Event | The Hoarder's Dilemma Hack Chat

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Hack Chat Transcript, Page 2

12/06/2023 at 21:19 • 0 comments

Sam Freeman 3:30 PM

Simplify - I try to clean up the tools at the end of the day, even if I know I'll use it tomorrow

Saveitforparts 3:30 PM

I try (not always sucessfully) to put my tools and parts away before starting another project, but it doesn't always happen

Thomas Shaddack 3:30 PM

(misread as "move cats to street".)

CIAndy 3:30 PM

Hackaday Berlin was an eye-opener. That was when I decided I have too much stuff. Some guy had a talk about how to design your projects so that people can recreate them. A key part of that was "don't use old stuff". But I just can't put it all away. So my question would be: "How do I decide?"

SimplifyAndAddCoffee 3:30 PM

@jed the car is the project

jed 3:31 PM

wife draws hard line at living room & bed rooms - for HER projects

jed 3:31 PM

good choice for cats, too

Saveitforparts 3:31 PM

Ha, I also have cat "helpers" who like to relocate cables and small parts for indoor projects

Saveitforparts 3:32 PM

I need to add some walls to the basement for more dedicated cat-free zones. So far it's mostly open, with just the pantry and my electronics closet off limits. But the electronics closet also keeps getting more and more stuff in it

Saveitforparts 3:32 PM

One thing I like for that space are foodservice bins. They close completely to (mostly) keep dust out of things, they can stack, and they're a fairly convenient size/weight if I don't over-fill them

CJ Keithley 3:33 PM

When our boy cat started eating plastic (including 3D filament) I instituted a “closed door” policy for my home office

Saveitforparts 3:33 PM

I'm trying to find more example photos of my organization areas without ignoring the chat too much

Matthew Trowbridge 3:33 PM

So after you've used a couple through-hole resistors of various values, what happens next? Do you guys put them straight back in the bins correctly, or do you put them in a "misc" pile/bin where eventually you'll have to sort through everything (or let them gather perpetually)

Thomas Shaddack 3:34 PM

batch sorting is easier than doing it always one by one.

CIAndy 3:34 PM

I try to put them back. 80% successful...

Thomas Shaddack 3:34 PM

though that is liable to the Eternal Tomorrow Syndrome.

jed 3:34 PM

I throw away used carbon resistors rather than sort - when I get low, I buy 100 more.

Keri Szafir 3:34 PM

hello there kitties

Paul McClay 3:35 PM

@CIAndy - about "don't use old stuff": yes design for reproducabiity vs new life for old thing are different. I'm in the process of learning that. I guess it helps to settle which kind a project will be before getting very far into it.

Saveitforparts 3:36 PM

Thius is currently my electronics and 3D printing work area. Which has to be re-organized again because I haven't touched the 3D printers since I put them there...

Saveitforparts 3:36 PM

Thomas Shaddack 3:36 PM

the old vs new can also be alleviated by using "APIs"/standards. that odd sized stepper? make adapter that makes it look like NEMA.

CJ Keithley 3:36 PM

@Dan Maloney - can I share a comic?

Dan Maloney 3:36 PM

@CJ Keithley - sure, as long as it's SFW

jed 3:36 PM

good hint on odd steppers - I'll remember

CJ Keithley 3:36 PM

It’s SFW

CJ Keithley 3:37 PM

CIAndy 3:37 PM

@Paul McClay Yes, and I will keep old stuff. But some has to go. The Problem is to find the right criteria..

Dan Maloney 3:37 PM

lol

Saveitforparts 3:37 PM

Garage bins (and messy work bench with, naturally, 4 different projects going on).

jed 3:38 PM

The copper in those comic adapters will send your great grandchildren to trade school!

Keri Szafir 3:38 PM

https://hackaday.io/project/188544-lab-hacks some of my own storage solutions

Dan Maloney 3:38 PM

In defense of hoarding wall warts, I pulled one out the other day and managed to light up a leftover strip of LEDs for an undershelf light. Nice zero cost win

Thomas Shaddack 3:39 PM

hey, AC adapters are handy! cut off the application-specific connector, attach a 5.5/2.1 barrel jack for generics, XT60 for highcurrent, USB for 5v, write the volt/amp rating with white paint pen on the case so it is easy to read. the laptop power bricks are the best, 19-20 volts, compatible with 5S Li-ion if you need portables.

Keri Szafir 3:39 PM

I generally hoard old electronic devices, vacuum tubes, transformers and other parts

Saveitforparts 3:39 PM

After many years of just having a rats nest of AC adapters, I spent a week untangling them all and sorting. They're still in a big box but at least each one is coiled up and fastened, and I've made an effort not to keep more than 3 identical ones!

Thomas Shaddack 3:39 PM

buckboost modules are excellent for matching a design to just-any power supply too.

Keri Szafir 3:39 PM

and then I reuse them in my projects

Saveitforparts 3:40 PM

Likewise I sorted my computer cables into categories (USB, video, audio, network, etc), and I occasionally go through and purge any that have too many duplicates.

Thomas Shaddack 3:40 PM

there is something like too many duplicates?

CJ Keithley 3:41 PM

@Saveitforparts - I also recently went through all my AC adapters… untangled the cords, labeled them (V & mA) clearly, got rid of a lot.

Saveitforparts 3:41 PM

I feel like I only need so many USB 1.0 A to B adapters...

Thomas Shaddack 3:41 PM

many kinds of commons can be reused. rj45 ethernet is a general purpose everything. hdmi is excellent for highfreq differential. old vga ones are triads of shielded high-ish freq analog, and some additional wires...

Saveitforparts 3:42 PM

I might own one device that still has a USB B port... and of course I have a dozen cables that fit it!

Todd 3:42 PM

just recently I got rid of 3 shoeboxes worth of spare USB cables. They really need to stop sending them with every product.

Thomas Shaddack 3:42 PM

usb-b is nicely robust. better than the smaller-than-small ones that fall off the board when you look at them wrong way.

Paul McClay 3:43 PM

something I've thought of and kind-of-but-not-really tried: keep front/back photographs of PCBs in some db and add text notes about identified components.

Thomas Shaddack 3:43 PM

weird. i never have enough usb cables.

Thomas Shaddack 3:43 PM

better: run the boards through AI.

Dan Maloney 3:44 PM

@Paul McClay -- sounds like a job for machine learning

CJ Keithley 3:45 PM

I recently came across a product with a vertical mount through hole USB-C receptacle. I thought “hey, I could use those…don’t know when or what, but I *need* them.” Found them, bought 50 for ~$10. Will I ever use them? Hard to say…

Paul McClay 3:45 PM

AI/machine learning PCBs: yes. Not sure I'm the guy to tackle that but it does seem like some practical win could be reasonably achievable.

CJ Keithley 3:46 PM

Bought the receptacles, not the product that used it

Dan Maloney 3:46 PM

I believe Jasmine Lu, who did the EcoEDA thing I pasted in earlier, is working on that. I should invite her on for a Chat

Thomas Shaddack 3:47 PM

you will. handy for making ad-hoc cables. solder the wires, use hotmelt glue for housing.

Saveitforparts 3:47 PM

Not exactly on topic, but for kitchen organizing we recently got one of those big stainless shop workbenches with a million drawers and a nice wood top. It fits into the kitchen surprisingly well!

Paul McClay 3:48 PM

@Saveitforparts you've published a lot of super-specific local Alaska history. That's neat. And a different flavor vs most of HaD

Patrick Hickey 3:48 PM

cables have similar properties to biological proteins in that they can interact, stick together forming complex configurations. i have around 1 cubic meter of cables needing untangled, perhaps one night i’ll tackle it listening to music and enjoying a beer or two.

jed 3:48 PM

Only my Garmin GPS use USB-B. I keep cables in special envelope on USB cable shelf for updating.

Saveitforparts 3:48 PM

Dan Maloney 3:48 PM

That's exactly what I'm looking for to organizer tools and parts in my shack. Alas, Harbor Freight is sold out of the one I want

Mark J Hughes 3:49 PM

Gabe -- have you found an inexpensive LiFePO4 charger you like?

Saveitforparts 3:49 PM

@Paul McClay I assume you're referring to my Funter Bay history and Obscure Railroads projects on my website.

Thomas Shaddack 3:49 PM

toilet paper rolls are handy for organizing cables.

jed 3:49 PM

Harbor Freight had sale - that's probably why

Dan Maloney 3:49 PM

https://www.harborfreight.com/tool-storage-organization/tool-storage/roller-cabinets/26-in-x-22-in-single-bank-roller-cabinet-black-64432.html

Paul McClay 3:49 PM

@Saveitforparts yeah, that stuff.

Saveitforparts 3:49 PM

I grew up in Funter Bay and collected a ton of history about the place, so I post that when I find new things.

Saveitforparts 3:50 PM

The railroad history is going to be a book eventually, I was actually working on that project this morning.

Dan Maloney 3:50 PM

Perfect size for a 3D printer on top, tools in the top two drawers, parts in the rest

CIAndy 3:50 PM

Here in Europe there's a company making affordable assortment boxes and bigger boxes for the boxes. They could be stacked and I put a stack on rollers. That was really useful if anyone is interested.

Paul McClay 3:50 PM

@Saveitforparts neat. and takes no space in the garage

Saveitforparts 3:50 PM

@Mark J Hughes do you mean one of those portable power banks, or a desktop charger for random cells?

Paul McClay 3:51 PM

@Saveitforparts saw your intro about growing up far from supply and keeping/reusing stuff

Saveitforparts 3:51 PM

@Paul McClay the Alaska research defintely has several shelves worth of my bookcase... and some boxes of extra material!

Mark J Hughes 3:51 PM

Random cells

Mark J Hughes 3:52 PM

I've been collecting LiFePO4's from Amazon Vine.

Saveitforparts 3:52 PM

@Mark J Hughes I actually haven't gotten into bare lithium batteries in any serious way. I know some folks who fish scooters out of the river and salvage the cells for DIY projects, but it's not a field I have much experience with.

Todd 3:52 PM

I have dozens of these, of two different heights, and some I have dividers, but all parts are in static bags and labeled inside https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CBGKLH8

SimonAllen 3:52 PM

I collect lithium batteries from discarded vapes.

Thomas Shaddack 3:52 PM

thought. charger that has a nfc reader and a nfc tag on battery that configures it for the given battery.

Mark Fraser 3:53 PM

toybuilder 3:53 PM

Hi. Just dropped in real fast to see the chat, and I have to run back out -- but I've been using a wheeled baker's rack with trays and that have been a big help over using wire shelving designed to hold 600+ lbs. The backer's rack is so much lighter it glides on the floor very easily.

Saveitforparts 3:53 PM

@Todd those are great as well! I bought far too many fishing tackle organizers and have stuff in those all over the place

Mark J Hughes 3:53 PM

NP. Thanks

Saveitforparts 3:53 PM

Bigger tackle boxes are nice as well. Most of my SDR gear is in the biggest tacklebox I could find.

Paul McClay 3:54 PM

@Saveitforparts so publishing has potential to reduce volume of stuff. maybe. segue to another aspect of "keeping": for paper artifacts that are more than just the text on the page: when is a scan good enough to warrant dumping the original?

CIAndy 3:54 PM

Check out "Kistenberg". With their bigger boxes, the smaller ones work like drawers. That's really nice.

toybuilder 3:54 PM

Saveitforparts 3:55 PM

@Paul McClay it depends. I definitely have a thing for books and printed material, which is why one wall of my office is bookshelves. Another aspect of hoarding I guess!

jed 3:55 PM

baker's looks GREAT for lots of things - good thought!

Saveitforparts 3:56 PM

I also don't have time to necessarily scan everything in every book I own. I might only need one or two pages now, but maybe later I'll want to go back and look up something else. I could probably downsize if I started digitizing my reference and history books, but I'm not sure I'd finish that project once I started.

Dan Maloney 3:56 PM

Where do you get something like that?

Todd 3:57 PM

the tackle box racks I've bought are just OK - they tend to be very cheap and the welds break easily. But, I have a "travel" tackle box-holder which holds 4 regular sized tackle boxes - great for cons/travel.

toybuilder 3:57 PM

They are a little pricey for the volume, but being able to dynamically change tray (shelf) position is a big win. I'm planning on switchinging out a few more wire shelves with bakers racks.

Mark J Hughes 3:57 PM

@Dan Maloney They're all over the scrap yards down here for about $2.50/lb x 17 lbs.

Dan Maloney 3:57 PM

I really need to find a decent scrapyard...

Mark J Hughes 3:58 PM

Or roadtrip to SoCal.

toybuilder 3:58 PM

The baker's rack I purchased from Walmart online new. Webstaurant has them listed, too. I recently saw a craigslist post of a place that sold used ones for less, and am tempted to get a bunch (but they look a bit yucky and no idea how well they clean up)

Mark J Hughes 3:58 PM

But realistically, if you can get square tube, angle tube, and a pop-rivet gun, you can make one in a day.

Saveitforparts 3:58 PM

Mark J Hughes 3:58 PM

Welding would be better -- but a lot more work.

Saveitforparts 3:58 PM

Here's a better pic of the garage small-stuff-bin situation

Thomas Shaddack 3:59 PM

pop rivets ftw! also, pop rivets with threaded holes. can add arbitrary mountpoints to EVERYTHING.

Paul McClay 3:59 PM

"bakers rack" good to know, thanks. I've wondered if such a thing exists. The idea of a bunch of trays of small-project-in-progress that are basically multiple portable desktops. Take one out to work on, then put it back in the rack without having to clean up the in-progress state.

Saveitforparts 3:59 PM

My photos are also not well organized! And I'm a bit of a digital hoarder

Mark J Hughes 3:59 PM

@Thomas Shaddack Abso-freaking-lutely.

toybuilder 3:59 PM

You can very easily re-shuffle trays as needed.

Thomas Shaddack 4:00 PM

digital hoarding is easier. you can't run grep through a shelf of boxes, you can't put dozens of terabytes worth of stuff into pocket.

Mark J Hughes 4:02 PM

Also @Dan Maloney Check out business liquidation auctions. Restaurants go out of business every other day. SOme of those are bakeries.

Dan Maloney 4:03 PM

We're up to the top of the hour, and while I don't want to stop the conversation, I want to make sure we're being properly respectful of Gabe's time. If you've gotta head out, no problem, but if you want to stay, that's cool too.

jed 4:03 PM

Thanks Gabe and all! It's been interesting.

SimonAllen 4:03 PM

It's interesting reading the answers. I just don't think there is a solution.

CIAndy 4:03 PM

About digital hoarding: A while ago I read back an old Seagate backup tape. Only to find all my old PC-8201 Software. Then got aware that I sold my PC-8201 years ago. Now I got a working one again...

CJ Keithley 4:03 PM

@Dan Maloney - thanks for setting this up!

Paul McClay 4:04 PM

Digitizing books: might be able to find an academic department or such who would do that

CIAndy 4:04 PM

Thanks Gabe!

CJ Keithley 4:04 PM

Thanks Gabe!

Paul McClay 4:04 PM

Thanks Gabe - and all y'all for ideas.

Saveitforparts 4:04 PM

Thanks everyone! There have been some great ideas on storage and organizing!

Mark J Hughes 4:04 PM

Thanks Gabe!

Thomas Shaddack 4:04 PM

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shadow_library

phillipdp 4:04 PM

Thanks Gabe, appreciate your time, videos and ideas!

CIAndy 4:04 PM

Agree, learned a lot today, thanks all...

Saveitforparts 4:05 PM

Maybe I can do a video on organization... if I clean up enough of the piles that my work space looks presentable!

Dan Maloney 4:06 PM

Thanks to Gabe for his time, and thanks all for a great discussion! Transcript coming up soon

Thomas Shaddack 4:07 PM

Step 1: preclean the space with a small tactical nuke...

Saveitforparts 4:09 PM

Thanks again @Dan Maloney and everyone else. I'm going to take off, maybe I'll organize my office now that I'm motivated by all these ideas :-)

Dan Maloney 4:10 PM

Thanks Gabe!

Hack Chat Transcript, Page 1

12/06/2023 at 21:17 • 1 comment

Dan Maloney 3:00 PM

OK, time to kick things off officially. I'm Dan, I'm modding today along with Dusan as we welcome Gabe Emerson to the Hack Chat

Dan Maloney 3:00 PM

Welcome one and all!

Saveitforparts 3:00 PM

Hi everyone! This is my first Hack Chat, thank you to Dan for inviting me!

Dan Maloney 3:01 PM

My pleasure! Maybe you can start us off with a brief bit about yourself?

Dan Maloney 3:01 PM

Like that bit about growing up in Alaska -- sound "formative"

Saveitforparts 3:02 PM

Sure, as a quick bio: I grew up in a ghost town, on an island in Alaska, and the closest store was a 3hr boat trip. We tended not to throw stuff away unless it was completely and totally useless, and we were always fixing, recycling, and re-purposing things.

Thomas Shaddack 3:02 PM

HER OS? the one that runs garbage collection and storage defragmentation in the way you are left with dangling pointers to places where the stuff desired is not anymore?

Saveitforparts 3:02 PM

Now that I live in a city, and in a pretty small house, my hoarding tendencies can be a liability. I'm also a bit ADHD and jump around between hobbies a lot. I started the Youtube channel as an excuse and motivation to finish some projects and use some of the junk I collect.

Mark Fraser 3:02 PM

ADHD plus too many hobbies. Still have RTL ICs from Mike Quinn Electronics in Oakland, 1962. Just found a Speedscript Cartridge for C64, that I entered and burned myself. Cluttered with CNC machines, some of them functional, several cubic feet of Arduino and projects, 3d printers, small laser burner, clock/watchmaker tools, and as I often don't finish projects, my wife is grateful I'm not a plumber.

Patrick Hickey 3:02 PM

Hello I am Patrick, LED addict/ hoarder, it’s been about 6 weeks since my last purchase…(HPDL2416 starburst displays)

Dan Maloney 3:03 PM

HI PATRICK!

Mark J Hughes 3:03 PM

Hi Patrick!

Mark Fraser 3:03 PM

At 82, trying to fix and liquidate "stuff" so my kids don't toss it all in the dumpster.

Dag Spicer 3:03 PM

Dusan, sounds like your frontier experiences has really shaped your approach to 'hoarding?'

Mark J Hughes 3:04 PM

@Mark Fraser If you plan on leaving your kids money/property, think of the other stuff as the work they need to do to earn it.

Saveitforparts 3:04 PM

That's always a tough one, they say one person's trash is another's treasure, but sometimes our own "treasure" isn't as valued by friends/family

Dag Spicer 3:04 PM

I.e. nothing is wasted; "I know I'll need this [insert component here] someday!"

jed 3:05 PM

but after 20+ years, are you going to use that ISA MDA? nobody else even knows what that means!

Thomas Shaddack 3:05 PM

also, the tendency to see a random piece of whatever and immediately come with a half dozen of uses.

Mark Fraser 3:05 PM

The corollary to "I might need it..." is "the day after I junk it....."

Thomas Shaddack 3:05 PM

ISA MDA? that's a museum piece!

Dag Spicer 3:06 PM

One is reminded of Spock's ability to build a transmitter "in this zinc-plated vaccum tube culture!"

jed 3:06 PM

my wife wants me to start that museum

jed 3:06 PM

no "stone knives and bear skins"

Matthew Trowbridge 3:06 PM

Hello all. One can only buy so many organizers before those organizer need organizers. It's at that point I realized I need a new system for what deserves the time, space, and material to be kept around. Even free things aren't kept for free...

Saveitforparts 3:06 PM

I've definitely had to push myself to sunset some older hoarded stuff. I keep a few museum PCs but I can't store all the 90s-era hard drives and video cards forever!

Dag Spicer 3:07 PM

Sometimes it's hard to accept that you'll never need that Selenium rectifier stack...

jed 3:07 PM

The monitor I'm using has an IBM AT as a monitor stand - I'

Dan Maloney 3:07 PM

Just gonna put this out there -- back in 2016, getting ready to move my family across the country, filled three 20-yard dumpsters with stuff we'd accumulated over the last 20 years. Most painful (and most regretted afterward) was my parts cabinet from my childhood electronics experimenter's days, filled with chips with date codes in the 70s...

Saveitforparts 3:07 PM

I also have to push myself to re-organize my storage / work areas at least once a year, or it devolves into piles and I forget what's in there. If I go through it semi-regularly, I can just about keep an inventory in my head.

Mark Fraser 3:07 PM

Matthew Trowbridge There was a wonderful article in the Economist back in the 90s, mentioning the "volcano" filing system.

jed 3:07 PM

I'm thinking of cleaning up

john dewitt 3:08 PM

Hello, do you use any computerized inventory tracking system to remember where various things are?

Saveitforparts 3:08 PM

I also try to keep similar things together, so even if I don't remember *which* pocket PCs I have, I at least know which box they're in!

Thomas Shaddack 3:08 PM

the problem with inventory tracking is the growing discrepancy between inventory and tracking.

ap-tech 3:08 PM

Every time I walk past a skip filled with electronic waste I'm always stopped in my tracks but now I just keep the stuff I may need in the future like 8650 batteries.

Saveitforparts 3:08 PM

I don't have a computerized system, I just try hard to label everything!

john dewitt 3:09 PM

cool! may i ask what kind of labels, just text?

Matthew Trowbridge 3:09 PM

@john dewitt I'd go mad if I tried that. Best I manage is using a label maker with lots of boxes, shelves, and drawers.

Saveitforparts 3:09 PM

I've found it very hard to keep on top of an inventory list. My partner and I have tried that with the pantry / freezer and we still fail. We call the freezer the place where food goes to die.

CIAndy 3:09 PM

Sorry, this is my first HackChat. Is it this chat here or is there also some talk going on which I didn't find yet?

Mark Fraser 3:09 PM

My wife is grateful that I gave up on hobby cars, and took up clock and tool "acquiring".

Saveitforparts 3:09 PM

I use a combo of label maker in the house and masking tape in the garage.

jed 3:10 PM

yes, boxes labeled Arduino or electronic goldmine or stepper or rockets or 3D printer or sterling or...

Dan Maloney 3:10 PM

@CIAndy - this is it, just text

Mark J Hughes 3:10 PM

Gabe -- if you ever want to get rid of one of those old folding satellite dishes, remember your old buddy Mark has an acre property it can live on and be happy.

Sam Freeman 3:10 PM

What's the volcano filing system?

john dewitt 3:10 PM

thanks, very relatable, the added effort of updating a database is just one more thing above even "just organizing"

jed 3:10 PM

yes, volcano?

Saveitforparts 3:11 PM

I once found a bunch of surplus hardware store display bins for my small parts, which is a huge help! I have those set up in the garage and labeled. Not necessarily *accurately* labeled, but close enough that I can pull out the bin-o-springs or bin of cleats or "whatever those little dinguses are" when I know I need one

ap-tech 3:11 PM

I saw this trick once where they put stuff in these transparent tupperware like big boxes, That way you can just see what you need.

Patrick Hickey 3:11 PM

i was shocked to find out that anti static foam can decompose over the years and corrodes pins, any ideas for alternative ways to store lots of LEDs / ICs? An array of ZIF sockets?

Saveitforparts 3:11 PM

My small parts garage bins are clear, that plus labels definitley helps for tiny stuff

Steve M Potter 3:12 PM

Yes @ap-tech...all clear drawers, boxes, containers!

Dan Maloney 3:12 PM

As for inventory and part reuse, this is one approach:

CJ Keithley 3:12 PM

@ap-tech - I use Container Store clear shoeboxes

Dan Maloney 3:12 PM

https://hackaday.com/2023/10/28/ecoeda-integrates-your-junk-bin-into-your-designs/

CIAndy 3:12 PM

Corrosive foam: I bought a lot of sheets of one that I thought was good and checked it every year or so.

Mark J Hughes 3:12 PM

Patrick -- there are new foam formulas that aren't as crappy. The decomposing stuff is from the mid-century. Just replace it with new stuff every few decades.

Sam Freeman 3:13 PM

Transparent bins are great. For hardware, you can glue a sample part to the drawer as a label.

Matthew Trowbridge 3:13 PM

@ap-tech I have bought around 100 of those 6-quart shoebox-sized clear Sterilite boxes over the last few years - no regrets. I absolutely love those things. I don't trust them with my pis, beaglebones, etc for anti-static reason but for most other things they are wonderful. Using labels is a great combo. Most boards./parts can put placed in an anti-static bag inside them. Whatever doesn't fit in my sliding bin shelves (Akro-Mils) goes in to Sterilites

Saveitforparts 3:13 PM

Mark Fraser 3:13 PM

Sam Freeman: Volcano - desk or workbench, never file or store anything, it all builds up in a conical pile, stuff slides off, like a caldera, but the method requires a "visual" talent. Example: Last month's hydro bill is about 10 o'clock, 2/3 of the way up the pile, close to the yellow 2-for-1 pizza offer that expired 3 months ago.

Sam Freeman 3:14 PM

I love it!

Dan Maloney 3:14 PM

What's the angle of repose of a pile of 555s?

CIAndy 3:14 PM

Another storing issue with all Lithium batteries. Storing is a problem, they need constant care. Any good solution to that? Meanwhile I really fear the number of batches which come with a LIPO battery.

Mark J Hughes 3:14 PM

@Mark Fraser I know that one! I'm good at that one!

Chris Sullivan 3:14 PM

Does anybody have or can recommend a DB to track where comonents are stored? I have labelled all my shelves, draws, trays and am building a spreadsheet

CIAndy 3:15 PM

Should be a DB supporting pictures. I'm interested in that, too...

Thomas Shaddack 3:15 PM

does anybody have an idea how to maintain the coherence of state between the reality and the database/spreadsheet?

jed 3:15 PM

Like "ugly desk" theory - important and recent material tends to rise to the top

Patrick Hickey 3:15 PM

@Mark J Hughes thanks i might try the pink stuff, the black foam i had lasted about 10 years, i think it condenses humidity. maybe i’ll pack with a silica gel sachet and vacuum seal.

Todd 3:15 PM

I keep track off all my stuff in OneNote... not very organized, but searchable at least

Mark Fraser 3:15 PM

According to the Economist article, Chris Sullivan is the antithesis of the volcano-dependent person.

CIAndy 3:15 PM

RF handheld scanner, but I never got to writing the SW for it.

Thomas Shaddack 3:16 PM

UHF RFID. experimenting with that.

Chris Sullivan 3:16 PM

i have heard of a system that someone made that has qrcode that points to a web page that accesses the DB and tells you whats in that box/draw/whatever

Thomas Shaddack 3:16 PM

can see through a pile of clothes.

Dan Maloney 3:16 PM

@Thomas Shaddack -- I have to maintain inventory on my kid's insulin, I just go through once a year and do a physical inventory to reconcile any differences with the spreadsheet totals

Saveitforparts 3:16 PM

I've seen some projects online with QR-code boxes and a webcam that tracks where you put it.

Thomas Shaddack 3:17 PM

qrcodes are handy. print a lot of unique ones that point to a database, then have some always handy to assign the meaning later. could be also handy with augmented reality.

Mark Fraser 3:18 PM

My top desk drawer has a label: "LOTS OF STUFF"

jed 3:18 PM

no drawer of mine NEEDS that label - assumed

Saveitforparts 3:19 PM

While I have a pretty big garage, it's always running pretty close to full (including stuff hung from the ceiling). My partner keeps saying we need a warehouse somewhere but I think we'd just lose things that way! She also likes to hoard stuff so we definitely enable eachother.

Chris Sullivan 3:19 PM

@Thomas Shaddack right with a + and - button to add or subtract the amount of that component in that storage.

Chris Sullivan 3:19 PM

without having to access the DB

Dan Maloney 3:19 PM

Four-drawer file cabinet at the theater I worked in during college had labels "MISC", "ASST'D", "WHAT-NOTS", and "STUFF"

Thomas Shaddack 3:20 PM

yup. qrcodes with virtual controls popping over them.

CJ Keithley 3:20 PM

Saveitforparts 3:20 PM

As I said, I've been trying to actively use stuff and finish projects vs hoarding it forever. I've seen too many barns / yards full of "treasure" that end up being rusty trash full of mice and racoons, so I try not to just let stuff rot if I can help it. I do actively purge things when I get too cramped, or I get tired of looking at it, or I break it while trying to make it into something else.

Saveitforparts 3:21 PM

One thing that I was doing before Covid was to have a garage sale about once a year. It would be all the stuff I didn't want, but couldn't stand to throw out. I'd drop prices throughout the day, until it was free. If no one took it from the free pile, I felt more comfortable pitching the leftovers in the trash.

CJ Keithley 3:21 PM

Someone (wish I remember who) 3D printed replacements for the fronts of component bins.

Thomas Shaddack 3:21 PM

a useful trick is a "cache box/bin". some of the often used stuff goes there, most is stored in some box. so the m3 screws or usb connectors are always on hand.

ap-tech 3:21 PM

@CJ Keithley Those boxes look awesome.

jed 3:21 PM

I've 3D printed replacement drawers when just one in a set was "lost"

CJ Keithley 3:22 PM

Not mine… my comment wasn’t attached to the photo for some reason

Sam Freeman 3:22 PM

The garage sale sounds like a perfect way of filtering out sentiment

Thomas Shaddack 3:22 PM

3d printing is a good way to not have to hoard all kinds of random plastic components. (now i just hoard filaments.)

Dan Maloney 3:22 PM

@CJ Keithley -- I think that was Zack Freedman

Mark Fraser 3:23 PM

I have several "cache box/bins", spanning several years. Many years. Last time I labeled boxes and bins was 22 years ago when we moved.

Dan Maloney 3:23 PM

https://hackaday.com/2021/02/08/finishing-your-projects-hack-chat-with-zack-freedman/

CJ Keithley 3:23 PM

Yep! Thanks for the reminder.. it was Zach

Tom Nardi 3:23 PM

https://hackaday.com/2020/10/03/the-amazing-technicolor-parts-organizer/

Dan Maloney 3:23 PM

I knew we covered it...

Saveitforparts 3:23 PM

I also have to admit to having a thing for milk crates. They're a standard size, stackable, you can kind of see into them, and they're convenient to stash and organize certain sizes of stuff.

Saveitforparts 3:24 PM

dcollins 3:24 PM

Any thoughts on carefully disassembling things and organizing them versus leaving them on a pile and scavenging for a part when you need it?

Saveitforparts 3:24 PM

Yep, I definitely break down bulky / broken stuff into spare parts sometimes (hence Saveitforparts)

SimonAllen 3:25 PM

Also, there is the issue that you know you've got a part somewhere, but you can't find it so you end up buying it anyway.

Saveitforparts 3:25 PM

When I was a kid I turned several VCRs into boxes of motors and gears... which may or may not have ever been used.

Dan Maloney 3:25 PM

Containerized cargo is a thing for a reason. Milk crates are just small-scale shipping containers

Thomas Shaddack 3:25 PM

leaving on piles. you never know how big subassembly you will need.

CIAndy 3:26 PM

The cache box doesn't work for me. There are just too many different electronic parts.

Steve M Potter 3:26 PM

The hours I spent desoldering parts as a teenager in the 80s have been replaced by hours shopping on Aliexpress!

CJ Keithley 3:26 PM

My “store room”

CJ Keithley 3:26 PM

CJ Keithley 3:27 PM

Thomas Shaddack 3:27 PM

i still have quite some of my teenager components. and regret i was talked into throwing out that box of vacuum tubes.

jed 3:28 PM

Just gave away my tubes at last local hamfest

Saveitforparts 3:28 PM

CJ, those are great! We have a bunch of those same shelves and some bins like that in the basement

Sam Freeman 3:28 PM

CJ - well done. Metro carts are fantastic

Steve M Potter 3:28 PM

I used my collection of old vacuum tubes as a shooting gallery for my pellet rifle in college. Messy fun!

Saveitforparts 3:28 PM

The downside is they're just slippery enough for rampaging cats to easily kick the bins off the shelves

SimplifyAndAddCoffee 3:29 PM

what do yall do about the sprawl of stuff when you're working on huge projects where you have almost all of your tools/parts bins out at once?

jed 3:29 PM

work on big projects in driveway

SimplifyAndAddCoffee 3:29 PM

oh the driveway is already full of it yeah

jed 3:30 PM

move cars to street

Saveitforparts 3:30 PM

I also tend to spread out into the driveway / garage floor / office floor

SimplifyAndAddCoffee 3:30 PM

and the garage, and the office, living room, back room, and now starting to fill up the bedroom

Steve M Potter 3:30 PM

@SimplifyAndAddCoffee When I begin tripping over tools and parts during a huge project, it is time for a mid-project clean-up.