Laser Pong (my second laser projector videogame)
Why Hacker News recommends it
Cited by HN as a fun example of a laser projector side project that later led to jobs and wealth for its author.
What it is
Brandon Thomas demos Laser Pong, a game he built on a laser projector and projected onto buildings around Atlanta. It was a weekend project.
Recommended by 0 HN commenters across 0 different months, 2013 to 2023.
What Hacker News said
Cites possibilistic · 2013-10 · on “Ask HN: What are you working on and why is it cool?”
Laser projection. [this video] (Pong on a 20 story building, billboards, etc.) [LINK] (Multiple laser projectors) [LINK] (Canny edge detector) [LINK] (Asteroids on a 4 story building) [LINK] (Reddit's Snoo on a 20 story building) I've just added a second projector and a few more dacs (thanks to a very generous donor). I'm doing multiprojection and rectification/distortion now. I'm planning to get Skyscraper Tetris and Breakout going with some additional hardware. I need about ten projectors at 60kpps (or 80kpps at low scan angle) with a combined wattage of 20W or so. I have endless ideas: I'll bring it online, do live art/graffiti, turn buildings into twitter feeds, multiplayer gaming, and NES em
Cites possibilistic · 2014-01 · on “Ask HN: Who is Co-Founding?”
Anybody in Atlanta? I am working with lasers [1], starting a science show with some PhDs (heavy biochem, biophysics) aimed at the HN/hacker/programmer demographic, and considering *coin/blockchain services. (Pizza ordering service? Utilizing extra transaction info for meta exchange/escrow/conversions?) I can only work nights/weekends ATM unless we get residual income or investment. I do Unices, JS, Python, C++(11). Renting a nice decently large place in Midtown and might be able to allocate space for a cofounder if work ramped up. bt at brand dot io [1] [this video]
Cites i336_ · 2017-03 · on “Recreating the “Asteroids” graphics with a single-beam laser projector [video]”
In the pong video ( [this video] ) I find it absolutely hilarious that you practically just grabbed a random guy to play it while you filmed.
Cites echelon · 2020-08 · on “Teletext Bad Apple”
I remember seeing OpenLase after I developed a bunch of laser projector games [1] [2]. I wish I had known about it back then. Python was a huge bottleneck, and I had to come up with workarounds for the GIL and other problems. [1] [this video] [2] [LINK]
Cites echelon · 2020-09 · on “'Ugh fields', or why you can’t even bear to think about that task”
If you're unlucky enough to have ADHD, literally everything except the task you have arbitrary hyper-focus on is an ugh field. Daily chores and maintenance like paying bills are ugh . Life is one big maze of ugh , and it's designed by people that don't get us. It feels inescapable and arbitrary. The only exit seems to be financial independence. I often really hate how we're expected to work in this framework. My hyperfocus is a super-power ( [LINK] , [this video] , and a bunch of other awesome but non-monetizable projects). Too bad I can't get paid for it.
Cites echelon · 2020-10 · on “Advice to my young self: forget side projects and focus on your job”
Boo! This is awful advice. I'm constantly commended on my side projects, and I excel at them because I enjoy them: - [this video] - [LINK] - [LINK] - [LINK] The laser stuff made me wealthy, and that wasn't even my intention. People at the time told me it was a huge distraction from my academic career and a waste of time. My current side project is a real time voice converter (like Mission Impossible). Follow your passion. You'll deliver better results and open lots of doors. Your side projects will also usually be pretty novel. It's fertile ground for startup material.
Cites echelon · 2023-12 · on “Ask HN: What side projects landed you a job?”
I was planning to go into grad school for computational biology, but an early Square engineer saw me playing with the thing I'd built on the side of a Waffle House at 2 or 3 AM [1,2]. We exchanged numbers, and after six or so months of talking to me, they convinced me to join them instead. I got in early and had a really good exit. Completely changed the course of my life. My other passion (apart from biology) was film. I've made a lot of indie films over the last decade, but I always focused on film tech - volumetric video, mocap, etc. I'm currently building a startup in that space that started as one of my side projects. We're doing really well! Side projects have always led to inflection