Are you a hackerspace member with an event you’d like to publicize? Send it to johnb@makezine.com or tweet me at @johnbaichtal and I’ll post it. Also feel free to subscribe to my hackerspaces Twitter list. Hackerspace Happenings runs weekly(ish) Tuesday(i)s(h).
Opening Soon in Minneapolis: The Mill
The Twin Cities has gained another makerspace option. The Mill seems to be sort of a tech shop where dozens of high-end tools are available to dues-payers. I’m dying to check it out!
The Mill is a new educational industrial arts/maker space in Minneapolis, Minnesota that celebrates the do-it-yourself culture and creative communities by providing members with access to tools, equipment and instruction. From woodworking to metalworking and electronics, members of the Mill will work on individual or collaborative projects in a well-stocked, industrial grade fabrication workshop. The Mill offers a unique solution to address the knowledge, space, storage and social constraints of building projects at home.
The mission of the Mill is to serve as an incubator of ideas; to foster a collaborative community where members utilize industrial arts concepts, cutting edge technology and time tested fabrication equipment to create innovative solutions to technical issues in fabrication and making. Through classes, group interaction, and an inclusive environment, the Mill is a space where innovation and creativity can be fostered for novice and expert alike.
Hacker Hostel
Seen on hackerspaces.org: a proposal for a Hacker Hostel where hackers could visit and stay at hackerspaces:
The Goal: Negate one of the larger expenses associated with travel, namely HOTEL FEES, in order to further promote idea cross-pollination through visitor, ambassador, and Hacker In Residency programs for Hackerspaces.
How?: A website that will allow users to view Hackerspaces with available sleeping quarters and to submit visitor proposals to participating Hackerspaces for review. Tell us about yourself and what you wish to teach during your stay at your Hackerspace of choice.
The website will help Hackerspaces manage their proposals, discuss Best Practices, as well as help raise money for spaces to spruce up their sleeping quarters if necessary.
Also, each Hackerspace would have some kind of profile detailing the space available, the kinds of classes they might be looking for, what tools facilities would be available to the HIR.
If you’re interested in contributing, you can contact Dave Johnson, whose contact info may be found at the bottom of the post I linked to above.
CCC Talks Available on Video
Videos of the 28th iteration of Hackerspace convention Chaos Communications Congress (CCC) may be watched online. I really want to watch Mitch Altman’s geeks and depression panel!
Louisville’s LVL1 Offering Two Makerships
LVL1’s New Year’s Resolution is to “make more makers!” We are offering not one, but TWO new Makerships to start off 2012!
A Makership is a $100 project stipend and 3 months worth of LVL1 membership dues awarded to an individual in the Louisville area. We recognize that potential makers with limited financial resources often are unable to afford any membership rates- no matter what the discount might be. Similarly, the cost of materials to develop a cool project can be just out of reach to those strapped for cash. Our makership program seeks to eliminate these financial hurdles and get makers making!
Deadline for proposals is January 31, 2012.
January Events at Ann Arbor’s All Hands Active
AHA has their January events posted and there’s a lot of great stuff!
Book Release Party at i3 Detroit
The circus comes to a coffee table near you! On January 7th, i3 Detroit will host the release party and show for member Cheryl Willard‘s new book, Feast Your Eyes, An Illustrated Collection of Detroit’s Circus Performers. The DIY workshop will be converted into a venue for some of those very performers, while members and guests alike enjoy refreshments and a show. Framed prints and a limited number of books will be available for sale. 6-9pm, public welcome, no cover.
Code Night at Minneapolis’ Hack Factory
* Improve your favorite open source project!
* Start learning a new language or tool you’ve been meaning to learn.
* Work on your own projects or work through tutorials (with help).
* Help someone learn or work through their coder’s-blockBring your questions, insights, excitement and hack on code (and maybe on the HF ice shanty!) in good, relaxing company. If you are new(ish) to programming and/or Python or JavaScript specifically, there will be folks specifically there to provide some guidance to learners.
Code Night will be held Monday, January 16th from 7-9:30pm.
Digital Logic Design Workshop at Seattle’s Metrix Create:Space
Prompted by the shop’s collection of 7400-series integrated circuits, I’m going to be teaching a workshop on digital logic design on Saturday, January 14 2011. Digital logic is the sort of thing that makes up a computer at the deepest, darkest level — we’re talking trues and falses, ands, ors, and nots.
You might have used an Arduino to control a simple circuit before, and thought to yourself “there’s got to be a simpler way”. For many things, there is! If you’re triggering a set of operations in a row, or waiting for certain conditions to be satisfied before another action will happen, then a simple digital logic circuit is probably all you need to use.
In this workshop, we’ll be making a few different things, such as a push-on-push-off switch and a bar-graph display. We’ll go over design techniques like truth tables and Karnaugh maps, which let you design logic circuits with just a pencil and paper.
Kids’ Programming Class at Glen Ellyn’s Workshop 88
Sure, you know how to play games on a computer, but do you know how to program one? How awesome would it be to actually control what the computer is doing instead of just playing someone else’s game? If you come to Workshop 88’s kid’s programming lessons we help you learn you how. We use a variety of tools like Kids Ruby and MIT Scatch to learn and practice the fundamentals of programming. All interest and ability levels are welcome. Ages 8 – 16. Please bring your own laptop and power cord. We will provide you with the software needed. $25 per class and $25 for the textbook (or join W88 for $50 / month and come to all the classes you want!) Each Session is independent and the classes will be ongoing, so come whenever you can!
Session 1 January 5th, 7-8:30pm
Session 2 January 26th, 7-8:30pm
Questions? Email info@workshop88.com.
MakerBot Clock Hackathon in Brooklyn
Our friends MakerBot Industries aren’t a hackerspace, but they’re close enough!
You’re invited to join us at the MakerBot Workshop to work on the MakerBot Clock project. It’s going to be an adventure in clockmaking and we’re going to see what we can get done in one day of hacking on the problem.
This event will take place Sunday, January 22nd from noon-8pm.
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