FabLab.nl

De FabTafel van 14 december vindt plaats in FabLab Amersfoort.

Het programma is als volgt: 15:00 – 16:00 Ronde tafel bespreking van onderwerpen die aanwezigen inbrengen. 16:00 – 18:00 Informele gesprekken onder het genot van een drankje en nootjes.

Dit is de laatste FabTafel van 2011.

De data van de FabTafels 2012 worden binnenkort vastgesteld en uiterlijk tijdens de FabTafel van 14 december bekend gemaakt.


English version

FabTable

The next FabTable is taking place on December 14th in FabLab Amersfoort.

The programme is: 15:00 – 16:00 Round table conversation on topics participants put forward. 16:00 – 18:00 Informal conversations, with drinks and snacks provided.

This is the last FabTable of 2011. The dates for the FabTables in 2012 will be decided and communicated shortly (during the coming FabTable at the latest).

Tot ziens op de FabTafel! See you at the FabTable!

November is upon us, so it is time to start writing your FabYearBook contributions again! Send in your contributions before December 31st 2011 to yearbook@fabfolk.com. Publication date is February 2012.

Your great contributions made the first ever FabYearBook in 2010 as well as last years FabYearBook 2011 beautiful collections of photos, stories and designs from around the FabLab world. We hope to get even more contributions for the coming edition!

Contribute to FabYearBook 2012!
Now it is time to start creating your contributions for the next edition of the FabYearBook! So get creative and share fun, inspirational, or deep stories about your FabLab and the things that happen there, in the form of text, pictures, drawings or whatever you can think of. We accept contributions in any shape or form. To be part of the book it needs to be in A4 format though. But feel free to also send in fun designs (even better if they fit that A4 format!) we can share in the digital version of the FabYearBook.

The FabYearBook 2012 will be available to print in your own FabLab in February 2012. We will strive to turn the publication into a Polycon video event, connecting many FabLabs together while the FabYearBook gets printed in those FabLabs.

The FabYearBook 2012 will be published under the banner of the FabLab Association, where the FabYearBook has found a home from now on.

An opportunity to connect and share!
The yearly Fab conference, such as Fab6 in the Netherlands last year, or Fab7 in Peru this year are great opportunities to meet face to face and feel part of a bigger global whole. The FabYearBook appears halfway between the global Fab conferences, and is an additional way to stay in touch and feel part of the global FabLab community.

Use the FabYearBook 2012 to introduce us all to the people in your FabLab, the staff, volunteers and makers that make up your local community. Show us what great stuff is getting made in the FabLab. Tell us what is hard, what is fun, what is awesome. Share with us the impact FabLab has on your life, your community, your visitors. Don’t be a stranger, and send in your contributions for the FabYearBook 2012!

Spread the word!
Please forward this call for contributions to others (people, FabLabs) you think may be interested in adding something to the book. The more variety and diversity we have in the contributed stories, the richer and more inspiring the result will be to all of us.

Important info

• Deadline for sending in contributions: December 31st, 2011
• A4 format if possible/applicable
• Language: English, or your own language with a short English summary
• Send contributions (or download links) to: yearbook@fabfolk.com
• Publication date of the FabYearBook 2012: February 2012, with a global on-line event.

De FabTafel van 2 november vindt plaats in Utrecht bij Protospace/FabLab Utrecht.

Het programma is als volgt: 15:00 – 16:00 Ronde tafel bespreking van onderwerpen die aanwezigen inbrengen. 16:00 – 18:00 Informele gesprekken onder het genot van een drankje en nootjes.

Data FabTafels 2011

De laatste FabTafel van 2011, na 2 november, is op 14 december 2011. De FabTafel begint altijd om 15:00 uur. FabTafels gaan altijd door, ongeacht het aantal deelnemers.


English version

FabTable

The next FabTable is taking place on November 2nd at Protospace/FabLab Utrecht.

The programme is: 15:00 – 16:00 Round table conversation on topics participants put forward. 16:00 – 18:00 Informal conversations, with drinks and snacks provided.

Other FabTables in 2011

The last FabTable of 2011, after November 2nd will be on December 14th 2011. They always start at 15:00 and always take place, regardless of who comes.

Tot ziens op de FabTafel! See you at the FabTable!

Impulse for innovation, local entrepreneurship and knowledge sharing

On 29 July 2011, the HONFablab in Yogyakarta, Indonesia will be inaugurated in the presence of the Mayor of Yogyakarta and Prince Wironegoro KPH.

Waag Society, institute for art, science & technology and the House of Natural Fiber (HONF), an Indonesian media-lab, see the opening as the incentive for the creation of many innovative projects in the region. HONFablab was funded by Agentschap NL – EVD Internationaal.

With this first FabLab in Southeast Asia, HONF and Waag Society hope to stimulate local entrepreneurs, students and creatives. The connection of Indonesia to the Fablab network, gives them access to innovative design and manufacturing methods. In addition, the HONFablab will enrich the network by sharing local knowledge and creativity.

Global impact

The impact of the HONFablab will become visible through projects in te field of incubation and care, from the manufacture of affordable, high quality prostheses with local materials to a “creative incubation program” which facilitates setting up businesses. After ‘Yogya’ hopefully more Fablabs will follow in Indonesia.

HONF

The House of Natural Fiber, Yogyakarta, is a New Media art laboratory since 1999 dealing with the principles of critical analysis and innovation. The house of natural fiber focuses on cultural development and New Media Art in the implementation of many New Media art projects and workshops that revolve around the interaction between people and their environment. As they work towards the development of art through technology.

Later than expected, but still with great pleasure we can announce the release of the FabYearBook 2011!

The 2011 edition is bigger and more diverse than last year’s first ever edition. Again the FabYearBook shows you some of the wonderful things that are being done, created and made in the global network of FabLabs. If you leaf through it you’ll be struck by the wealth of ideas, color and inspiration. A big thank you to all who contributed their stories and examples.

Every time I visit a Fablab I see the same basic thing: everybody, and I really mean everybody, who enters a FabLab leaves it again with a smile on their face. Convincing people of the value of FabLabs for their community is as simple as bringing them into a FabLab. There is nothing more empowering than walking into a FabLab with an idea, and leaving it with an object you made. Even if that object is nowhere similar to your idea, even if it not really works yet as you intended. The act of Making will make everybody smile.

This second FabYearBook is hopefully another step in a yearly tradition of making that value, empowerment and sheer fun visible. Print this book, bind it in a cover you yourself designed and made in the FabLab, or use the one that Steven Gallagher designed and comes with the book.

This FabYearBook 2011 should have been published in February already, but I simply have been to busy to do it, and only too late started looking for help in finishing it. The reason this second edition is now ready, is because of the hard work and time spent by Susanne Welgraven, a student at the FabLab Arnhem in the Netherlands. She took on the work of designing the book and putting it together. Everything that is in this edition is to her credit, everything that is missing is my mistake. Thank you very much Susanne!

You can now download your copy of the FabYearBook 2011 as a zip-file at fabfolk.com!

Join the FabYearBook 2012 Team!
For the 2012 edition (to be published February 2012) we are looking for 3 or more people who want to help form the editorial team. Get in touch if you want to make sure the third edition of the FabYearBook is even bigger, brighter and better. And on time ;) Send an e-mail to ton@fabfolk.com.

FabTafel

De FabTafel van 10 augustus vindt plaats in Amersfoort bij FabLab Amersfoort.

FabLab Amersfoort heeft een nieuwe locatie, maar op hetzelfde adres. Kleine Koppel 40 te Amersfoort. Een hek verder dan de vorige locatie.

Het programma is als volgt: 15:00 – 16:00 Ronde tafel bespreking van onderwerpen die aanwezigen inbrengen. 16:00 – 18:00 Informele gesprekken onder het genot van een drankje en nootjes.

Data FabTafels 2011

De volgende FabTafels, na 10 augustus, zijn op 21 september (in FabLab Arnhem), 2 november (in FabLab Utrecht), 14 december 2011. Telkens vanaf 15:00 uur. FabTafels gaan altijd door, ongeacht het aantal deelnemers.


English version

FabTable

The next FabTable is taking place on August 10th in FabLab Amersfoort.

FabLab Amersfoort has a new space at its disposal, but it’s still at the same address, at Kleine Koppel 40, Amersfoort.

The programme is: 15:00 – 16:00 Round table conversation on topics participants put forward. 16:00 – 18:00 Informal conversations, with drinks and snacks provided.

Other FabTables in 2011

The next FabTables, after August 10th will be September 21st (FabLab Arnhem), November 2nd (FabLab Utrecht), and December 14th 2011. They always start at 15:00 and always take place, regardless of who comes.

Tot ziens op de FabTafel! See you at the FabTable!

Het is weer tijd voor een nieuwe FabTafel! (english below)

FabTafel

De FabTafel van 29 juni vindt plaats in Enschede bij FabLab Enschede in de Saxion Hogeschool.

De locatie is FabLab Enschede, M.H. Tromplaan 28, Enschede. Het FabLab is op loopafstand van het NS station Enschede.

Het programma is als volgt: 15:00 – 16:00 Ronde tafel bespreking van onderwerpen die aanwezigen inbrengen en aankondigingen vanuit de stichting. 16:00 – 18:00 Informele gesprekken onder het genot van een drankje en nootjes. Uiteraard is er alle gelegenheid kennis te maken met de mensen achter FabLab Enschede, en uiteraard het FabLab zelf.

Data FabTafels 2011


De volgende FabTafels, na 18 mei zijn op 10 augustus, 21 september, 2 november, 14 december 2011. Telkens vanaf 15:00 uur. FabTafels gaan altijd door, ongeacht het aantal deelnemers.

English version

FabTable

The next FabTable is taking place on June 29th in FabLab Enschede at Saxion Hogeschool in Enschede.

The programme is: 15:00 – 16:00 Round table conversation on topics participants put forward and announcements from the Dutch FabLab Foundation. 16:00 – 18:00 Informal conversations, with drinks and snacks provided. Of course there will also be ample opportunity to get to know the people behind FabLab Enschede, as well as inspect the FabLab itself.

The location is FabLab Enschede, M.H. Tromplaan 28, Enschede. The FabLab is within easy walking distance of the Enschede railway station.

Other FabTables in 2011


The next FabTables, after May 18th, will be on August 10th, September 21st, November 2nd, and December 14th 2011. They always start at 15:00 and always take place, regardless of who comes.

Tot ziens op de 29e! See you on the 29th!

ProtoSpace proudly presents: the first Ultimaker & RepRap gathering! Stop by at ProtoSpace this evening between 17 and 21.30 to mingle with other Ultimaker and RepRap operators – Makerbot and other 3D printer owners and enthusiasts are welcome too. The gathering happens every six weeks on Monday, first one here at ProtoSpace (in the tradition of the Fabtables, Benelux area Fablab meetings taking place every sixth Wednesday in one of the Fablabs)

Ultimaker Gathering dates this summer and fall:

• Monday June 27
• Monday August 8
• Monday September 19
• Monday October 31

FabTafel

De FabTafel van 18 mei vindt plaats in Rotterdam bij de Hogeschool Rotterdam, initiatiefnemer van het FabLab Rotterdam in oprichting.

Het programma is als volgt: 15:00 – 16:00 Ronde tafel bespreking van onderwerpen die aanwezigen inbrengen en aankondigingen vanuit de stichting. Leon Gommans en Peter Troxler zullen ongetwijfeld de Rotterdamse FabLab plannen toelichten. 16:00 – 18:00 Informele gesprekken onder het genot van een drankje en nootjes.

Hopelijk is het ook eindelijk mogelijk, dankzij de hulp van Susanne Welgraven en Sergio Canestrelli van FabLab Arnhem, om het FabYearBook 2011 te presenteren.

De locatie is Pieter de Hoochweg 129, 3024BG in Rotterdam.

Data FabTafels 2011


De volgende FabTafels, na 18 mei zijn op 29 juni, 10 augustus, 21 september, 2 november, 14 december 2011. Telkens vanaf 15:00 uur. FabTafels gaan altijd door, ongeacht het aantal deelnemers.

English version FabTable

The next FabTable is taking place on May 18th in Rotterdam, where the Hogeschool Rotterdam is taking the initiative for founding a FabLab.

The programme is: 15:00 – 16:00 Round table conversation on topics participants put forward and announcements from the Dutch FabLab Foundation. Leon Gommans and Peter Troxler will undoubtedly explain the plans for Rotterdam’s FabLab. 16:00 – 18:00 Informal conversations, with drinks and snacks provided

Hopefully, and thanks to the help of Susanne Welgraven and Sergio Canestrelli of FabLab Arnhem, we will be able to also present the first copy of the FabYearBook 2011.

The location is Pieter de Hoochweg 129, 3024BG in Rotterdam.

Dates FabTables 2011


The next FabTables, after May 18th, will be on June 29th, August 10th, September 21st, November 2nd, and December 14th 2011. They always start at 15:00 and always take place, regardless of who comes.

Documentator is a station set up at ProtoSpace (Fablab Utrecht, NL) to collect project documentation from people before they leave the lab – the idea is to make the documenting of what people made a natural part of their lab visit with as little need for instruction and supervision as possible.
(originally posted March 22nd on my FabFolk.com blog)

Based on my year’s worth of experience of more often than not rather crazy busy lab open days (open inloop as we call them here in the low lands), I can think of a few reasons why this is not happening naturally

• Lab staff is busy with either advising people with lab machinery or engaged in their personal research activity to make the point of the importance of documentation, Creative Commons license etc. to people
• Documentation tools have not really been up to par to make it easy, fast and simple to document the manufacturing process either during or after a lab visit

So we decided to make something physical and harder to ignore than two sentences from lab manager when you first enter the lab.

As part of the lab management procedures, ProtoSpace has been collecting some information from the users for the purpose of keeping record who’s been there doing what – important for providing overviews for the lab supporting parties. To this end, we have been using a “kiosk” – a stand next to lab door to record some demographic data along with people’s intentions of lab use (browser window + simple Google Docs form).

Combining this information gathering need, the kiosk and the needs of documenting resulted in conceptualizing a check in / check out system and completing the circle by designing another kiosk for documenting the lab creations - the Documentator (design and prototype creation at ProtoSpace by Evert Veldhuis for his diploma in Product Design).

What happens at check in and check out stations – a few words outlining the process taking place below:

Check in

(1) User logs in with their ProtoSpace website user account. At account creation, we record and keep the non-changing demographic data as part of the user profile (only to be shown to lab adminstrative personnel)

(2) User can start a new project, or continue one of their existing projects.
At this stage, we only ask the user to fill in a few details on the project they intend to be working on at the lab: project name, short description and machines intended to use.
User action is logged for the lab administrative personnel – who who did what, when and with which machines.

(3) Check in is all done, some welcoming text is shown to user who may now enter the lab and start working on their project. The check in station automatically logs the user out and redirects back to the login screen for the next visitor walking in.

Check out

(1) User logs in.

(2) User can choose which one of their projects they completed that day.

(3) User completes more detailed description of their project: including picture, design source file and a full description of their project – a FabMoment.

(4) Check out is done – the FabMoment is published and shown on the user profile page as well as ProtoSpace FabMoments page (and beyond…)

Documentator automatically logs the user out and redirects back to the login screen.

Software

Drupal is the web platform of choice at ProtoSpace, so it was natural to combine the whole check in / check out and documentation process under one umbrella, also considering we could make use of the plethora of functionality already contributed by the Drupal open source community. Drupal being a powerful content management system with an active and dedicated community, it should be reasonably future-proof for further development of Fablab documentation concepts (Drupal is currently used in many of the Dutch Fablabs and in few other labs globally).

Not to worry if Drupal if not your cup of tea as a Fablab website wrangler – under the Fablab “platform” conference calls taking place since the beginning of 2011 we are also working on Wordpress implementation (another web platform with strong foothold in the Fablab community) of documentation concepts and figuring out how to make choice of platform not matter too much when sharing designs between Fablabs.

As of this writing, we are running alpha tests and working out the last kinks out of version 1.0 of the check in / check out system. Hardware and software plans and instructions will be made available soon.