iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 1h

But will it ever open for submissions again? I've been checking regularly for the past couple years.

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Nacho Mellado @uavster.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Make Mino's day: join the Kickstarter campaign. www.kickstarter.com/projects/min... Super-early-bird 50% discounts will not last long after launch. Click "Notify me on launch" to increase your chance of getting one. (dog talk, I know, can't help it) #robotics #maker #DIY #JetsonOrinNano

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Byrd - Remembering out Oct 1! @byrdbrnz.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

If you like point-and-click adventures, seriously do yourself a favor and pick up...honestly any of these titles My favorite streams have been when we played Unavowed, Shardlight, Primoria, Technobabylon, and Strangeland. Gave us some fascinating topics to dig into and discuss

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v01d ma1n() @v01dma1n.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

People were really mad in Poland! My screw driver, which I brought over the ocean in 1990s.

A flat-head screwdriver with a worn wooden handle stamped "(MAD IN POLAND)", resting on a green grid cutting mat under warm lighting.

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Given that AI is one of my interest areas, I can't really afford to mute it all, but I did switch off "consciousness" months ago. There are too many dumb takes on that subject for my inner peace to endure.

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

I've helped put on a charity gala before, and was left with no desire to attend one. They really do feel designed to appeal to people so rich that they'll pay for the privilege of an evening spent over-paying for luxury auction items. Let me skip the uncomfortable fancy dinner and send money haha.

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

One of the trainers at my employer explained it as "can you text someone on your phone and ask them to do something for you? Then you can use AI." There are grace notes you can apply (skills! MCPs! custom agents!), but I think the core really is "ask computer for thing," not a lot else to it.

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

I had to write an essay as part of the application for my new job, and even though I used zero AI for it, I put it through a couple of AI detectors to make sure it didn't trip them.

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Greg Uzelac @gregrex.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Refinished a sentimental rocking chair. MIL rocked my wife as a baby in it 64 years ago. Our daughter is expecting, wants to rock her baby in it. Disassembled it to get best possible outcome. Daughter loves the results

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Has The Magician's Nephew been done before, though? The Walden Media films still exist, yes, but they only got through the first three books. I suppose a lot of people were hoping we'd finally get an equivalent of those for the others.

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

LEG. Still needs the hydraulics and springs installed. Two powered joints and passive ankle. #robotics

An arthropod sort of leg (3d-printed plastic joined with thin wire) attached to a flat body piece and resting in a neutral position on a coffee table. There's only one leg, so the body is supported on a tissue box and weighted down with a drinking cup that has a picture of the Endurance moon lander on it. The leg angles up to a "knee" joint and then back down to a flat round foot.

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

The generative AI scene is annoying - no argument there. But you get hundreds of hearts on your landscapes, and you call that "nobody"? I'd love to get anywhere near as much interaction with my creative projects as you do.

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

... except I did not stick the landing, and now there is a big, hard bruise just below my left elbow. lolsob

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Fun with yard work: a branch half-broke off my tree and was dangling in front of my/the neighbor's mailboxes. Today I fulfilled my public responsibility to remove it. Too wimpy to pull it loose, I resorted to the "use your own body weight" trick - I jumped and hung from it. Success!

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

It's probably a bug, but my first instinct was to read it as the State being utterly unreasonable, in typical State fashion.

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

I don't like the amount of play (out-of-plane rotation) in the homemade bearing, but it'll be fine until it's not. It does feel like it'll still be able to turn under weight, which is what it needs to do. #robotics #3dPrinting

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Abortion - that's *one* issue conservatives are correct on. Granting fetal humans the right to protection from violence promotes the flourishing of human life; killing thousands of them so adults can enjoy sex-without-parenthood does not. (This is why I'm a centrist. Left and Right are both cruel.)

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

When I was an FRC mentor, it bothered me that the EE part of the exercise was mostly cookie-cutter because the list of approved parts was so limited. The kids learned how to lay out wiring and crimp and solder, but not that much about electronics, really.

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

It is FINE for FIRST to be about robots and SETI to be about looking for aliens! No one seems to expect traditional sports to explain how they're "more than just moving balls around."

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

Random rant: it annoys me when nerdy activities/organizations feel the need to apologize for themselves by touting benefits outside their central mission. E.g. FIRST claiming to be "more than robots" or SETI using the "more than just aliens" tagline.

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Fred Coppersmith @unrealfred.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Happy 60th to Star Trek!

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value plus discounted @akhilrao.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

told my agents to touch grass now there are empty grass files popping up everywhere help

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

I am also a big SF person, and my reaction to the trailer was "Y'know, I'd really rather -not- watch this cute kid die horribly over and over."

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

Yes - a fairly routine struggle with this build plate. I can try turning bed temperature up a little more next time.

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

First print of spider body came out pretty well. There's a hint of warping at the base of the leg joint that sticks out, but not enough to ruin it. #3dPrinting #robotics

A 3d printer in the act of printing a large flat white object with very low infill percentage.

The finished object, a flat panel with some raised elements and holes.

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Eddie Current @cheatlines.co · 30/08/2026

Still not COMPLETELY done (I need to seal it and add an edge/frame, probably some aluminum) but I might actually like it enough to display it. Feels like it should go over an outside door as a protector spirit of sorts

A rectangular glass mosaic of a DC-10 firefighting aircraft

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

I enjoy technical feedback/questions on the blog, since that way they're still visible to anyone who finds it with a search engine six months down the road. Thanks!

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

There will always be some vehicles that go less than the speed limit, bc of mechanical limitations or bc they are forced to slow down to admit merging traffic. The left lane is "fast" bc it's as far as possible from mergers and you can pass slow vehicles. You're still not allowed to speed in it.

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 16/08/2026

It is my honor to announce that I'm officially published in @analogsf.bsky.social - "Roots' Remembrance" is OUT in the September/October issue! For more about this story and how to read it: writerofminds.blogspot.com/2026/08/root... #ShortStory #ScienceFiction

writerofminds.blogspot.com

Roots' Remembrance

Adventures in robotics and AI on a shoestring budget. SFF Fiction and occasional video game appreciation.

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

You're not invisible. I don't always know what to do with what you post, but I do notice it and I care.

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

I think I remember coming across those when I was experimenting with artificial muscles a long time ago.

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

No servos, it's all going to be hydraulic.

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

Looking a bit more fleshed-out ... Now, can I pull off the build? #robotics #3dPrinting

A 3D model of a robot platform. There's a pump in the middle, two fluid tanks, and a little "house" to hold battery packs. Stubs of eight legs surround the edges, sticking up from the platform.

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

They *were* fake? Embarrassing maybe, but still a relief compared to the alternative.

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Byrd - Remembering out Oct 1! @byrdbrnz.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

For the book cover artists, a question: If an author approaches you with a completed cover, that they drew themself, but they just want someone to redo it...what are your thoughts? Would that be something you'd take on or pass on?

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

Gross. Depending on local laws, corvids might be protected and you might be able to report them for that.

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

Equality! (Everyone is just as gross as everyone else)

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

What's wrong with that? Sounds noble. Guinea pigs should have love.

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RobotZwrrl @robotzwrrl.xyz · 07/08/2026

Outdoors with Robots! Here's my presentation from Hackaday Europe @hackadayofficial.bsky.social #HackadayEurope www.youtube.com/watch?v=ys6N...

youtube.com

Outdoors with Robots - Hackaday Europe Presentation

YouTube video by Erin RobotZwrrl

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

Newline at end of file vs. data on last line

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WriterOfMinds (she) @writerofminds.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

The Left's exclusion of fetal people from the circle of compassion and equality is the one reason I often end up voting third-party or no one. If it's Nazis vs. abortionists then I choose neither. There's not even a "lesser evil" to pick there - they're both just evil.

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