How far I got with the zombie apocalypse
Looking back at the zombie apocalypse project that started this blog: what I set out to do, and the four projects I finished before changing direction.
As part of my ongoing restoration of maker.rip, I’ve brought together three pages from the very first version of this site, back in 2016, about the project that started it all.
Why this book
The whole thing started with Simon Monk’s The Maker’s Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse, which I wrote about when I started this blog.
What I set out to do
Ostensibly this blog exists to track my progress in reading the Maker’s Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse while providing a location for me to publish my musings as I work through building the projects contained within it.
But the deeper purpose of this project is for me to learn how to become a Maker, specifically, learning the skills and techniques needed to produce physical items in the real world.
My background is in Web development, something which started as a hobby in my bedroom in the late 90s, but has since developed into my career, having done it professionally for close to 10 years now.
I have skill in writing software, server configuration, and project management (and everything in between), but I’m not in any way “handy”, having not physically built anything myself since I was a teenager.
But as I’m now in my late 30s, I figured it was about time I was due a mid-life crisis, and as my previous hobby of the Web is now my nine-to-five, I needed something new, and becoming a Maker is that something.
The term “Maker” is quite broad and covers a wide range of disciplines, but the areas I’m most interested in revolve around that of digital interactivity and the Internet of Things (IoT). Specifically, this means using technology such as the Raspberry Pi and Arduino in projects so I can gain a greater understanding of them, and everything which relates to them such as electronics.
So, my current objective is to complete all the projects contained within the book, but I also have a standing order of developing my knowledge in all of the above and having fun while doing so.
How far I got
The book has 20 projects split across 11 chapters, and I fully intended on completing them all, but not necessarily in the order presented. Projects marked with a tick (✔) are complete, and each links to the post where I finished it.
Chapter 1: Apocalypse Basics
- No projects in this chapter
Chapter 2: Generating Electricity
- Project 1: Solar Recharging ✔
- Project 2: Bicycle Generator
Chapter 3: Using Electricity
Chapter 4: Zombie Alarms
- Project 5: Trip Wire Alarm
- Project 6: PIR Zombie Detector ✔
Chapter 5: Surveillance and Raspberry Pi
- Project 7: Monitor Zombies (started)
- Project 8: A Wireless Zombie Surveillance System
Chapter 6: Add Remote Access and Detect Open Doors
- Project 9: Remote Door Lock
- Project 10: Door Sensor
Chapter 7: Environment Monitoring
- Project 11: Quiet Fire Alarm
- Project 12: Temperature Alarm
Chapter 8: Building a Control Center for Your Base
- Project 13: A Raspberry Pi Control Center
- Project 14: Going Wireless with Bluetooth
Chapter 9: Zombie Distractors
- Project 15: Arduino Flash Distractor
- Project 16: Arduino Movement and Sound Distractor
Chapter 10: Communicating with Other Survivors
- Project 17: A Raspberry Pi Radio Transmitter Beacon
- Project 18: Arduino FM Radio Frequency Hopper
- Project 19: Arduino Morse Code Beacon
Chapter 11: Haptic Communication
- Project 20: Silent Haptic Communication with Arduino
What happened next
In May 2017 I made a slight change in direction towards Instructables classes, and from there into woodworking, so the book has stayed at four and a bit projects ever since.
Header photo by cottonbro studio on Pexels, cropped.