This blog is about projects that kids and adults can do, with little or no experience in the subject.
Friday, July 29, 2011
Hovercraft Video
This is a video of the hovercraft in the previous post in action.
Thursday, July 28, 2011
How to Make a Hovercraft
The Tools Required:
1. Drill
2. Sandpaper (a sander is helpful.)
3. Hole Saw
4. A Stapler
5. A Wrench
6. Utility Knife
The Materials Required:
1. A large board (must be light enough for one person to lift easily.)
2. 4 bolts like this one (Pic.1) that can go through the board with room to spare.
3. A piece of thick plastic that fits about 6 inches from every side of the board (Pic. 2.)
4. A leaf blower. (The leaf blower isn't attached so it's okay if it is being used some of the time.)
5. A large plastic sheet that when is spread over the board has some slack.
Optional Materials:
1. Spraypaint
2. Colored Duct Tape
The Skills Required:
1. Be able to use a drill, a sander (or sandpaper), a stapler, a hole saw, and a wrench.
What You Need To Know:
1. The plastic inflates and is called a skirt. The way hovercrafts move is they blow air into the middle and it escapes out the sides and lifts it. Then it can move easily.
Step #1 Sand the board completely.
Step #2 Trace the shape of the leaf blower output after you take off the extension three inches from the back of the board.
Step #3 Using the drill, drill a starting hole. Then use the holesaw to cut out the opening (Pic. 3.)
Step #4 Stretch the plastic around the board, fold a few smalls folds to keep the air in and staple it about an inch in on the top. There should be some slack.
Step #5 Take the hard plastic and duct tape it on. Then drill the holes for the bolts and stick them in. Then use the utility knife to cut the duct tape, but don't cut the plastic.
Step #6 Cut slits on the edge of the soft plastic facing towards the hard plastic. The air will fill up the middle and lift you up.
Step #7 Make a brace if necessary for the leaf blower. Then stick the leaf blower in and fire it up! Cut or cover the slits as necessary. This model needs you to push it. If you are using a plug-in leaf blower you could use a power strip attached to a extension cord to also power a fan for propulsion.
1. Drill
2. Sandpaper (a sander is helpful.)
3. Hole Saw
4. A Stapler
5. A Wrench
6. Utility Knife
The Materials Required:
1. A large board (must be light enough for one person to lift easily.)
2. 4 bolts like this one (Pic.1) that can go through the board with room to spare.
3. A piece of thick plastic that fits about 6 inches from every side of the board (Pic. 2.)
4. A leaf blower. (The leaf blower isn't attached so it's okay if it is being used some of the time.)
5. A large plastic sheet that when is spread over the board has some slack.
Optional Materials:
1. Spraypaint
2. Colored Duct Tape
The Skills Required:
1. Be able to use a drill, a sander (or sandpaper), a stapler, a hole saw, and a wrench.
What You Need To Know:
1. The plastic inflates and is called a skirt. The way hovercrafts move is they blow air into the middle and it escapes out the sides and lifts it. Then it can move easily.
Step #1 Sand the board completely.
Step #2 Trace the shape of the leaf blower output after you take off the extension three inches from the back of the board.
Step #3 Using the drill, drill a starting hole. Then use the holesaw to cut out the opening (Pic. 3.)
Step #4 Stretch the plastic around the board, fold a few smalls folds to keep the air in and staple it about an inch in on the top. There should be some slack.
Step #5 Take the hard plastic and duct tape it on. Then drill the holes for the bolts and stick them in. Then use the utility knife to cut the duct tape, but don't cut the plastic.
Step #6 Cut slits on the edge of the soft plastic facing towards the hard plastic. The air will fill up the middle and lift you up.
Step #7 Make a brace if necessary for the leaf blower. Then stick the leaf blower in and fire it up! Cut or cover the slits as necessary. This model needs you to push it. If you are using a plug-in leaf blower you could use a power strip attached to a extension cord to also power a fan for propulsion.
Pic. 1 |
Pic. 2 |
Pic. 3 |
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
How to Make a Simple Website
The Tools Required:
The Skills Required:
What you need to know:
1. If it is inside < > it will not appear on your website. If it is inside them it is called a tag. The tags control how the webpage looks and what is on it.
Step #1 First open either Notepad or TextEdit. It will work in Microsoft Word or Pages but it's more complicated and Notepad and TextEdit work just as well.
Step #2 Type <html>. You always put that at the beginning, no matter what other code you have.
Step #3 Hit return and type <body>. Hit return again and type <p> (whatever you want to be on your website) </p>. You put a slash when it's the end tag.
Step #4 Hit return again and type </body>. Hit return again and type </html>.
Step #5 If you are using TextEdit click Format and click Make Plain Text. Click Save As. Where you name the type (whatever you want).html.
Step #6 Open it and if you did it right it will open in your default browser. It will not be on the Internet unless you sign up for a hosting plan which costs money per month. But it is a cool trick to impress your friends. If you get good you could make a website on the Internet if you wanted though.
Here is a chart of Html tags: http://www.rewritables.net/htmltagchart.htm
1. A computer
2. For Windows: Notepad. For Mac: TextEdit. Both of these come with the computer.
The Skills Required:
1. Know how to make a word document and save it.
What you need to know:
1. If it is inside < > it will not appear on your website. If it is inside them it is called a tag. The tags control how the webpage looks and what is on it.
Step #1 First open either Notepad or TextEdit. It will work in Microsoft Word or Pages but it's more complicated and Notepad and TextEdit work just as well.
Step #2 Type <html>. You always put that at the beginning, no matter what other code you have.
Step #3 Hit return and type <body>. Hit return again and type <p> (whatever you want to be on your website) </p>. You put a slash when it's the end tag.
Step #4 Hit return again and type </body>. Hit return again and type </html>.
Step #5 If you are using TextEdit click Format and click Make Plain Text. Click Save As. Where you name the type (whatever you want).html.
Step #6 Open it and if you did it right it will open in your default browser. It will not be on the Internet unless you sign up for a hosting plan which costs money per month. But it is a cool trick to impress your friends. If you get good you could make a website on the Internet if you wanted though.
Here is a chart of Html tags: http://www.rewritables.net/htmltagchart.htm
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