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Luke Skaff

Luke's past and current projects...

  • About Me
  • — How-To’s —
    • Measure Indoor CO2 Levels
    • DIY Formaldehyde Testing
    • ERV/HRV Ventilator Setup and Balancing
    • Downloading to a Honeywell Security Panel
  • — Projects —
    • DIY Metal Halide Light Therapy
    • DIY Pipe Lamp with USB charger
    • HVAC Install Time-Lapse
    • – Car Projects –
      • GM 82-92 F-Body Brake Upgrade
        • Upgrade Option
        • FAQ
        • Part Numbers
        • Spindle Bracket Design
        • Making a Hub
        • Spindle Modification
        • Installation
        • Links
      • OBD-I ALDL uC LCD Scan Tool
      • Cadillac Northstar DIS to GM HEI SBC ECM
      • GM 82-92 F-Body LED Dash Back-Lighting
  • — Product Reviews —
    • Extech Formaldehyde FM200 Meter
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Copyright Luke Skaff 2016

Downloading to a Ademco Security Panel using Honeywell Compass Software

July 27, 2014 by Luke Skaff 26 Comments


How to guide on connecting to and programming your Honeywell alarm security system such as Vista, Lynx, First Alert, FBII panels with the Honeywell compass software.
[Read more…]

Filed Under: Software Tagged With: Ademco, Compass Software, Honeywell

Nexus 7 (Original 2012 version) Screen Flicker Fix

October 24, 2013 by Luke Skaff Leave a Comment

I bought the original Nexus 7 the day it came out in 2012 and since it has had an annoying screen flicker issue which is most visible on white backgrounds like surfing the web.   I have put up with this for over a year but finally got annoyed enough to see if there was a way to fix it.  I searched the web but did not find a solution to this issue.  I tried a bunch of stuff like tweaking Wi-Fi settings, setting the backlight to a constant brightness, and using root only backlight control program all will no luck.  It seems to be an EMI issue that stems from the Wi-Fi connection, if I turn off Wi-Fi the issue resolved itself but that makes the tablet pretty useless for my needs.  So I popped the back cover to see if I could shield the board from the Wi-Fi antenna.  I have been able to resolve the issue and here is a basic rundown of how to fix the issue.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Hardware Tagged With: Android, Nexus 7

DIY Pipe Lamp with Eletrical Outlet and USB Charger

October 21, 2013 by Luke Skaff 7 Comments

Pipe lamp with USB charger

I have always liked industrial architectural style and have wanted to make a pipe lamp out of black iron pipe for sometime.  I made this pipe lamp to go on a bedside table or dresser with a dimmer and USB port to charge devices.
[Read more…]

Filed Under: Lighting Tagged With: DIY, Lamp, Pipe Lamp

2004-2007 Cadillac CTS-V & 2010+ Camaro 4-Piston Brembo Spindle Adapter Bracket Created

October 29, 2011 by Luke Skaff Leave a Comment

I have just completed and added a new spindle adapter bracket to my brake upgrade page.  I designed a bracket to mount a 2004-2007 Cadillac CTS-V or 2010+ Camaro 4-piston Brembo calipers to third generation GM F-Body Camaro and Firebirds.  You can find all the details on the brake upgrade project spindle bracket sub-page.
GM Third Gen. F-Body to 2004-2007 Cadillac CTS-V or 2010+ Camaro Brembos

Filed Under: Automotive

Site Consolidated Completed.

September 5, 2011 by Luke Skaff Leave a Comment

I consolidated with my original website with my blog into a single wordpress site.  If you are redirected here from a old link please refresh your browser,  I have made permanent redirects on all my project links so the old links should still work.

Filed Under: Uncategorized

AVR & Nintendo DS to FTDI Vinculum USB Host HDR PTP/MTP Camera controller

December 12, 2010 by Luke Skaff 17 Comments

PTP/MTP USB HDR controller, Atlmel STK600 connected to a FTDI Vinculum

Introduction:
I have created code and an interface that allows an Atmel AVR or Nintendo DS to control a DSLR camera through a FTDI Vinculum USB host controller.  The code implements a very basic subset of the Picture Transfer Protocol (PTP) / Picture Transfer Protocol (MTP) protocols which are used on DSLRs and many point and shoot cameras.  This interface allows an Atmel AVR or Nintendo DS to control a modern USB camera such as a DSLR.  I wanted to do this to create a standalone HDR controller without the need to haul around a laptop.  For more background information on why I decided to do this and the CPLD interface I created to allow a Nintendo DS to talk to the FTDI Vinculum please read my previous blog post.  I got the Nintendo DS / AVR USB controller working  in June and have not changed the code since August so it is long overdue for me to post the code and schematic.

The code was written and developed on an Atmel AVR (non-Arduino) and ported over to the DS.  It is much easier to develop code on an AVR then on the DS which you have to constantly swap SD cards on every recompile. I wrote the code to be as platform independent as I could so it can be moved to whichever device needed.  I do not think it would be too hard to add to the Open Camera Control Project (OCC) (talked about in last blog post) code, you will need to call a few functions to init the Vinculum and to take picture, change exposure time, etc.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Hardware, Photography Tagged With: AVR, FTDI Vinculum-I, Hardware, Nintendo DS, USB Host

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