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!

June 18, 2014 is the National Day of Making
meltmedia Hack Day July 2012!
iPotti #2: After a Number One, We Had to Make a Number Two
Making Mad Props for meltmedia's Interactive Superhero Marketing Launch: Techno HAMMER
Standing Desk Improvisation Inspiration with Little Perspiration
The 2014 Southwest Maker Fest in Mesa, AZ
Foam Core Backdrop Support Frame
Quick Little 3.3V and 5V Benchtop Switching Power Supplies
Charlieplexing LEDs with an AVR ATmega328
LED Reading Lamp
Touch Screens: Some Interesting History and Info
Solenoid-Powered 6 Brass Bell
DIY Cornhole Game Set
AVR Serial Communications Using XBee RF Modules
Disney Glow With The Show Ears Teardown
meltmedia meltHack-A-Palooza V: The Lost Pushbutton
iPhone Lens Adapters from Photojojo
Mac OS X Lion and iSCSI Using FreeNAS and globalSAN
December 2014 Office Chairiot Mark II Update: Electronics A Plenty!
2012 Kentucky Bourbon Festival
FitBit Contest at meltmedia - No Cheat-O-Matic
Office Chair Land Speed Record?
USB Foam Dart Launcher Assimilated (Partially)
Adjustable Workbench Cigar Holder
Stripe - Card Processing for Developers
Fitbit Cheat-O-Matic 2: 3D Printed Mechanical Simplicity
Update on Backyard DIY LP Fire Pit
Welcome!
Dartboard Backstop from Office Corkboard
Designing a New Man Cave and Workshop
June 18, 2014 is the National Day of Making
meltmedia Hack Day July 2012!
iPotti #2: After a Number One, We Had to Make a Number Two
Making Mad Props for meltmedia's Interactive Superhero Marketing Launch: Techno HAMMER
Standing Desk Improvisation Inspiration with Little Perspiration
The 2014 Southwest Maker Fest in Mesa, AZ
Foam Core Backdrop Support Frame
Quick Little 3.3V and 5V Benchtop Switching Power Supplies
Charlieplexing LEDs with an AVR ATmega328
LED Reading Lamp
Touch Screens: Some Interesting History and Info
Solenoid-Powered 6 Brass Bell
DIY Cornhole Game Set
AVR Serial Communications Using XBee RF Modules
Disney Glow With The Show Ears Teardown
meltmedia meltHack-A-Palooza V: The Lost Pushbutton
iPhone Lens Adapters from Photojojo
Mac OS X Lion and iSCSI Using FreeNAS and globalSAN
December 2014 Office Chairiot Mark II Update: Electronics A Plenty!
2012 Kentucky Bourbon Festival
FitBit Contest at meltmedia - No Cheat-O-Matic
Office Chair Land Speed Record?
USB Foam Dart Launcher Assimilated (Partially)
Adjustable Workbench Cigar Holder
Stripe - Card Processing for Developers
Fitbit Cheat-O-Matic 2: 3D Printed Mechanical Simplicity
Update on Backyard DIY LP Fire Pit
Welcome!
Dartboard Backstop from Office Corkboard
Designing a New Man Cave and Workshop

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.

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Resources for STEM

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

STEM Stuff
Stellarium

(This is the web version of the app.) “Stellarium Web [is] an online planetarium running in your web browser based on the open source Stellarium Web Engine project. Please report any bugs or ask questions on www.stellarium-labs.com or on our Github page. This web version of Stellarium is a [2-person] project: Fabien Chereau the original creator of Stellarium and his brother Guillaume.“ —Stellarium About page

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STEM Stuff
Alice

“Alice is an innovative block-based programming environment that makes it easy to create animations, build interactive narratives, or program simple games in 3D. Unlike many of the puzzle-based coding applications Alice motivates learning through creative exploration. Alice is designed to teach logical and computational thinking skills, fundamental principles of programming and to be a first exposure to object-oriented programming. The Alice Project provides supplemental tools and materials for teaching using Alice across a spectrum of ages and subject matter with proven benefits in engaging and retaining diverse and underserved groups in computer science education.“ —Alice Home page

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STEM Stuff
Khan Academy

“Our mission is to provide a free, world‑class education for anyone, anywhere. With practice exercises, instructional videos, and a personalized learning dashboard, Khan Academy empowers learners to study at their own pace, both in and out of the classroom. Covering subjects from kindergarten through early college, including math, science, reading, computing, history, art history, economics, financial literacy, SAT, MCAT, and more, Khan Academy focuses on skill mastery to help learners build the strong foundations they need to succeed in higher education and in their careers.” —Khan Academy About page

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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
Tips for Getting Girls Involved in STEM

SAM Reader Brielle sent me this link from ITHARE.com. From the ITHARE About page: [They are a collection of] H.A.R.E.[s], which stands for “Honest And Restless Engineer”. Other H.A.R.E. rabbits may include other sub-species, such as “Heartless And Rough Engineer”, or “Hyperactive And Rebellious Engineer”, or even “Harebrained And Reckless Engineer”. Overall, some scientists argue that all H.A.R.E.s can be described by the following formula: H[a-z]* And R[a-z]* Engineer, but this is still a subject of numerous debates within Rabbit Academia.

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Women & Girls in Tech
List of Scholarships for Women

This page has a list of scholarships for women organized by major or field. From the page (edited for clarity): In 2019, women constituted 56% of all enrolled college students, yet they hold almost two-thirds of cumulative student loan debt, which at the time had reached almost $1.46 trillion.

Visit Resource →