hilarious account of the rise of Empress Catherine The Great of Russia. Elle Fanning as Catherine is amazing, and all the costumes and locations are just wonderful. Highly recommended even though I'm only done with the first season.
What I'm listening to: Between that "favorite synth bass" reddit thread (and the subsequent thread on Mastodon, I've been listening to an ad-hoc playlist of great songs from the last 40 years, especially some of the re-creations or dissections of famous bass lines like Madonna's "Into the Groove", Michael Jackson's "Thriller", and Kajagoogoo's "Too Shy" (the last is not technically synth bass, but it's Kajagoogoo, so it gets a pass)
Paul
What I'm working on: I haven't worked on much this month as I've waited ten long years for the return of the video game College Football '25. I've been spending way too much time playing my beloved Wisconsin Badgers in pursuit of a national championship.
What I'm reading: Following up on the Delta-V series I mentioned last newsletter: it turns out it's a trilogy, not a two book series, and now I'm waiting impatiently for the third book to be released.
What I'm watching: The final season of Evil on Paramount+. The first two seasons are also on Netflix and this show is sometimes compared to The X-Files, but it's a bit wackier. A priest, a person of science, and a psychologist investigate the occult for the Catholic church. Like The X-Files, each episode is a mystery of the week with an overlying plot line throughout the season.
What I'm listening to:
- Passage du Desir by Johnny Blue Skies (aka Sturgill Simpson). If you're a fan of alt-country, this is Sturgill Simpson at his finest.
- Exotic Themes for the Silver Screen, Volume 1 by Michael Giacchino. I guarantee you know this composer's work from Pixar movies such as The Incredibles and Ratatouille to J.J. Abrams movies and TV Shows including Super8, Alias, and Lost.
- Podcasts: When We Were Wizards is a 14 episode podcast that just wrapped up. It is an oral history of the rise and fall of Dungeons & Dragon's founder Gary Gygax and the company he founded, TSR Hobbies. There were some Succession-level machinations going on behind the scenes with the founders and the executives.
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Until next time - stay positive!
You made it to the end! You deserve a cat picture.
