|
| Eccentric Cubicle (Make: Projects) | 
 enlarge | Author: Kaden Harris
Publisher: Make Books
Category: Book
List Price: $29.99
Buy New: $15.53
You Save: $14.46 (48%)
New (36) Used (7) from $13.00
Avg. Customer Rating:  8 reviews
Sales Rank: 197857
Format: Illustrated
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 391
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.9
Dimensions (in): 9.5 x 7.8 x 1.2
ISBN: 0596510543
Dewey Decimal Number: 686
EAN: 9780596510541
ASIN: 0596510543
Publication Date: October 29, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: All orders ship same business day via standard shipping (USPS Media Mail) if received by 1 PM CST.
|
| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Who says office cubicles need to be dreary? In this book, author Kaden Harris (creator of www.eccentricgenius.caEccentric Genius) introduces aspiring and die-hard Makers to a highly entertaining parallel universe of surreal office-based projects that are sure to pique the curiosity of even the most jaded office mates.
From desktop guillotines and crossbows to mood-enhancing effects and music makers, each project presents a different set of challenges and opens new avenues of Maker lore. There's a strong emphasis on the basic mechanical theories and principles of the devices presented in the book, as well as the fabrication techniques you need to use. But this is far more than a book of project "how-tos". Eccentric Cubicle offers oblique industrial design and fabrication philosophies, countless cultural reference points, and innumerable bad puns.
This book is a dream come true for you office-bound souls who are tech DIY enthusiasts, hobbyist engineers/designers, and Makers at heart. Imagine having your cubicle sport projects such as: - A mechanical golfer
- Lucid dreaming induction device
- USB-powered bubble blower
- Fog machine
- A desktop guillotine
- And a whole lot more
In the Eccentric Cubicle, Harris starts with classic, time-honored principals, then modernizes and augments his designs with performance enhancements and updated feature sets -- all while precariously balancing form, function, and oddness. Scavenging and repurposing materials and components at every opportunity, he challenges and inspires you to modify and adapt the projects and designs to meet your own scale, performance, and aesthetic requirements.
Bring character and life to your office desktop with Eccentric Cubicle!
|
| Customer Reviews: Read 3 more reviews...
 Eccentric Cubicle is entertaining, interesting and fun too... May 28, 2008
Kaden Harris is an amazingly intelligent "character". Let me start of by saying his book is great and even though I was offered a free copy I went out and bought one anyway. It is worth the money and a great read.
Kaden and I went to an elementary school, with the Makers Faire people to convince kids that making is a great thing to do. Kaden brought his wares, including the Guillotine shown on the cover of the book. I can tell you the guillotine could easily lob off the heads of dolls and a finger too.
So there we stood. Waiting to speak to the elementary school kids. I was speaking as an inventor showing my latest and greatest and Kaden had his projects (guillotine included). At this point I was curious as to how Kaden would describe what the guillotine was used for. Would he be graphic or dismissive? Even I did not know what approach I would take. What do/should you tell Elementary school children about guillotines?
The kids came in and I waited and watched... Kaden then showed them how the guillotine worked and said, "This is a great kitchen gadget. You can cut carrots with it." GENIUS! The kids were amazed! It is a very cool carrot cutter.
Then Kaden answered the questions you'd expect from elementary school kids. The top two questions were, "Can it cut a finger off?" and "Can I try it?" The top two answers were... "Yes" and "No".
We had a great time. Kaden is a great story teller and even better maker. Eccentric Cubical shows neat projects and is well written. Even if you don't make the projects the book is a fun read. Buy a copy OR take one out at the library. I think you'll enjoy it just like I did.
brilliant February 20, 2008
Brilliant. Utterly bonkers, but brilliant. Instructions on how to build a selection of fun and funky things to enhance your office life. Though I'm not sure how your boss will react to a personal guillotine, or a steampunk 'ballistamail' (for those oh-so-important intercubicle memos).
Full of amazing things to make, with detailed instructions along the way. A must for any MAKE enthusiast, though some of the projects look to require more than a passing knowledge of the toolshop! Someone referred to it as 'guerilla DIY', a tag which fits perfectly.
If you work in a cubicle, you need this book. If you don't work in a cubicle, you need this book. After all, who doesn't want a desktop bubble machine (built from an old CD spindle case and computer power fan?)
Crafts For Bored Cube Dwellers January 30, 2008
'Eccentric Cubicle' is a book for hobbyists who have the time to make things and want to develop fun things for/at work. Filled with 10 chapters of weird things you can make, you better have some experience or are OK with getting your hands wet fast. With over 350+ pages of content and full color the book is a nice buy but it's for a VERY niche market. One of the first projects in the book is how to build a guillotine that you can set on your table and I don't know about your regular 9 to 5 job, but I am certain that this wouldn't fly at my place of employment. Luckily all the projects aren't of a violent nature and there is no doubt some that you would be interesting in taking a look at.
If you like to play around and build stuff, this book might be right up your alley!!
****
Tough Projects January 1, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This book contains a series of interesting projects to read, however, unless you have some fairly serious Maker background, I don't imagine they would be easy to pull off (both skill and tool wise).
However, some of the included "nano projects" have applicability to making in general, not just the projects they are lumped in with in the book. Two that specifically come to mind are the foot speed control for a dremel and the pegboard clamping system.
Regardless of project difficulty, the book is an interesting read, due to the interesting subject matter and the writing style of the author.
This book makes me happy November 26, 2007
9 out of 9 found this review helpful
I definitely don't have the chops, supplies or tools to make the projects in "Eccentric Cubicle," but I still love this book. It's a blast to read through the instructions for gems like this one:
"Fugly? Uh huh. Useful? Yeah, that, too. Recognizing the potential alternative uses for garden-variety stuff is an essential part of improvisational fabrication."
See, I'm pretty sure I'll never need a drill pattern for a rachet, but dang, it's cool to see how it *could* be done if I ever wanted to. I pick up this book the same way I flip through my baking, knitting, quilting books. To see what I'm in the mood for. To fill up the idea coffers. Or maybe to get some creative sparks going. If you know what I mean when I say that I don't have to start a new quilt project to need dozens of quilting books, then you'll know that you don't need a metal shop to enjoy reading "Eccentric Cubicle."
Plus, Kaden Harris' prose is clean, spare and danged funny (witness such section headings as "A Warning to Woodworking Purists" and "The Rites of Springs: Roll Your Own Boinginess"). It just does my heart good to know he's out there, thinking of ways to keep stuff out of the waste stream, and better yet, returning it to use. I almost wrote "good use," but didn't -- only because not everybody needs a mini guillotine on her desk. Seriously though, it warms my heart to think that somebody somewhere spent the time to make a desktop chopper and document the process so other out-of-the-box thinkers could follow along. That Harris was the one to do it is outright providential.
If you like the guerilla DIY style of Make and Create magazines, you'll like this book. 'nuf said.
|
|
|
 Powered by Associate-O-Matic
| |
