Tonight kicks off the first class of DIY guitar building. Still 2 tickets left.

We anticipate that the activity will be mainly confined to the metal area, so the rest of the facility should remain available.

getting ready

So another Faire is in the books. Despite some early weather worries the day couldn’t have been more perfect. The rain held off, the Sun came out, what more could you desire?

Over the next couple of days I’ll be posting a more formal recap, but I wanted to get out this big thank you right away.

Thank you visitors.

Thank you for giving us a chance to show off our space and the neat stuff we do. That you came and showed us your good will is greatly appreciated. (The fact that you were so neat and pick up was a breeze was a bonus).

Thank you exhibitors.

Thank you for your grace and understanding. There wouldn’t be an event without you.

Thank you performers.

Thank you for your patience, professionalism, skill and artistry. Your efforts took the event up a level and made it memorable.

Thank you volunteers.

Thank you for your willingness to take on any job and your inventiveness in solving any problems.

closing the day

I only have two last requests.

If you have any photos, video or sounds of the day you would like to share please email the links to fair@tcmaker.org with photo in the subject line.

I would also like any feedback on the event you would like to share. We want to make this annual event as great as it can be. So email or use the contact us form with any impressions, suggestions or criticisms.

Thanks again and see you next year at Minne-Faire IV 4/13/2013.

After a hard day of showing off all our cool stuff, the only thing left for us to do is throw a party.

Come and join us.

Tim Kaiser
Will be starting us out with his gonkulations and acousto-electric contraptions, weaving aural sculptures that are haunting, startling, just down right amazing. It is no wonder that he is the troubadour of the Maker/Hacker movement. (Tim will also be exhibiting at the Fair).

Jazari
Is up next. Patrick Flanagan’s steamfunk percussive driving sound is unique and unforgettable. As the human component of the cybernetic juggernaut that is Jazari, Patrick brings an impressive level of skill and craftsmanship to the creation of his instruments, the beauty of his software and the energy of his performance. I can never decide if the awe his instruments inspire or the inventiveness of his performance is more impressive.

Savage Aural Hotbed

Closes the show.

“…the sound of steel and rust, oil drums and hubcaps, screeches, sparks, grinders and gears finding new fury and energy… It’s also fun, it makes you smile to see a man make music with an electric saw…”

— Scott Simon, Weekend Edition, National Public Radio

‘nough said.

The Minneapolis’s The Hacktor’s Collective Production of

The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs:

Will be presented Friday April 13th

Both the author and the subject have their good and bad. The performance of this work at this time highlights the complexity of the Human makers of things and art.

Because of the performance Friday night drop off for the Minne – Faire will be closed from 6pm – 10pm.

Class Registration:
http://hackfactorybridgeport.eventbrite.com/

Hack Factory Bridgeport

Details
Mondays 7pm
May 7th-28th
Class Sign Up
http://www.eventbrite.com/event/3267082933

The question I’m most asked is “What Can I do to Help ?“.

Well the biggest help in the next couple of days would be to get the word out.

Tell your friends and family. If you can, take a couple of minutes and put up a poster or two in your neighborhood.

The show will go on rain or shine.

Don’t forget about the celebration afterwards.

Tim Kaiser, Jazari and Savage Aural Hotbed will playing.

Minne Maker Faire is April 14th from Noon-5pm, and then music starting after 7pm.

Oh, and for those who may have seen the very large Rube Goldberg type device in the basement, it’s complete and the video is up on-line.

Lots of people have been asking when we’re doing our next Arduino class. The answer is soon! Arduino 101 is a two-night class in the basics of the Arduino and electronics. It’s designed for people with no background in electronics or programming. This class should get you moving down the road to microcontroller nirvana!

The cost includes a nice little parts kit, some of which we’ll be using in class.

There are two classes scheduled:

• Session 1: March 15 and March 22, 6:30 pm – 9:00 pm
• Session 2: April 19 and April 26, 6:30 pm – 9:00 pm

Both sessions are listed on the registration page, so make sure you only sign up for one. (Unless you really want to take the class twice. We’d be more than happy to see you at both sessions!)

Students will need to provide their own Arduino board, and a laptop for running the software. Details and prices are on the course registration page.

Hack Factory Member Storage

With our quarterly cleanup coming up soon, I’d like to remind everyone about the purpose of the member storage shelves. These shelves are intended for storage of projects in progress, and the materials and tools being used for those projects. I would like to invite everybody to take some time to organize their storage area prior to the quarterly cleanup. When organizing your storage, there are a few requirements to keep in mind:

• Allotted space: Everyone should make an effort to occupy no more than one half of a storage shelf with their projects and materials. There is no problem with using a whole shelf, as long as the material you are storing is actively being worked on. Check with the Shop Manager or an Area Manager if you have special requirements.
• Labeling: The owner of every item stored on these shelves should be readily identifiable, with contact information. This requirement can be met by placing parking permits on each item, or applying a strip of tape or similar label to the shelf. This is especially important with quarterly cleanup approaching. If we don’t know who something belongs to, we don’t know whether or not it’s abandoned.
• Tidyness: As much as possible, material on the shelves should be stored in a relatively neat fashion, and items should not overhang the front of the shelves. We want the space to look organized and functional when guests are touring the space.
• Inactive projects: Anything you have stored at the space which you haven’t worked with in a long time should be taken home or disposed of.

The overall goal here is to give members a chance to organize and evaluate their storage prior to quarterly cleanup, so that items are organized in the way their owner wants, as opposed to being organized at the whims of the cleanup participants.

As always, speak with the Shop Manager or an Area Manager if you have any questions.

Currently most of the Board of Directors also serve as Officers, however this is not a requirement.  A seat on the Board of Directors is a three year commitment.  Officers and staff serve at the direction of the Board of Directors and are responsible for carrying out day to day operations.

If you would like to be submit your name for election to our Board of Directors, please send your name to our secretary (Bob Poate) via email, Secretary[ @ ] tcmaker.org or in person at the Hack Factory.  We will leave the candidacy application open until March 7th, 2012 Midnight CST.

We will also be taking input for the Agenda of the Annual Meeting on March 13th at the Monthly Board Meeting.  Once we have compiled our candidates and agenda at the March 13th board meeting, a formal announcement for the Annual Meeting will be sent out by March 16th 2012.

The same day that we are having our Annual Meeting we will be having the Quarterly Shop Clean-Up just in time  for Minne Faire and an informal general member meeting.

The overall agenda for March 31st is as follows:

• Shop clean up – 10 am to 3pm
• Members meeting / potluck – 4pm – 5pm (or sooner if people want)
• Annual meeting – 5pm – 6pm

The members meetings will be a place for all members to come together and discuss all things Hack Factory related, and a place for members to meet the candidates on the ballot.

Something very important to note: in order to participate in voting, you must have payed your dues for March on or before March 1st.  Per our bylaws, only members in good standing are qualified to vote.  So that means if you submit your member dues after March 1st you will be ineligible to vote on March 31st.  If that is the case, we would still welcome you to come to the potluck and clean up, but you will not be able to vote.

**edited for policy accuracy, pardon the earlier error**

Pictures from the 2/22/12 Open Hack Night @ Twin Cities Maker’s Hack Factory.

and a video of Riley’s Latest creation:

All in it’s over 75 pages of forms, documents, narrative and bits and pieces and it’s taken a lot of triple checking but we’re happy with what we’ve sent off.  We’re hoping for an answer within a few months, but it’s always a bit of a gamble as to how long it’ll take the IRS to approve or come back with questions.

In other important news, the Annual Members Meeting has gotten scooted to the end of March this year to coincide with the Quarterly Clean-Up, and you must have paid your dues for March on time (before March 1st)  in order to vote.  An announcement and then big formal announcement will be coming out soon.

Every Wednesday we have an open house @ The Hack Factory, it’s a time for members and new comers alike to socialize and get to know Twin Cities Maker. If you have never been to the Hack Factory before, Wednesday night is the best time to come. There are usually people working on various project, and definitely people willing to help out or give some insight into what you are trying to accomplish with your own projects. It’s a great time, check out some of the pictures to see a bit of what it is like.

The Hack Factory is located at:

3119 E. 26th Street
Minneapolis, MN 55406

Twin Cities Maker a collective of people that together rent The Hack Factory, we all pay dues and luckily it’s just about enough to cover the expenses of our space, we are currently a bit light and are looking for a few new members to get us into the black, and into a place where we can start saving for the next tool, or event budgets. If you are interested in becoming a member it’s easy there are few different ways, and a few different types of memberships, check out the Membership page for more information. Also if this is something that you think is valuable in the community and would like to see it continue, and grow consider giving Twin Cities Maker a donation, we also take equipment donations depending on what you have and what we have.

The Monsters Under the Bed Art Shanty will be making an appearance at the April 14th Minne-Faire.

This is possibly the last chance to see “Monsters” in the wild.

“With their unique spatial and dietary requirements, under-the-bed Monsters rarely get to visit and socialize with other Monsters…until now. Visitors to Monster Under the Bed Shanty can release their inner monsteryness while exploring the size and scope of being human in a unique visual and interactive space. In addition to providing an outlet for Monsters of all shapes, sizes, and artistic inclination, Monsters Under the Bed Shanty provides continuity within the Art Shanty Project; where Tiny Shanty allowed humans to feel huge in a tiny world Monsters Under the Bed Shanty will allow participants to feel tiny under and on a giant a bed.” Monsters Shanty Blog

This is a coming home for the Monsters team as much of the construction and preparation took place right here at the Hack Factory.

It is not too late to include your project in this year’s Minne-Faire.

Contact us at fair@tcmaker.or or fill out the form!

Hackvision is a simple, retro gaming platform based on Arduino technology that you can assemble and connect to your TV. You can write your own games and make your own controllers!
Features

If you’ve never soldered before, this is the class for you! This course teaches through-hole (90% of electronic kits) soldering and is recommended for the beginner. This is a hands-on class where the students learn techniques to help them solder through-hole components. Soldering can be daunting for the first solder joint, then the 2nd solder joint is not so bad, and by the time you’ve assembled the Hackvision, you will be quite confident and proficient in basic soldering skills.

Classes take place at The Hack Factory. We provide all the tools, irons, solder, parts, and seats for up to 8 students.

There is a minimum age requirement of 8 years old, but other than that, anyone is encouraged to sign up. We teach people all the time with no previous soldering experience! You do not need to be a member of Twin Cities Maker to attend.

Prerequisites: None! Just bring yourself. The class price includes the cost of the Hackvision kit.

What to bring: TC Maker will provide all the tools, irons and solder.

Proceeds above will go to help keep TC Maker, support the space.

Time and Place: Saturday Feb 25th 4:00pm to 6:00pm with a break for Pizza (it will be extra $$ but, good)

Cost: $30 (This is a great deal, the retail price is $33, and doesn’t come with the hack factory to solder at, and no Michael to be taught by.)

Sign up on Event Brite

Maggie Koerth-Baker, of Minneapolis, has an epic post on How to Build an Art Shanty up on Boing Boing. The art shanty featured, Monsters Under The Bed, was built in the the Hack Factory 2 months ago, and spent this last month out on Medicine Lake.

Congrats to the Monsters under the bed, we can’t wait to see what you will come up with in next time.