Make:PDX will be kicking off 2010 with a meeting focused on Robots. Specifically the Portland Area Robotics Society (PARTS – http://portlandrobotics.org)

PARTS will be describing their group and some members will have the robots they have built on display.

Also, the Oregon Robotics Tournament championships are coming up in February and are always looking for volunteers. More info at HTTP://www.ortop.org

Hope to see you for our first meeting of 2010!

RSVP on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/groups.php?ref=sb#/event.php?eid=284841364637&index=1

RSVP on Upcoming: http://upcoming.yahoo.com/event/5220734/OR/Beaverton/MakePDX-January-Meeting/TechShop-Portland/?ps=7

As usual if you bring project that you’ve been working on and show it off you’ll get a fabulous piece of Make swag.

During the BBQ we’re going to be doing an egg drop. The winner will receive a nice T-Shirt and an issue of Make magazine.

We have lined up a speaker from the active and inventive local electronics gurus, DorkbotPDX. They regularly have meetings at various locations around town that range from casual gatherings to focused in-depth workshops. Check out their calendar for more info.

Also we have a speaker from the Portland State Aerosapce Society. PSAS members work on airframes, avionics, communication equipment, motors, software, and more. They welcome participation from students and community members and have a list of open projects that they would like help with if you’re so inclined.

The Northwest Audiovisualists will be having a meeting at Techshop just before the Make:PDX meeting and have offered to give us a demonstration of some of the fun things they are working on as well!

Finally we are also hoping to have some craft beers available from Make:PDX members and the Oregon Brew Crew as well as Coffee provided by a local Micro-Roaster.

We’re terribly excited about keeping up the momentum from our last meeting (aside from the month-long gap) and hope to see you there. Please bring your projects and baked goods to share!

Thanks go to Handmade NW and DIYAlert for the tip!

This Saturday TechShop is officially opening it’s doors!

Starting at 3pm, be there for demonstrations of the furnaces, Laser Cutter, and other fun stuff!

Also, they’re still looking for helpers in various areas.

from portlandtechshop.com:

We are still looking for helpers. We have another position open now as well. We are looking for people to help staff the front counter. You would be responsible for signing members in, answering the phone, minding the store, giving tours, etc. In exchange for 8 hours a week you get a free membership. We are looking for people to fill positions all days 10-6 and 12-8. If interested send us an email.

We are also still looking for shop supervisors. The deal is the same as above except basic SBU’s are included as compensation as well.

Lastly our low voltage wiring is a mess (Alarms, datacomm, ect). We need a Electrician to help us get this stuff sorted out. if interested let us know and we can work something out.

As promised Denney Cole and Wm Leler were our speakers.  Every one at the meeting got a tour of Tech Shop and the Open Tech Space.  We got a surprise speaker too;  the First team from Hillsboro High was there and gave an impromptu presentation about their program.

Here are some of the details about the afternoon.

During Denney’s speech we we got a tour of TechShop (pictures in the flickr pool).  There is still a lot of work to do before the grand opening on April 25th, but things are really starting to come together over there.  Most of the tools are in working order, SBUs are being offered, and there is a special membership deal.  If you go the the techshop website, and sign up before the grand opening you can get money off of memberships by typing prelim into the promo code box.  As an added benefit your membership doesn’t start counting down until the grand opening.  That means if you get a month long membership a week before the grand opening you get a free week!

Wm Leler introduced every one to the Open Tech Space.  Open Tech Space is a lab inside of TechShop (mostly electronics) that is open to the public.  Any one can come down and work on their projects, under one condition… Share what you make!  Open Tech Space defines “share” very loosely.  Share could mean that you just talk about your project at a place like DorkBot or Make:PDX.  Or share could mean that you fully open source your project, it’s up to you!

There were also a lot of good announcements.

• DorkBot is having their next bi-weekly meeting Monday April 13th over at the Lucky Lab at 1945 NW Quimby, Portland.
• Portland State Aerospace Society (PSAS) is a group of rocket builders that are building a 13′ 5″ rocket that will go up to 55,000 feet.  Whether you’re a rocket scientist, or just want to keep track of what they’re up to, visit their new members section.
• The Oregon Brew Crew’s next event is Saturday May 2nd (national home brewers day!) at FH Steinbart.  There’s going to be brewing demonstrations in the store, and hopefully some home brewers will be out in the parking lot making some beer!
• Portland Area Robotics Society has meetings on the first Saturday of every month.  Every one is welcome, so drop by whether you have a robot or are just interested.
• The FatMan and Circuit Girl do weekly web cast about hacking and creativity.  If you think you might be into a 1200 C easy bake oven, or the perfect cup of coffee go take a look.

A lot of people brought projects and there was plenty of treats to eat, so all in all great meeting.  Lets make next months even better!

The goal of MakePDX is to connect, inspire and grow a local community of people who make things.

Builders. Crafters. Artists. Cooks. Geeks. Hackers. Anyone who makes or wants to make anything!

Who are you? What do you make?

We are new.    Teach.     Learn.     Join us.

3pm – 6pm @ TechShop 10100 SW Allen BLVD., Beaverton, OR  97005

April Speakers:

Denny Cole – Portland TechShop – http://portlandtechshop.com

TechShop is a 33,000 square foot membership based workshop that provides members with any skill level access to tools and equipment, instruction, and a creative and supportive community of like minded people allowing you to build the things you have always wanted to.

Wm Leler – Open Tech Space – http://opentechspace.org

Open Tech Space is a project of the Portland State University Center for Open and Sustainable Technologies (COAST) in partnership with various organizations. We are focusing on the greater Portland, Oregon area, but hope the idea will spread to other places.

The goal of Open Tech Space is to give Portland open and sustainable technology community physical gathering places for interaction at low or no cost, provide help with the creation of prototypes, encourage sharing and mentoring, and promote business development in the technology and art communities.

The last speaker is YOU. Bring your projects and show them off!

Please RSVP on Upcoming.org or Facebook

What is DorkbotPDX:

Dorkbot PDX has crawled out of the womb and is in the now permanent (revolutionary) process of defining itself. We are a community of creative types who enjoy experimenting, finding art in technology and pushing the limits of whatever is in front of us. We meet on an regular, informal basis every other week, but you can find out more on our meetings page. We occasionally hold larger events, so sign up for the mailing lists to find out what’s going on. We welcome you to join us at our gatherings and to bring something interesting to view or ponder. Hands-on items (electrical, mechanical, digital, aural, visual, or other) are highly encouraged! Show and tell warrants mega ultra bonus points! If nothing else, just show up and tell us what you’re interested in — chances are good you’ll find some creative feedback or meet someone with similar ideas.

All meetings are open to the public. Please feel free to drop by to say hello, ask questions, or show off something interesting! We currently have casual, bi-weekly meetings every other Monday. We also have less-frequent “formal” meetings featuring presentations, performances and other interesting activities like OpenDork (where anyone can have a few minutes to discuss their latest project, ideas or whatever). Watch this space for announcements.

Upcoming events:

Open Lab @ PNCA 3/29/09

Meetings:

The next gathering is planned for TONIGHT Monday, March 16th, 2009 at The Lucky Lab NW, on 1945 NW Quimby, at 7:00pm. You can find a map here.