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MacSaber Turns Your Macbook into a Lightsaber

Posted by ScuttleMonkey on Sat May 20, 2006 06:39 PM
from the macs-and-other-jedi-mind-tricks dept.

Petey_Alchemist writes "SomethingAwful.com forum goon isnoop has developed a useless but fun app that takes advantage of the new sudden motion sensor available in Macbooks. The MacSaber 1.0 causes your Macbook or Macbook Pro to whoosh and crash like a lightsaber depending on how you swing it around. The reviews from those who have installed it say it is quite fun--although there is some concern about whether or not 'lightsaber battles' fall under warranty."

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They could also use this to play Tennis! (Score:5, Funny)

by Tezkah (771144) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @06:42PM (#15373705)

They could also use this to play Tennis! No wonder the Wii looks like an Apple product, it uses bluetooth to let you use your Macbook (Pro) as a paddle! Hooray!
- Re:They could also use this to play Tennis! (Score:3, Funny)
  
  by FidelCatsro (861135) * writes:
  
  You could play Pong
  Two white Macbooks , a big long strip of paper and an iPod
- - Re:They could also use this to play Tennis! (Score:4, Funny)
    
    by Irish_Samurai (224931) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @10:18PM (#15374178)
    
    Yeah, but with the black ones you get to pretend you're a Sith.
    
    Parent
Talk about your gimmicks (Score:2, Funny)

by Hobbes897 (782722) writes:

I would buy a new macbook just for this feature (well, that and tri-booting osx, xp, and gentoo).
- Re:Talk about your gimmicks (Score:2, Interesting)
  
  by Wizy (38347) writes:
  
  Funny you should say that. Thats exactly what my laptop is setup to do. GRUB loading up and showing OS X, GENTOO, and XP as its three options is a beautiful thing.
  - Re:Talk about your gimmicks (Score:3, Funny)
    
    by tomstdenis (446163) writes:
    
    The only good thing about having mac OS, gentoo and XP is that when you boot Gentoo you can say "I could boot XP or MacOS, I just choose not to." :-)
    
    Tom
Hooray! (Score:5, Funny)

by ThatGeek (874983) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @06:43PM (#15373712) Homepage

Now I can take my $1000 laptop and shake it to hear cool sounds! I can't imagine any downside in that. Oh crap, I just dropped my laptop. I can't wait to see the clip of the starwars laptop kid.
- Re:Hooray! (Score:4, Funny)
  
  by nitrocloud (706140) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @09:17PM (#15374029)
  
  You are a skilled Jedi to drop your laptop while typing and being able to post before it broke!
  
  Parent
No lightsabers (Score:3, Funny)

by ZzzzSleep (606571) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @06:44PM (#15373713) Homepage Journal

I don't want lightsaber effects, I just want to be able to use force pull on a Mac laptop. That would be fun. And profitable.
Grab it while... (Score:4, Funny)

by Rosco P. Coltrane (209368) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @06:46PM (#15373719)

...you can, before George Lucas sues the authors.
- Re:Grab it while... (Score:4, Funny)
  
  by NTiOzymandias (753325) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @08:03PM (#15373870)
  
  Lucas doesn't have a chance to sue. Steve Jobs shoots first!
  
  Parent
  - Re:Grab it while... (Score:4, Funny)
    
    by Gogo0 (877020) writes: on Sunday May 21 2006, @09:11PM (#15377921)
    
    In the dupe, Lucas will shoot first.
    
    Parent
fat kid swinging a macbook (Score:4, Funny)

by tddoog (900095) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @06:47PM (#15373721)

So when are we going to get a video of a fat kid swinging his macbook around.
...followed by a lawsuit of course.
- Re:fat kid swinging a macbook (Score:4, Funny)
  
  by Aladrin (926209) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @07:12PM (#15373782)
  
  Give me a new macbook and I'll make that video. Hell, I'll even wear a cape. or wookie ears or something. (You'll have to provide that, too.
  
  Parent
  - - Re:fat kid swinging a macbook (Score:4, Funny)
      
      by 93,000 (150453) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @08:44PM (#15373955)
      
      Duh. There's a scene in the upcoming Special Editon II where Greedo's first shot ricoches off the cantena wall and blasts off Chewbacca's ears. Han then gets so mad at seeing his companion in pain that he shoots Greedo, even though he doesn't want to and really feels quite bad about it. That's why Chewie is earless for the rest of the trillogy.
      
      Parent
Okay... (Score:3, Interesting)

by creimer (824291) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @06:49PM (#15373726) Homepage

It would probably a lot more cheaper to build a lightsaber out of Lego blocks and some electronics. Trying to catch a laptop lightsaber in mid-air may result in a fatal (physical) crash that AppleCare won't cover.
- Re:Okay... (Score:4, Funny)
  
  by ScrewMaster (602015) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @06:50PM (#15373731)
  
  Fatal to who? The laptop, or the Sith Lord that you're trying to brain with the thing?
  
  Parent
  - Re:Okay... (Score:3, Funny)
    
    by creimer (824291) writes:
    
    I didn't know AppleCare covers braining a Sith Lord! :P
    - Re:Okay... (Score:5, Funny)
      
      by Jeremi (14640) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @10:03PM (#15374145) Homepage
      
      I didn't know AppleCare covers braining a Sith Lord! :P
      
      The secret to defeating Darth Ballmer is to use the Force, not your eyes. Only with the Force will you be able to parry the onslaught of flying furniture in time.
      
      Parent
- Re:Okay... (Score:5, Funny)
  
  by Rosco P. Coltrane (209368) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @06:53PM (#15373742)
  
  It would probably a lot more cheaper to build a lightsaber out of Lego blocks and some electronics.
  
  You miss the point: if you shake a lego brick light saber, you look like a dork. If you shake a Mac laptop light saber, you look like a rich dork.
  
  Parent
Suggested mods (Score:5, Funny)

by Original Replica (908688) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @06:50PM (#15373732) Journal

Can you make it scream in terror/pain when you drop it?
- Re:Suggested mods (Score:5, Insightful)
  
  by Original Replica (908688) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @06:53PM (#15373741) Journal
  
  or yell for help if someone moves it without disabling an anti-theft program.
  
  Parent
  - Re:Suggested mods (Score:2)
    
    by FleaPlus (6935) writes:
    
    I heard that in the newer version it'll scream like a little girl when you toss it down a chute.
    - Re:Suggested mods (Score:5, Funny)
      
      by Reverend528 (585549) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @07:20PM (#15373797) Homepage
      
      I heard that in the newer version it'll scream like a little girl when you toss it down a chute.
      
      I don't know about the laptop, but the owner certainly did.
      
      Parent
HDD Motion Detector? (Score:2)

by ScottCooperDotNet (929575) writes:

Is this the same motion detector that IBM's HDD labs came up with a few years ago?
The article is /.'d.
- Re:HDD Motion Detector? (Score:3, Informative)
  
  by samkass (174571) writes:
  
  Is this the same motion detector that IBM's HDD labs came up with a few years ago?
  No. About a year ago Apple starting adding a general purpose motion sensor to the motherboard, accessible via an API. The OS uses the motion sensor to park a HD during a jolt. Others have tapped into it for more fun/useful uses.
  
  The IBM one, by the way, is a feature of the HD controller and is not available via a general API.
  
  Apple's KB article on it [apple.com]
  Some developer info on the motion sensor and how to tap into it [kernelthread.com]
  Further discus [kernelthread.com]
  - That's just wrong (Score:3, Interesting)
    
    by syncrotic (828809) writes:
    
    As the AC that replied to your post already said, the sensor in Thinkpads is mounted on the motherboard, and the shock protection is software controlled. The laptop ships with a control panel applet that gives you a realtime 3D view of the computer: it pitches and yaws as you physically move the machine.
- - Re:HDD Motion Detector? (Score:2)
    
    by BitHive (578094) writes:
    
    I declare this /. thread the official stopgap forums for all the displaced users. What's going on guys?
Complete Idiocy... (Score:4, Informative)

by localman (111171) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @06:57PM (#15373752) Homepage

And I love it :) I'm sitting here waving around my spankin' new 17" and smiling like an idiot. Luckily you don't have to wave it too hard to get the cool sounds.

And the SMS data display is just kinda neat anyways. I had no idea it was so detailed... now I know that my desk leans 3 points to the left.

Cheers.
- Re:Complete Idiocy... (Score:2)
  
  by System.out.println() (755533) writes:
  
  Or your laptop's motion sensor is miscalibrated. Might want to rotate the book around different directions to make sure.
- - - Re:Complete Idiocy... (Score:3, Informative)
      
      by 1u3hr (530656) writes:
      
      You might be better off with an old fashioned bubble level from the local hardware store
      Or the Carpenter's Level Dashboard Widget. [pallit.lhi.is]
iPod - iSaber (Score:2, Interesting)

by MasterPi (896501) writes:

This could be the thing that finally convinces me to get an iPod. I've been resisting, but that would just be too cool. Especially if they used semitransparent casing and made the indiglo spread the whole way 'round. They could call it the iSaber
Mirror (Score:5, Informative)

by antdude (79039) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @07:11PM (#15373776) Homepage Journal

NetworkMirror [networkmirror.com] since the original site didn't connect for me. :(
Other apps/games make use of the Sudden Motion Sen (Score:5, Informative)

by green pizza (159161) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @07:21PM (#15373798) Homepage

The most famous app to use this feature is probably iAlertU, which has a demo on YouTube.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkAtRfA1UXc [youtube.com]
http://www.slappingturtle.com/home/ [slappingturtle.com]

Bubblegym was one of the first games to make use of thos:
http://www.balooba.se/baloobasoftware/texts/bubble gym.htm [balooba.se]
Accelerometer (Score:3, Interesting)

by gjuk (940514) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @07:22PM (#15373801)

How accurate is the Mac's motion detection? Does this mean I should trade in my PC, stick a Mac in my rucksack, and let it work out how many calories I burn cycling to work?
- Re:Accelerometer (Score:3, Interesting)
  
  by Rosyna (80334) writes:
  
  Does this mean I should trade in my PC, stick a Mac in my rucksack, and let it work out how many calories I burn cycling to work?
  
  Yes, however you'd probably have to connect a dummy DVI connector in order to keep the laptop from Sleeping. Note that this will drain your battery life in this configuration. You'd only be able to take about a 3-4 hour "trip" with all the power saving features turned on. But if you don't live that far away from work, battery life shouldn't be a problem.
- Re:Accelerometer (Score:4, Informative)
  
  by iphayd (170761) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @08:55PM (#15373971) Homepage Journal
  
  The Sudden Motion Sensor is accurate enough that there is a dashboard widget that emulates a bubble level. Of course, this is in my PowerPC-based Powerbook, so the SMS is not actually "new."
  
  Parent
  - Re:Accelerometer (Score:5, Interesting)
    
    by Jeremi (14640) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @10:12PM (#15374168) Homepage
    
    The Sudden Motion Sensor is accurate enough that there is a dashboard widget that emulates a bubble level.
    
    Cool... but do they have an emulation of that annoying wooden table game, where you steer a little steel ball through a tilting maze while trying to not to fall into the holes? That's clearly what the SMS was originally designed for...
    
    Parent
Rendezvous (Score:5, Funny)

by Avatar889 (670455) writes: <fal3042@@@rit...edu> on Saturday May 20 2006, @07:31PM (#15373812) Homepage Journal

Maybe they can use Rendezvous to tell how close they come to other lightsabers for more realistic crashing noises at the right time.
- Re:Rendezvous (Score:3, Interesting)
  
  by jrockway (229604) * writes:
  
  Rendezvous has nothing to do with physical proximity. What they could do, though, is associate two machines via bluetooth and see how the link quality changes as the machine move nearer to each other. You could do this with 802.11 also, but the proprietary drivers won't give you enough information to do anything useful. This could be solved by using the Linux drivers for the Intel Wireless, which are open source, and give you good information about the link quality. (Do the MacBooks use Intel Wireless,
Well.. (Score:3, Insightful)

by outz (448278) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @07:34PM (#15373824) Homepage

I hear they run hotter than a light saber.
What do they look like, Jimmie? (Score:5, Funny)

by XO (250276) writes: <.blade.eric. .at. .gmail.com.> on Saturday May 20 2006, @08:19PM (#15373897) Homepage Journal

Dorks. They look like Dorks, Mr. Wolfe.
Thanks alot. (Score:4, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @08:20PM (#15373899)

I just installed this and started playing around with it.

My daughter saw me and wanted to try. So I let her.

This lead to a saber duel and the lopping off of her imaginary friends toe.

Now, I am at the imaginary emergency room.
Think different (Score:3, Interesting)

by knappe duivel (914316) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @08:31PM (#15373929)

With the ambient light detector, sudden motion sensor, infrared port, isight, airport, bluetooth and microphone a macbook pro should be able to pry more information out of its surroundings than a tricorder. How about putting that into a game in stead of starting dangerous new fads.
Hooray! It is already patented! (Score:5, Interesting)

by Misagon (1135) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @10:11PM (#15374161)

According to this article [kernelthread.com] the motion sensor is actually a three-axis accelerometer. I doubt that George Lucas would sue, but I know of a guy who claims that he has a US patent on the use of an accelerometer in a lightsaber toy to trigger sound events.
I suggested the use of an accelerometer on an Internet messageboard, when another user had asked for advice for building a high-end lightsaber toy. I directly got snotty remarks that it would be infringing on this guy's patent. He was then selling circuits with an accelerometer that were connected via radio-link to a PC that played sounds.
I then told him that I was building such a circuit myself and knew of other people who also had designed similiar circuits independently from eachother, because it was quite straightforward design if you know your way around electronics. I pointed out that I thought that such straight-forward patents were stealing from the community, especially if this was a software patent but that it wouldn't apply to me anyway because he was in the US and I was in Europe. For this I was banned from the msgboard, for "software piracy" (!) .. apparently the admins did not distinguish between different types of intellectual property, or they were friends with this guy. I don't know.
And now, a relevant quote... (Score:3, Funny)

by rakslice (90330) writes: <rakslice AT gmx DOT net> on Sunday May 21 2006, @02:37AM (#15374909) Homepage Journal

"This is all strongly reminiscent of the heyday of Communism and Socialism, when the bourgeoisie were hated from both ends: by the proles, because they had all the money, and by the intelligentsia, because of their tendency to spend it on lawn ornaments."
--Neal Stephenson
And when you drop it... (Score:5, Funny)

by isny (681711) writes: on Sunday May 21 2006, @09:41AM (#15375789) Homepage

And when you drop it, it's as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror, and were suddenly silenced.
- Re:Old News (Score:4, Informative)
  
  by System.out.println() (755533) writes: on Saturday May 20 2006, @07:09PM (#15373772) Journal
  
  The Macbook (and before it, Powerbook) line has had the motion sensor for a while now. The sensor isn't the news.
  
  Parent
- Re:Hasn't this been around for a while? (Score:4, Informative)
  
  by wed128 (722152) writes: <<moc.liamg> <ta> <ssalguodwordoow>> on Saturday May 20 2006, @08:33PM (#15373933)
  
  the software is the news, not the sensor.
  
  Parent
- Re:Doesn't quite work on a 12" PowerBook (Score:4, Funny)
  
  by Maniacal Laughter (974626) writes: on Sunday May 21 2006, @02:05AM (#15374832) Homepage
  
  Roll: Left 1835
  Tilt: -2070
  Force: 0 0
  
  As you can see, the force is missing. May the force be with you.
  
  Parent

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MacSaber Turns Your Macbook into a Lightsaber

MacSaber Turns Your Macbook into a Lightsaber 50 Comments More Login /

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They could also use this to play Tennis! (Score:5, Funny)

Re:They could also use this to play Tennis! (Score:3, Funny)

Re:They could also use this to play Tennis! (Score:4, Funny)

Talk about your gimmicks (Score:2, Funny)

Re:Talk about your gimmicks (Score:2, Interesting)

Re:Talk about your gimmicks (Score:3, Funny)

Hooray! (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Hooray! (Score:4, Funny)

No lightsabers (Score:3, Funny)

Grab it while... (Score:4, Funny)

Re:Grab it while... (Score:4, Funny)

Re:Grab it while... (Score:4, Funny)

fat kid swinging a macbook (Score:4, Funny)

Re:fat kid swinging a macbook (Score:4, Funny)

Re:fat kid swinging a macbook (Score:4, Funny)

Okay... (Score:3, Interesting)

Re:Okay... (Score:4, Funny)

Re:Okay... (Score:3, Funny)

Re:Okay... (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Okay... (Score:5, Funny)

Suggested mods (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Suggested mods (Score:5, Insightful)

Re:Suggested mods (Score:2)

Re:Suggested mods (Score:5, Funny)

HDD Motion Detector? (Score:2)

Re:HDD Motion Detector? (Score:3, Informative)

That's just wrong (Score:3, Interesting)

Re:HDD Motion Detector? (Score:2)

Complete Idiocy... (Score:4, Informative)

Re:Complete Idiocy... (Score:2)

Re:Complete Idiocy... (Score:3, Informative)

iPod - iSaber (Score:2, Interesting)

Mirror (Score:5, Informative)

Other apps/games make use of the Sudden Motion Sen (Score:5, Informative)

Accelerometer (Score:3, Interesting)

Re:Accelerometer (Score:3, Interesting)

Re:Accelerometer (Score:4, Informative)

Re:Accelerometer (Score:5, Interesting)

Rendezvous (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Rendezvous (Score:3, Interesting)

Well.. (Score:3, Insightful)

What do they look like, Jimmie? (Score:5, Funny)

Thanks alot. (Score:4, Funny)

Think different (Score:3, Interesting)

Hooray! It is already patented! (Score:5, Interesting)

And now, a relevant quote... (Score:3, Funny)

And when you drop it... (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Old News (Score:4, Informative)

Re:Hasn't this been around for a while? (Score:4, Informative)

Re:Doesn't quite work on a 12" PowerBook (Score:4, Funny)

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