A hacker space is a place where people (mainly geeks) can come and use the facilities on offer to collaborate, hack and learn. Usually it's technology based, so there is wifi, computers, and electronics gear but this is not the limit of what could go on. Small grass-roots organisations could use the meeting rooms, people could learn to sew or even build machines and art there. Anything could happen, it just needs a place to nucleate all the talent of the city.
It all started off with a suggestion, from Jonty Wareing, to start a Hacker Space in London on the Open Rights Group Discuss mailing list. Almost immediately a Google mailing list was set up, and more people started getting interested. There are now 80 members of the mailing list and have a meeting planned in a few weeks date to be confirmed. The London crew have since gone even further and have set up a limited company called the Hackerspace Foundation!
The London Hacker space discussion then spawned an offshoot here in Birmingham, with Antonio Roberts setting up another mailing list to try and start a hacker space in Birmingham! Our mailing list is currently at a membership of 25 people, not too shabby for about 3 days! But we need more people willing to get involved, to build momentum, to build a place for us to hack and collaborate in.
If you are interested please join the Google Mailing list for your area:
Say hello and join in the discussions!
For the Birmimgham group a meet-o-matic has been set up, so we can organise a date to meet. Visit meet-o-matic and put in the dates you are available. I will be closing the meet-o-matic on Thursday and announcing the best date for the meeting. The meeting is likely to be held at The Bull Inn (Birmimgham City Centre)(map) It has free wifi, good beer and a nice atmosphere.
Got all that? Good! Now blog, twitter and tell people, friends, family, artists and enemies. As we said we need people to do this, people willing to get their hands dirty.
Goodbye, and see you on the other side!
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