Wim Van Gool
@wimvangool.bsky.social
Apparently not what she meant when she asked me to "cut the apple in 8" 🤷
(Why only 2 slices you ask? She stopped me 🫣)
(Why only 2 slices you ask? She stopped me 🫣)
October 24, 2025 at 11:12 AM
Apparently not what she meant when she asked me to "cut the apple in 8" 🤷
(Why only 2 slices you ask? She stopped me 🫣)
(Why only 2 slices you ask? She stopped me 🫣)
Kudos to their support. Lego sent replacement parts, no questions asked!
September 26, 2025 at 2:43 PM
Kudos to their support. Lego sent replacement parts, no questions asked!
There is something wrong with the blue Lego bricks from a few years back... They seem way more brittle than their white, red or black equivalent bricks.
September 17, 2025 at 2:30 PM
There is something wrong with the blue Lego bricks from a few years back... They seem way more brittle than their white, red or black equivalent bricks.
The Hackerspace members are having fun with the new ESP32-S3 Stamp using the @solder.party carrier boards!
August 23, 2025 at 10:24 AM
The Hackerspace members are having fun with the new ESP32-S3 Stamp using the @solder.party carrier boards!
Productive evening at the hackerspace this evening. The first prototypes of the ESP32-S3 STAMP and CH32V203 STAMP have been assembled and can now be tested. Thanks to @aisler.net for the fast and excellent service!
August 13, 2025 at 8:06 PM
Productive evening at the hackerspace this evening. The first prototypes of the ESP32-S3 STAMP and CH32V203 STAMP have been assembled and can now be tested. Thanks to @aisler.net for the fast and excellent service!
step one towards documentation ✅
July 20, 2025 at 10:11 PM
step one towards documentation ✅
Some members of Area3001 were nagging about the lack of wireless connectivity on the @solder.party Stamp boards. So I quickly drew up an ESP32-S3 based stamp. Now on to prototyping and creating some documentation. Everything fits whilst still using 0603 passives and 125um tracks.
July 20, 2025 at 6:45 PM
Some members of Area3001 were nagging about the lack of wireless connectivity on the @solder.party Stamp boards. So I quickly drew up an ESP32-S3 based stamp. Now on to prototyping and creating some documentation. Everything fits whilst still using 0603 passives and 125um tracks.
Contemplating if I should start offering solder workshops at children parties... It's always satisfying seeing those kids smile when the LEDs light up!
May 20, 2025 at 10:04 AM
Contemplating if I should start offering solder workshops at children parties... It's always satisfying seeing those kids smile when the LEDs light up!
Doing some hand assembly of this small debugging board for a client. Boards by @aisler.net , again faster than initially promised reducing deadline stress. And yes, that is Comic Sans on the silkscreen 😈,
May 1, 2025 at 8:34 AM
Doing some hand assembly of this small debugging board for a client. Boards by @aisler.net , again faster than initially promised reducing deadline stress. And yes, that is Comic Sans on the silkscreen 😈,
Patch Tuesday but for hardware 🤦♂️ (stuffing variant was not configured correctly, so I had to remove some components on the 20 prototypes) luckily most was 0603. The next step is updating the GNSS matching circuit (which is 0402). That's when the Mantis comes in handy.
April 29, 2025 at 11:25 AM
Patch Tuesday but for hardware 🤦♂️ (stuffing variant was not configured correctly, so I had to remove some components on the 20 prototypes) luckily most was 0603. The next step is updating the GNSS matching circuit (which is 0402). That's when the Mantis comes in handy.
1 board patched ✅, 19 to go 🫣
Note to self, the RF path of GNSS is from antenna to receiver, not the other way around 🤦♂️
(This resulted in a LNA + SAW filter being inverted)
Note to self, the RF path of GNSS is from antenna to receiver, not the other way around 🤦♂️
(This resulted in a LNA + SAW filter being inverted)
March 29, 2025 at 8:10 AM
1 board patched ✅, 19 to go 🫣
Note to self, the RF path of GNSS is from antenna to receiver, not the other way around 🤦♂️
(This resulted in a LNA + SAW filter being inverted)
Note to self, the RF path of GNSS is from antenna to receiver, not the other way around 🤦♂️
(This resulted in a LNA + SAW filter being inverted)
Spending the day in our (Dekimo) EMC lab, assisting one of our clients in their journey towards CE compliance. They have all the cool gear like the Rhode & Schwarz ESW that goes up to 44GHz (but they don't let me touch it though... 😒)
March 13, 2025 at 10:32 AM
Spending the day in our (Dekimo) EMC lab, assisting one of our clients in their journey towards CE compliance. They have all the cool gear like the Rhode & Schwarz ESW that goes up to 44GHz (but they don't let me touch it though... 😒)
It might not be the most modern tool in my drawer, but it still gets the job done (if you feed it enough 9V batteries)
It's an EC-220 calculator from Radio Shack for those playing along at home. It was released in the mid seventies.
It's an EC-220 calculator from Radio Shack for those playing along at home. It was released in the mid seventies.
March 3, 2025 at 6:38 PM
It might not be the most modern tool in my drawer, but it still gets the job done (if you feed it enough 9V batteries)
It's an EC-220 calculator from Radio Shack for those playing along at home. It was released in the mid seventies.
It's an EC-220 calculator from Radio Shack for those playing along at home. It was released in the mid seventies.
Do I know anyone with a vintage PC collection that could use an old trackball? Stumbled across this in my storage. An old "Agiler" RS-232 trackball with installation floppies.
March 2, 2025 at 4:32 PM
Do I know anyone with a vintage PC collection that could use an old trackball? Stumbled across this in my storage. An old "Agiler" RS-232 trackball with installation floppies.
Time to make some prototypes on the @opulo.io pick and place. I got tired of the low quality LED strips on the market, so I went for a drop in replacement design with Cree LEDs (90+CRI) and a Diodes AL5809 constant current sink.
February 26, 2025 at 8:41 PM
Time to make some prototypes on the @opulo.io pick and place. I got tired of the low quality LED strips on the market, so I went for a drop in replacement design with Cree LEDs (90+CRI) and a Diodes AL5809 constant current sink.
Since I'm not allowed to give real tools to school for carnival, I'm making some cardboard replicas. Might switch to MDF or EVA foam after some durability testing later today.
February 22, 2025 at 12:07 PM
Since I'm not allowed to give real tools to school for carnival, I'm making some cardboard replicas. Might switch to MDF or EVA foam after some durability testing later today.
That's exactly the reason why I added this shape on the sides of the ESP programming dongle. (Used to program roughly 200 boards)
February 9, 2025 at 5:35 PM
That's exactly the reason why I added this shape on the sides of the ESP programming dongle. (Used to program roughly 200 boards)
Would you look at that! I found the perfect spot to showcase the really big RP2350 stamp from @solder.party . Thanks @arturo182.bsky.social !
February 3, 2025 at 7:47 PM
Would you look at that! I found the perfect spot to showcase the really big RP2350 stamp from @solder.party . Thanks @arturo182.bsky.social !
Fluke once made a plushie (albeit a cheap give-away style plushie) of the 283FC DMM. There is some room for improvement.
January 24, 2025 at 8:06 AM
Fluke once made a plushie (albeit a cheap give-away style plushie) of the 283FC DMM. There is some room for improvement.
Can confirm that the 1mm thick PCBs also contain watermarks. (This PCB is the front diffuser for a custom badge I made for @calmera.bsky.social )
January 20, 2025 at 7:59 PM
Can confirm that the 1mm thick PCBs also contain watermarks. (This PCB is the front diffuser for a custom badge I made for @calmera.bsky.social )
These keyboard parts are developed by @solder.party , however for me it felt like an obvious choice to go ortholinear for a thumb-operated keyboard. That might be because I used ortholinear keypads on PDA's back in the day 🤷Just some of the devices I used back then :
January 10, 2025 at 8:21 PM
These keyboard parts are developed by @solder.party , however for me it felt like an obvious choice to go ortholinear for a thumb-operated keyboard. That might be because I used ortholinear keypads on PDA's back in the day 🤷Just some of the devices I used back then :
Finally got around to assembling the stereo audio board for the Fri3d Camp 2024 badge. Works like a charm! Perfect for playing Doom during your commute.
January 9, 2025 at 7:23 PM
Finally got around to assembling the stereo audio board for the Fri3d Camp 2024 badge. Works like a charm! Perfect for playing Doom during your commute.
Well well well, what is this beautiful thing lurking in the back?!? 🕵️♂️
January 7, 2025 at 5:06 PM
Well well well, what is this beautiful thing lurking in the back?!? 🕵️♂️
Makes me think about the time (2016 🫣) I made one of those word clocks using the lasercutter to do some deep engravings on thick balsa wood.
January 2, 2025 at 7:13 PM
Makes me think about the time (2016 🫣) I made one of those word clocks using the lasercutter to do some deep engravings on thick balsa wood.
This was a triumph!
I'm making a note here:
Huge success!
TESS DSI interface in combination with the @raspberrypi.com touch screen 2 works!
I'm making a note here:
Huge success!
TESS DSI interface in combination with the @raspberrypi.com touch screen 2 works!
December 18, 2024 at 2:42 PM
This was a triumph!
I'm making a note here:
Huge success!
TESS DSI interface in combination with the @raspberrypi.com touch screen 2 works!
I'm making a note here:
Huge success!
TESS DSI interface in combination with the @raspberrypi.com touch screen 2 works!