Just a quick peek at the first set of 3 kolpxnty boards that I had fabbed:

They are not without problems and have not yet been instructed to bend the circuit things, but they will soon. The above is being driven from Pd via MIDI by way of Benito.

More to come...

On Sunday, I hosted a circuit bending workshop called "Haywire" with Dorkdbot Portland at PNCA.

There is some more detailed information over here and I have posted some pictures over here and added them to the DorkbotPDX flickr pool.

Overall, things went really well! There was a sizable turnout (35 or 40ish benders) and most seemed to really be enjoying the workshop. We encountered a hitch at the start involving lack of power and fire marshals, but things got rolling and people got into it. Although I forgot to start the recorder for my 30 minute introduction talk, I did record a couple hours of silly and chaotic ambient audio from the event. I hope to convert it to mp3 sometime soon and make it available online.

This was my first time putting on a workshop, and I certainly stood to learn a few things. Like:

1. Arrive earlier than you want to. I showed up about 15 minutes early, which was right around the time everybody else showed up. It was nice to have the help carrying equipment, but I would have been less overwhelmed with more time.
2. Check power before the workshop starts.
3. Set clear ground rules about taking toys to hack. That is -- if you take it from the bin, you take it out of the building. I ended up hauling away a seizable tote full of half hacked or otherwise busted items. Ug!
4. Have dedicated helpers on-hand to answer questions and run errands. If 40 or so people want to pick your brain, you're going to have a hard time...helpers can, uh, help!
5. Try not to span a mealtime or schedule a break or provide food. If people leave, it can break up the momentum and worse, they might not come back.

I also probably should have prepared a few simple diagrams/tutorials that showed some basics, such as adding a line-out. Hopefully there will be a next time, and hopefully lessons learned will lead to a smoother workshop! Thanks again to everybody who signed!