Good for you! You're going to be productive today, but still have fun in the process. We've got a ton of projects for you to try, from gadgets to games to home improvement to food. Check them all out, pick one, and make your day off awesome.
Make Your Own Tech
You don't have to buy great gadgets and technology when you can just make it yourself. Here are a few geeky projects to tackle on your day off.
Turn Your Old Netbook or Laptop Into a Touchscreen PC
We've looked at turning a MacBook into a tablet computer and even written some software for you to turn it into a nice heads up display, but Instructables user mkarvonen has created a how-to that demonstrates how to turn virtually any laptop into a touchscreen tablet-so long as you have the patience. More »
Charge Your Phone with a DIY Candle-Powered Charger
So the power's out, and you've broken out the candles to keep things well-lit-but your phone's about to die too, with no working wall outlet in sight! More »
Build a Hackintosh
Building a hackintosh-that is, installing Mac OS X on non-Apple hardware-used to require extremely restricted hardware choices and quite a bit of know-how. Now it's actually pretty simple. Here's a look at picking the right hardware, installing OS X, and configuring your Hackintosh to work just the way you want it. More »
Modify any iPhone Headset Remote to Work With Android Devices
Everyone loves the iPhone's headset with volume and music controls on the inline remote, but if you have an Android phone, you can actually get iPhone-designed buds working with your device. More »
How to Balloon Map Your Neighborhood, Google Maps Style
Ever felt like Google Maps doesn't provide enough detail of the aerial view of your neighborhood? Ever wanted to make your own maps or participate in a little homegrown science? Balloon mapping is a cheap way to take aerial pictures for all sorts of purposes-even events like weddings, graduations, or parties-and it's dead simple to do it yourself. Here's how it works.More »
Put Together Your Own Arduino Board (for Half the Price of Buying One)
You can make a lot of cool DIY electronics with an Arduino board, but you can actually make your own Arduino for a fraction of the cost-with a bit of room for customizability, too. More »
Build a DSLR Shoulder Rig
If you're a filmmaker or just like to have family videos that don't evoke The Blair Witch Project you may be interested in acquiring a shoulder mount to stabilize your DSLR camera when shooting videos. More »
Build an Arduino-Powered Doorbell Alert System That Sends You a Text and a Photo
Ever wonder who rings your doorbell when you're not home? Or do you crank music up too loud most of the day to hear it anyway? If so, Make Projects user Clement Storck built a simple Arduino powered notification system that sends him a text message and an email with a photo every time someone... More »
Build Your Own Vertical Laptop Stand for $3
Vertical laptop docks are fairly trendy these days, but the trouble with most of them is that they can get pretty expensive, with some models running up past $50. This Ikea hack may not duplicate all of the functionality of one of those docks, but some time with a wire saw and a little cable management will net you a vertical laptop dock for your laptop that matches your style. More »
Make a Remote Control for Your Home Devices That You Operate By Whistling
The problem with remote controls is that they're often never in your hand when you need to operate them. This hack will really let you control your devices from afar. More »
Get Your Game On
Wether you're putting together a retro arcade or hacking a system old or new, there are plenty of gaming projects you can tackle on your day off.
How to Turn Your Computer into a Retro Game Arcade
Whether you're looking to relive the past or experience the origin of gaming you missed in your youth, your Windows, Mac, or Linux PC can take you back to Mario's salad days, the birth of the Final Fantasy series, and much more. Here's how to get started with retro game emulation and turn your computer into the ultimate retro arcade in just a few minutes. More »
Top 10 Gaming Hacks and DIY Projects
We love our games and consoles, but there's a big world that lies beyond the product you pull out of the box. Your console is capable of so much more than you may realize. Here are our top 10 video game hacks and DIY projects to prove it. More »
How to Hack Your Wii for Homebrew in Five Minutes
Hacking your Wii hasn't been difficult, but it has required a somewhat detailed process. Now we have LetterBomb, which is an incredibly simple way to hack your Wii. It only takes about five minutes to accomplish. Here's how to do it. More »
The Boardgame Remix Kit Combines Your Old Games Into New Ones
If you're looking for a way to mix things up this Holiday season, The Boardgame Remix kit takes classic games—like Monopoly and Clue—and remixes them into fun new games. More »
Combine a PS3 and an Xbox 360 in One Computer Case for the Ultimate Gaming Machine
If you're sick of switching inputs, unplugging devices, and just plain dealing with too many game systems, DIYer Tim combined his PS3 and Xbox 360 in a computer case for one mega gaming console. More »
Make Some Awesome Non-Tech Stuff
Not every DIY project ought to require a power source. Here are some cool things you can do unplugged.
Turn a Key Into a 10-in-1 Tool
Ever wished your key could do more than open doors? Instructables user Vitizop did, so he cut, chopped, and screwed a single key into a multi-tool.
Using a drill, saw, and a variety of files, Vitizop managed to make a key into a philips screwdriver, saw, bottle opener, rope cutter, and more. More »
Hack a Carabiner with Heat Shrink Tubing to Build the Ultimate Keychain
A good carabiner or s-biner makes a great keychain-it can clip to your belt or your bag so you never lose it, and you can keep more than one ring of keys on it if you have to. Plus, it hangs up nicely on hooks or magnetic holders with no fuss. Evem so, Instructables user elplatt lost a keyfob from one because the carabiner latch came open one day. Committed to never let that happen again, he grabbed some heat shrink tubing, a heat gun, and went to work. More »
Build a Simple, Stylish, Industrial-Style Clothing Rack with Pipes
Although not the first industrial-style clothing rack we've seen, the folks over at Simplified Building have put together another great option for easy clothing storage. More »
Hipster Habit App Is a Pocketable, Printable Mini-Book Designed to Help You Create or Remove Habits in 30 Days
Killing a bad habit is easier said than done, but the Hipster Habit App-which is less of an app and more of a miniature printable book for your wallet-can help you through the process. More »
Plug Your Keys into the Wall with a Homemade Ethernet Keychain and Wall Dock
There are plenty of products you can buy to hang your keys on the wall for easy access, but none with the geeky charm and stability of plugging them in to an RJ-45 port. More »
Make Custom, One-Off T-Shirts the Cheap and Easy Way
Making your own customer t-shirts is awesome, but it can get a little pricey and excessive if you have to order in bulk. The quality of inkjet transfers isn't exactly ideal, either. Fortunately, Instructables user Matthew Vieke has a great solution that requires just a shirt, a sharpie, and a few other optional items. More »
Upgrade Your Workspace
It's hard to get things done in a crappy home workspace. If yours could use an upgrade, here are a few things you can try.
DIY Ikea Franken-Desk: Storage and Space in a Sharp-Looking Package
Building your own desk doesn't have to be difficult, especially when a place like Ikea already has the parts you need to assemble a sharp and functional workspace. More »
Create a Large Mobile Workstation with Built-in Storage out of IKEA Bookshelves and Some Board
Need a big space to work? Need lots of storage? Need to be able to move it easily? This IKEA hack from Panyl-a company that's turned IKEA hacking into a business-can provide all three. More »
How to Ergonomically Optimize Your Workspace
We spend a lot of time sitting at our desks every day, and while it may not look like it, it can wreak havoc with our bodies. Here's how to set up a healthy, ergonomic workspace to keep you comfortable and injury-free. More »
Build Computer Cooling Into Your Desk
If you store your PC in a closed cupboard, it can get pretty hot. DIY weblog IKEA Hackers shows us how to build a bit of PC cooling into our desk. More »
Build a DIY Wide, Adjustable Height IKEA Standing Desk on the Cheap
If you've been convinced to switch to a standing desk, you might have been deterred by the cost and small size of many common options. Fortunately, as usual, IKEA comes to the rescue with a cheap, simple alternative. More »
Turn an IKEA Shelf and Picture Ledge into a Monitor Stand
If making a monitor stand out of door stoppers just isn't your style, check out this clever monitor stand made from a shelf and a picture ledge.
IKEAHacker reader Lauri made a very clean looking monitor shelf from nothing more than an IKEA Lack shelf and a Ribba picture ledge. More »
Make Something Tasty
Sometimes the best thing you can make is something delicious to eat. Here are a few fun cooking and baking projects to learn on your day off.
Top 10 Fast Food Recipes You Can Make at Home
You can complain about it all you want, but it's a fact: some fast food is delicious. It gets a whole lot better with fresher, tastier ingredients. Here's our top ten favorite fast food recipes that you can make at home. More »
Make Easy, Delicious Soft Serve Ice Cream with Ingredients You Already Have
If you're looking for a tasty warm-weather treat, ice cream does the trick, but if you don't have an ice cream maker or have no desire to do all of the shaking required for our last method for making ice cream in a bag, this method is decidedly lazier but just as tasty. More »
Make Your Own Magic Shell Ice Cream Topping At Home and Dress Up Your Desserts
Magic Shell ice cream topping, or that chocolate syrup that hardens as soon as it comes in contact with the cold ice cream in a bowl, is tasty, but it's made with a world of stabilizers and other chemicals with long names. Plus, it can get pricey for the amount you get. Surprisingly, it's super easy to make at home, with ingredients that you may already have in your pantry. All you need is chocolate and coconut oil. More »
Make Your Own Pancake Syrup and Skip the Overpriced Stuff at the Grocery Store
Syrup for pancakes and waffles at the grocery store can get pretty expensive by the bottle for something that's caramel color, corn syrup, and a few stabilizers and additives. More »
DIY Citrus Salt
Specialty salts can bring a lot of flavor to foods but can be expensive-especially citrus salts that cost several dollars for a bit of salt and fruit zest. More »
Make Your Own Ice Cream Bars for Tasty Summertime Treats
Everyone loves a good ice cream bar in the summer heat, but the ones you get from the grocery store can leave something to be desired. If you make your own, you can add anything you like to the ice cream, and you have control over how much chocolate the ice cream is dipped. More »
Make Spicy, Delicious Chipotle-Style Guacamole at Home
Guacamole isn't exactly difficult to make, but if the staff at your local Chipotle recognize your face because you stop in for lunch too often, you can save yourself a few bucks here and there and make their famous guacamole at home. More »
Hanging travel bags—used for storing cosmetics, toiletries, or jewelry—make great organizers for all those chargers and cables you travel with. Just grab one and roll it up when you need to go. 
Ever been told that you should fully discharge your battery to prolong its life? Or that jailbreaking your phone is illegal? Or that you should wait for the newest Intel processor because it's going to be "so much faster"? These are tech myths we hear all the time, and likely spread to our friends—but most are just a waste of your time (and in some cases, they can actually harm your gadgets). Here are some of the worst offenders. 
If you're waiting to upgrade your gear until the next big processor comes out, or until the latest Android phone with even more RAM appears, you're probably wasting your time. These days, most hardware specs don't even matter that much. Processors have more power than most users will ever need, and phones come out so often that 
While 
Not only have we Android users perpetuated this myth, but lots of hardware manufacturers and cellphone carriers will recommend you use a task killer to lengthen your battery life and speed up your phone. Not only will they do nothing for your battery life, but most are designed to solve problems that don't actually exist (like running out of RAM). If you experience performance boosts with a task killer, it's because you're killing a task that's either gone awry (in which case you're better off just rebooting your phone) or because you've downloaded a poorly written app (in which case you should uninstall it). Task killers can cause other problems with your phones, and you shouldn't use them unless you're using a very, very old phone with very, very outdated software. Check out our explainer on task killers to learn more, and if you want to speed up your phone, check out these other tried and true methods instead.
While jailbreaking your phone will definitely void your warranty, people have been going around saying it's actually illegal to do—which is 100% false. The Copyright office has officially said that jailbreaking is completely legal to do with a device you own, as long as you aren't using it to pirate apps, of course. That said, there are a lot of ways you're probably breaking the law without knowing it, so read up on those if you're curious. But if you were holding back on jailbreaking your phone, now would be a great time to check out all its awesome, legal benefits.
Mac users have often touted their computers as "more secure" than Windows PCs, which is a 
No matter how careful you are, we've all broken at least one gadget in our lives—and it may have tempted you to buy an extended warranty the next time. However, 
Battery life is always at a premium these days, and you've probably heard a whole host of tricks for keeping your battery in tip top shape. This particular myth—that you should fully discharge your battery every time you use it—is left over from old nickel cadmium batteries that suffer from a 
So you've heard about how important security is on public Wi-Fi networks, but a lot of people are still misinformed about what really constitutes a public network. Just because your network's protected with a password doesn't mean it's secure. In the case of home networks, it means it's secure from outside hackers, but if you head to a coffee shop or hotel, that network is still public. Anyone with a password can still connect to the network (like other coffee shop patrons) and potentially sniff your traffic. So, unless you're at home, 
These are some of the worst myths out there. Everyone's always looking for a quick, free way to drastically increase their computer's speed, and a lot of them are loads of baloney. At best, they'll do nothing, and at worst, they can actually degrade performance. We've talked about a ton of them before, so 
Looking to get in shape, or get motivated to exercise and stay active more often? There are plenty of gadgets on the market that will give you feedback on how well you're doing, help you set certain fitness and activity goals, and connect you with friends who can motivate, inspire, or even compete against you to keep you moving. Last week we asked you which devices you thought were the best for the task, and then we took a look at the top five fitness appliances, based on your nominations. Now we're back to highlight the overall winner. 
