[hackerspaces] Failing/failed hackerspaces

[matt]

> 1.  What are some well known failed spaces to the discussion group, and
> what caused them to fail?

HHH ( all the things ), L0pht ( purchased by corporate interest ),
Countless tiny unheard of spaces.

> 2.  Are there any spaces that are "too big to fail", i.e. too much money
is
> invested in the space - so much so that it has become a disservice to the
> community instead of an asset?  What are some of the common mistakes
> that spaces make that keep them from growing or succeeding?

Noisebridge.

I'd ask you this.  Is growth success?  Start with what your own metric for
success is.  If you are just building a physical edifice to your own
interest, you've probably already failed.  If you are trying to start a
movement to support a crusade... again you've failed.  If you are just
trying to find a group of people you want to hack with... then all you need
is enough people to be happy and survive.  What keeps people from success
generally, is failing to identify what their metric for success is.  Or
trying to do too many things.  You can't be all things to all people.  The
other big one is believing there is a community to support your goals when
sometimes there just isn't.  And the last and worst... thinking you can
turn running a hackerspace into a career.

> 3.  Has anyone taken failed models and used them as sort of a "this is
what
> not to do" list?  Where could I source that info?

http://hackerspaces.org/images/8/8e/Hacker-Space-Design-Patterns.pdf

> 4.  For people new to this industry, what are some of the common
> newcomer mistakes in starting up a makerspace/hackerspace that you would
> have liked to been made aware of so you could have avoided them and
> saved yourself a massive headache?

Trust every member of your space as if they had keys to your home.  If you
can't do that, you've already failed.





On Fri, Apr 4, 2014 at 12:13 PM, Mark Henderson <mhenderson683 at live.com>wrote:

>  I have some questions about failed or failing hackerspaces and
> makerspaces.
>
> 1.  What are some well known failed spaces to the discussion group, and
> what caused them to fail?
>
> 2.  Are there any spaces that are "too big to fail", i.e. too much money
> is invested in the space - so much so that it has become a disservice to
> the community instead of an asset?  What are some of the common mistakes
> that spaces make that keep them from growing or succeeding?
>
> 3.  Has anyone taken failed models and used them as sort of a "this is
> what not to do" list?  Where could I source that info?
>
> 4.  For people new to this industry, what are some of the common newcomer
> mistakes in starting up a makerspace/hackerspace that you would have liked
> to been made aware of so you could have avoided them and saved yourself a
> massive headache?
>
> Thanks!
>
> Mark Henderson
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Discuss mailing list
> Discuss at lists.hackerspaces.org
> http://lists.hackerspaces.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss
>
>
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