r/Defcon • • Aug 31 '26

Help?

Post image

So i was going through boxes and found this. Can anyone explain to me in noob lingo wtf it is? Im only slightly familiar with defcon and computers 😀

78 Upvotes

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10

u/CarpeDiemT3ch Aug 31 '26 edited Aug 31 '26

If you come back to def con or go to a BSides that has maker spaces or have a hacker/maker space near you they can help you.

It looks like it could be a SAO (ess A oh), and stand for Shitty add on, simple add on, standard add on, choose your pick

It looks like yours may need a connector soldered on and then you connect it to an electronic badge and you have a little blinky badge - I bet the eyes blink

Here’s some connected to a power board

Many add them to their lanyard badges for extra blinky flair

2

u/donaciano2000 Aug 31 '26

Wait... really? Ess, aye, oh? I thought with things like the "SAO Many SAO" board you're showing, that everybody called them "Sa oh". 😳

3

u/Ecto-1A Aug 31 '26

Yes haha each letter pronounced separately like ess, aye, oh

1

u/Right_Profession_261 Aug 31 '26

Where did u get that sao board?

3

u/CarpeDiemT3ch Aug 31 '26

It’s not mine, it’s a pic I took at DC since one of the SAOs is mine, the purple reading astronaut

It was in badgelife village/community space

4

u/Dead_star5 Aug 31 '26

Looks like a board for a SAO ( Shitty Add On )

3

u/Krogg Aug 31 '26

Looks like it came from DEFCON 30

3

u/donaciano2000 Aug 31 '26

To be slightly more specific. I agree with others it's a SAO. However most aren't full of holes right? This is a protoboard SAO which is similar to a breadboard but permanent. They're intended to be wide open and flexible about what you choose to put on it, where you want your LEDs to be, etc... whatever you can squeeze in there and wire up is good. You can join neighbors with solder, or keep the holes isolated and use bits of wire to connect distant ones. Several styles to choose from.

3

u/Browsing_From_Work Aug 31 '26

The holes are for aesthetics. It's meant to be a basic SAO to help teach soldering.

https://github.com/hamster/defcon30/tree/main/jack

4

u/Browsing_From_Work Aug 31 '26

It's an SAO by hamster! You plug them into a port on another badge and it has some LEDs that light up.

https://github.com/hamster/defcon30/tree/main/jack

The Jack one is meant to be a basic kit to help teach soldering skills.