|
Christmas Projects Both of us are big on Christmas. Mary likes the shopping and interior decorating, and I'm big on outside Christmas displays. In 2001, I started experimenting with animated displays that are controlled by a computer. That year I built two parallel port controls that could control 8 circuits each. These were simple to build and control, but didn't provide much growth potential. For 2002, I started in January trying to find a design that would allow me to control many more circuits without purchasing expensive Digital I/O Boards. In February, I found Hill Robertson's design for a 320 circuit device that could be controlled by a parallel port. I spent much of the year building my own version that I should be able to use for years to come. |
|
||||||||||||
|
Some References
|
|
||||||||||||
|
The Star The odd looking object on the right has been passed through the Hormann family for generations. Now matter which direction you look at it from, you can always see a 5 point star! Made entirely of copper and colored glass, this one of a kind decoration weighs a ton. The Star was designed and built by my great-great uncle and given to my grandfather to be hung outside their Fort Wayne home where it was placed every Christmas for many years. Upon his passing, the Star was given to my father who presented it to me in 1998. My grandparents always hung the Star outside on the porch until the year it disappeared while my grandparents were attending church. After placing articles in the local paper explaining the family significance of the star, it mysteriously reappeared a few days later. Since that incident, the Star is now proudly displayed every Thanksgiving through New Years behind glass. |
 |
||||||||||||
Our Display See the following links for all of the different displays we've done. Years: 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 |