Anarchangel: cat start

2012-06-28T13:22:04Z

cat start

Rev 22: Category:Hacklabs

2006-09-21T05:56:17Z

Category:Hacklabs

66.170.53.111: /* Equipment */

2006-06-17T16:24:03Z

‎Equipment

Beta M at 10:30, 17 June 2006

2006-06-17T10:30:47Z

New page

This is a [[how to]] about starting a local chapter of [[hackLab]].

==People==
Of course, the most important ! And for a hackLab to be succesful you
need a mix of technically oriented people and politically motivated
ones. Ana's suggestion of approaching [[indymedia]] is a good one - for
finding politically motivated people. However not all of those people
will have a technical background. So one suggestion would be to contact
local [[GNU/Linux User Group|Linux User Groups (LUGs)]].

You could start with the groups nearest you and join the mailing lists.
Then propose the idea of a hacklab. You might find some people there who
are interested. To start off you will need 4 or 5 volunteers.

==Space==
OK, this is the next most important thing - of course you need a space
to meet and to discuss, experiment, [[hacking|hack]] (!), provide workshops, etc.
Some hacklabs are open every day of the week, others only one or two
days a [[week]]. To start off, you might want to aim to be open just one or
two days a week. The space you pick can vary from hacklab to hacklab -
in southern [[Europe]] many hacklabs take place in [[social center]]s, in
northern europe [[squat]]s are more common (but this requires a lot more
organisation and volunteers !). It may be that there is some [[charity]] or
social group in your [[city]] that is willing to give you some space to get
started. It's also possible to get a low-[[rent]] place and have the
volunteers cover the costs for one or two days a week. Anyway this is
probably the most difficult thing.

Once you have your space, then decide when you will be open - this
depends on the nature of the space and the number of volunteers - you
should aim to have at least 2 volunteers there all the time when you are
open, so that one is available to answer questions at any time. Other
things you might consider - how much space is there for computers, is
there a quiet workshop space, how safe is it to leave equipment, and do
you want to provide a bar (for beer or soft drinks depending on local
licensing laws). You'll also want to have a tin for people to leave
donations - this can help cover your expenses.

==Equipment==
Most hacklabs run on the principle of donated equipment. Once you are
ready to roll, you can approach local charities and businesses to see if
they have any equipment they are throwing out. Even an old 400[[Megaherz|MHz]]
[[Pentium]] can be refurbished as a [[GNU/Linux]] webbrowser (another tip - send off
for some [[Ubuntu]] [[Compact Disk|CD]]'s - they are [[gratis software]] as well as [[free software|free]], and they will gladly send you a
box of 50. You can use some of the CDs to refurbish old equipment, and
give the rest away). You can also find old PC's on the streets that
people are throwing out. Even if the machine doesn't work, they can
often be stripped for parts. It's also very good to have an internet
connection - depending on the place, there might be something there
already, otherwise look for a good deal. You might be able to cover this
from donations.

Install [[OpenOffice.org]], [[FireFox]]/[[Mozilla]], and [[Gimp]], and you have pretty much
everything that people need. A [[printer]] is also useful if you can find
one, and people don't generally mind paying a little per copy for the
ink and paper costs.

==Other stuff==
Of course, once your hacklab is running, you will need to build it up.
So you will need a mailing list that people can sign up to. You might
also consider [[internet streaming|streaming]] the audio/video of your workshops.

Once you are up and running, find out what people's interests are - both
volunteers and the people who drop in. Some of them might be willing to
run workshops. It's a good idea then to have a mix of political and
technical workshops. These can draw more people to your hacklab, and
foster interesting relationships.

Try to build up your volunteer base - this will allow you to open the
hacklab longer - but make sure there aren't so many volunteers there
that they are using all the computers themselves !

==References==
* [http://sindormir.net/mailman/listinfo/freedomlab freedomLab mailing list] e-mail from 16 Jun 2006 23:31:22 -0500

[[Category:How tos]]
[[Category:Hacking]]

← Older revision		Revision as of 05:56, 21 September 2006
Line 78:		Line 78:
	[[Category:How tos]]		[[Category:How tos]]
	[[Category:Hacking]]		[[Category:Hacking]]
		+	[[Category:Hacklabs]]

@@ Line 75: / Line 75: @@
 ==References==
 * [http://sindormir.net/mailman/listinfo/freedomlab freedomLab mailing list] e-mail from 16 Jun 2006 23:31:22 -0500
+[[Category:DIY guides]][[Category:Guides]][[Category:How tos]]
 [[Category:How tos]]
 [[Category:Hacking]]
 [[Category:Hacklabs]]

@@ Line 55: / Line 55: @@
 Install [[OpenOffice.org]], [[FireFox]]/[[Mozilla]], and [[Gimp]], and you have pretty much
 everything that people need. A [[printer]] is also useful if you can find
-one, and people don't generally mind paying a little per copy for the
+one, and people generally don't mind paying a little per copy for the
 ink and paper costs.
 ==Other stuff==

how to start hackLab - Revision history

Anarchangel: cat start

Rev 22: Category:Hacklabs

66.170.53.111: /* Equipment */

Beta M at 10:30, 17 June 2006