DIY Life

Some of my favorite projects are born of necessity. I just happened to need something to spruce up a gift for my brother, an avid gamer. So instead of a cheesy card or clumsy letter I created a "handmade" Wiimote from Crayola's Model Magic clay.

If you've ever used Model Magic you know it isn't so much a clay as soft foam. It hardens over a few hours, and is terribly resistant to detail like square edges. Our cat happens to love to eat the stuff too, which means all MM projects go into a box. Anyway, this craft couldn't be simpler, and shows what you can do with very simple materials. My bag of Model Magic was actually over 5 years old! But it was white and available. I also used a red fine-tip permanent marker, a fine-tip blue pen, a fine-tip black pen and a regular permanent (Sharpie) marker.

One of the hottest presents under many trees this holiday season will be the Nintendo Wii. The inexpensive (comparably) gaming system features one f the neater gameplays and controllers in recent times and the games are very engaging. For the young and old, the Wii has become the gaming system to have this year.

Once you have a Wii, a few remotes, a buncha games and maybe even a Dance Dance Revolution floor pad or other larger accessories, what do you do with all that stuff when it's not in use? How about hiding it all in a life-size cabinet designed to mimic the Wiimote handheld controller?

This is, by far, one of the neater game-related hacks I've seen in quite a while. This cabinet even features outcropped "buttons" that really do look like the buttons from the actual Wiimote controller. If you want to have a conversation piece this holiday and you have some gamers in your family, building one of these will keep the conversation nice and lively.

I personally love the Nintendo Wii. The remote control is awesome, as is the ability to surf the web and check email on your main television in the house. The games are so interactive and neat that you'll lose weight if you play them everyday. It's quite a different experience than any other gaming system, as any Wii owner will tell you.

The Wii Remote -- or Wiimote -- features infrared sensors and cameras, motion sensors and even Bluetooth. But, if that's not enough for those of you who love to spout off techno-jargon to your friends and relatives, the hack shown above might be right up your alley. This is so Minority Report, as the video even says. Well, at least it's close, eh?

Basically, you're going to need to build a small infrared transmission grid (or array), but don't let that term scare you. These can be purchased pre-assembled, or you can even make your own and power it with a simple battery (like an AA). Once you have an LED array (and yes, you'll be unable to see the infrared light transmitted), you're ready to have some futuristic, novel fun with finger tracking. Is this yet another cool Wiihack or what?