How to make a Big Red Button, complete with Python libusb code

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If you want to hook up some unusual buttons up to your computer, there are a couple of ways to get them to appear as USB hid devices. A presentation I saw at Maker Faire mentioned Teensy USB, ~$20, and another I've seen is Makey Makey,[1] a possibly more versatile device, on Kickstarter and ~$35.

The posted solution requires custom software, but the above are more customizable yet require nothing special be installed.

[1] http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/joylabs/makey-makey-an-i...

+1 for the Teensy (a lot of newer Arduinos can also act as a HID)

The MakeyMakey would work but is overkill because it's designed for sensing capacitance rather than a key press.

Actually, if you have any modicum of skill at soldering you can easily use an old keyboard. I turned a GuitarHero guitar I found at Goodwill into a Frets on Fire controller that way.

an ATTiny45 microcontroller, and a couple of passive elements can get you the USB circuitry for under $5 - e.g. http://stuffthingsandjunk.blogspot.com/2009/06/attiny45-usb-...

I've used the V-USB library in a couple of fun projects - it's nothing short of awesome.

Somebody call up JWZ and tell him that someone found a way to make decals opaque enough for a macbook. He's been trying to crack that puzzle for years.

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