PiHole and Wifi Router Board

Hi all! Today I decided to build a Raspberry Pi ad-blocker for my home wifi network. Building the Pi was easy, modelling the Pi and Router in Fusion360 was a little more of a challenge. With the GlowForge I was able to test out sizes, tolerances and clearances using cardstock before moving on to the final materials. The GlowForge makes the minor mistakes I made in measurements a worry-free process because of the flexibility I’m afforded by being able to use things like cardstock to test with. The operations compared to 3d printing and milling are far quicker to iterate and for that, this piece of equipment took no time at all to build.

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Great results! :grinning:

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Functional with a nice Tech esthetic

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Nice job!

Nice! I prototype out of chipboard usually, saves on so many simple screw ups.

I have to ask, though. What does a WiFi adblocker do? I mean, I know what a adblocker extension does for a web browser, just curious on what the hardware version does.

Hi Joe,

So essentially by having the Raspberry Pi blocking ads/malicious sites, it allows me to use my phone, tablet, and other WiFi enabled devices across the network without having to install any new add-ons. This is great for me because (as far as I know) iPhones and Smart TVs don’t have an adblocking app that works reliably. Check out https://pi-hole.net/ for more information.

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Build one that reliably blocks robocalls and I’m first in line to purchase! :wink:

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Amen to that.
John :upside_down_face:

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The new Android Pie (9.0) does a really nice job of that. If you’ve still got a landline or a VoIP phone you can add a tone to your voicemail message that tells the robocaller that the phone # has been disconnected. You still have your outgoing message but it starts with a beep that the robots hear and hang up (& take your number off the list since the phone’s “not there” anymore) but humans get your voice message. :slightly_smiling_face:

Uh-huuuuuuhhhhhhhh! I will need to learn more of this…might be needing a new phone. Bwahahahahah!

(Oh shoot, I have to keep this to help mom with hers.) :face_with_raised_eyebrow:

If it has wifi, you can drop the cellular service. I use old iPhones for various projects using wifi now and then…

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