How to reprogram roadside construction signs for fun and … well, for fun.
Recently a construction company left a pair of these signs in my neighborhood, blasting out their pointless messages. Being a creative tinkerer, I decided to do something about it.
This was the first time I had attempted a prank like this, so I expected the control box to be locked, and the programming functions password-protected. I was wrong. First of all, the control cabinet had no lock. Swinging open its door, I found a deliciously inviting handheld keypad, then took a wild guess and pushed a button labeled STOP. The display on the control box flashed ENTER PASSWORD. I was about to give up in disgust when I noticed that someone had written the password in large Sharpie lettering above the box.
I entered the password, and lo! The sign ceased its flashing and turned itself off. SELECT FUNCTION, the keypad blinked, and great was my joy!
And then there’s what happens when he tried to modify a second sign …
(via BoingBoing)
Riot. Riot! 🙂
Personally, I would have made the second sign say “SOYLENT GREEN IS PEOPLE.” Ah, well. Maybe that wouldn’t fit.
SOYLENT
GREEN IS
PEOPLE
Yeah, it would fit.
I might have chosen
YOUR TAX
DOLLARS
AT WORK
or
WE HAVE
ALWAYS
BEEN HERE
or
… well, the KLAATU message was pretty hard to beat.