circuit bent by fastmatt - blog

In April 2008, I went to New York to film a short how-to video about circuit bending a speak & spell. The video is now posted on MTV’s website. Click here to see it!

I just flipped the switch on my zencart-based e-commerce site. Who will be the first person to buy a circuit bent device directly from me using the new site??

http://www.fastmatt.com

Check out my new creation: a website that allows you to upload a picture of your classic VW and face off with other participants in one-on-one photo battle.
Not terribly original but seems to be a lot of fun, and is my first attempt at using Adsense advertising.

BeetlBattl

This has been a very interesting week.
San Antonio was hit with a freakish ice storm on Tuesday and Wednesday. Highways all closed, and lots of folks got into accidents when trying to get around. We elected to stay at home rather than take a crash course in ice driving. Turns out, we lost electricity on Tuesday afternoon and was out for 26 hours. Apparently lots of folks were without power, not many for this long though. It is truly amazing how cold a house can get when there is no heater coming on. It is also downright scary to realize just how dependent we’ve become on our conveniences. No TV, No Internet (yikes), no circuit bending or soldering or drilling holes possible. I didn’t take any pictures, but many pics submitted by residents can be found at http://www.ksat.com. Look for ‘Winter Blast’. It was nice however to have some quality time to spend in front of the fireplace, studying for the Sun Certified Java Programmer exam.

I cannot imagine all the heroic effort that many folks had to bring forth in order to get our town through this. I’m sure the power-line crews had very little sleep.

Here’s my first step into the blogosphere.
Greetings!

Matt Burriola. Married, one kid, just your average nice guy. Those who know me would describe me as quiet, steady, stoic, passionate (in a very controlled sort of way), perfectionistic, generous, stubborn, slightly funny. While not hammering out corporate software for Solaris UNIX servers and Windows CE handhelds, I can be found at home. Generally hanging out with my family, but when time permits, I’ll be tinkering with my Macintoshes, circuit bending, or buying/selling on eBay.

My interests are varied, and tend to come and go in 6-year cycles.
- Computers - well this habit always stays around.
- Tinkering - with just about anything. These days, it’s speak & spells.
- Volkswagens - used to have a 1967 VW Bug but sold it this year.
- eBay - this is where my play money comes from.
- Carputers (car-based computers). I’ve got a Mac Mini in the glove box of my Mazda 3.
- Music (I play saxophone, but rarely these days)
- RC Sailplanes (gliders). Haven’t done this in a few years.

I’m probably one of the last 300 internet citizens to create a blog, but better late then never.

My purpose here is to share what I’m up to, what I’m thinking/looking at, random cool things I’ve found, new things I’ve created/for sale, stuff like that.
I might also be sharing a few schematics or diagrams of circuit bending, tips, tricks, etc.
If you’ve read all this then I’m honored - thanks for your time.