1. About unlocking the Linksys PAP2. A lot of companys, when you buy a ATA (PAP2) from them, they "lock" you into there plan. For example, with the PAP2's Vonage "locks" the unit so it "cannot" be altered. Lets say you end up not liking Vonage, and decided to carry you business elsewhere. Even though you _own_ the hardware, you cannot modify it to use it with another service provider! What unlocking does is allow you to do anything with the device you want. In this case, you're unlocking it from being a strictly "Vonag" device to being something you can use anywhere you want (say - with your home Asterisk server). What also made this "hack" attractive was the fact that Staples was giving a $50.00 rebate on the units. You did _not_ need to sign up for Vonage to get the $50.00 rebate! The _unit_ costs $50.00. Basically, free unlock'able PAP2 units. I hope this clears up some of the misunderstandings.

Posted at 3:08PM on Sep 3rd 2006 by Da beave

2. I tried to order the PAP2 from staples but it's blocked on the website from adding to the cart... called the 1-800 number and the rep wouldn't take my order saying that it was going to be phased out, and they weren't sure if they would even get enough in to fill the backordered orders already in place. =-( so close

Posted at 3:08PM on Sep 3rd 2006 by jason

3. "rumble mouse could use pager motors. they run on 1.5v. they are smaller, so may not have as much rumble, but you get the point." Exactly what i was thinking, you can buy the motors (with the weight for vibration) online at stores that cater to BEAM robotics. I might try it with those and an old mouse. The hard drive speakers are kind of lame, you can do the same thing with any relatively strong magnet. And they shouldn't be compared to Afroman's (he is god) hd speakers because the heads on his move and look awesome while they work. a stalker greg hum is

Posted at 3:08PM on Sep 3rd 2006 by CAptSnuffy

4. You can buy a proper adaptor for the Xbox controller to use on PC for about $8 if you look around.

Posted at 3:08PM on Sep 3rd 2006 by gunforhire

5. I just want to thank hackaday for the great reference. pixel2life.com

Posted at 3:08PM on Sep 3rd 2006 by evan frohlich

6. rumble mouse could use pager motors. they run on 1.5v. they are smaller, so may not have as much rumble, but you get the point.

Posted at 3:08PM on Sep 3rd 2006 by bodiby

7. so what exactly is the point of unlocking the pap2? this is new to me does that mean u have voip over ur internet connection with out having to pay vonage?

Posted at 3:08PM on Sep 3rd 2006 by Ken

8. Here is a Tor Mirror for the pap2 unlocking howto: http://xrwomtsfodx2jby3.onion/docs/PAP2/

Posted at 3:08PM on Sep 3rd 2006 by Fnord

9. I like the ir camera, although wouldn't it be better if you held an ir "torch" in your hand so you didn't have to control it manually?

Posted at 3:08PM on Sep 3rd 2006 by Confused Fishcake

10. Loved the mouse, because I'm all about pointless projects purely for the "neat!" factor. I agree with #2 though, I would have liked to seen it done with a 5V motor wired into the USB power line - also, an optical mouse. I haven't seen a ball mouse in a looong time...

Posted at 3:08PM on Sep 3rd 2006 by jared harley

11. Regarding the above comment, I also agree that $175 for a pan/tilt is extortion. I would say for IR control, just take apart a cheap old stereo and use the remote from that... ie. the contacts for "play" could be pan up, etc... sounds like a fun project, now to break my sister's CD player.

Posted at 3:08PM on Sep 3rd 2006 by Jake

12. regarding the camera? well yeah. mine was free because i had all the parts lying around. a little creative acrylic cutting and heat gun bending, and i got http://www.macetech.com/cambig.jpg it runs on the serial port and uses a PIC16F84. the top platform could be rotated 90 degrees and a 1/4-20 screw installed to mount normal cameras. i wrote a little piece of software to remember positional bookmarks and manually pan/tilt etc. someday i will put an actual design document together for you all.

Posted at 3:08PM on Sep 3rd 2006 by mc

13. I'm curious, do any of you know if the PAP2 unlocking will work on a Vonage box that was bought in the UK?

Posted at 3:08PM on Sep 3rd 2006 by noog

14. I have to say, I like the ingenuity behind the rumble mouse. I really really do. I think I may try that sometime. I would use a 5V DC motor so it could be powered directly from the USB connection, and I'd try to actually fit it in the casing. Props.

Posted at 3:08PM on Sep 3rd 2006 by Bucky

15. If you liked Livemarks, You might also enjoy this huge collection of del.icio.us tools. http://pchere.blogspot.com/2005/02/absolutely-delicious-complete-tool.html

Posted at 3:08PM on Sep 3rd 2006 by Quick online tips