Over on YouTube [Nic Barker] gives us: UTF-8, Explained Simply. If you’re gonna be a hacker eventually you’re gonna have to write software to process and generate text data. And …read more (https://hackaday.com/2026/01/22/nic-barker-explains-ascii-unicode-and-utf-8/)

A 1970s Electronic Game
https://hackaday.com/2026/01/22/a-1970s-electronic-game/

What happens when a traditional board game company decides to break into electronic gaming? Well, if it were a UK gaming company in 1978, the result would be a Waddingtons …read more (https://hackaday.com/2026/01/22/a-1970s-electronic-game/)

Vacuum Fluorescent Displays Explained
https://hackaday.com/2026/01/23/vacuum-fluorescent-displays-explained/

After having been sent a vacuum fluorescent display (VFD) based clock for a review, [Anthony Francis-Jones] took the opportunity to explain how these types of displays work. Although VFDs are …read more (https://hackaday.com/2026/01/23/vacuum-fluorescent-displays-explained/)

Embedded TPM: Watch Out!
https://hackaday.com/2026/01/23/embedded-tpm-watch-out/

Today’s PCs are locked up with Trusted Platform Module (TPM) devices so much so that modern Windows versions insist on having a recent TPM to even install. These have become …read more (https://hackaday.com/2026/01/23/embedded-tpm-watch-out/)

Size (and Units) Really Do Matter
https://hackaday.com/2026/01/23/size-and-units-really-do-matter/

We miss the slide rule. It isn’t so much that we liked getting an inexact answer using a physical moving object. But to successfully use a slide rule, you need …read more (https://hackaday.com/2026/01/23/size-and-units-really-do-matter/)

The Defunct Scooter Company, and the Default Key
https://hackaday.com/2026/01/23/the-defunct-scooter-company-and-the-default-key/

Äike were an Estonian scooter company, which sadly went bust last year. [Rasmus Moorats] has one, and since the app and cloud service the scooter depends on have lost functionality, …read more (https://hackaday.com/2026/01/23/the-defunct-scooter-company-and-the-default-key/)

Hackaday Podcast Episode 354: Firearms, Sky Driving, and Dumpster Diving
https://hackaday.com/2026/01/23/hackaday-podcast-episode-354-firearms-sky-driving-and-dumpster-diving/

Hackaday Editors Elliot Williams and Al Williams took a break to talk about their favorite hacks last week. You can drop in to hear about articulated mirrors, triacs, and even …read more (https://hackaday.com/2026/01/23/hackaday-podcast-episode-354-firearms-sky-driving-and-dumpster-diving/)

Wired to Wireless: ESP32 Gives Your USB Keyboard Bluetooth
https://hackaday.com/2026/01/23/wired-to-wireless-esp32-gives-your-usb-keyboard-bluetooth/