iFixit has launched a new repair wiki tool that aims to make it possible for consumers to repair almost anything with electronic components. It is a great feature that will delay the time before consumer electronics end up in landfills and could potentially spur passive owners to become more active tinkerers. It follows Make:, Instructables, HowToons, and a bunch of other resources that encourage the masses to make “things”. Schematics and components have never been more accessible and there has never been a better time to be a hardware hacker.
It is a little surprising that there hasn’t been a related movement focusing on making these same objects prettier. You can find hundreds of tutorials that help you make Arduino powered anythings, but almost none that explain how to make nice looking enclosures for them. Dozens of tutorials that demonstrate how to sew with conductive thread, but few that explain how to sew well or in an attractive way.
An equivalent to the MIT EE curriculum is now largely available for autodidacts on the web, but RISD‘s is almost completely absent. It is a noticeable gap, but also a huge opportunity.
