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From: Jim Brain on 7 Jun 2010 23:49
As I attended the recent C4 EXPO, I realized that I enjoy the "hacking
sessions" immensely. Still, an EXPO serves primarily to show off
already created works. As well, the hacking portion tends to be
uncoordinated (though, I know some of the folks at ECCC plan ahead to
hack at that show), so parts are often not brought, or the required
expertise is not always at hand. Finally, I know times are tough for
many, and two nights of hotel and such can put an even out of reach for
many.

Thus, I started thinking about a yearly or twice-yearly hack-fest or
similar venue, where planning and minimal cost was the order of the day.
24/7 venue, some level of coordination, and Ustream/Youtube
presentations of the results at the end of the event.

I know there is "Startup Weekend" (http://startupweekend.org/), which
conveys the atmosphere, but it's a new company incubator.

Apple II folks have a Kansas Hack Fest, but it's primarily a programming
contest. I'm sure other groups have similar.

There's Notacon/BlockParty, but that's not cheap and doesn't seem to
convey my idea. (I'm happy to be wrong, though).

So, although I'm happy to be directed to an existing venue, I'd like to
see if there is interest in an event like I'm describing. Ideally, I'd
like to have the following:

* A web-forum where potential participants start sharing ideas about
project ideas and plan the projects prior to the event. Projects would
have to be designed via the forum (or some proposal submitted) before
the event, to ensure a plan for success.
* a low-cost venue, close to cheap air travel, central to a significant
number of participants. Maybe dorm-style accommodations, or bedrolls on
the floor kinda thing. Weekend cost somewhere in the $20-40 range for
room. (I was actually thinking a huge machine shed in the country a half
hour or so from an airport hub like KC or Indy with a rental HVAC system
and just some mats on the floor :-)
* cheap food, no schedule, no fancy dinners, etc. People are obviously
free to go out, but it's not required. cold cuts, chips, pop, the usual.
* 2 days for the event: Friday noon to Sunday noon or something along
those lines.
* 24/7 access to the venue. Obviously, some security, but people can
work all weekend if needed/wanted.
* hardware and software development allowed.
* no sales, etc. I don't want to take away from the current shows.
* Participant limits. While I don't want to say "no" to folks,
bystanders and supporters can sometimes get in the way. I know how
hackers work when they are in the zone, and it can be a shock to
non-hackers. The developers/designers need a place where they can feel
comfortable yelling/arguing/etc. as needed to hash out the best ideas.
Obviously, only thick skins should plan on attending. Obviously, there
would have to be limits on such behavior, but I think everyone gets the
idea.
* No children. I love mine, but this would bore them to tears.
Significant others would probably be OK, but unless they are hackers or
geeks, this would probably bore them to tears as well.
* No formal talks. I think other venues can accommodate that better.
Besides, it is probably akin to "preaching to the choir". Obviously,
informal talks are fine, and encouraged.
* Demonstration of the various projects at the end of the show. Maybe a
Ustream feed with 15 minute presentations by the project teams. That
way, people know when to tune in, no need to sit on the stream all day,
and no need to worry about getting an hour demo of something they are
totally uninterested in.
* Some voting (maybe online, dunno), where the best idea will be turned
into a product and sold, with royalties going to the team. On the one
hand, I don't want to discourage freelancers from floating among
projects, but I also want to create some incentive for designs to get
finished that weekend.

I know the SWRAP group had this idea for a monthly hardware hacking
night, but you just can't do much in an evening. In any event, the idea
lasted only a short time.

Obviously, the idea would appeal mainly to coders, hardware jockeys,
graphicians, and the like.

There's probably an ulterior motive in this (really, I would just love
to hack all weekend, but I can't deny I'm in a great position to fund a
project->product transition), but I hope that doesn't kill the idea.

Obviously, the above is just a few minutes of thinking up ideas, and I
mean no disrespect to children, users, etc., so please keep that in mind
when reading.

Feel free to repost, respond, refute, redirect.

Jim



From: RobertB on 8 Jun 2010 02:19
On Jun 7, 8:49 pm, Jim Brain <br...(a)jbrain.com> wrote:

> * a low-cost venue, close to cheap air travel, central to a significant
> number of participants.  Maybe dorm-style accommodations, or bedrolls on
> the floor kinda thing.  Weekend cost somewhere in the $20-40 range for
> room. (I was actually thinking a huge machine shed in the country a half
> hour or so from an airport hub like KC or Indy with a rental HVAC system
> and just some mats on the floor :-)

Joe M. of SCCAN and his friend, Bruce G., have
always planned to have a type of Commodore hacking/
programming event that would last for several days...
maybe even a week. It would be held on family property
in the wilderness of Contra Costa county (or was it
Marin County?) of California. Attendees would stay in
cabins on the property. Very low cost (if any cost at
all) and the cabins would be private but comfortable
enough. Nearest airports would be the San Jose Airport
or Oakland Airport.

> * cheap food, no schedule, no fancy dinners, etc.  People are obviously
> free to go out, but it's not required.  cold cuts, chips, pop, the usual.
> * 2 days for the event:  Friday noon to Sunday noon or something along
> those lines.

Yeah, the nearest civilized facilities would be
local grocery stores.

> * 24/7 access to the venue.  Obviously, some security, but people can
> work all weekend if needed/wanted.

Because it is private property and far enough
away from civilization, there would be no need for
security.

> Feel free to repost, respond, refute, redirect.

I always thought that Joe's/Bruce's idea of a
hacking/programming getaway was great, and I was
all for it. I will ask about it at this upcoming
weekend's SCCAN meeting.

Truly,
Robert Bernardo
Fresno Commodore User Group
http://videocam.net.au/fcug
The Other Group of Amigoids
http://www.calweb.com/~rabel1/
Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network
http://www.sccaners.org
From: Jonno Downes on 8 Jun 2010 17:38
Jim

Great idea. My suggestion, which is worth exactly what you paid for
it ;-) is 'just start' - i.e. sort out a date and a venue far enough
in advance that you can sort out a bunch of the other details on the
fly - my limited experience has been you tend to get more buyin and
assistance once it's "real" than when it's a hypothetical.

Incidentally I'm trying just that with "TiNKeRCoN" - http://tinker.jamtronix.com/
(this didn't start out a plug btw but it seemed relevant) although my
view is there isn't enough of a community yet here in Oz to have a
meaningfull hacking session - my intention is more to bring a bunch of
like minded people together to show off what they are doing in
isolation get some cross-fertilisation happening, it may turn into a
hackfest down the track.

I'm definately interested in sharing some of the infra you talked
about (e.g. websites/forums) including contributing to implementation
and running costs. I'm also toying with the idea of doing some local
distribution into Oz.

One suggestion (worth even less than your are paying for it) though
would be rather than a contest from which a 'winner' gets picked,
maybe have a online showcase of everything completed at the event,
which people could then pre-order [with no upfront payment and the
caveat that the product may never be made] but would be a good way of
gauging 'commercial' interest in the item, whereas a vote of hackfest
participants may prioritise technical wizardry rather than mass-
appeal.

Regards Jonno


From: Clocky on 9 Jun 2010 07:38
Jonno Downes wrote:
> Jim
>
> Great idea. My suggestion, which is worth exactly what you paid for
> it ;-) is 'just start' - i.e. sort out a date and a venue far enough
> in advance that you can sort out a bunch of the other details on the
> fly - my limited experience has been you tend to get more buyin and
> assistance once it's "real" than when it's a hypothetical.
>
> Incidentally I'm trying just that with "TiNKeRCoN" -
> http://tinker.jamtronix.com/ (this didn't start out a plug btw but it
> seemed relevant) although my
> view is there isn't enough of a community yet here in Oz to have a
> meaningfull hacking session - my intention is more to bring a bunch of
> like minded people together to show off what they are doing in
> isolation get some cross-fertilisation happening, it may turn into a
> hackfest down the track.
>
> I'm definately interested in sharing some of the infra you talked
> about (e.g. websites/forums) including contributing to implementation
> and running costs. I'm also toying with the idea of doing some local
> distribution into Oz.
>
> One suggestion (worth even less than your are paying for it) though
> would be rather than a contest from which a 'winner' gets picked,
> maybe have a online showcase of everything completed at the event,
> which people could then pre-order [with no upfront payment and the
> caveat that the product may never be made] but would be a good way of
> gauging 'commercial' interest in the item, whereas a vote of hackfest
> participants may prioritise technical wizardry rather than mass-
> appeal.
>

Great ideas, where abouts in Oz are you based?



From: Jonno Downes on 9 Jun 2010 12:50
On Jun 9, 9:38 pm, "Clocky" <notg...(a)happen.com> wrote:

> Great ideas, where abouts in Oz are you based?

I'm in Katoomba, near Sydney
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