When: Sunday, November 23 – 2:00pm to 5:00 PM
Where: Hacklab.TO! 1266 Queen Street West, (Buzz Suite 6 or 12) Toronto, Ontario M6K 1L3 (map)

Hacklab.TO will be be hosting a 100% free-to-attend CryptoParty in partnership with Toronto Crypto. All and any are welcome! No experience required, cryptoparties are all about learning!

A few topics will be covered:

• Secure web-surfing with Tor Browser Bundle
• Understanding Heartbleed: An introduction to SSL (HTTPS)
• Mobile phone security and how it affects you

Format of the CryptoParty:

Talks regarding the topics above will range from 10-20 minutes each, with each talk accompanied by a interactive station. These stations will provide in-depth experience to help attendee’s better learn security and privacy through interaction. Toronto Crypto is always looking to improve their experience, so please come with questions that are important to you!

Questions? Contact us or tweet at @TorontoCrypto

Full details and RSVP (not required) at https://torontocrypto.org/

Buy, Sell & Trade Musical Instruments & Audio Gear

Sunday, November 16 – Noon to 5:00 PM

1266 Queen Street West, (Buzz Suite 6 or 12)
Toronto, Ontario M6K 1L3

• Andrew Kilpatrick of Kilpatrick Audio will be on hand to demo the Kilpatrick Format Synthesizer and Modules
• Cool D.I.Y. NAISAtron synth, Micro Radio Transmitter & Contact Microphone kits from New Adventures In Sound Art
• Live music from ambient noise improvisers Odradek
• Come hang out and talk shop
• All Are Welcome!!!
• Admission is FREE (suggested $5 donation to help keep the lights on)

Tweet your gear to #audioswapmeetTO
Join, invite friends and more info on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/1586580628236712/

That’s right, our Grand Re-opening Party is TONIGHT, Friday Oct 24 2014 8pm-late! We’ve got some epic lighting installed in the classroom, there will be a DJ, and of course our usual geek-welcome! Tours provided. BYOB.

Our address is 1266 Queen Street West, Suite #6. We’re just west of Dufferin on Queen Street, on the north side. Buzz unit #6 and we’ll let you in.

Hope to see you all soon!

The folks over at Storage Wars Canada found some lockpicks in a storage locker, and want to shoot a segment about them.  A lab member who is friends with one of their staff emailed the rest of the membership and asked if anyone might be interested in helping them out, and it just so happens that I’m a certified Locksmith.  After chatting with them a bit, they want to shoot a segment at the Hacklab, learn a bit of lockpicking and check the space out.  They also like the open-house atmosphere, so clearly this is cause for a public event!

When: Monday, October 20 2014, 2pm – 6pm

Where: Hacklab.to, 1266 Queen Street West Toronto

Please use the buzzer at the front door to be let in when you arrive.

This will be a lot like an open-house, so bring your projects and computers like normal, though if you have an interest in lockpicking you should bring your picking gear and interesting practice locks.  If you don’t know how to pick but want to learn, you should bring your sense of curiosity!

Since this is a commercial shoot, we ask the attendees all agree to the following:

• Show up around 2pm — actual filming will begin around 3ish.
• Be willing to sign a waiver from Storage Wars saying you’re okay with being filmed.
• Not wear any large identifiable logos or brand-names (small logos which can be taped over are okay).
• Avoid wearing small repeating patterns (I’m looking at you, Herringbone).
• Be willing to take minor directions from the film crew and director while in the space — they may want to move people from room to room for instance, or have everyone relocate to one table.

We look forward to seeing you there!  If you have any other questions about this event, please email info@hacklab.to

Are you new to the world of analog circuitry? Learn to harness the power of analog circuitry in your next project.

Where: Hacklab Toronto Classroom – 1266 Queen Street West, Suite 12

When: Monday October 27, 2014 at 7:30-9:00pm

Who: Anyone is welcome to attend, and there is no fee. We ask for a donation to help us pay rent and keep the lights on.

Your host Andrew Kilpatrick has been building guitar effects and modular synthesizers through his Kilpatrick Audio brand since 2008. He wants to inspire more Hackers to explore the wonderful world of analog circuits.

No experience is necessary. This class will show basic theory through a presentation, demo and discussion.

Come one come all, hacklab has moved and we’re having a party to celebrate our grand re-opening! We’re in a much larger space on Queen at Dufferin, where we’re in the process of building out all kinds of awesome stuff, including a shop, a darkroom, a lab, a kitchen, and a classroom space! We’ll have the classroom setup as a party space, with a DJ. Tours of the space will be given! Everyone is welcome, you do not have to be a member to attend. BYOB, and also bring friends!

What: Hacklab Grand Re-Opening Party

When: Friday October 24th, 8pm-late

Where: Hacklab 2.0, 1266 Queen Street West, Suite #6. Queen just west of Dufferin on the north side.

Why: Our new digs are awesome and you need to come see them!

We’re also open every Tuesday evening 5:30pm-10pm for our open house, as usual.

You can RSVP on our eventbrite if you want (free admission).

Hacklab has moved!

Come visit us at Hacklab 2.0, now located in Parkdale! (1266 Queen Street West) We’re open every Tuesday night (Including this Sept 30!)

New lab!

Hacklab’s new classroom and large hacking area

More photos of the process here.

This is not a normal post by me. I do not normally make  Public Science Awesomeness Announcements (PSAa), but I thought this would be something that the community at large may be interested in. On Sunday September the 28th, it is the Ontatrio Sceince Centers 45th Birthday. And on this special of occasions the Science Center is free from 10 am – 5 pm. Imax and parking is not. For more info on the festivity’s planned follow the link above.

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Todays post is not quite what you think it is about, but the chosen title will make more sense as you read along. Hacklab has been around for a while on the maker/hacker/creator/incubator scene and could be seen as one of the original terminals that now make up part of the Mesh network that is our community in Toronto.  As I have witnessed over the few years I have been visiting, making, and working within the community. I have seen how those who come to explore discover us or other parts of the community, and bounce around absorbing and finding the right fit. Many times those who are new to the community or those who are well versed in the community, have multiple links to the Mesh network by frequenting many of the other spaces beyond Hacklab’s walls. This is where I should note at times Hacklab has played host to other new groups in the community, be it the Haskell Users group, or the occasional DIY Bio group.  I hope that Hacklab and other spaces in the community will play host to other groups that will ever increase the diversity of the community Mesh. The cross talk between each space informs one another through the sharing of ideas and others being partially mixed into others creating a noise of ideas and thought, spawning new projects that use the resources available at times of multiple spaces, and memberships.      To get a better idea of the diverse community that has flourished within Toronto, I would like to draw your attention to a side project entitled Hacking-the-city, of mine that has been slowly creating an larger picture of the community, and those which influence and flow into others within the Hacker community.  I have used pinterest simply to keep it semi organized and to attempt to create a visual idea of the community, as well as small description of the organization. If you as the reader can think of an organization, group, or other part of the community that I have not mentioned please tell me so I can pin them to the board. Cross talk may take some time to get really going, the intention is to visit other spaces with members of the community that frequent the lab and to get a sense of the other parts of the community threw photography. This I envision being a little difficult and taking time due to how does one accurately depict a community, or project via a lens. This is a constant challenge at Hacklab due to some projects are not easily conveyed. How does one take a photo of someone programming and convey what it is they are doing, or what the program is? To stage a photo or to shoot candid, which method is the more truthful and accurate? I look forward to this project and hope to share what I capture with you all soon. This past weekend the folks at The Ultimate Workshop, played host to some Hacklab members to work on a joint project.  See below for a sneak peak at an upcoming blog post on the Retropopulator.

Hacklab.TO had a booth at digifest for the family day exhibition – it actually felt a lot like a mini maker faire, with most our usual friends in attendance (hi makerkids, toronto tool library, techknight, getyourboton etc). We showed off a variety of member projects, including crowd-favorite Flipdot Game of Snake, some 3D printed objects, and some electronic jewelry. Looked to be about 1000 people through over the course of the day, check out my flickr gallery: digifest 2014