So, last time I wrote about my to-be wonderful keyboard. It’s still not working.
I’m not really that good with electronics, and wouldn’t be surprised to have just messed up some simple thing that I’m now overlooking. Ampmeter tells me that power and data comes and goes, and also something happens when I press the keys, but it still isn’t recognised by a computer. It should be, and it shouldn’t need any drivers other than the standard USB keyboard. Doesn’t show even on lsusb or dmesg.
Once, or a couple of times when I tried it with Windows, it did see there was something in the port, but it said it didn’t know what it was and needed to install driver. Haven’t seen even that for a while. And no, nothing happens with the keys.
I think the problem may be the board, which was made for me. Also it could be the parts I should have inspected more closely, as they were also handed for me. But it could be that they are just fine and I have messed up.
But, time goes on and I sadly have no longer time for making the keyboard obey. I’m not yet giving up on the wearable project, it’s going just fine. That Spiffchorder is not a critical part of my build. The keyboard should be quite easy part and it doesn’t even have to be the Spiffchorder. I’ll continue it if I still have time after everything else.
I’m also enjoying some success again now. Today I got myself a two-sided mirror, or a beamspitter or a half-silvered mirror like some people like to call it. I have used a lot of time online searching for a cheap one that is of good quality and such. Then I found it.
Have you heard of a game dubbed Khet? It has something to do with Egypt, red and silver pieces and mirrors and obeliks and such, seems like you need to control the light that’s shot from somewhere and mirror it somewhere, I wouldn’t know as I never played it or read the rules.
The interesting thing about Khet is that it has an expansion pack. There’s a booster pack consisting of 2, yes, two beamsplitters that you can use either to split the light in the game to three lights, or to mirror your wearable display to your eye and have a see-trough display.
I received my order today and I can recommend them. Although I haven’t yet tried them with my display, they seem great. I have seen some dubbed as narrow-band or broadband beamsplitters, it seems you can quite easily pick which colours you want to have reflected or such, and there’s still lot I don’t understand about them and now it seems that I’ll never have to.
These are also big. So big that they don’t even have a warning about suffocating kids on the package. Like four times as big as I thought it could be. It’s 3.8cm*4.6cm That is all wonderful, because I can most probably cut a ten fitting pieces from one of them, it makes full twenty from both. Did I tell you I paid about 13€ for it with shipping?
I believe nothing can stop me wearing my display on friday, tops.
Then I still have to get a battery, make a case for the beagleboard and accessories and think of how I’ll be carrying the whole thing. Then If I have time I’ll be worrying about the keyboard more. The keyboard is not going to stop me from calling this project a huge success if things keep going like this.
