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Top 10 Rule-Breaking Projects, Upgrades, and Solutions That Are Better Than Off-the-Shelf Products
While there are plenty of great products on the market, buying what's available to you means playing by the rules of the manufacturers. Sometimes the only way to get the product or service you're after is to create it yourself. If you're willing to bend or break the rules a little bit, here are our top 10 solutions to creating amazing things that can only exist by your own hand.Note: These solutions don't mean you won't have to purchase anything at all. In some cases you won't as you'll have what you need around the house, but these projects aren't free—just better than what you can currently buy in a store.
10. Make Better Board Games with the Board Game Remix Kit
You probably have a few board games lying around that were fun once but
have gotten a little dull after playing them again and again. So what
can you do? Remix them with the board game remix kit.
It'll cost you a few bucks, but it'll give you a ton of ways to take
your existing board games and turn them into better ones like Zombie
Mansion, Them's Fightin' Words, and more.9. Supercharge Your Canon Point-and-Shoot or DSLR
The cameras you buy in stores get the job done, but if you've got a Canon you don't have to settle for the status quo. CHDK is custom firmware that can supercharge your point-and-shoot and Magic Lantern will do the same for your Canon DSLR (and a few Panasonic models, too). We're not sure why there's still no love for Nikon, but if you've got a Canon there's a lot more you can be doing with it by breaking the rules and using some third-party firmware.
8. Make a Fully-Functional Linux Web Server for $50
If you want to run a web site out of your home or just have a handy local testing server, you can buy a Pogoplug and turn it into a fully-functional Linux web server pretty easily. If you've just learned to code and are starting your first project, your own mini web server can make for a great companion.
7. Silence the Annoyances on Television
Whether you're watching traditional or online television, you're bound to encounter something annoying. Fortunately, there are a couple of interesting DIY solutions that might solve your problems. For the regular boob tube, a neat DIY device called the Enough Already mutes your television when it hears certain names and keywords. For example, if you're listening to a broadcast and "Charlie Sheen" enters the conversation, the Enough Already will engage the mute function for 30 seconds. Alternatively, if you love Hulu but hate watching the exact same commercial with every video, Hush will silence them automatically. The commercials will still play, but at least you won't have to listen to them each time.
6. Turn Your Computer Into a Retro Arcade
There are plenty of devices you can use for the purpose of retro gaming. You can hack your Wii, Nintendo DS, iPad, and more. That said, you may not have one or any of these devices, but chances are you have a computer if you're reading this post. If that's the case, you have tons of options. Just check out our guiding on turning your computer into a retro arcade and you'll be playing all your favorite console games of the past in no time.
5. Customize Your Favorite Web Sites to Your Exact Preferences
Web sites are designed for many visitors with different needs and preferences, so nothing is every going to be perfect for you. Fortunately, your browser (whether it's through a plug-in or a built-in functionality) can support user scripts and styles, letting you customize any site to your liking. Many options already exist so you don't have to do much other than download and install them, but since they're basically JavaScript and CSS you can do just about anything you want if you have the proper know-how.
4. Create a Super Router
The router you've got probably does its job, but with DD-WRT it can become .something far more incredible. In fact, we've put together a set of lessons on all the amazing things you can do with your router. The problem is, not all routers support every little feature you could possibly want. Installing DD-WRT fixes that so you have all the features you need at your fingertips. Sure, it could void your warranty but that's part of the fun.
3. Build an Awesome XBMC-Based Media Center on the Cheap
XBMC (Xbox Media Center) is a cross-platform media center application that runs on anything from Xboxes to desktop computers to (jailbroken) iPhones, iPads, and AppleTVs. It's really fantastic, free, and better than pretty much every other box on the market. If you've already got a computer to run it on, you're all set, but we highly recommend running XBMC Live on a Nettop. Alternatively, the 2nd generation AppleTV makes an even cheaper, Wi-Fi-enabled XBMC box as well. Either way, it's pretty much the best media center solution out there and it's all yours for the price of $0 and a bit of your time.
2. Make a Hackintosh
While Apple makes some great computers, you can make your own for far
less money. In many cases, it'll even be faster than what you can buy.
We've already shown you how to build an exceptionally fast Hackintosh on the cheap, and well as an even cheaper Hack Mini. If you want to go custom and figure out your own build, we have a guide to help you do that as well. Lastly, while we're not big fans of Apple's latest operating system, should you want to upgrade you Hackintosh to Lion we can show you how to do that, too.
While a Hackintosh might require a bit more work and turn you into your
own tech support, if you enjoy building computers and having complete
control over your hardware, this is the way to go.
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