Author's posts
Aug 10 2018
PONG – Revived!
The game PONG was released in 1972, one year before my birth. At the age of 18 I have constructed myself a Pong hardware using the AY-3-8500 integrated circuit on a self-made circuit board … basically a DIY game console! The game has now rested for more than 25 years. I have discovered it and …
Jul 16 2018
Virtual SkyWork Airlines Flight to Elba
Our Family could enjoy three marvellous vacations on Elba during the last years. Thanks to SkyWork Airlines the island is only an hour away from Bern. Since flights to the Marina di Campo airport on Elba are currently troubled by unmet regulatory requirements in Italy we decided to help out SkyWork Airlines with a virtual …
Apr 20 2018
Buttkicker (Füdligingger) under the seat
The Buttkicker Simulation Kit has arrived. After being sold out for years it is finally available again. It’s a fine piece of hardware. Connecting is easy. I’ve screwed the Transducer under the original B737 seat and it makes a difference during flight. What is needed now would be to add low frequency vibrations to individual …
Apr 20 2018
Boeing 737 Flight Controls Completed
It took some time to rebuild the cockpit so that it would fit the simujabs control column and rudder pedal mechanics. The whole construction had to be raised by around 22 cm which enabled placing the column and rudder mechanics under the “double floor”. The result is fantastic. See yourself … Above images show the …
Dec 21 2017
Boeing 737 Control Columns
To enhance a home cockpit with realistic controls instead of just using a simple joystick and gaming rudder pedals is possibly the dream of every cockpit builder. So here it goes … Boeing Airliners still have *real* linked Yoke Columns and Rudder Pedals. And there is quite some mechanical engineering involvend when you want to …
Dec 18 2017
Boeing 737-800 Home Cockpit (Linux-based, notably …)
Back in 2004 I started to think about how I could build a real airliner cockpit entirely based on Linux. I At the end of 2017 (and with a grown family) this idea has evolved into a fun project. The way to that goal is still a long and a very creative one. But today …
Apr 26 2016
Solar Potential of Switzerland
The Swiss Federal Office of Energy SFOE, the Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology MeteoSwiss, and the Federal Office of Topography swisstopo have created together with Meteotest a stunningly interactive and publicly accessible solar potential estimator for whole Switzerland. www.sonnendach.ch Compared to traditional so-called GIS-type “solar cadasters” this one is really usable. By usable I mean: …