Tools & tech
Reused computers, small radios, solar math and the software that runs on very little. Parts lists, wiring and the mistakes included.
Planning a LoRa mesh with Meshtastic
Cheap long-range radios that pass text messages with no cell service and no internet. Notes on picking boards for a solar neighborhood mesh.
Checking used solar panels before you pay
Used panels are the cheapest watts there are, if they work. A multimeter and ten minutes in full sun tell you most of what you need to know.
How this site is built, and why it isn't WordPress
Plain files built by Astro and served by Cloudflare. No database, no plugins to patch, no server to babysit.
Three projects from one pile of hardware
An inventory of reused computers and microcontrollers, and three solarpunk projects it could become without buying much new.
A solar server's power budget, device by device
Before buying a battery, I added up every watt the bench draws in a day. One reused desktop uses about ten times more than everything else combined.