[Noisebridge-discuss] Notes from 9 April 2009 meeting

[David Molnar]

Thanks much to Mitch for filling in for me when I had to step out
partway through. Let me know if anything is missing or can be fixed.

Noisebridge notes 9 April 2009

Introductions

Regular happenings
* Pyclass continues.
* ML is doing backprop, neural networks. Next week

either intro to ML or SVMs. "What is machine

learning?" "AI with fewer promises." "Machine

learning is what will make the RepRap really

dangerous."
* Science Engineering Huddle
**Help people find out what they want to do to tune

their ideas. Both performance factor and ergonomics.

Lots of stuff between head and tools to make things

execute.
* Natural Language Corners
** Mandarin Corner - fridays had low attendance.

Last week had one person.
** Spanish - Daniela wants to do another occasional

one.
** Interest in a German night run by Seth, Jake?

Lots.

* Sensebridge/Cyborg
** Adding magnetic sense to bodies. Trying to

replicate experiments from Wired article.
** Active hardware projects. Demonstrable state.

Come along Sunday 11AM for Cyborg Mass.

* OpenEEG
** Trying to replicate open EEG. Working on

implementation details. After that, then will be

need for software. Sunday 3pm.

* Go workshop
** on Sunday 3PM. enki plays. Last week at Dolores

Park.

* Distributed database class
** Jonathan Moore will run
** Does not read the list. Talk to him or put on

wiki.
** 3-hour impromptu talk.

* Chris Paget RFID hacking
** Reconfirmed today.
** Cloning prox cards, cloning PASS cards.
** 2pm.

* Membership report
** Hiatus: can take an official hiatus. To do this,

notify the treasurer when starting, when coming back

(if known). During period on hiatus, can no longer

block consensus. Whatever reason you have is fine.

If the reason you have for the hiatus stops, come

back. No need to re-membership process.
** Banning: Made more sense to have a "banning from

the space" process instead of de-membering person.

Banning means can't come in one week. Can't block

consensus for one week. Can't block a consensus that

bans you. Banning not an immediate conflict

resolution process. Something bad may happen to

prompt banning as a proposal but it doesn't happen

immediately.

Banning starts at meeting, goes for a week. Someone

has to let the person banned known. Consensus can be

done at one meeting, does not have to be

Listed on back of door on "Wall of Shame." Public

shaming. This is a rare process to be used only for

people who seriously fuck up.

Q: why not 3 strikes you're out?
A: Harder to track. Seriously fucking up means > 3

strikes already.
A: Also

Q: We don't consense on something the same night it

is brought up.
A: We thought that this should be an exception.

Otherwise lingers for a week.

Q: We have rules that help us manage space. Would

those rules be useful for noisebridge? May not be

applicable directly because larger group. For

example, have enough people to do a "space issues

committee."
A: Please send us a copy of this. Perspective of

noisebridge is to try to keep rules to bare minimum.

Jake: Consensing the first night it's brought up may

cause problems. Doesn't give a fair amount of time.
Christie: Think of it as separation.
Jake: Put it on the roll for a week, see if person

improves.
Ping: May need to be a process for issues about

personal safety, really serious issues.
Christie: Example of guy who has been threatening,

followed people months later.
Jonathan Moore: That's what restraining orders are

for.
Jake: Solving problems before they happen. Good

process suggestions. Write down, put on the wiki.
Rubin: Concern about banning the rest of noisebridge

tonight.
Rachel: How is that enforced? Consensus depends on

people accepting the consensus.
Shannon: Getting people to complain about other

people being dicks hasn't been a problem.
Jake: Want to avoid putting full name on the list as

"this person is officially a dick." Not everyone

public about their affiliation with Noisebridge.
Rachel: Process doesn't deal with
Asheesh: People can use pseudonyms.
Ping: interpersonal conflicts better in person than

over public email.
Q: If we had this process, would we have used it up

to now?
Rachel: No.
Jake: Doing consensus in under a week will have

implications. Can't get person involved. Example of

"what if someone wants to ban David Molnar."
Shannon: Fridge went from problem to flameup

quickly.
Josh: Cause could be something that flares up

immediately.
Steen: Now spent 20 minutes. Next membership

committee meeting should talk about it.

** Removal for non-payment. This is officially

removed.
*** Not paid dues for 3 months
*** Treasurer has tried to contact at least 1/month
** Quorum issues. Can't reach quorum without active

members. Need to have a process.

** Current process off-putting to new people.
*** Change how communicating the process.
*** If we already know you, feel free to backdate

it.
*** "No communication" example of person who didn't

respond to email, phone, etc. for 3 months.

Steen: Sounds like the only thing contentious is the
Jake: Maybe membership team should have a meeting

with all the people who voiced opinions for 20 mins.
Josh: Next week, 6PM?

* Treasurer's Report
** $11,600 in the bank
** Without even the $5200 pledges last week.
** 65 members. Collect more money than spend in 1 mo
** $11600 > 3 months of operating expenses
** Consider using this for projects, equipment,

expanding, etc.
** PAY YOUR DUES
** Nice money coming into SF arts commission
** Not 501c3 yet, but soon!
** Anyone who wants to help, let Mitch know.

* Project Updates
** LED sign
*** Works! Programmable wirelessly.
** Lightbar
*** No progress yet. What do we want to do about it?
*** From the Prototype This! gear sale at treasure

island.

* No Starch Press offer for Noisebridge
** Anyone who wants any title can buy it for 75% of

retail. Noisebridge gets 50% of retail.
** Buy books through NB, get it cheaper.
** What's in it for No Starch?

* Selling drinks at a profit to further Noisebridge
** Last week, people talked about it. Sell drinks at

a profit or not?
** Tonight the night for consensus.
** Can even get sellers' permit and do tax stuff.
** Ties into Club Mate shipment.
** Issue: honor system, made 3x on latest one. Hope

that doesn't change.
** Guy says will offer free beer.
** Moral problem with selling drinks at a profit?
** This is about the idea, not the implementation.
** Shannon: if we do what we do now, then that's

doing something. Also different comfort levels with

different implementations.
** Costco order has happened, will be here Thursday.
*** "Do-ocracy" - Ani put together an order based on

what people wanted. Happened before that. $175 that

Ani put in, then collected back, we raised $500.
** Already been happening, do we want to sanction

this?
** Came up with respect to buying pallet of Club

Mate. 800 bottles. Total of $2K to ship to New York.
If we get enough, can ship a full pallet to Oakland.

Can get it down to $2.25 a bottle.
* Toorcamp wants to go on in it too.
** Can we buy one pallet and recoup our costs?
** Two courses of action 1) buy one pallet, 2) do

research and then figure out if we want to buy a

pallet.
** Nana: separate reselling the sodas from the club

mate. Problems with the donation price being higher

than the store on the corner. Club mate is a good

idea, but sodas are different.
** Maker Faire coming up. Would O'Reilly be into it?
** Club Mate is different overhead from sodas.
** Shannon: Are you asking NB to invest in a

business venture?
** Jake: No, just want to bring Club mate to people.
** Can we come to consensus with selling drinks at a

profit?
** Shannon: What are we trying to change?
** Jake: Are you planning to reimburse for drinks?
** Mitch: yes, gave her a check.
** Jake: Are we going to make a conscious decision

that this is OK?
** Christie: We're a do-ocracy, but sometimes it's

easier to get forgiveness than permission. This is a

process to get permission.
** Enki: if someone buys drinks and starts selling

them then we have a cool process.
** Jon: Should noisebridge buy these drinks, and if

so what should we sell them for?
** Jon: Inappropriate for Mitch to just decide to

give our money to Ani. It's OK with me, but it's not

great.
** Should we have a number or a process for

discretionary spend?
** That's why we're having this discussion. Not just

Mitch making that decision every time.
** Does anyone object to the current status quo?
** Shannon: don't see what we're consensing.
** Does anyone have an objection?
** Josh and Shannon:  what happens if we object?
** Does anyone object to the way drinks are handled

now?
** Jonathan: yes, I don't think it is OK for someone

to make a decision on their own to use Noisebridge

money.
** Shannon: nothing different is going on
** Mitch:  yes, before people used their own money

and took money from the drink cup -- this time I

made a decision to pay Ani in advance with a check

to give to Costco.
** some arguing about what to consens to, or not
** Rubin:  let's table this till next week
** much approval

* expanding Noisebridge
** new neighbors
** Josh:  should I tell new neighbors (my buddies)

that we (Noisebridge) has right of first approval?
** no one wanted this

* Friends of Jake said Noisebridge is a social club

with a bunch of posers
** Jake:  we should have a night where people come

not to hack, but a social night to talk about cool

accomplishments so lots of people know about cool

things happening here.

* Noisebridge at Maker Faire
** Mitch:  huge hardware hacking area -- will

promote NB, as like last year, and will point people

to NB booth.
** need to coordinate rides to bring people and

stuff
** need more stickers? poster?
** Mitch:  need volunteers for hardware hacking area

and for NB booth

* ToorCamp/HAR
** Jake got discount coupon for getting registered

at ToorCamp for $150.
** Jake:  arranged for multi-hacker space camp in

Niki missile silo.
** If people show up early to vulunteer to setup,

get in free.

* DIYbio update
** fridge will be out Friday.
** Marni:  at meeting tonight because Praveen

couldn't make it.
** Marni:  should we talk about DIYbio stuff

tonight?
** agreement
** fridge at NB because DIYbio needed one
** Jake:  negative comments about Tim / William

Heath.  And NB people have thought of him as DIYbio

contact person, as DIYbio people have thought of Tim

as NB contact person.
** Steen:  everything seems to be fine except for

one dick.
** Marni:  DIYbio people in general think positively

about NB.
** Jake: NB is not a co-working space.  Awesome if

DIYbio is using space, and part of NB.
** Marni: don't know how to apologize about Tim.
** several people:  no need to apologize.
** suggestion by Ceren:  DIYbio people should come

to NB and hang out.
** Mike:  I am into playing with DIYbio.  The

electopheresis was the best time of my life.  But

when Carolina Pharmaceuticals box came, I hated

that.
** Marni:  that's agar agar
** Steen:  I was here when fridge appeared.

Everyone from DIYbio was really cool except for that

one guy.
** Jonathan (to Marni): I'm fine with DIYbio here,

but suggest that people hang out here, participate

in our community more.  Maybe become members.
** Jeffrey:  a safety committee meeting without any

results.  We need another meeting with DIYbio people

present.
** Jake:  NB is different than any other non-profit

group.  People need to hang out at NB to get a feel.
** Marni:  Yes, otherwise there can be

misunderstandings.
** Marni will take fridge tonight if it fits in her

car.  Otherwise it will leave by Friday.

* Safety review procedures
** let's talk more on that next time

* Twin City Maker Group
** Rubin:  looked up Twin City Maker Group online.

Met with one person from the Group in Minneapolis.

Liked the discussion.  We should all talk about

hacker spaces with other hacker spaces wherever we

go.
** Mitch:  yeah!  I do that everywhere I go, and

attempt to inspire others.  The Wired.com article

has been great at inspiring people to start hacker

spaces.
** Jake:  I'll be giving a talk at Vancouver.

* Reading of names in membership folder.

New members!

Ed Hunsinger
Jean Rintoul
Eric Boyd
Leif Ryge

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