"Its not so much about age as quality."
I know how that feels 
I do use those standoff’s for some projects.
I think heat might be a factor too, but with low power stuff, not much of an issue.
I was just thinking, a small diameter wooden or plastic dowel with a hole in the top and a tight fitting push in 2-56 screw might work as well.
Edit
Agree, the clear cable ties do not like UV.
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The Arduino designers made major mistakes in the placement of the mounting holes.
These were placed too close to headers etc.
Well, it was more like they added additional headers after the screw holes had already been fixed in place. Go back to the duemilanove (or even the Uno V1), and there's plenty of room around the mounting holes.
larryd:
The Arduino designers made major mistakes in the placement of the mounting holes.
These were placed too close to headers etc.
I avoided that problem by cannabilizing a cheap plastic Arduino enclosure to use as the mount. Too much trouble to try to keep four holes perfectly placed. This way I only need two holes for the enclosure itself and there's play for slight adjustments.
A few hints on making ‘Infinity Mirrors’.
One ProMini, some code, 47 neopixels, acrylic frame and some woodworking skills can result in a nice gift idea (or 6).
https://www.tapplastics.com/product/plastics/cut_to_size_plastic/acrylic_sheets_mirror_clear/521
https://www.tapplastics.com/product/plastics/cut_to_size_plastic/two_way_mirrored_acrylic/558
I made an infinity mirror with my sister, it was a lot of fun. Put it down on the floor and it just looks so weird. What I want to make next (one of a couple "above and beyond" enhancements of old projects I've done) is make an infinity digital clock with APA120s embedded into the mirror so I can do some color-fading effects with the time display and border LEDs.
The most ugly thing about most RGB LED strips is the discreteness of the individual LEDs. From a close enough distance, your eyes can clearly perceive the spacial difference between light spots. has anyone found a good tactic for diffusing individual SMD LEDs? I'm thinking of trying a very small blob of hot glue and seeing if that takes the edge off it. It's slightly translucent.
Hi, larryd.
Merry Christmas mate, ( 9:15am Christmas Morning here ) this thread has been great through the year, keep it up.
This week I took delivery of 30 12 x 3 mm neodymium magnets, will check the Boxing Day specials for a suitable tin.
I gather the most suitable tin has to have had some decadent foodstuff that us type 2 diabetics aren't supposed to have.
The sacrifices we make.
Tom... 
Look out for a nice big rectangular one.
Still not Christmas day here yet.
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I have been fighting with intermittent charging on our iPads.
Tried several commercially available USB 6' extension cables to keep the iPads plugged in while we use the devices.
Because of the IR drop in the cables, the iPad charging circuit often rejected the incoming voltage levels and would disconnect the units from the chargers.
Out of frustration I made my own 6-foot extension cable with #18 AWG power wires.
Problem solved.
50 male connectors for $6.50
https://www.ebay.ca/itm/321580225851
50 female connectors for $6.12
larryd:
Mentioned this in the 'Bar Sport forum'This makes a great addition to your work bench.
There are several versions available on eBay.
This version is made up of 2 silicone mats.
This is the first time I’ve read a 29 page thread from start to finish.
Because I’m using it at the moment, I just thought I’d mention...you can buy your own silicone casting resin. This tray looks so simple that you could cut whatever shapes you need from suitable gauge ldpe to make your mould, flood it with the resin and hey presto, you’ve made your own bespoke work tray.
Hint...make sure the base is a generous 3mm at thinnest point. Some of the silicones don’t cure reliably if much thinner.
Jiggy-Ninja:
The most ugly thing about most RGB LED strips is the discreteness of the individual LEDs. From a close enough distance, your eyes can clearly perceive the spacial difference between light spots. has anyone found a good tactic for diffusing individual SMD LEDs? I'm thinking of trying a very small blob of hot glue and seeing if that takes the edge off it. It's slightly translucent.
Distance.
That’s what I’ve found makes most difference. A piece of 3mm opaque acrylic placed directly on a strip of LEDs leaves them as defined point sources.
Raise the same sheet about 2cm from them and you get perfect soft diffusion.
What you sacrifice is illumination; if you just want to “see” the LEDs themselves, it’s fine. If you’re using the LEDs to see something else, not so much.
Materials I’ve found that work well;
Opaque acrylic (normally specifies light transmission which not many materials do - 30% seems commonly available in the UK)
80 gsm fibre glass weave - not tried embedded in resin yet, but even 8 layers “dry” allows good transmission
40mm white plumbing pipe...like the waste pipe on your bathroom sink...glows surprisingly well!
Might post some pics later.
Pics (videos, actually) of different LED diffusion materials as promised;
5mm opaque acrylic;
@ zero clearance from LEDs;
@ ~10mm;
@ ~25mm;
40mm diameter white plumbing pipe;
80gsm fibre glass (8layers, 0mm clearance);
@ ~25mm clearance;
Edit: latest materials only arrived today...fibre glass tubes...narrow gauge one is about a 2 mm wall, 30 mm diameter tube, wider one is maybe 1mm wall, 35mm diameter. Even where they overlap there is still light transmission.
Only very short videos but I think really show how much a bit of clearance helps soften the effect.
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larryd:
I have been fighting with intermittent charging on our iPads.
I have problems with an ipad 3 .
The connector seems to be the problem not the lead..
It does not seem to fully fit in the socket as it used to.
Some leads work better than others, not sure why.
The connector seems to be the problem not the lead..
It does not seem to fully fit in the socket as it used to
My Iphone stopped charging; I was about to junk it.
Using my magnifier glasses I looked at my 'dead' Iphone. I found a funny piece of debris inside the Iphone charger cable socket on the bottom of the Iphone. Removed with a needle. It WORKS!
So look very closely at the cable and the Ixxx socket.
