This week on Maker Update, an RC strandbeest that shoots fireworks, Raspbian gets an update, a shape-shifting dragon drone, motorized cocktail umbrellas, warped audio boxes, cardboard techniques, the Adafruit Feather M4 Express, making custom LEDs, and does Bob Clagett have too much glue?

This week on Maker Update, a Neural Synthesizer from Google, a 3D printed horse, welding plastic, a charcoal fume extractor, a constellation necklace, extending your drill by a foot, Eagle 9, and soldering unicorns. This week’s Cool Tool is the Irwin 12″ bit holder.

This week on Maker Update, a MIDI compatible music box, alternative controller indie games at GDC, an Arduino for your knife, controlling your computer with zombie heads, free game developer software, and Hackspace issue 5. This week’s Cool Tool is the Makey Makey Kit.

The annual Game Developers Conference in San Francisco is a wonderfully outrageous, high tech fantasy land where corporations like Microsoft, Facebook, Sony and Google, hold court with their latest zombie-blasting simulators and VR headsets. But it has a secret.

Off in the back (technically in a whole separate building), away from the buzz and hustle of the main show floor, is a small cluster of 20 curated, one-of-a-kind games under a banner labeled “alt.ctrl”. Here, the creators of these games encourage people to come over and play their project. They call themselves Developers, but I see them as Makers like myself. People who take their fun from mixing equal parts Art and Engineering. 

This week on Maker Update, rolling your own split-flap display, the unholy union of Furby and Alexa, customized fan grilles and a walnut box with a foam core secret. This week’s Cool Tool is the Joe Knows Electronics Resistor Starter Kit.

This week on Maker Update, Donald runs through a list of projects he’d like to accomplish this summer. This week’s featured Cool Tool is the d.light S2 rechargeable LED light. 

This week on Maker Update, a circuit-bent voice recorder hacked into an intercom, a $500 laser engraver, a Raspberry Pi robot arm, a Flick Face electronics project, Pi Cams compared, a PocketCHIP review, and contests! SUBSCRIBE ON YOUTUBE

This week on Maker Update, a Nixie tube alternative for the 21st century, Arduino puts your sketches in the cloud, robot cocktails, laser cats, making it rain, making music, and making the cookies. SUBSCRIBE ON YOUTUBE!