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By all accounts Wei is a badass hacker in the truest sense of the word. Being able to source the parts on the cheap and basically put it together by himself is

by jtchang 15y ago

By all accounts Wei is a badass hacker in the truest sense of the word. Being able to source the parts on the cheap and basically put it together by himself is remarkable and a testament to good old-fashioned hard work. I'm going to make a generalization here and say that most Americans have lost this kind of DIY spirit. Instead we just whip out our Visa/Mastercard and decide to just buy what we need on credit. Yes, a solution to the problem nonetheless. But the amount of learning that you gain from doing a project like this should not be underestimated.

jakeonthemove 15y ago
Well, actually as much as I love DIY stuff, if I can find a good and affordable solution for something, I'll buy it - no need to reinvent the wheel, so to say. But yes, that does lead to people just giving up if there's no solution already available. One of the most interesting examples is CPU/RAM upgrades - I am simply amazed at how many people think that if you can't upgrade it on the manufacturer's site (where they'll rip you off like there's no tomorrow), then you can't do it at all... The same goes for car audio - I'd never leave it to some shop to do it!
Groxx 15y ago
I'd be willing to bet that's a global phenomenon, anywhere people have enough money to "just whip out [their] Visa/Mastercard". For places with money like that, you're also getting closer to the 'time is money' adage, and spending many hours on a build amounts to working for well below minimum wage. Unless you love it, it's essentially not worth it, and those that do love it will do it anyway (see the DIY crowd on Instructables, Hackaday, at Burning Man, etc).
- sliverstorm 15y ago
  I used to be all about the DIY stuff, but 'time is money' really is true. When I was broke, spending all weekend changing the timing belt on my car in the rain made sense. Now it doesn't.
bad_user 15y ago
My problem with DIY (for whatever is not software development) is that whenever I try something, it's never perfect from the first try and the second time around it is just boring and I don't bother with it anymore. For example this kind of project I wouldn't try if I'd be in the same situation, as the quality of the assembled box matters here and there are dozens of things that could go wrong, making me exceed the $125 budget (I've been in this exact situations before, several times :)) I would feel bad about giving a broken device to my girlfriend and if on a budget, old-fashioned flowers work great ;)
Anechoic 15y ago
>I'm going to make a generalization here and say that most Americans have lost this kind of DIY spirit. I disagree - most Americans in my experience are perfectly willing to DIY, just not in the same areas that you or I may DIY. When my car needs a new timing belt, control arms or brake pads, I'm perfectly happy to do the work myself. When it comes time to acquire vegetables, I'd much rather go to the local supermarket or farm stand and buy the them. On the other hand, my mom has a mechanic do all her car work and grows her own vegetables. I could go on about my friend who makes her own pottery and stationary, my brother who does his own carpentry, a friend who makes his own beer, etc etc. We are all DIYers in our own way.
- tankenmate 15y ago
  Necessity is the mother of invention.
rjbond3rd 15y ago
> I'm going to make a generalization here and say that most Americans have lost this kind of DIY spirit. Utterly false, you are simply out of touch with DIY culture, which is growing. In audio alone (a tiny fraction of DIY), people design and build incredible tube amps, horn speakers, etc. using a combination of hand craftsmanship and cutting edge computer simulation. Sound-wise, for under $2k, it's not that hard to surpass what you'd buy for $200k. It's a world-wide phenomenon but nonetheless huge in the US. Check out http://www.diyaudio.com http://www.diyaudio.com for example.
10100101001 15y ago
Couldn't have said it better myself. Except s/need/want

by jtchang 15y ago

jakeonthemove 15y ago

Well, actually as much as I love DIY stuff, if I can find a good and affordable solution for something, I'll buy it - no need to reinvent the wheel, so to say. But yes, that does lead to people just giving up if there's no solution already available. One of the most interesting examples is CPU/RAM upgrades - I am simply amazed at how many people think that if you can't upgrade it on the manufacturer's site (where they'll rip you off like there's no tomorrow), then you can't do it at all... The same goes for car audio - I'd never leave it to some shop to do it!

Groxx 15y ago

I'd be willing to bet that's a global phenomenon, anywhere people have enough money to "just whip out [their] Visa/Mastercard". For places with money like that, you're also getting closer to the 'time is money' adage, and spending many hours on a build amounts to working for well below minimum wage. Unless you love it, it's essentially not worth it, and those that do love it will do it anyway (see the DIY crowd on Instructables, Hackaday, at Burning Man, etc).

sliverstorm 15y ago
I used to be all about the DIY stuff, but 'time is money' really is true. When I was broke, spending all weekend changing the timing belt on my car in the rain made sense. Now it doesn't.

bad_user 15y ago

My problem with DIY (for whatever is not software development) is that whenever I try something, it's never perfect from the first try and the second time around it is just boring and I don't bother with it anymore. For example this kind of project I wouldn't try if I'd be in the same situation, as the quality of the assembled box matters here and there are dozens of things that could go wrong, making me exceed the $125 budget (I've been in this exact situations before, several times :)) I would feel bad about giving a broken device to my girlfriend and if on a budget, old-fashioned flowers work great ;)

Anechoic 15y ago

>I'm going to make a generalization here and say that most Americans have lost this kind of DIY spirit. I disagree - most Americans in my experience are perfectly willing to DIY, just not in the same areas that you or I may DIY. When my car needs a new timing belt, control arms or brake pads, I'm perfectly happy to do the work myself. When it comes time to acquire vegetables, I'd much rather go to the local supermarket or farm stand and buy the them. On the other hand, my mom has a mechanic do all her car work and grows her own vegetables. I could go on about my friend who makes her own pottery and stationary, my brother who does his own carpentry, a friend who makes his own beer, etc etc. We are all DIYers in our own way.

tankenmate 15y ago
Necessity is the mother of invention.

rjbond3rd 15y ago

> I'm going to make a generalization here and say that most Americans have lost this kind of DIY spirit. Utterly false, you are simply out of touch with DIY culture, which is growing. In audio alone (a tiny fraction of DIY), people design and build incredible tube amps, horn speakers, etc. using a combination of hand craftsmanship and cutting edge computer simulation. Sound-wise, for under $2k, it's not that hard to surpass what you'd buy for $200k. It's a world-wide phenomenon but nonetheless huge in the US. Check out http://www.diyaudio.com http://www.diyaudio.com for example.

10100101001 15y ago

Couldn't have said it better myself. Except s/need/want