Comments on: Let’s Get on the Maker Bandwagon

By: Tom KD8DEG

Tom KD8DEG — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 08:09:04 +0000

Hi Dan,
My self, Dave, KC8PCL, & Mike, W8DER, have discussed this many times, and agree with you. Dave and I each have weekly nets, Tuesday & Wednesday in the G.R. Mich area, and plan on reading this column on our net’s. The three of us have been trying to get this across for some time to the local clubs. Most don’t seem to want to move in that direction. Looking to see what our fellow ham thinkers come up with and we will input as well when we come up with an idea. We need to appeal to the young techie, PC, cell phone generation. They see no use for radio transceivers, when they have cell phones, pc’s, to connect with there friends around the world. They say why spend Hundreds of dollars on radio’s antennas, and have marginal audio, spotty connections, propagation, when they can have top notch audio, pictures, and vidio all the time on there cell phones and PC’s. Promote Echolink, IRLP, CQ100 ATV, Skywarn, Emergency net’s, & especially SDR, they can relate to SDR, Echolink, CQ100, even IRLP because that’s what they live and breath now, Computers, software they can write and use. PSK-31 Our form of text messaging. To many middle & old timers say thats not ham radio and you can’t build your own radio like in the day’s of Heatkit, in the presence of the younger generation, turning them off to the hobby.
Enough said for now.

73, Tom KD8DEG

By: Kendrick, KB!NCR

Kendrick, KB!NCR — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 02:12:04 +0000

FINALLY! Thank you for making this connection! I have been following the Maker movement and its *explosion* over the last few years and eagerly soldering junk robots along with QRP rigs – taking things from both “cultures” to learn enough electronics to get on the air. I am hardly the experienced radio builder to be the shining example of amateur radio at such an event, but the connection here is clear as crystal to me. One of the off-shoots of these Faires is a retro technology movement that pines even for the days of steam powered brass fitted machines — SteamPunk. Hacking together radios from junk, winding coils for tube radios, or coding Software radio is not only with in the technical capabilities of many who attend, but I think it could be well within their interest as well. Code-punk? Glow-punk? SDR-punk? Is there a new DIY old-school radio movement ready to be born? My read on this Maker culture is that this crowd will not necessarily be the ones to buy HTs; these guys like to build their own things. Show them a DIY tube set, a manhattan style transmitter, an SDR set-up, or telegraph keys of any variety and they will get it right away.

By the way – I rarely see Ham projects posted to the Make magazine blog (blog.makezine.com). It seems to be a logical place start a cross over.

‘Great to see this enter the discussion.

73, Kendrick KB1NCR

By: Ronny

Ronny — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 01:40:27 +0000

I know that our local Amateur Radio Club had a booth set up at the Maker Faire here in Austin. I looked at the Maker Faire Hams group and they had some really good ideas to get people interested in Amateur Radio. Such things as SSTV, ATV, Fox Hunts, etc… I have tried and tried to get people to demo the COOL parts of Amateur Radio and it just never sinks in. In the end, I guess they just don’t have the excitement to get out and Elmer anyone. Kind of sad….

I suppose it is up to the 30-50 year old crowd to rev the engines and inspire the next generation, IF there is going to be one.

Let the word go out to the ham community, “Maker Faire or Bust!”

73,

Ronny, KC5EES
Austin, TX

By: Dan KB6NU

Dan KB6NU — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 17:56:12 +0000

Excellent! Thanks for the information.

By: Ben, N1WBV

Ben, N1WBV — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 16:11:11 +0000

One of the Hams on Twitter (@mpechner, KI6QNZ) is trying to arrange a sizable Ham Radio presence at next year's Maker Faire. His initial work is here (Also, did you give up on Twitter? I can't find your account anymore)