I had all of the data, and I had it in an easily searchable MySQL database. Now, I had to figure out the best way to access it. I contemplated just having a bunch of search boxes, but that was quickly crossed out. It needed to be intuitive, and there were too many categories. I then thought maybe having sliders for...

I realized two days ago that there wasn't at all a good way to find rooms that fit your desires for upperclassmen housing. I contacted the housing office, and inquired as to if they had access to data about all of the rooms. Unfortunately, all they had was access to the same outdated floor plans that anyone could...

For the Dartmouth Redesign, I wanted a way to turn the DiD (a seven character alphanumeric that identifies you) into an attractive QR code. This got me wondering into how QR codes work. Turns out, there are very few easily accessible resources on it. This is what I found:

Now, I've done a fair amount of work in regards to the Dartmouth ID, but mainly in terms of duplicating/replicating it. I've made a fair amount of progress, and you can see some of the early work and the updates by clicking on the links. However, this article is about a possible redesign on the current ID. This is...

Financial Aid Menu Financial Aid Adjustment Survey Request There are no currently available surveys.

Dartmouth currently uses an Ellucian product called Banner for the 'Student Information System'. From a UI standpoint, it's a nightmare. From a UX standpoint, it's even worse. First of all, the URL. The URL to access banner is https://banner.dartmouth.edu/banner/groucho/twbkwbis.P_WWWLoginWEBAUTH. One would think...

The way that I use my router is basically as an ethernet splitter, and to make my own wifi signal. In case anyone else has multiple devices in their room that need ethernet, this is a rough guide of how to set it up. These instructions are for the router I have, which is the Linksys WRT54G.

The site where you can get information on meal swipes and that information has transferred from ManageMyID to CBORD's GET, along with the laundry machines. I've accordingly updated the Python script for scraping it, and it's accessible in the same location as last time.

It seems like it would be pretty easy to make the ID's. The first thing you would need is a printer that has a CD/DVD printer tray. The Canon PIXMA MG7520, available here on Amazon for $200 would probably do. Then, you need an ID tray, one that will work with the printer, but replace the CD/DVD tray. That specific...

Some of the things stated in the Dartmouth article I cited in the Dartmouth ID post weren't entirely accurate: it's not a 125kHz RFID tag in it, which is both a good thing and a bad thing. It's a bad thing in that I bought a RFID reader for 125kHz, and not 13.56 MHz, but a good thing in that it's a lot easier to...

The app "The Ropes" for Dartmouth displays the swipes remaining and DBA on your account if given your ManageMyID information. I was curious as to how easily that could be replicated in Python, and then in my own app.

I was researching some aspects of RFID technology, when I wondered how the Dartmouth ID cards worked. They clearly have some sort of RFID tech in them, because they open up the doors to the buildings just by holding it near the reader. However, they also have a magnetic strip that's used for DA$H (meal swipes) and...