Are you a hackerspace member? We want to know about cool projects you are working on, or have completed, tools you’re using, fun stories about your space and its members, best practices you’d like to share with other spaces, etc. Say you build a new CNC mill–we want to hear about it! Maybe a member is organizing a Mini Maker Faire, has designed a cool robot, or has built something beautiful out of wood. We want to cover all of these things. Send it to johnb@makezine.com or tweet me at @johnbaichtal and I may be able to post it. Also feel free to subscribe to my hackerspaces Twitter list.
Noisebridge’s “_____ the Bridge” Party
San Francisco’s Noisebridge hackerspace is throwing a party on August 10th.
DATE: Saturday, 10-August-2013
TIME: 4pm – 11pm
WHERE: Noisebridge, 2169 Mission St, 3rd floor (1.5 blocks from 16th St. Mission BART)
WHO: geeks, dorks, families, ninjas, hipsters, punks, gnu-hippies, vikings, unique weirdos, and YOU! — Anyone and Everyone — all genders — all ages!
WHAT: Celebrate Noisebridge, community, and the 10th Anniversary of the Pirate Bay
WHY: Because YOU are welcome at your local hackerspace
HOW: Gently Suggested $10 Donation! NO ONE REFUSED for lack of funds.
Troy, NY’s Tech Valley Center of Gravity Opens
A few months ago, the Tech Valley Center of Gravity makerspace opened its doors.
The Tech Valley Center of Gravity is a federation of makers, hackers, crafters, and artists who share camaraderie, space, and resources to do our tinkering. We have a permanent makerspace, several satellite locations, and a community of local individuals and organizations to share and support them. We are based in downtown Troy, NY, and sponsor events all over the New York State Capital Region.
Our primary goal is to build a community around the idea of doing for ourselves, rather than just passively consuming, and learning how the arts, crafts, and technologies that surround us every day work, along the way. We also aim to create a network of contacts for small business and start-ups in the Capital Region to connect with local leaders, like-minded businesses and individuals, and tools and resources they might not otherwise have access to.
We offer presentations that are free and open to the public, and for our members, we offer access to the makerspace and its tools, classes and workshops on a myriad of topics from electronics to chainmaille to welding, and the opportunity to network with folks with the same interests, needs and goals.
NESIT Hackerspace Doubles Its Size
After getting vandalized earlier this year, NESIT Hackerspace in Meriden, CT, the space has bounced back and doubled its size:
After our previous facility suffered some damage, we were approached by Paul Arnold of 454 Life Sciences in Branford, CT. Paul owned equipment that he thought would make a huge difference if it were placed in the right hands, so he came to us. The NESIT team explored the possibility of simply hosting the servers in NESIT’s current facilities, before realizing that this was a huge opportunity to expand not just the IT (information technology) work we do, but all of our services. With a rapid expansion in mind, the NESIT team proposed the idea of the community data center to Paul and his team, and to NESIT’s stakeholders. We soon found an outpouring of support. Everyone wanted to be involved. Many people made significant donations, and it turned out that the expansion was a no-brainer.
Chicago’s Pop-Up Maker Lab
Ars Technica’s Jacqui Cheng wrote about a Chicago library’s new maker lab:
What exactly is the pop-up maker lab? CPL partnered up with Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry—which is offering its own maker lab to museum visitors—in order to put together the program. Unlike the museum’s lab, however, the maker space at Harold Washington is completely free and open to the public. Chicago residents will be prompted to use a library card to gain access, but Sáenz told Ars that out-of-town visitors won’t be turned away if they don’t have a card of their own.
Visitors will eventually be able to make use of three MakerBot 2 3D printers, two laser cutters from Inventables, and one milling machine, in addition to open source software on a fleet of computers so that people can design their own projects. In the weeks leading up to the public opening, members of the CPL and American Library Association staff have been using the machines to make wooden iPhone docks with the milling machine, craft their own custom keychains with the laser cutters, and even print an entire chess set with the 3D printers, though they’re eager to see what the public will come up with following the launch.
Lilypad Arduino Workshop at Seattle’s Metrix Create:Space
Metrix is offering a cool-sounding Lilypad Arduino class Monday after next:
Monday July 29th 7 to 9:30 PM: This workshop is designed for people new to microcontrollers and interested in e-textiles. The LilyPad Arduino has been developed for sewable microprocessor applications. We will use the LilyPad to learn how to program a microcontroller and interface it with electronic components. No prior knowledge of electronics or programming required. Please bring a laptop with the latest Arduino IDE and drivers installed (http://arduino.cc/en/Guide/ArduinoLilyPad). All materials are included in the $60 workshop fee. Call (206-357-9406) or come down to the shop to sign up. Space is limited.
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