Hacker-in-Residence: Wireless Weather Station
We have a new friend! His name is Matthew Burmeister, and he loves the weather. We also have some updates on our past hackers!
Do you guys know what time it is? I will just tell you: It's hacker time. We're excited to have Matthew Burmeister here, now, at this very moment, in the cave of magic that is our Engineering department, working on an internet-enabled wireless weather station. Who isn't interested in the weather? No one, that's who. Matthew is a rad human being who harbors a fear of rollercoasters (legitimate), and a desire for the power of technopathy (useful). Let's learn more about Matthew Burmeister, weather enthusiast:
Can you share your background, interests, and some favorite past projects?
I have been working with electronics for about 8+ years now. I have no formal education in the field; everything I know is self-education from various resources. My interests are quite vast (it might be easier to name what I don’t like), but some would be electronics, photography and medicine.
One of my favorite projects would have to be, oddly enough, just a 555 Timer IC operating in Astable mode. It was my first project and is what got me interested in embedded electronics to begin with.
How and why did you get involved in SparkFun's Hacker-in-Residence program?
I was just browsing SparkFun and noticed an extra link on the footer. I applied via the web form and a month later, I’m here. I applied for the HiR program because I have been wanting to write a tutorial on SparkFun, and it seemed like the perfect solution.
HiR and similar programs allow people who don’t have the resources to build a project that they have been wanting to do. It fosters a environment for innovation on both sides, and allows your geek to shine.
What is the project you'll be working on at SparkFun, and how long will you be here? Why did you choose this project?
I will be working on an internet-enabled wireless weather station. It would transmit live weather data to Wunderground’s Personal Weather Station Network and (maybe) host a status page. I’ll be here at SFE for about three weeks.
I chose this project for a few reasons:
- It would make for a great tutorial for SFE (I've always wanted to write one)
- I needed a weather station
- I've wanted to see those weather meters put to good use for a long time now
Thanks Matthew, we're happy to have you!
Updates! Updates! A lot of people have asked for news on our past hackers and their projects, and we have some for you! Sophi Kravitz, who joined us in October to work with Neurosky's brainwave headset, has finished her tutorial on hacking the MindWave Mobile; and Julián da Silva Gillig, who joined us last month from Argentina, has successfully integrated our RedBot and RedBoard platforms to the miniBloq programming environment - GitHub repository here - and developed examples and sample code for virtually all the RedBot functions! Stupendous work, friends, and we'll continue to update you on past hackers' projects as they're completed!
