jwax:
I'm new to the forum, and hope I'm not hijacking this thread, but have a relevant question:
If I want to solder wires directly to the Arduino Uno permanently, how do I remove the headers?
Hot air desoldering tool?
If you've got one, yes. If not I'd just break them up a bit with a pair of cutters then desolder the pins.
OTOH you could buy one of these and save some time/money: Diavolino