LadyAda sells a pretty neat kit to allow you to give your USB gadgets power from 2 AA batteries. To create the “Boost” (save for batteries) The capacitors, IC Socket, schottky diode, etc.. took roughly 10 minutes to solder onto the PCB using these instructions, and another 15 minutes and 2 Altoids gum tins to give it the “Minty” part. Note: I spent the better part of 2 days locating these gum tins in the midwest.  Eventually I found them at CVS of all places.

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