Why doesn't Apple make a standalone Touch ID?

Why doesn't Apple make a standalone Touch ID?

I finally upgraded to a mechanical keyboard. But because Apple's so protective of their Touch ID hardware, there aren't any mechanical keyboards with that feature built in.

But there is a way to hack it. It's incredibly wasteful, and takes a bit more patience than I think most people have, but you basically take an Apple Magic Keyboard with Touch ID, rip out the Touch ID, and install it in a 3D printed box, along with the keyboard's logic board.

HackRF Pro Receive Sensitivity and Noise Figure

In the HackRF Pro specifications we’ve mentioned improved RF performance compared to HackRF One. Now that we’ve finalized any last tweaks to the RF front-end and production is well underway, we’d like to share some more details about the improvements.

One key metric for radio systems is sensitivity, which measures the minimum signal strength that a receiver can detect. However, for software defined radio hardware, sensitivity is difficult to define in a useful way as it changes depending on the modulation scheme in use and even the software implementation.

Instead we can look at noise figure: this measures the degradation in signal-to-noise...

How to Install Kali Linux in VirtualBox: Complete Setup Guide

Setting up Kali Linux in VirtualBox gives you a full penetration testing environment without touching your main operating system. You can test security tools, practice ethical hacking techniques, and learn cybersecurity skills in a completely isolated environment. If something breaks, you simply roll back to a snapshot. Your host system stays untouched. This guide walks […]

Kali Linux Commands: Essential Guide for Penetration Testing

Kali Linux isn’t just another Linux distribution. It’s a specialized operating system built specifically for security professionals, ethical hackers, and penetration testers. The real power of Kali Linux lies in its command-line tools. Over 600 security tools come pre-installed, each designed for different phases of penetration testing. Learning the essential Kali Linux commands transforms you […]

Types of Shell in Linux: Understanding Your Command Line Options

When you open a terminal on Linux, you’re conversing with a shell. That’s the program sitting between you and the operating system kernel, translating your commands into actions the system understands. Different types of shells in Linux exist because developers have different needs and priorities. Some Linux shell types prioritize scripting power, others focus on […]

The Linux wget Command – Linux Download Command

The Linux wget command is a command-line utility that downloads files from the internet using HTTP, HTTPS, and FTP protocols. It’s designed to work non-interactively, meaning it can run in the background while you’re logged out—making it perfect for retrieving large files, automating downloads in scripts, and handling unreliable network connections. Most Linux distributions include […]

Soldering Workshop in Mathematics and Science High School (PMG) in Pazardzhik

We were invited to the Mathematics and Science High School (PMG) in Pazardzhik to run a workshop on soldering the RVPC — the EUR-1 RISC-V retro computer — and to introduce the students to the ways programming was done years ago. The workshop took place on Saturday, November 29, 2025. The organizers had told us […]

How to Apply For the Great Scott Gadgets Free Stuff Program

Great Scott Gadgets is committed to supporting the open source community. One way we give back to the community is by giving away Free Stuff! If you or your community organization would like Free Stuff from Great Scott Gadgets, please fill out our Free Stuff Application to the best of your ability.

Our team judges applications based on community impact and clarity of project description, so please be detailed. Please know that this program is focused on supporting communities and requires your project be open source. We send hardware out to people looking to spread education, support community projects, or contribute...

Name that Ware, November 2025

The Ware for November 2025 is shown below.

This one is hopefully a bit easier to guess compared to last month’s ware! Pictured is just one board of a two board set, but the second board is a bit too much of a dead give-away so it’s been omitted. Thanks to Sam for thinking on her feet and snatching this board so that it could be donated to the contest!

Winner, Name that Ware October 2025

Last month’s ware is an ADAS1010, described on the Analog devices website as a “15 Lead ECG Vital Signs Monitor Module with Respiration, Temperature and Blood Pressure Measurement”. It advertises a “robust, with electromagnetic interference (EMI), shock, and vibration resistant packaging”.

This is one of the more over-engineered solutions I’ve seen. I’m guessing that the middle layer of the three-layer stack is probably hollowed out, such that the surrounding boards create a Faraday cage. This would allow sensitive ECG front-end circuitry to be placed inside a shielded “container” that also doubles as a connector between the front and back boards.

This one...