Archive:Events/Space Extension Party/Planning

From London Hackspace Wiki

Date

Sunday February 6, 2011 at 1:00pm

TODO

With just under a week to go until our party there's still a lot to do - please volunteer for some of the following if you are able:

  1. Contact your influential e-Friends™ and ask them to spread the word.
  2. Join us for an incredible day of cleaning and/or create a negative mess this week!
  3. Repair the MakerBot so that we can show off our awesome 3D printing capability and run a MTBF sweepstake.
  4. Create some signs and a map for key areas and equipment in the space.
  5. Offer to include your cool project in displays of our work.
  6. We love the sound of your own voice too! - share it with one of the short talks about hackspacery.
  7. Cook or bake some sweet, sweet people fuel.
  8. Turn up on the day - even if only to provide additional heating!

Discussion

Publicity

Calendar events

Media coverage

Blog coverage
  • Ask Cory to give us a plug on Boing Boing
  • Others: Any sewing/knitting/lock-picking blogs?
  • Contacted
    • Contacted Londonist (Matt directly) with this copy. Posted on Saturday 29th January.
    • Digital Shoreditch have agreed to blog about our party on their site - tom
    • Contacted Matt at Makezine with this copy.
    • Earthshine has kindly written a post on his blog.
    • Tweeted @lecool_london, @urban75, @WiredUK, @kaythaney, @makerfaire_uk
    • Messaged Zach Hoeken of Thingiverse asking him to blog about us.
Mainstream
  • We've received a little interest from mainstream media in the past. Should we approach these organisations to try and get some coverage? Perhaps even more relevant now given the 'siliconroundabout' hype. (Wired love to be astroturf?)
Listings websites

Advertising

Preparation

Cleaning

  • Since our move into unit 23 there is still a lot of stuff that needs to find a home.
  • Currently there is quite a bit of 'junk' just sitting in the middle of the floor.
  • We need a strategy to clear this up in time for the party.
Suggested strategy
  • Hold a 'cleaning day'.
  • Plan and purchase any additional storage solutions before the cleaning day.

Maintenance

  • Ensure that the Makerbot (Samthetechie + Lambda25 will try to fix makerbot) and Laser cutter are fully operational
    • Can anyone lend us a MakerBot if we can't get ours working in time?
      • I can bring my MakerBot: it works, but I don't have a sensible calibration (Skeinforge profile) for it; will I get a free calibration if I bring it? (joking, I'll bring it anyway if it's needed) Dakkar 15:47, 31 January 2011 (UTC)

Improvements

  • We could improve accessibility for new members with more interior signage. We could label areas, large tools, projects - perhaps have the signs on the ceiling for easier navigation of the space.
    • in the style of tube signs :p
  • Produce a map of the space and time table of events so that visitors can find their own way around if they so wish.
    • suggest basing this on the DXF ground floor plan already in github. If it is not finished then use this as an excuse to update it!
  • Better exterior signage to get people to the space would also help - more signs at the entrance to Cremer Business Centre for example.
    • how quickly could be build a blimp and float it above the space on string? tom
    • my friend recently did a really good 20ft vertical banner using helium + tough ballons + rope for like ~£80.

Can we get some footage of general day-to-day shenanigans and hackery that goes on and maybe have a looping projection of it running during the day? Fridgehead

Displays

Would be nice to have some kind of project display area to showcase what kind of things are done at the space. Projects with immediate appeal:

  • Anything Kinect related
  • The Quadcopter build
  • The laser projector, with or without the laser harp.
  • Multitouch Table Running.
  • Arcade Machine Working?

Confirmed

  • 3D printed stuff - some members are building RepRaps currently? samthetechie + Lambda25
  • Wiimote Whiteboard: Laptop + Projector + Two IR LED Pens running a multitouch demo. samthetechie + Lambda25
  • IRC-Controlled RC Car. samthetechie
  • VT520 Serial Terminal Setup and working samthetechie
  • Lasercut stuff - There have been some beautiful builds lately: puzzle box, Tetris/Mario pieces etc.
    • bang up a table next to the cutter and I'll include them in the talk - tom
  • I'd like to do a kinect / VJ set with the projector if i can get it done in time = Oni
  • Ditto, we should set up a projector somewhere with the kinect and show off stuff, your Pin Wall thing comes to mind :) tom
  • I'll see if i can bring in Evil Bear - Fridgehead
  • Scary will wear her HS-drilled/riveted gear

Demonstrations

  • Last year's event was a little unstructured. We could make it more inviting with a running timetable of short talks, presentations, and demonstrations. This would reduce time-spent with individual demonstrations and introductions. Sample topics:
    • Tools (Laser cutter, Makerbot)
    • What is an Arduino etc.
    • How to pick a lock
    • What is Bio-hacking
    • Brain-computer interface
    • Projects (?)
  • Might be nice to highlight some of the other skills practiced at the Space for broader appeal:
    • Sewing
    • Knitting
    • Bio-hacking
    • Lock picking

Is the old dirty workshop getting repurposed? It could make a good demo/presentation space

Schedule

Please note: I completely made this up but no one has edited it so it must be okay. Assuming 15 minute slots giving a 15 minute break between talks:

When Title Who
14:00 London Hackspace - an introduction requires a volunteer
14:30 Arduino overview - an example project (the board?) requires a volunteer
15:00 Rapid prototyping with a Laser Cutter Eb4890, Fridgehead
15:30 3D printing with the Makerbot requires a volunteer and a MakerBot
16:00 Introduction to hackspace systems (doorbot/electric meter/IRC/etc) ?? requires a volunteer
16:30 Bio-hacking - A short introduction I think that Sara is doing this
17:00 Lock-picking as a sport timm
17:30 BBQ begins I'm 100% certain this will happen without a volunteer
18:30 Demonstration of sparkles, hopefully with music synchronised beats eb4899
  • I like the idea of the "rapid prototyping using a laser cutter", perhaps we could have an "improv" moment with a member of the audience yelling out an object and 15 minutes later we've got it prototyped in perspex - I volunteer for laser cutting/inkscape/sketchup demos - Fridgehead
    • In which case you should run it as you see fit - I really like the improv idea! - "Whose spline is it anyway?" --Elliot
  • We could overlap some things, we have the space, makerbot might need longer to build something. I'll help out on the laser cutting, but I'm not so hot on boxing/3d stuff. Also it would be good if we had longer scheduled workshops/tutorials soon after the open day to get people working quickly. I'll postpone my inkscape tutorial until after the open day. --Eb4890
  • Now we've got a thermal cycler for PCR we should definitely do the "biohacking" talk

Promotional materials

  • Free Hackspace keyrings?
    • I can probably do this as part of the lasercutter talk stuff - tom
  • nametags!! Not only are they cool if lasercut but they'll be handy for new people - tomw

Food & drink

  • Licensed bar
  • Unusual beers
  • CLUB MATE (could we order some?) -->http://www.clubmate-uk.com/ chris henson (layer1gfx)
  • Hacker cake contest - think: circuits, robots, gaming
  • BBQ - Solexious
    • we should shape the bbq food in geeky ways - tomw
      • lasercut a burger press ?
  • crazy icecream cocktails
  • astronaut food
  • dry ice
    • any luck with sourcing this for making icecream?
    • You can get dry ice easily from http://www.allaboutice.com/ in Hemel Hempstead and probably lots of closer places, but I think you want liquid nitrogen for making ice cream.
    • dry ice is for drinkies!
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