Farset Labs

Contact

  • December Town Hall

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    Our next Town Hall meeting is scheduled for Monday 2nd December at 7pm in the Event Space* at Farset.

    We’ll be discussing a variety of issues, as well as giving an update on the work occurring in the space. If you have any questions or concerns, email us at admin@farsetlabs.org.uk and we’ll add them to the agenda to be brought up. Afterwards, the minutes will be made available here. EDIT: Link to minutes is here.

    *We’ll move to the Lounge/Co-working Space if the renovations are affecting the Event Space.

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  • Hack for your community sponsored by Liberty IT

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    We are pleased to announce that Farset Labs will be hosting a hackathon on the weekend of the 7th and 8th of December*. The event, sponsored by Liberty IT, will be held in the newly renovated Event Space in Farset.

    The hackathon brings together like-minded, creative thinkers with their most innovative ideas. You’ll be given the weekend to work on an idea you’d like to kick-start, taking advantage of a community’s knowledge sharing, as well as equipment and resources provided by Farset. And of course, there will be plenty of food and caffeine in supply to keep your energy levels up throughout the weekend!

    To get a feel for how we run hackathons, have a look at some of our previous ones! Global Game Jam was extra special, but our usual Flacknites are a good demo of the ‘hands off’ approach we take.

    This year the hackathon has the feel-good theme of “Making a Difference in the Community”, so chosen ideas should ultimately be for a good cause and benefit the local community in some way. That coupled with the chance to win a prize fund of up to £1000 for the most innovative ideas; there are no better reasons to sign up!

    Please note: Neither Farset Labs nor event sponsors, Liberty IT, will make any claim on intellectual property generated at the event.

    To sign up, either complete the form below or visit https://lit-hackathon.eventbrite.co.uk

    * 12pm Saturday until 6pm Sunday

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  • Gathering of Sleighbells – Christmas Edition

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    Our long running, Ignite / Petcha Kutcha -minus-the-presentations-plus-a-giant-blackboard-and-foam-projectiles speaker series is back, with a slightly festive feel! Normal rules apply; Speakers have 7 minutes to talk about something they’re passionate about, with audience heckling encouraged, and the opportunity for a few more minutes of Q&A after at the compères discretion. This time around, the wonderful Claire Wilgar will be compère-ing (we expect Christmas Hats!) and for a change we have a rough idea of whose talking!

    • Jiann Hughes will be talking about her work in the intersection between Art, Culture, and Technology
    • Colin Kelsey/Matt Hazely will be explaining some of the beer brewing techniques they are experimenting with in the labs
    • Will Burr from Billy Goat Entertainment will be demoing some of his currently-Kickstarting game, Her Majesty’s Spiffing
    • Dr David Laverty, for Queen’s University Belfast’s Energy, Power and Intelligent Systems (EPIC) group, who are working on converting a classic DeLorean to an Electric drive train
    • Sebastian Heinz from SARC will hopefully be demoing his wildly successful Patchblocks project that has already obliterated its £10k funding goal
    • We’ll also hopefully have a visit from some developers from Aepona, a locally based API-as-a-service company recently acquired by Intel
    • Finally, we’re hoping to get a short talk on some of the work done by PWC’s Belfast Based Digital Forensic Team

    As always, we try to keep a few slots open for walk ins, so if you feel inspired to talk about something, let us know! Drinks and munchies are provided by the brilliant folks at the British Computing Society, who have supported us throughout our Gathering of Lightning programme for the past year and a half.

    Get your tickets now!

    Kicks off on the 5th of December at 1800 for a 1830 start

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  • Raspberry Jam Round-up

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    For any visionary, dreamer or hapless idiot trying to drive societal change, there can be few things more vindicating than the sight of school-age kids teaching adults how to do things. I wandered into our Raspberry Jam event on Saturday and felt the status bar on my Hope Drive stretch out a little, maybe from orange into green. Raspberry Jams are open to anyone and this time we had people from zero years-old (yes, actually) up to, well, I wouldn’t like to say but put it this way: they’d remember Belfast before The Troubles.

    This time the regular Farset crowd got a big boost by having the running of the event taken off our hands by the irrepressible AndrewMulholland, who finds time amidst schoolwork to make and teach technology (we hear his latest project  with his school robotics club is a cardboard quadcopter; turns out the sky isn’t the limit!). Andrew is one of a line of Dalriada acolytes to find their way to Farset somehow, setting a high bar for the involvement of NI’s schools in the maker revolution.

    (more…)

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  • Results from CoderDojo Attendee Survey

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    A few weeks ago we sent out survey requests to anyone who’d attended (and registered) to our CoderDojo programme since day one.

    This was so we could get a better handle on what we were doing well, and maybe not so well, and was also intended to answer one simple question; which day is better to run it. I’ll not be making any grand analysis yet as I believe the results tell their own story.

    If you’d like to add your thoughts, the poll is still open, but we’ll be feeding these findings back into our plan going forward and will let you know any changes ASAP.

    And don’t forget, the next dojo is next Friday

    What day of the week works best for you and your family to attend the Dojo in the evening

    We intentionally restricted the options in this question to Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday as Wednesday is already reserved for free for any usergroup that wants to hold an event, and Saturdays are too high value for hackathons and other events to block book.

    [wp_charts title=”daychart” type=”bar” align=”aligncenter” width = “60%” datasets=”1,4,5,5,0″ labels=”Mon,Tues,Thurs,Fri,Sun” scaleFontSize=”24″ scaleOverride=”true” scaleSteps=”5″ scaleStepWidth=”1″ scaleStartValue=”0″]

    How did you hear about the Farset Labs Dojo?

    [wp_charts title=”hearchart” type=”bar” align=”aligncenter” width = “60%” datasets=”5,0,1,2,3″ labels=”Friend or Colleague,School Visit,FSL Website,Social Media,Other” scaleFontSize=”24″ scaleOverride=”true” scaleSteps=”5″ scaleStepWidth=”1″ scaleStartValue=”0″]

    How safe did you feel at the Dojo?

    [wp_charts title=”safechart” type=”bar” align=”aligncenter” width = “60%” datasets=”7,3,1,0,0″ labels=”Extremely Safe,Very Safe,Somewhat safe,Slightly Safe,Not at all safe” scaleFontSize=”24″ scaleOverride=”true” scaleSteps=”7″ scaleStepWidth=”1″ scaleStartValue=”0″]

    How would you rate the venue/location?

    [wp_charts title=”venuechart” type=”bar” align=”aligncenter” width = “60%” datasets=”3,6,2,0,0″ labels=”Excellent,Very Good,Good,Fair,Poor” scaleFontSize=”24″ scaleOverride=”true” scaleSteps=”6″ scaleStepWidth=”1″ scaleStartValue=”0″]

    How much, if at all, would you be willing to pay to attend this event in future?

    [wp_charts title=”pricechart” type=”bar” align=”aligncenter” width = “60%” datasets=”0,1,4,5,1,0″ labels=”It should be free,I assumed it was funded,£1-£3,£3-£5,£5-£10,£10+” scaleFontSize=”24″ scaleOverride=”true” scaleSteps=”6″ scaleStepWidth=”1″ scaleStartValue=”0″]

    What did you like about the Dojos?

    • my son loves it, he is able to talk to people and ask questions that i can’t answer.
    • Great engagement between mentors and kids.
    • really well informed savvy help. , please take a sweetie from the tin.
    • Helpful mentors, creative learning.
    • Good range of topics and interested children
    • Nice friendly atmosphere with people actively offering their skills and knowledge
    • <My son> loved it, liked the support & small group.
    • The informality and enthusiasm.
    • Great location
    • The very young age group.

    What did you dislike about the Dojos?

    • Inconsistency of delivery.
    • Disappointing range of mentors, lack of organisation
    • It can seem slightly disorganised at times
    • There is nothing that I dislike, and it is important that they continue. I am just more committed to the larger scale and structure of the BMC dojos.
    • We need a structured programme with lessons i.e. syllabus etc.

    Would you like to say anything else about the Dojos? Good bad or ugly we want your feedback! Have the Dojo’s “changed”, if you went before, what stops you now? Anything, everything, we need your advice!

    • I think this is a great opportunity for young people to learn the language and skills associated with computer programming that can only help them in the future, although i fear some children under 14 will not be able to avil of this oppertunity because of the supervision rule, parents from areas of deprivation find it more difficult to take thier children to these places because of other family commitments etc
    • Seemed more controlled before the Summer.
    • I come in from the country. It would help to be able to pre-discuss and maybe book extra help time.
    • Would love to go back regularly but Friday PM is not a good time for us.
    • Small groups are great but have you thought about informing schools about it? You might be able to help more kids. Maybe also ni4kids? Very difficult for parents to find out about technology related clubs for kids, found out through a colleagues husband. Thought the mentors were lovely & understanding of my sons needs.
    • Just keep reminding me of events at Farset. I need to get more stuff into my calendar.
    • Instructors have become less helpful over time.
    • Some from of progression for the kids.

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  • Raspberry Jam is back!

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    Date – 16th November
    Time – 1pm to 5pm
    Raspberry Jam is a rapidly growing global network of user groups that meet regularly to support hobbyists, developers, teachers, students, children and families – in fact, anybody that would like to put their Raspberry Pi to good use. While Raspberry Jam is not endorsed, sponsored or associated with Raspberry Pi or Raspberry Pi products or services, some of our regular members are volunteers for the Raspberry Pi Foundation. At our meetings we have helpful people who can help you with everything you need to get what you want from your Raspberry Pi.

    Raspberry Jam is a Farset Labs Members event, so visitors will be expected to make a small donation either in the form of an online ticket, or chucking a few coins in the tin in person.

    You do not need to have a Raspberry Pi to come to a meeting. In fact, not having a Raspberry Pi is an excellent motive for coming along. You will discover what you can do with a Raspberry Pi when you do manage to get hold of one. We may even have a few spare you can use on the day.
    Stuff we’ll be trying out:
    • A ‘beginners guide’ walk through of how to get started with your Pi
    • Getting started with Hardware interfaces to the Raspberry Pi with flashy lights and ScratchGPIO
    • Some show-and-tell demonstrations of cool projects people have already done with their Pi’s
    • Breaking to a relaxed evening of Pi-Jamming, where everyone is encouraged to share their experiences.
    Children are very welcome to attend the event, when accompanied by a parent or guardian.
    We will try to get our hands on as many HDMI compatible monitors as we can, but please try and BYO monitor. We have plenty of mice and keyboards, but few HDMI compatible monitors.
    If you have an awesome pi project you have been working on, we would love you to bring it along and show it off in the show and tell.
    THIS EVENT IS IN HIGH DEMAND SO PLEASE BOOK AHEAD OF TIME TO AVOID DISAPPOINTMENT

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  • Water Leak Causing Electrical/Network Disruption Over The Weekend

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    waterfall-dripFolks, we just got word that there’s been a slow leak from the unit above us and it’s blown some circuits and appliances within the infrastructure (CCTV/Network/etc).

    Nothing major was lost or damaged but as a precaution until we can clear the rest of the grid, we’ll be tearing away at the electrics to make sure they’re safe. Meaning, WiFi (and possibly core) networking and power throughout the building will be affected during this time.

    Conveniently, today also marks the start of a 10 day period we’d allocated to Workshop/Storeroom renovation and reorganisation. David will be posting up an entry soon about what this will entail, but no events (Other than the Town Hall on Monday) have been booked to minimise possible disruption.

    Anyway, just a heads up for anyone contemplating coming down to do serious work. (Although the amazing John Fox, our resident spark, could always do with a hand).

    When things get back to normal we’ll let you know.

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  • Free “IT for Business” training sessions

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    Cloud-Computing5

    What’s on Offer?

    FREE “IT for Business” training sessions down at Farset Labs – Weavers Court.

    Who is eligible?

    Anyone who is self employed or working in a trading business with less than 50 employees
    Participants are required to commit to attending at least 6 of the sessions over the next few months.

    When are sessions running?

    2 sessions will be running every Tuesday for the next few months starting 22nd October,
    Introduction sessions will be run on Tuesday 15th October.
    Session 1 – 3pm – 5pm for those able to be released from work
    Session 2 – 7:00pm – 9:00pm for those who are free after hours

    How much?

    Training is FREE,  all you need to bring is yourself and fill in some paperwork on the first 2 weeks and every week that you attend.  There will be a maximum of 7 spaces per session,  and the subjects for the upcoming weeks can be set by the group.

    What can be covered?

    Training subjects can be decided by the session members.
    Topics including but not limited to: –
    • Digital Marketing (Social Media and Communication Strategy)
    • Business Process Improvement (Process Mapping and Planning)
    • Project Management & Collaboration Tools (Project Management / Planning, Evernote, Google Suite, Basecamp, Zoho)
    • Introduction to Content Management Systems (WordPress,  Joomla, Magento)

    What do I need?

    People need to bring a laptop,  tablet,  smartphone, pen, paper and themselves.

    To Register

    Contact James Gumble – jgumble@serc.ac.uk

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  • Free Training for Business Down at Farset Labs

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    Cloud-Computing5What’s on Offer?

    FREE “IT for Business” training sessions down at Farset Labs – Weavers Court.

    Who is eligible?

    Anyone who is self employed or working in a trading business with less than 50 employees
    Participants are required to commit to attending at least 6 of the sessions over the next few months.

    When are sessions running?

    2 sessions will be running every Tuesday for the next few months starting 22nd October,
    Introduction sessions will be run on Tuesday 15th October.
    Session 1 – 3pm – 5pm for those able to be released from work
    Session 2 – 7:00pm – 9:00pm for those who are free after hours

    How much?

    Training is FREE,  all you need to bring is yourself and fill in some paperwork on the first 2 weeks and every week that you attend.  There will be a maximum of 7 spaces per session,  and the subjects for the upcoming weeks can be set by the group.

    What can be covered?

    Training subjects can be decided by the session members.
    Topics including but not limited to: –
    • Digital Marketing (Social Media and Communication Strategy)
    • Business Process Improvement (Process Mapping and Planning)
    • Project Management & Collaboration Tools (Project Management / Planning, Evernote, Google Suite, Basecamp, Zoho)
    • Introduction to Content Management Systems (WordPress,  Joomla, Magento)

    What do I need?

    People need to bring a laptop,  tablet,  smartphone, pen, paper and themselves.

    To Register

    Contact James Gumble – jgumble@serc.ac.uk

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  • Back to Dojo

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    After a healthy summer break, it’s time to get CoderDojo back on the event list, but in the true hacker spirit, we’ve got to fiddle with things.

    We’re trying a new timeslot that could be great or could be a disaster; Friday afternoons, starting this week. Get your tickets here.

    We would also insist that all mentors planning on attending register in advance. This is so that we can ensure a safe environment for the children and young adults attending the event.

    It’s short notice and it’s a change from our ‘normal schedule’, but hopefully we’ll see you then!

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