If you could get a mechanical inverter to work for a max of 100 hrs using new electrode technologies... you should be able to make it small enough.I'm talking spin switched.

In short, My question is, electrodes are getting extremely good maximizing conduction and minimizing wear, but are they good enough to make mechanical switching a possibility?

Say funnel a MAX of say 20 amps @ 12vDC to a spin a high efficiency brushless DC motor nice and fast. The DC motor would be attached to a plate that would have a Rotating I (maybe an X?) of High tech carbon nanotube ended graphene electrodes spining in a circle. Spinning at the right frequency, it should convert the DC to square AC. Round it out, and then a computerized Vmeter + tied back to an ESC could regulate the motor's speed keeping the phase locked good n tight, minimizing fluctuations.

I'm not an EE though, I feel like there's something wrong w/ this, that the loss might be too high, or maybe that kind of electrode technology isn't there yet?
Just curious..

While most of your points are legit, I think we need to start making a distinction, you apply the Rules in two different ways against the "model aircraft" please stop calling these things drones.

Is a quad, hex, or octo copter a helicopter? is a model helicopter a helicopter? back in the day unmanned aircraft were still fixed wing, it wasn't until controllers became inexpensive that the idea of quads started to come to light.

FAA is already trying to impose some pretty severe restrictions against modelers.

Have you ever circumnavigated azeroth?

j/k

Good old games has it

I miss it too.

Exploits of a Mom is probably the funniest thing in a web comic ever... :)

I concur, when a FLAGSHIP home router can be had for 199, I can't see spending 300. People could afford to have two of the old WRTs, one for experimenting, and one for "Production."

I get that more radios / Antennas, and a dual 1.2GHZ processor alone all add up. A dual 1.2 isn't going to be as cheap as a whatever was in that wrt... (IIRC it was like 400mhz?) It's just that you can get a router w/ up to 5 separate networks (Plus V-lans) for $200. Maybe that was a typo, and was supposed to be 199?

Echo this for many Android apps...

I agree w/ everything right up until the 2nd & 3rd Don't
I think that's pretty extreme.

Don't add nice wheels to your car
Don't upgrade your Rotors...
Don't change the colors of your house.

FFS

If not USING your PC is your idea of IT, I'm glad I dont' work w/ you!
Me personally, like making the PC personalized. I don't need to be super Admin at work or anything, but I get pretty pissed at employers who utilize draconian GPs to lock down PCs that people sit at day in and day out. Somethings make work easier, like AutoHotKey. The later, I only use every now (not even quarterly?) and then to create rapid text macros needed for doing manual manipulation of >20 records at a time. A rarity, but it saves hours!

Is it more than you use daily, or more than you've ever used. Like many I've used photoXXXX, (including bump mapping, texturizing, Masking, Merging multiple layers, color replacements, etc... not making Memes) but I don't use PhotoXXXX on a regular basis, maybe 2x a year. Should I uninstall / re-install that every time?

Just playing Devil's advocate here.

All time favorite apps for PC:
WINDIRSTAT / MS Office
All time favorite apps for Android.
Titanium Backup / Tasker.

that was a heli, not a drone, nor flying in unmanned mode. My club had a HUGE conversation about it since similar craft fly at our field. That poor guy actually commited incidental suicide since he was piloting the craft IIRC

public opinion... Drones are bad, ban drones.... blah blah b.s.

But really, the continued use of these things by inexperienced pilots is going to cause newsworth injury or death sooner or later, just like bucky balls...

There are FAA safety rules for flight, and AMA rules for hobyists. Even small toy helicopters & planes can be quite dangerous.
AMA = Academy for Model Aeronautics (SP?) (This is the group that oversees most model aircraft clubs)

AMA clearly states thou shalt not fly over people, in crowded areas, or in a manner that might end up w/ your aircraft in a situation where it could cause harm.
This is no differnt than driving an RC car on a busy road. NOT BRILLIANT. (Though to be 100% honest, I'm all for cul de sacs, and the occasional county freeway...)

The guy clearly broke AMA rules, and if a member should have his status revoked. Also, I'm sure he broke the law, but befor we go TOO crazy, what if someone hit a softball in downtown NYC? a baseball? a rock... I'm pretty sure aimlessly throwing rocks isn't itself explicitly illegal yet.
IMHO a quadcopter is a rock w/ four props and a helluva battery...

I just can't believe the dumb a$$ lost a decent craft trying to fly near buildings which create crazy vertical wind sheer using GPS at that.
My biggest problem is dicks like this are going to make it harder for guys like me because the public will cry outrage, and think of the children. It won't be long before one of these DO hurt or kill someone.

I'm sure many /.. readers are interested in this kinda stuff. It's a great hobby btw. I suggest reading up on Wattflyer.com, DIYDrones.com, and RCPlanet.com. A bucketload of information abounds for those interested in doing heli's,quads, fixed wing, FPV & Drone flight. Learn to fly on a simulator, then learn again w/ an AMA chartered club. There everywhere, and you'll save tons of $ in broken planes.

I'll be stuck playing SC2 for a while, but probably not 9 yrs... :)

Yep, it's 9 years old, and lots of people still play it. Just like TF2, World fo Warcraft, and a lot of other titles.

But it reminds me that I'm sitting here w/ an old clunker of a phone, the Droid RAZR MAXX. I've been wondering if I should grab the S4 when it comes out, or hold out for some Rockin' octocore monstrosity, or a fabled vapor phone.

Now I have one more choice, the vapor X! 2x more XTREME!!!!

(as with their prior pricing model. sorry)