Teknoholics Project: Mobile File sharing with PirateBox/LibraryBox

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last summer an interesting Kickstarter project launched, and was quickly funded at more than ten times it's requested ammount.  The project was LibraryBox 2.0, a fork of the GNU GPLv3 licensed PirateBox art project by Dr. David Darts.  The initial concept was to transform any space into a temporary communication and wireless file sharing network. When users join the PirateBox wireless network and open a web browser, they are automatically redirected to the PirateBox welcome page. Users can then immediately begin chatting and/or uploading or downloading files.

LibraryBox takes PirateBox to a little safer ground by sharing a library of files but no longer allowing people who connect to it the ability to upload potentially copywritten materials.  The idea was the brain child of Jason Griffey an associate professor and head of Library Information Technology at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.  His thought was that taking such a system into areas with limited or no internet access with a library of books, learning materials, disaster survival materials etc. could be of great assistance in disaster recovery areas, or foreign countries where access to the internet is severely regulated.

The project was featured in this months issue of MAKE: magazine, and since I already had the materials needed on hand I decided to play around with it to see how easy it was to get up and running.

The foundation that the project is built on is a small wireless router from TP-Link, the MR3020.  This small portable router is desgned to be used with 3G USB modems to share cellular data connections via wi-fi.  The software of the router is overwritten with a program called OpenWRT, which for all intents and purposes turns the router into a web server.

The next thing that is needed is USB storage to house the files that are going to be shared.  I used the Leef Fuse 2.0 32GB High-speed USB Flash Drive with Magnet Cap and PrimeGrade Memory (Charcoal/Black).  I had other USB flash drives around, but this was the smallest with a decent capacity to be able to store data.

While that is all that is needed, to make my setup a little more portable and easier to deploy, I added a 12000mAh portable power bank that I had laying around.

So for you to build the exact setup I have put together would be less than $100.  For that money you get a completely mobile filesharing device with 8-12 hours of uptime before it needs to be plugged in!  Not a bad setup.  You can use it to share files at a LAN Party, to share information at an outdoor event, or even as a kind of Digital GeoCache, where people can check-in on the wall to prove that they found it, and download a file or upload a file as well.  The options are endless, and changes are relatively easy to make.

You can find the original project and instructions for the PirateBox here.  Information on Jason Griffey's LibraryBox fork is available here, or in MAKE Volume 37, page 74.

This is what you see in Terminal once you have connected to your MR3020 for the first time after it has been modified

Uploading files and leaving notes on the chat board are easy tasks to accomplish

The main page information link takes you to this captive page with more details about the PirateBox concept

Review: Triple C Designs "greenBoom" Portable speaker

I recieved this months sampler from BirchBox, and was pleased to find that I recieved this small portable speaker form Triple C Designs.  A small 2" cube that packs a decent wallop for such a small speaker.  Carrie and the kids were amazed at the sound volume and quality as well.  For $29 you aren't goinf to find a better marriage of form and function to pump your toons around the house or the yard this spring and summer.  Check this thing out folks, you won't be sorry.

Triple C Designs Portable Speaker | April's Box | Birchbox:

Triple C Designs Portable Speaker

 

Review: Cafejo "My French-Press"

The first french-press to use K-cups, and the cheapest keurig brewer on the marketI had the opportunity to get ahold of the Cafejo My French-Press, and I am impressed.  Taking the flexibility and ease of use of both a Keurig Coffee maker and a traditional french-press and merging them into a handy and portable gadget, this is a great coffee maker for anyone short on space or money.  There are several things that make this actually better than a Keurig, the most desireable of which is the ability to use any liquid (including spirits and milk) at any temperature.  Since many traditional coffee makers brew too hot and scorch coffee, and while wide ranging, K-Cups for Keurig brewers have limited variety the My French-Press really is the best of both worlds.  Pick this up using the link above from Amazon, you won't be sorry.