Building a DIY Acoustic Enclosure for the Shapeoko 3

Shortly after assembling my new Shapeoko 3, I realized that the milling process was quite loud, and would likely disturb my neighbors. (I live in a small apartment.) Wanting to avoid that, I decided to build a “soundproof” enclosure for the Shapeoko.

Here I’ll document my design for the enclosure, as well as some of the thought that went into it. I hope this effort benefits others who are looking to build something similar.

Connecting a Shapeoko 3 (GRBL 0.9) to VirtualBox

I recently purchased a Shapeoko 3, and am currently exploring options for my CNC workflow. Being averse to closed-source software like Carbide Create, today I spent some time configuring Universal G-code Sender as an alternative.

For reasons mostly related to Java dependencies, I decided to run Universal G-code Sender on a VirtualBox-based virtual-machine. Configuring the VM turned out to be non-trivial, so I’m documenting the process here. What follows are (a streamlined version of) the steps I took.

Building a DIY Standing Desk

I spend a lot of time in front of a computer, and thus, a lot of time at a desk. Because I generally don’t like sitting still, and because I recently learned that sitting all day can kill you, I decided to try to build a standing desk. I’m documenting here a design that I came up with that is inexpensive, easy to build, and has proven to be very practical.

Sony Playstation 3 Wireless Stereo Headset on Ubuntu Linux

Recently I decided to purchase a headset to allow me to be heard more clearly when using Skype. Given that I’m also a casual gamer (PS3, primarily), I figured a headset that would also be compatible with the Playstation 3 would be ideal.

After looking around (at length) at the options, I decided to go with Sony’s Wireless Stereo Headset, which is produced specifically for the PS3. I wasn’t sure if it was going to be Linux-compatible or not, but now, after having used it for a while, I can say with confidence that it is.