The Joys and Sorrows of 3D Printing! (Meeting #7 Announcement)

EAST Knowledge is excited to host Michael Yurkoski for our seventh meeting. Join us for Michael’s talk describing his experiences with using a 3D printer in the home. All are welcome!

What:	The Joys and Sorrows of 3D Printing!
Who:	Michael Yurkoski
Where:	Large Meeting Room at the Gresham Library
	385 NW Miller Ave, Gresham (map)
When:	10:30am - Noon, Saturday, March 12th, 2016
Why:	Sharing what we know

Michael has been doing an intense dive into the practical side of 3D printing, and he wants to share with our group the lessons he has learned. He intends to:

• Give a brief intro into the history of hobby 3D printing
• Explain why 3D printers are interesting
• Expound on why 3D printers are loathsome
• Explore how 3D printers work
• Demonstrate how he designs a widget
• Show off a printing like a pro (which Michael insists he is not)

We hope to have time for Q&A at the end. If you’ve been curious what all the fuss over 3D printers is about, or would like to commiserate with a fellow 3D printer enthusiast, join us for our meeting. We hope to see you there!

Coffee Break #6 - Recap

It was a bright sunny Saturday, but we still had a great turnout for Coffee Break #6 at Cafe Delirium. We had several lively conversations going on at any one time, so I know I missed things. Feel free to let me know if there is anything I should include in the notes. These are the things that I remember:

• PyBoard - Pat discussed his recent experience with the PyBoard. The PyBoard runs a version of Python called MicroPython. Pat feels that the MicroPython environment provides a rapid prototyping and development environment that rivals the Arduino.
• Repair Café - Gresham is having its second Repair Café on February 28th at the Gresham Library. They are looking for volunteer fixers who aren't afraid to roll up their sleeves and try to save useful things from our landfills.
• East Metro STEAM Partnership - EAST Knowledge likes to keep tabs on local tech developments. Jim was filling us in about the latest happenings with the EAST Metro STEAM Partnership. They have recently had some successful grant applications which will be used to fill a Director position. I'm not sure where the official website is, but here is option #1 and option #2.
• Intel Hiring Policies - Apparently Intel has had a long standing policy of not rehiring people after they had been let go for performance reasons. Intel has recently extended this policy to cover people let go during layoffs. There has been some controversy around this.
• David's 3D Printer - David has been working on upgrading his current 3D printer by printing the necessary parts. It looks like he has been making pretty good progress. (Picture of his bin is not representative of his progress.)
  
• Bill's Power Supply - Bill discussed plans he has for creating a modular power supply for his amplifier projects. The idea is to be able to build a single power supply that he can then reuse with different circuits.
  
• Andromeda Strain - I don't remember how this came up, but somebody mentioned the movie Andromeda Strain. I haven't seen it (or read the book it is based on), but it sounds interesting (if dark). However, I don't know whether they were referring to the 1971 version (trailer), or the 2008 TV mini-series (trailer). I'm pretty sure one of us suggested that the 1971 one was worth watching.

That's all for now. Thank you to everybody who came out. It was good fun! If you couldn't make it this time, we hope to see you at one of our future meetings.

Coffee Break #6

Update: A meeting recap.

Come join us for coffee and “tech-talk” at Cafe Delirium! If you are interested in technology but are not yet familiar with our group, the coffee break is a nice opportunity to drop by and introduce yourself. We have the room in the back reserved. We're going to hang out for a couple of hours, so feel free to come by, talk shop, show off what you're working on, ask questions and pick each other's brains. We look forward to seeing you there! All are welcome!

What:	Coffee Break
Where:	Cafe Delirium
	308 N Main Ave, Gresham (map)
When:	10:00am - Noon, Saturday, February 20th, 2016
Why:	Sharing what we know over good coffee

Coffee Break #5 - Recap

I apologize for the tardiness of the recap, but the Thanksgiving holiday got the better of me. Speaking of holidays, EAST Knowledge will be taking a break during December. We'll pick up again at the start of 2016. We'll announce more once we firm up plans. As usual, if you have a topic you'd like to share with the group, please don't hesitate to say so. We're a very welcoming and enthusiastic group!

We had a nice turn out for our fifth Coffee Break at the pleasant Cafe Delirium. Pat brought his most recent incarnation of the head for his pick and place machine. You can see it below, but the camera on my phone does not do it justice. (Sorry, Pat!) We talked about a variety of things and enjoyed just chatting and catching up with each other. It was a good break!

Thank you, everyone, who came out for the coffee break! We hope to see you at our next event! Have a happy new year!