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You can use a tube of lipstick to play 'Counter-Strike'
Chloe Desmoineaux isn't playing Counter-Strike, the renowned first-person shooter game from Valve, like everyone else. Instead of using traditional PC-gaming controls, she's turned a tube of lipstick into a trigger for her Counter-Strike weapons, thanks to a Makey Makey. This is the same kit that's been used to create a Play-Doh gamepad for Super Mario Bros, for example, since it lets you turn almost anything into a button.
Bananaphone touch synthesizer replaces ring ring rings with chiptunes (video)
If you're tired of bananaphones that just make calls, the crew at Gadget Gangster now has a homebrew project to use them for musical escapades. A custom-coded (and appropriately named) Adafruit Propeller board turns a bunch of bananas into the Bananaphone TouchSynth, a synthesizer using the same capacitive touch principles that let a MaKey MaKey turn anything into a controller. The project as it's built won't be rocking stadium-sized crowds anytime soon -- not with those beeps and that lone speaker -- but there's nothing stopping it from scaling up to bigger sounds. Just remember that your fresh beats will turn very brown within a few days.
MaKey, MaKey turns the whole world into a keyboard
The litany of exciting Maker Faire products continues with MaKey MaKey, a device that turns anything capable of conducting electricity into a controller. Developed by MIT Media Lab students Jay Silver and Eric Rosenbaum, you simply run an alligator clip from the board to an object and hold a connecting wire in your hand. Connecting over USB, it's entirely programming-free, but if you find your interest piqued, you can flip the board over to use the Arduino module baked into the hardware. It's already surpassed its original $25,000 Kickstarter goal and when the run begins, you'll be able to pick up everything you need for just $35 -- but if you can't wait that long, head on down to the Bay Area this weekend. [Thanks, Ryan]
