Mark your calendars: Monday the 27th will be Toronto’s third RepRap User Group Meetup! We’ll be meeting at hacklab (location info) at 7pm! Bring your RepRap/Makerbot/3D printing awesomeness!

Meet your fellow RepRap enthusiasts! Share knowledge, learn about the awesome things people are doing, and have a great time!

Everyone interested in 3D Printing is welcome. People who are being driven insane by their obsession with the awesomeness of 3D printing are strongly encouraged so that they can benefit from contact with the similarly afflicted.

I’m super excited to have this happen and am really looking forward to seeing you there!

You can read a post about the second TRUG meetup on digital crusader. You can optionally sign up at eventbrite (this will make it easier for people to get in touch with you after the event).

Hacklab will once again be hosting Gamfternoon tomorrow, Sunday January 21st, from 2pm onward (sessions typically wrap up by 6pm). We’ll be playing board games like Dominion, Settlers of Catan, Laser Chess, Go, etc. Come and play games with us! Members of the public are welcome to come and play – you do not have to be a member to get in.

This event repeats every two weeks, so we’ll also be playing on Feb 5th, Feb 19th, March 4th, etc. Check our calendar to confirm dates beyond that.

On Saturday Feb 11th, I’ll be teaching an Introduction to Python workshop. It will go from 10am to 4pm, with a break for lunch.

Python is a popular programming language, known for its simplicity, ease of use, and elegance. An excellent language to start programming in.

We’ll cover some basic programming concepts. What that will include will depend on how fast we go :)

Please RSVP — we have limited space!

Hacklab is pleased to announce more workshops for February: a learn how to solder workshop on Monday Feb 6th (RVSP at eventbrite), and an Arduino workshop on Monday Feb 20th. The soldering workshop will be taught by Sen of Strich Labs, and the Arduino workshop will be taught by Alaina. More details about Arduino workshop to follow as the date gets closer.

All workshops are open to the public (you do not have to be a member of hacklab to attend) and happen from 7pm to 9pm.

Due to overwhelming demand for our basic electronics class, we’ve created an eventbrite RSVP: Hacklab Electronics Class. Dates remain the same – three Mondays in a row, starting on Jan 16th. If you’d like to come, sign up and start prepping your questions!

Ever wanted to copy a three dimensional shape? Molding and casting allows you to copy nearly anything – from hands and fingers to toys and sculptures. This beginners workshop (led by relative novices too), will provide you with hands-on exposure to simple molding and casting.

As this workshop, you will:
– be provided with materials for both molding and casting
– make a mold of your thumb or finger
– mix your casting material, and then use your mold to create a solid copy- take it home!

Here’s some sample casts I took a few weeks ago with the materials that we’ll be using:

This workshop will be hosted by hacklab.to, at 170a Baldwin St., Toronto (which is upstairs, above Graffiti’s Bar & Grill) on the evening of January 9th 7pm-8:15pm. Workshop participants will be charged $10 to cover the costs of materials.

Event registration is required. Tickets (12 only) are available at:

http://www.eventbrite.com/event/2640745541

Monday January 16th, 23rd and 30th: three weeks of basic electronics classes, 7pm-9pm.

The Basic Electronics Class is designed to help Arduino hackers and beginner electronics enthusiasts learn some of the important theory and terminology that everyone needs to know. The first set of three classes will attempt to cover as many fundamentals as possible. If you’re confused by ohms law, how to choose and use basic components, or even what basic electronic components are used for, this is the class for you!

Bring general electronics questions, or project ideas as the second half of each class will be an open discussion about electronics topics.

The class will be taught by Andrew Kilpatrick. Andrew has designed all kinds of electronics including his own line of musical equipment: www.kilpatrickaudio.com Andrew has been involved with Hacklab Toronto since 2008.

Update: Due to overwhelming demand, we’re now requiring RSVP/tickets: Hacklab Electronics Class at Eventbrite. Get yours while they last!

Hacklab is announcing three workshops for the end of 2011:

Monday Nov 28th, 7-9pm: RepRap Users Group & Workshop
Come to hacklab.to to play with 3D printers! See RepRap.org. We’ll have our MakerBot Cupcake working, plus a good chance of having a functional RepRap, and several other printers under construction. Bring your own and we’ll all help each other! Newbies welcome, want to come see what a 3D printer looks like and learn how it works? Maybe even get inspired to build your own? This night is for you!

Monday Dec 5th, 7-9pm: Soldering Workshop #5
RSVP at Eventbrite (limit 10 people)
For total beginners, or those with some experience. Learn how to solder. Soldering is a method of assembling an electronic circuit using a hot iron and solder, a metal which liquefies at a fairly low temperature. Instruction by Eric is free, and we’ll have a variety of interesting kits on hand for you to purchase as learning templates. You’ll take your kit home at the end of the night, working, guaranteed! Open to the public – you do not have to be a member of hacklab to attend.

Monday Dec 12th, 7-9pm: Arduino Total Beginners Workshop
Arduino Beginners Workshop. For total beginners. All are welcome, no RSVP required. Eric will show you how to get started with Arduino, the super-friendly microcontroller platform that even artists love. We’ll cover getting the software installed and going, hooking up the Arduino, and a little bit of basic programming, via explanation of the Examples. You too can cut and paste your way to a working project! You’ll need to bring your own Arduino (any kind will do) and a laptop on which you can install software. Also please bring any cables required to attach your Arduino to your laptop – typically this means an A to B USB cable. If you do not have an Arduino, you can purchase one at Creatron, only a few blocks away from hacklab at 255 College Street.

All workshops are free and open to the public.

We’re playing board games at hacklab again at 3pm this afternoon (Sunday October 30th)! We’ve got Dominion and Settlers of Catan, both are award winning super popular games. Or bring your own favorite game!

Gamfternoon is free and open to the public!

Monday October 31st: Halloween, no workshop. Make your own costume and get out there and impress :-)

Monday November 7th 7-9pm: Arduino Projects Workshop
Got an Arduino-based project or idea for project that you’d like some help with? Come to our Arduino Projects Workshop! All levels welcome, from complete beginner to seasoned Arduino user, there is always more to learn. We’ll help each other out! If enough beginners show there may also be a guided lesson similar to the last workshop for total beginners. If only a few, Eric will individually help those people get started and work through a few basic examples. Bring your own laptop, Arduino (any kind will do) and USB cable. Instruction is free and open to the public, no RSVP is required.

Monday November 14th 7-9pm: Learn how to Solder
For total beginners, or those with some experience. Learn how to solder. Soldering is a method of assembling an electronic circuit using a hot iron and solder, a metal which liquefies at a fairly low temperature. Instruction by Eric is free, and we’ll have a variety of interesting kits on hand for you to purchase as learning templates. You’ll take your kit home at the end of the night, working, guaranteed! Instruction is free and open to the public, RSVP here (limit 10 people):
http://hacklabto-soldering.eventbrite.com/

Also, reminder that Monday October 24th (next week) is the T-shirt hacking workshop, bring your old T-shirts and make them fresh!

(updated: added the fact that both workshops are 7-9pm)