[hackerspaces] Taxonomy of maker spaces

[Sean Bonner]

Oh I agree for sure and that's key part of the community aspect, but I
think there are many key parts, each of which on their own doesn't
capture the magic of a hackerspace.

And having been involved with many large communities I am not sold on
the idea that every single person involved has equal say on everything
and think that leads to a lot of too many cooks in the kitchen issues.
With extreme anarchy on one end and benevolent dictator on the other,
I think there's a lot of room for each space to find the mix that
works for them but I tend to think that a handful of people who make
the core decisions, and a larger pool of people who who help drive the
daily bits and pieces is the way to go. That said, I think if you are
a paying member, you need to know your opinion matters.

I really like the idea proposed earlier of a "starving hacker" member
status that lets people be involved but without a vote.

-s


On Thu, Oct 22, 2009 at 4:16 PM, tetsu yatsu <tetsuharu at gmail.com> wrote:
> Personally, I think Direct Democracy is an important part of the
> hackerspace. It gives every member a sense of equal belonging, and a kind of
> vested-interest / personal accountability.
>
> But some people might disagree. To some people it sounds a little
> anarchist/socialist.
>
> On Thu, Oct 22, 2009 at 6:15 PM, Sean Bonner <seanbonner at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> I think one of the magical things about hackerspaces is they aren't
>> clearly defined, and explaining them is almost impossible without
>> setting foot in one. They are definitely a case of the result being
>> greater than the sum of the parts.
>>
>> -s
>>
>>
>> On Thu, Oct 22, 2009 at 1:41 PM, Jerry Isdale <isdale at gmail.com> wrote:
>> > I'm new to this list, but recent discussions seem to me to have an
>> > undercurrent of 'just what is a hackerspace'
>> >
>> > It is important to many folk to have good definition of terms, and very
>> > heated flamewars happen over such (mis)understandings.
>> >
>> > So as a help to noobs like me, I'd like to discuss some of the terms
>> > used
>> > for various biz models for the generic term of 'Maker Space'.  Terms
>> > like
>> > hackerspace, fab lab, tech shop, and names for variants outside those.
>> >
>> > "hackerspace" seems to be one nebulous term with some charcteristics
>> > Far gave a nice summary as:
>> > The core concepts of a hackerspace:
>> > 1) Owned and Run by it's members in a spirit of equality
>> > 2) is a nonprofit orgnization, and open to the outside world on a
>> > (semi)regular basis
>> > 3) Shares tools, equipment and ideas without discrimination
>> > 4) A strong emphasis on technology and invention
>> > 5) Has shared space (or is working on a space) as a center of the
>> > community
>> > 6) A strong spirit of invention and science, based on trial, error, and
>> > freely sharing information
>> >
>> > 'fab lab' seems to be more instituion based, specifically related to MIT
>> > efforts. While non profit, it seems more focused on education and less
>> > on
>> > continuing community and commercial spinnoff.
>> >
>> > 'TechShop' is a commercial franchise variant. It offers the space
>> > equipment
>> > and some classes, but with an underlying profit motive (perhaps small)
>> >
>> > Other variants might be the commercial workshops that focus on
>> > particular
>> > tech (woodworking, metalworking, screenprinting, etc)
>> > Or the kids who gather in a family garage to hack and play.  Or the club
>> > that meets (ir)regularly.
>> >
>> > If you strongly about 'hackerspace'', how about defining some of those
>> > maker
>> > spaces that aren't.
>> >
>> > Mahalo
>> > Jerry
>> >
>> > Sent from my iPhone
>> > _______________________________________________
>> > Discuss mailing list
>> > Discuss at lists.hackerspaces.org
>> > http://lists.hackerspaces.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss
>> >
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Sean Bonner
>> http://www.seanbonner.com - homebase
>> http://www.metblogs.com - get local
>> Unless agreed upon, assume everything in this e-mail might be blogged.
>> Sent from Culver City, CA, United States
>> _______________________________________________
>> Discuss mailing list
>> Discuss at lists.hackerspaces.org
>> http://lists.hackerspaces.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss
>
>
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>



-- 
Sean Bonner
http://www.seanbonner.com - homebase
http://www.metblogs.com - get local
Unless agreed upon, assume everything in this e-mail might be blogged.