A Digital Tribute to a Sweet WII Hack

ITS Tactical has an excellent post up on the World War II Cricket Clacker, a humble, yet powerful device I'd never heard of it. They explain:

During Operation Overlord, the WWII D-Day Invasion into Normandy, France on June 6th 1944, American Paratroopers carried a signaling device known as the Cricket.

The Cricket Clicker (aka Cricket Clacker) provided a distinct “click” sound when the steel backer was depressed against the brass body of the small 2 inch device.

Used as an early IFF (Identification Friend or Foe) device, the Cricket enabled paratroopers to communicate with each other under total darkness and surrounded by enemy forces as they landed scattered and out of position on the beach.

Here's what a Cricket Clicker looks like:

And here's what one sounds like. While not much to look at, it was a brilliant solution to an age old problem: how to navigate the fog of war. There's no denying that technology plays an important role in combat operations, but every once in a while, classic low-tech solutions really shines through. Like the tri-graph based encryption used during the Vietnam war. And you really can't get much lower tech than a brass and steel rectangular box. But it apparently did the job.

ITS relays this story:

“I had my pistol in one hand, my cricket in the other… I crept along the hedgerow looking for a gate. Just as I found it, I heard a stir on the other side. I drew my pistol and got all set. Then I heard the click. That was the most pleasant sound I ever heard in the entire war.” ~ General Maxwell D. Taylor, Commander of the 101st Airborne Division

Given my fondness for clever hacks like this, it's tempting to pick one up online. However, I thought I go the digital route and make a quick android version of the clicker. Naturally, I banged this out in Tasker.

First up, I needed some sound files to play. SoundBible.com totally had me covered. In a nod to the name of the original device, I grabbed 4 sounds: a click, a frog croaking, a bird singing and of course crickets chirping. I then worked up a trivial Tasker action to play back an arbitrary sound:

Play Sound (145)
 A1: Variable Set [ Name:%name To:%par1 Do Maths:Off Append:Off ] 
 A2: Music Play [ File:Tasker/sounds/%name.mp3 Start:0 Loop:Off Stream:3 ] 
 A3: Wait [ MS:0 Seconds:2 Minutes:0 Hours:0 Days:0 ] 
 A4: Music Stop [ Clear Dir:Off ] 

Next I needed to build a little UI for my app. This is strictly for covert use, so the fact that my UI is especially cryptic works to my advantage.^* I busted out Tasker's scene capability and drew up this UI:

I wired each of the rectangles above into the Play Sound action with a specific sound file provided and I had my working app.

To launch the app, I created a Tasker Widget on my launcher

And here's the app in action:

Next time I've got a covert night mission to run (read: a rousing game of capture the flag) I'll totally have to bust this app out to give our team the advantage.

Joking aside, it really is amazing how simple tech can do so much.

---

^*In hindsight, I should have also designed the UI with a dark look (black background, dark buttons, etc.), as that would make the app more friendly to use at night. Oh well, that will have to be part of v2.0.

A Bit of Brooklyn

After a fun and exhausting few days at the US Open, it was such a treat to meet up with our friends Jen and Jim in Brooklyn. They served up a gourmet breakfast of waffles, berries and fresh whipped cream (yum!). After eating Jen took us on a stroll through the Brooklyn waterfront. As we walked down the end of their street, I was blown away with the scene in front of me: you had the sky scrapers of lower Manhattan, the iconic Brooklyn Bridge and even the Statue of Liberty off in the distance. Needless to say, I couldn't stop snapping photos.

After walking along the waterfront and seeing how the various warehouses and docks had been turned into sport fields and playgrounds, we made our way to Atlantic Avenue where we picked up some essentials for our ride home (read: fresh bagels, fresh pita and fresh fruit). Of course we passed a Cat Cafe, because, you know, it's Brooklyn. Oh, and we also passed a pop-up pool, again, because why shouldn't you have a little beach oasis in the city?

After days of watching tennis, there's could be no bigger treat than hanging with friends and taking in the sites of the city. Thanks Jen and Jim!

US Open 2016 - More Tennis Than You Can Shake a Racket At

Another US Open is behind us, and while I could probably go another 365 days or so without sitting through another tennis match, I have to admit I had fun. A lot of fun. It really is a thrill to watch amazing athletes perform, all while chowing down on waffle fries and ice cream.

A few highlights: watching Jack Sock beat Marin Cilic (USA!, USA!, USA!). Peering over the edge of Arthur Ashe stadium and watching Stan Wawrinka fend off a match point in a tiebreaker and then turning around and watching Venus Williams crush Laura Siegemund on the court below (USA!, USA!, USA!). Sitting in the second row while Joao Sousa and Grigor Dimitrov battled it out. Getting dinner from Soom Soom, which had surprisingly authentic, fresh and delicious pita, falafel and hummos. Waffle fries and Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream (yes, I mentioned this above, but it bears repeating). Watching from the second row as Tsonaga warmed up for his round 3 match against Kevin Anderson. Watching del Potro sweep Steve Johnson in a night match, just about 7 years after watching him in our first professional tennis match we'd attended. Hanging out with friends who were attending the Open for the first time.

It wasn't all highlights. We had two matches that ended early due to retirements, including a Novac Djokovic match, a player we were very much hoping to see in action. But the unpredictability of the Open is definitely a feature and not a bug.

I better start resting up now, as we're almost certainly going back next year. Whoo!

View Full Album