Hovership MHQ2 Review

  The new redesigned 3D printed Hovership quadcopter have made great improvements from their last model! There are still some flaws but overall a great platform.  It holds the new Gopro Hero 4 and other models from Gopro just fine and has ample room for FPV gear and/or larger batteries.  I recommend buying the electronics/hardware kit from Hovership unless your local hobby shop sells the motors, ESCs, etc. because I found it was very hard to find the correct motor size and 6mm vibration dampeners at the hobby shop, they seem to only sell 8mm ones for gimbals or larger quads.  I recommend buy a few more vibration dampeners because when you crash and don't secure them to the frame they will get lost.  While you're at it might as well buy more propellers because the ones supplied in the kit are very fragile. For the un-supplied electronics  I used the newest KK2.1.5 board from Hobbyking as the controller along with the orange receiver.

  Make sure to have turn down you expos in your transmitter settings, especially if you are new so the quad isn't as touchy (I recommend 60% expos then move up).  I had a problem in the beginning with the quad flipping but I reset my KK2 board and calibrated it then it worked just fine.

Wonderful quadcopter!

Comment if you have any questions or suggestions!

Hydroponics Part 1

  Hydroponics is a system where it grows by nutrient-rich water.  This type of gardening does not use soil, it uses expanded clay pellets, rock wool, peat moss, vermiculite, or perlite so it allows the roots to grow without major friction of the soil.  The plants get all of the proper nutrients and oxygen it needs with the absence of the thick soil.  I chose to do a hydroponics system because I can control the climate, temperature, and the rate of growth.

  One of my first projects was this DIY hydroponics system, my parents thought it was another one of my "grand" plans but I wrote it out for them and during my Spring Break I went to Lowes every day and at the end of the week I made a successful system.  Although it wasn't all successful especially when the basement smelled like mold.  There after I have created "part 2" of the project during exam week, I had made a table and figured out why there was so much algae.  I looked up more and more and found some renovations I could make.  I also wanted to use the Arduino for it so I took some classes at my local maker-space, Nova Labs, and found ways to control the climate and temperature.  With the help and motivation from my father I was able to do all of this and hopefully more in the future, he helped me figure out how to work some tools and improvise parts and pieces.

Link for a more in-depth explanation of hydroponics:

http://home.howstuffworks.com/lawn-garden/professional-landscaping/alternative-methods/hydroponics.htm

What is an Arduino?

  Arduino, an open-source prototyping platform, which allows people to control electronic parts from a simple and easy-to-use circuit board.  There are many variations of the Arduino ranging from small chip-sized Arduinos to credit card sized ones. The software for the Arduino is very simple and follows the basic principles of C++. With all of the variations of the Arduino they all have same platform but some may have different applications it is used for.  An average starter Arduino, which was my first one, is the Uno.  The Arduino Uno is a great median because it offers advanced features and a cheap price, listing at only 25 dollars.  Many projects have used the Arduino and since 2005 many improvements have been made. This board has been shown in almost every Maker-Faire because it has so many uses that have reached past the average geek.

http://arduino.cc