Certain words, phrases and topics got Matt Richardson really annoyed. So he adjusted an open-source platform, Arduino, to silence the TV whenever the selected words or phrases were mentioned. The solution is called “Enough Already.”
It plugs into a set-top box and can read a transcript of a TV program though closed captioning. The device uses the Video Experimenter Shield, Geek.com said.
When a banned word or phrase comes up, the device will send an infrared signal to a remote control device that silences the TV.
Each muted period goes for 30 seconds. Another 30 seconds of silence will follow if the word is mentioned again. The remote control goes back to normal after the last muting cycle.
“The gizmo has a modified LED which then serves as a remote control, muting your television for 30 seconds. The time is re-upped if the term is mentioned again, meaning it can block out an entire feature story on the offending term, if necessary. If you have a little tech-savvy, you can modify the device to flash when a favorite term is mentioned so you can pay extra attention,” explains TechZone360’s Rich Steeves.
The solution is similar to something which was introduced in March as way to block out mentions of Charlie Sheen. That was called “Tinted Sheen.”
It is a “browser blocker that censors the Internet for you. The plugin applies black bars over Sheen’s name and blacks-out his photo,” explained Geek.com. Words or phrases such as “tiger blood” and “winning” were muted, too.
“With enough work, you can make sure both your TV and Internet are Charlie Sheen-free,” Geek.com said.
Among Richardson’s banned words and topics are Snooki and Kim Kardashian’s wedding.
“As the Enough Already is made with all open-source hardware and software, you can make one of your own very easily,” reports Popular Science. A video on the Popular Science site shows how it works.
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Ed Silverstein is a TechZone360 contributor. To read more of his articles, please visit his columnist page.Edited by
Rich Steeves
