Michael Kilpatrick
@mtkilpatrick.bsky.social
Baritone saxophonist, Duke Ellington devotee.
Harmony In Harlem jazz orchestra.
Liberal Democrat, federalist, poet.
Former VLSI engineer at ARM.
South Cambs, UK.
#NAFO - spend money to free Ukraine.
Harmony In Harlem jazz orchestra.
Liberal Democrat, federalist, poet.
Former VLSI engineer at ARM.
South Cambs, UK.
#NAFO - spend money to free Ukraine.
Unfortunately, repair cafes don't generally extend to welding, and my vintage baritone saxophone stand has a stress fracture at the bend in the peg. I need to find someone to give this a zap with a welder!
November 8, 2025 at 2:03 PM
Unfortunately, repair cafes don't generally extend to welding, and my vintage baritone saxophone stand has a stress fracture at the bend in the peg. I need to find someone to give this a zap with a welder!
The BBC News are getting a bit sloppy with their proofreading. The word "policies" is missing from the end of the headline for this article by Chris Mason.
September 27, 2025 at 9:21 AM
The BBC News are getting a bit sloppy with their proofreading. The word "policies" is missing from the end of the headline for this article by Chris Mason.
The Library of Congress doubles as a set for a zombie hospital horror film.
September 14, 2025 at 12:29 PM
The Library of Congress doubles as a set for a zombie hospital horror film.
3/ Definitely too much...
September 14, 2025 at 12:27 PM
3/ Definitely too much...
2/ There was also an aftershow party with a catwalk competition - several flamboyant characters from the audience took part as well as four of the the leading ladies of the cast. Erm, I got a bit hot under the collar at that point...
September 14, 2025 at 12:26 PM
2/ There was also an aftershow party with a catwalk competition - several flamboyant characters from the audience took part as well as four of the the leading ladies of the cast. Erm, I got a bit hot under the collar at that point...
1/ Thanks to a recommendation, I went to Signature Theatre, Arlington, near DC, on Friday night to see "Play On" - Twelfth Night set in Duke Ellington's Harlem. Marvellous fun, and my pot-luck table fellows were wonderful. A family from Atlanta who came up to see their daughter in the show.
September 14, 2025 at 12:16 PM
1/ Thanks to a recommendation, I went to Signature Theatre, Arlington, near DC, on Friday night to see "Play On" - Twelfth Night set in Duke Ellington's Harlem. Marvellous fun, and my pot-luck table fellows were wonderful. A family from Atlanta who came up to see their daughter in the show.
Second day at the Smithsonian NMAH Archives Centre in a bit, for more research on Duke Ellington manuscripts. I'll try not to forgot how long it doesn't take to get there from my hotel, so as not to stand around for half an hour before opening time!
September 10, 2025 at 12:18 PM
Second day at the Smithsonian NMAH Archives Centre in a bit, for more research on Duke Ellington manuscripts. I'll try not to forgot how long it doesn't take to get there from my hotel, so as not to stand around for half an hour before opening time!
Dinner at Swahili Village just round the corner from my hotel in #WashingtonDC. The boss will probably appear and recognise me again after six months, like last time.
September 9, 2025 at 11:09 PM
Dinner at Swahili Village just round the corner from my hotel in #WashingtonDC. The boss will probably appear and recognise me again after six months, like last time.
From that angle, the Aussie just looks like a full blue merle Border Collie. Flek has some blue merle in the family, and some of his siblings had one blue eye. Here is his "yes, I've been a bad dog" pose.
August 28, 2025 at 10:55 AM
From that angle, the Aussie just looks like a full blue merle Border Collie. Flek has some blue merle in the family, and some of his siblings had one blue eye. Here is his "yes, I've been a bad dog" pose.
Which reminds me. Back in the 1980s we had two of these programmable ones at home. Possibly through my father's work. I see someone has one up for £350 on Ebay. That's a bit mad. Not sure what happened to the two we had.
August 17, 2025 at 12:11 PM
Which reminds me. Back in the 1980s we had two of these programmable ones at home. Possibly through my father's work. I see someone has one up for £350 on Ebay. That's a bit mad. Not sure what happened to the two we had.
Had a fun rehearsal with Bob Hunt's Harlem Jazz Orchestra on Monday. Had a few solo spots on baritone - one of Bob's compositions.
August 13, 2025 at 4:30 PM
Had a fun rehearsal with Bob Hunt's Harlem Jazz Orchestra on Monday. Had a few solo spots on baritone - one of Bob's compositions.
I'm making sketches and thinking of coding shortcuts to render visible walls through gaps as part of my simplified perspective maze rendering on the Microbit.
August 2, 2025 at 10:56 AM
I'm making sketches and thinking of coding shortcuts to render visible walls through gaps as part of my simplified perspective maze rendering on the Microbit.
Oh my! The v2 Microbit is nearly 10 times faster than the v1. My maze drawing routine:
July 31, 2025 at 9:31 PM
Oh my! The v2 Microbit is nearly 10 times faster than the v1. My maze drawing routine:
9/ Aha. Rendering trick: draw the two mirror image major triangles (solid border and stipple pattern) first, render the maze by deleting/overwriting segments were side-junctions appear.
Next trick: render the triangles as several rectangular blocks, hard-coded. Really fast. No Bresenam nonsense.
Next trick: render the triangles as several rectangular blocks, hard-coded. Really fast. No Bresenam nonsense.
July 31, 2025 at 11:07 AM
9/ Aha. Rendering trick: draw the two mirror image major triangles (solid border and stipple pattern) first, render the maze by deleting/overwriting segments were side-junctions appear.
Next trick: render the triangles as several rectangular blocks, hard-coded. Really fast. No Bresenam nonsense.
Next trick: render the triangles as several rectangular blocks, hard-coded. Really fast. No Bresenam nonsense.
6/ I'm also wondering if the fastest rendering is achieved by drawing the two major triangles (with stipple pattern?) first and then deleting/overwriting sections for any side junctions and facing walls.
July 30, 2025 at 3:31 PM
6/ I'm also wondering if the fastest rendering is achieved by drawing the two major triangles (with stipple pattern?) first and then deleting/overwriting sections for any side junctions and facing walls.
4/ And then I lowered the vanishing point and took the ceiling corners /above/ the edge of the display window. A much better view. Also, the ceiling diagonals are at 45 degrees - opens up coding optimisations.
July 30, 2025 at 3:22 PM
4/ And then I lowered the vanishing point and took the ceiling corners /above/ the edge of the display window. A much better view. Also, the ceiling diagonals are at 45 degrees - opens up coding optimisations.
3/ I started thinking about rendering it in a simplified perspective. The first idea with a central vanishing point is not ideal because of the screen aspect ratio. If makes the walls look insufficiently claustrophobic.
July 30, 2025 at 3:20 PM
3/ I started thinking about rendering it in a simplified perspective. The first idea with a central vanishing point is not ideal because of the screen aspect ratio. If makes the walls look insufficiently claustrophobic.
1/ Recently I dug up the Microbit and revisited the maze drawing routine from 5 years ago. Rewritten it using a proper ARM assembler environment...
July 30, 2025 at 3:15 PM
1/ Recently I dug up the Microbit and revisited the maze drawing routine from 5 years ago. Rewritten it using a proper ARM assembler environment...
5/ Ahhhhh.
But I'm not looking forward to all the graft of repairing the ground and paving.
But I'm not looking forward to all the graft of repairing the ground and paving.
July 22, 2025 at 4:54 PM
5/ Ahhhhh.
But I'm not looking forward to all the graft of repairing the ground and paving.
But I'm not looking forward to all the graft of repairing the ground and paving.
4/ And there's a Shelly automation device which is /just/ within reach of the WiFi to control it all with a phone app.
July 22, 2025 at 4:53 PM
4/ And there's a Shelly automation device which is /just/ within reach of the WiFi to control it all with a phone app.
3/ The cascade pump has a new access hatch - my handyman made it unserviceable years ago, and that wasn't good enough. A separate 32mm MDPE pipe through the conduit:
July 22, 2025 at 4:49 PM
3/ The cascade pump has a new access hatch - my handyman made it unserviceable years ago, and that wasn't good enough. A separate 32mm MDPE pipe through the conduit:
2/ All pipes and cables in a conduit of 110mm drain pipes and now fully serviceable.
July 22, 2025 at 4:45 PM
2/ All pipes and cables in a conduit of 110mm drain pipes and now fully serviceable.
1/ I don't do anything by halves. Engineering overkill, but IMMENSELY satisfying.
Here's my pond filler valve enclosure (with frost protection heater cable) over a drain access hatch. Video in the next post.
Here's my pond filler valve enclosure (with frost protection heater cable) over a drain access hatch. Video in the next post.
July 22, 2025 at 4:39 PM
1/ I don't do anything by halves. Engineering overkill, but IMMENSELY satisfying.
Here's my pond filler valve enclosure (with frost protection heater cable) over a drain access hatch. Video in the next post.
Here's my pond filler valve enclosure (with frost protection heater cable) over a drain access hatch. Video in the next post.
ChatGPT admits its flaws but says that its model has improved since last year. True, but it still "front loads" and the just generates gibberish in attempts to complete a verse or rhyme.
July 15, 2025 at 11:58 AM
ChatGPT admits its flaws but says that its model has improved since last year. True, but it still "front loads" and the just generates gibberish in attempts to complete a verse or rhyme.
3/ I've dug up the paving near the pond's edge to install a new access hatch where the pond cascade pump goes.
July 5, 2025 at 9:17 PM
3/ I've dug up the paving near the pond's edge to install a new access hatch where the pond cascade pump goes.