make. break. in no particular order.

My name is Andy and I make lots of random stuff. Read more about me on the About page.

What's New, You Ask?

I've released a tiny little macOS menubar utility I use to quickly swap my SSH config files between different environments or use cases. It's called Sshwitch.

Side note: On this website, I am using the super-cool Input font for this site. If you write code and you want to use it for your code editor, grab it here: https://input.djr.com/

Latest Blog Articles

CalDigit TS4 Thunderbolt 4 Dock
📆 Dec 30. 2025
📁 Computer Stuff

CalDigit TS4 Thunderbolt 4 Dock

My thoughts on the CalDigit TS4 Thunderbolt 4 dock

The Shed Beast: A 12x16 Wood Frame Storage Shed
📆 Mar 23. 2020
📁 Uncategorized

The Shed Beast: A 12x16 Wood Frame Storage Shed

Designing and building a massive 192 sq ft workshop shed.

Fitness Tracker Tester (& Pokemon Incubator?)
📆 Oct 12. 2016
📁 Uncategorized

Fitness Tracker Tester (& Pokemon Incubator?)

A generic device for... testing fitness trackers. Yeah, testing.

Photo Parade!

A Maker Review on Bluetooth Smart Beacons (or Apple iBeacons)
Tony Stark for Halloween 2010: The Arc Reactor (RT Mark II)
Making Mad Props for meltmedia's Interactive Superhero Marketing Launch: The HAT
Electronics and Hack Workbench
LED Mood Lamp
What makes a Maker tick?
DIY Workshop Stereo Boombox Kinda Thing
2012 Kentucky Bourbon Festival
Office Chairiot Mark II - Progress Update
Introducing: The Office Chairiot Mark II - Labor In Motion Again
Stripe - Card Processing for Developers
Focus, Dammit! Or, How I've Learned to Control A.D.D.
CalDigit TS4 Thunderbolt 4 Dock
Recycled Sparkfun Shipping Box Wire Dispenser
Disney Glow With The Show Ears Teardown
Backyard Propane Fire Pit, Pavers and Outhouse Project
Update: LED Reading Lamp Materializing
Touch Screens: Some Interesting History and Info
Objective-C/iOS/iPhone: UIColor from NSString
DIY Cornhole Game Set
Mac OS X Lion and iSCSI Using FreeNAS and globalSAN
Turn a Servo Into an Inexpensive Geared Motor
12VAC Power Supply from Ikea Wall Wart Light Power Supply
December 2014 Office Chairiot Mark II Update: Electronics A Plenty!
Making Mad Props for meltmedia's Interactive Superhero Marketing Launch: The Rest of the Props
Standing Desk Improvisation Inspiration with Little Perspiration
RoboStocking - AVR, Servo, Motor, IR Sensor, and BOOM!!! Merry Christmas!
My First Amplifier Circuit: LM386 Easy Amp
Fitbit Cheat-O-Matic 2: 3D Printed Mechanical Simplicity
AVR Serial Communications Using XBee RF Modules
A Maker Review on Bluetooth Smart Beacons (or Apple iBeacons)
Tony Stark for Halloween 2010: The Arc Reactor (RT Mark II)
Making Mad Props for meltmedia's Interactive Superhero Marketing Launch: The HAT
Electronics and Hack Workbench
LED Mood Lamp
What makes a Maker tick?
DIY Workshop Stereo Boombox Kinda Thing
2012 Kentucky Bourbon Festival
Office Chairiot Mark II - Progress Update
Introducing: The Office Chairiot Mark II - Labor In Motion Again
Stripe - Card Processing for Developers
Focus, Dammit! Or, How I've Learned to Control A.D.D.
CalDigit TS4 Thunderbolt 4 Dock
Recycled Sparkfun Shipping Box Wire Dispenser
Disney Glow With The Show Ears Teardown
Backyard Propane Fire Pit, Pavers and Outhouse Project
Update: LED Reading Lamp Materializing
Touch Screens: Some Interesting History and Info
Objective-C/iOS/iPhone: UIColor from NSString
DIY Cornhole Game Set
Mac OS X Lion and iSCSI Using FreeNAS and globalSAN
Turn a Servo Into an Inexpensive Geared Motor
12VAC Power Supply from Ikea Wall Wart Light Power Supply
December 2014 Office Chairiot Mark II Update: Electronics A Plenty!
Making Mad Props for meltmedia's Interactive Superhero Marketing Launch: The Rest of the Props
Standing Desk Improvisation Inspiration with Little Perspiration
RoboStocking - AVR, Servo, Motor, IR Sensor, and BOOM!!! Merry Christmas!
My First Amplifier Circuit: LM386 Easy Amp
Fitbit Cheat-O-Matic 2: 3D Printed Mechanical Simplicity
AVR Serial Communications Using XBee RF Modules

Maker Resources

A radnom sampling of tools and resources I find useful. View all resources →

Developer Tools
Pico CSS

Minimal CSS framework for semantic HTML. It makes things look great without writing classes.

Visit Resource →
Learning Platforms
FreeCodeCamp

A non-profit organization that consists of an interactive learning web platform, an online community forum, chat rooms, online publications and local organizations.

Visit Resource →

Resources for STEM

Find stuff for learning Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. View STEM

STEM Stuff
How Stuff Works?

“HowStuffWorks explains the curiosities of our world, delving into everything from cyber security and housecleaning tips to the physics of black holes and the history of slang. We provide factual, unbiased content that’s fun to read — seriously, check out this piece on the world’s ugliest animal and tell us you didn’t at least crack a smile when you found out why blobfish are so ... blobby.“ —HowStuffWorks.com About page

Visit Resource →
STEM Stuff
Science Friday

(Shouldn’t every single day be Science Friday? Science Friday Monday, Science Friday Tuesday, etc.) “Science Friday is an award-winning producer of high quality, fact-checked, and trustworthy science news and educational programming. For 30 years, we’ve introduced top scientists to public radio listeners, and reminded them how much fun it is to learn something new. But we’re more than just a radio show. We produce a sweeping array of educational and entertaining science experiences through videos, podcasts, digital media, live events, citizen science, K-12 education and professional development, and at-home learning activities for families that directly serve hundreds of thousands of educators, parents, citizen scientists, and lifelong learners every year.” —ScienceFriday.com About page

Visit Resource →
STEM Stuff
Code.org

"Code.org® is an education innovation nonprofit dedicated to the vision that every student in every school has the opportunity to learn computer science and artificial intelligence as part of their core K-12 education. We expand access to and participation in computer science in schools, with a focus on increasing participation by young women and students from other underrepresented groups. The leading provider of K-12 computer science curriculum in the largest school districts in the United States, Code.org also organizes the annual Hour of Code campaign, which has engaged more than 15% of all students in the world. Code.org is supported by generous donors including Microsoft, Amazon, Google and many others." —Code.org About page

Visit Resource →

Resources for STEM & Women/Girls in Tech

Technology is super cool and it shouldn't care who makes it that way. Women/Girls in Tech.

Women & Girls in Tech
ProjectCSGirls (ProjectCSGIRLS.com)

“ProjectCSGIRLS is a 501(c)(3) international nonprofit organization dedicated to closing the gender gap in computing and technology. Our unique idea of a technology and computer science competition for middle school girls stemmed from the fact that a large chunk of learning and development occurs during the critical middle school period.” (See the statistic above!)

Visit Resource →
Women & Girls in Tech
Bridging the Gender Divide: Guide to Overcoming Broadband Access to be a Woman Leader in STEM

I was sent a link to this article on Reviews.com. It has some great content on the subject of girls in STEM, which you can jump to by clicking this link to the article. Down in the article is a pretty hefty list of links to things like scholarships, projects that encourage young girls to get into STEM, in-college programs that promote women in tech, and even a list of degrees in STEM. Check it out!

Visit Resource →