09:33
According to the project web site, InstantSOUP is “an electronics cookbook … introducing electronic prototyping in a playful, non-technical way.” Initiated by the Interaction Design Institute Ivrea and led by Yaniv Steiner, InstantSOUP is a playpen for working with physical interfaces. Using Processing and the Wiring interface board (which was started at Ivrea), readers learn to build simple interfaces and repurpose existing electronics.
InstantSOUP is still in beta, but there are already 5 recipes worth getting busy with. The recipes are written in non-threatening plain language, with photos and diagrams laying out the step-by-step progress. Sample projects include rewiring a USB keyboard controller to make a SoundPad, a simple 4-button input device. No Wiring board is required for this one so you can get it up and running without extra hardware (the recipe uses Flash, though). TinkerToy is a classic hack, in which a RF controlled toy car is hijacked using Wiring.
Kenny Rinaldo was teaching microcontroller stuff using Parallax’s Basic Stamp at Ohio State a couple of years ago. I’d tell you what he’s using now if I could find a syllabus.
I got a learner’s kit from Parallax for ~$150 a couple of years ago. It came with full docs, a book of tutorials, breadboard, wires, LED’s, a step motor, etc. The book describes itself as being written for young teenagers.
On Slashdot there was a flurry of posts 18 months back about using routers for their microcontrollers (they’re cheap, they come with a power supply, assembled from off-the-shelf components, there’s some RAM on the board, some lights, pop them off and there’s your data out). This would be your macho/my-time-is-worth-nothing option.
http://www.parallax.com/
http://accad.osu.edu/~rinaldo/
http://arts.osu.edu/2faculty/a_faculty_profiles/art_fac_profiles/rinaldo_kenneth.html
http://www.uclinux.org/ports/
Thanks, Neal, great links. I found the InstantSOUP link on the Processing board, where there was another great link to retrofitted game controllers. They use USB, so there’s no need to be macho:
http://www.retrousb.com/