Thanks to EEWeb for featuring an interview they did with me on their site.

What is SOPA?

The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA, H.R. 3261) is on the surface a bill that attempts to curb online piracy. Sadly, the proposed way it goes about doing this would devastate the online economy and the overall freedom of the web. It would particularly affect sites with heavy user generated content. Sites like Youtube, Reddit, Twitter, and others may cease to exist in their current form if this bill is passed.

Most of you already know that Steve Jobs has passed away. He will be greatly missed in the technology field for the changes and innovations he has brought us. He was a maker and hacker at his core, never settling for second best. The video above is from his Stanford Commencement Speech back in 2005, you can tell that the entire audience is hanging on his every word even though he was a college drop out. To learn about his journey from the beginning to where Apple is now watch the two programs below.

RIP Steve, you will be missed.

Titans – Steve Jobs

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So you have probably heard all about the Open Hardware Summit which is being held in New York on September 23rd. If not you should click here to read what it’s all about. Hacked Gadgets is one of the sponsors of the event but I will unfortunately not be able to attend, this means that I have 2 tickets for a Hacked Gadgets reader who will be in New York on Thursday and would like to catch the event.

If you would like to get one or both of the free tickets please send me an email, add a short blurb about how you could use the tickets (and if you need 1 or both). Please only send in a request for the ticket(s) if you can actually go to the event.

You can see a schedule of the event after the jump.

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Sparkfun received a Cease and Desist letter from SPARC International. It’s a sad day when a good organization like SPARC have a bunch of lawyers that do nothing but send out this type of garbage. This just causes unnecessary havoc for a great company like Sparkfun who has a name that has a section which sounds similar. What’s next SparkPlug International will no longer be able to sell their electronic spark plug tester?

This reminds me of the careless actions of Monster Cable!

Click here to send an email to sparcinfo@sparc.org to let them know how you feel.

Thanks CY Brown and IraqiGeek for the info.

You may remember the Paintball Sentry Gun that we featured last year. Well the team over at The Sentry Project has not been resting, the new version of the gun software is now available on Ebay and it looks very impressive. It was very sensitive and precise before but have a look at the videos, it has been tweaked to improve the results! I wish I owned a junkyard, I would get rid of the dog and purchase a few of these.

"The software kit is an inexpensive solution for building your own Automated Sentry. It is ideal for those of you who are mechanically inclined or have custom applications in mind.   

The Software Kit will consist of the software and the servo controller. They cannot be separated because the software only works with the that specific servo controller. They will be auctioned off on eBay to eliminate the possibility of me charging too much or too little.

The kit can be used for anything from a harmless video surveillance system that tracks and zooms in on moving objects, to a full fledged, heavy duty, gun platform (for area denial or force multiplication) or anything in between."

Ever wonder how that Canadian Maple Syrup gets into the bottle that is sitting beside your stack of pancakes? Our friends over at The Workshop have made a short video that demonstrates the Maple Syrup making process from tree to bottle. Unlike other syrups it doesn’t start by crushing fruit or melting sugar, Maple Syrup is simply the boiled tree sap!

"Maple syrup is a sweetener made from the sap of maple trees. In Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States it is most often eaten with waffles, pancakes, and French Toast. It is sometimes used as an ingredient in baking, the making of candy, preparing desserts, or as a sugar source and flavoring agent in making beer. Sucrose is the most prevalent sugar in maple syrup."