Bristol Wireless News

Are you doing or have just done your A Levels and want to do practical technical computing? As we previously reported (news passim), Bristol’s University of the West of England is staging its Linux Boot Camp from Monday 29th June to Wednesday 1st July.

The event will involve two and a half days of technical workshops exploring many aspects of modern technology and the use of free open source software. During the workshops you’ll learn how to revitalize your PC by installing and configuring Linux, plus setting up a home network and web server, making a router and hacking into various set-top boxes. At the end you’ll know how to tap into the world of open source computing and gain skills for a profitable and worthwhile career.

If you already know some of this stuff, Linux Boot Camp will still allow you to explore advanced system configuration topics.

Don’t delay as numbers are limited to about 60 places. There may be a few residential places available in UWE’s student accommodation. If you are interested, please contact the organisers to check on availability and cost. Social events are also planned.

For further information or to book please contact Pat Cottrell or Craig Duffy by e-mail lbc (at) uwe.ac.uk or telephone 0117 32 84242. More details can be found on UWE’s Boot Camp page.

About a week ago I wrote a piece (news passim) when the forward crew for Hacktionlab were about to depart to site, since when a discreet silence has been maintained. A partial excuse for such taciturnity was your scribe’s duties on the woodpile for the event – hard physical graft for someone used to tickling a keyboard for a living.

The forward crew of Mike, John, Amias, Woodsy and Acesabe arrived on site at Highbury Farm on the Wednesday evening, pitched their tents and settled down for the night (eventually) ready for a hard day’s work setting up the site for arrivals due from Thursday: the hard work entailed erecting the big white tent, setting up the network, satellite dish, clearing the barn and establishing a workspace, servicing the site loos and myriad other minor tasks.

Hacktionlabbers started turning up from the afternoon onwards, the most thought-provoking being the arrival in the early evening of Alan who’d cycled all the way from Sheffield (150 miles away) in 11 hours. The most welcome vehicular appearance on site was Llanos, whose wee blue hatchback made it to within some 100 metres from the barn despite being fully laden with essential supplies – cider and a barrel of beer. Another welcome arrival was fellow BW volunteer Hamish, fresh from Scotland with a goodie bag of traditional Scottish fare – shortbread, potato scones, oatcakes and Irn Bru – tasty!

Friday saw Hacktionlab proper swing into action with the post-breakfast ritual of introductions and organising the schedule for the day, which set the pattern for the next 3 days. Workshop topics were wide and varied, including Mike’s ever-popular satellite workshop, networking in difficult environments, collaborative working and security tools, privacy, security sessions encryption sessions, multimedia workshops, plus the geeks’ key signing party. Perhaps the most controversial session of the weekend – mainly because its content and purport flew in the face of a lifetime’s conditioning – was round the firepit on Sunday evening, when BW member John gave a taster session on common law rights and their use.

Hacktionlab also gave a showcase for low power and renewable technologies: there was our LTSP on display and in use in the barn, whilst the marquee boasted solar panels powering a 12 volt cinema consisting of a media player, LED projector and sound system, which came into their own once the day’s work was done.

In summary, a worthwhile and enjoyable event in good surroundings and company, made better by the fine weather, plus a larger turnout than last year. In Mike’s words: “We got some very positive actions out of it, got some great people together to get to know each other better, strengthened the UK network for techs and activists, and erm, drank rather a lot of cyder in a lovely rural setting”. An urban Hacktionlab is being thought of later this year, somewhere up North. Details will be posted on the Hacktionlab wiki. For now thanks are due for this event to Mike (general organisation), Amias, John Jane and Becky for keeping us fed, Llanos for vital beer and cider supply, Woodsy for a warm fire in the evenings, Acesabe for tech support (and the photos used in this piece. Ed.) and all workshop organisers/facilitators, not forgetting our hosts at Highbury Farm.

Further to the previous post on the move to Hamilton House (news passim), Julien Weston writes:

With a new beginning welcoming us at Hamilton House, Bristol Wireless are of course not forgetting those we are sadly leaving behind.

So, we will be organising a fabulous and sumptuous LEAVING PARTY, to be held in The Zoo Bar at St Werburgh’s Community Centre (our home for this past three years) on Thursday 25th June, 6pm to 10pm.

All are welcome, especially the staff and volunteers of St Werburghs Centre, who have made our residence there so enjoyable and successful.

We’d also like to welcome, members, customers, associates, friends and oddballs – in fact anyone who has been part of or touched by the Bristol Wireless project over the past six years.

The legendary Bristol Wireless bar will be open, catering for all your liquid needs; musical entertainment is promised by the famous Mr Woods and the rumour drums are beating a repeat of the famous “Geek Quiz” with prizes, prizes, prizes!

Venue: Zoo Bar, St Werburghs Centre, Horley Road, Bristol BS2 9TJ (map here)
When: Thursday 25th June 2009, 6pm to 10pm
Who: All friends of BW.
Info: 0117 3250067 or by email to info (at) bristolwireless.net

Regular readers will be aware that Bristol Wireless’ move to Hamilton House (news passim) is imminent, i.e. this coming weekend.

Quite independently of our move, the Bristol Evening Post is today carrying a feature on Hamilton House and its role in the transformation of Stokes Croft. The piece includes the following on ourselves:

Among the businesses in the building are cycle repair firm Jake’s Bikes, and Bristol Wireless, which builds wireless computer networks to help social improvement.

We would like to thank the Post’s Suzanne Savill for her accurate reporting of just one aspect of Bristol Wireless’ work, unlike a previous report by one of her colleagues, which had us erroneously described as ‘recycling computer waste’.

I had an email from fellow Bristol Wireless volunteer Mike last night asking if I could fiddle with the order of posts on the site to bring the last post on Hacktionlab (news passim) to the top of the BW news page. After some thought, I decided to write this post instead.

For those who haven’t heard, this year’s rural Hacktionlab starts tomorrow 11th June and runs until Sunday 14th and takes place at Highbury Farm in the Wye Valley just inside Gloucestershire.

Hacktionlab is aimed at people interested and/or working in the areas of alternative media, renewable energy, on-line video distribution, free software and any other form of activism that uses technology.

The idea for the gathering has come from many years of experience gained by activists working for organisations such as Indymedia, as well as specific experience from involvement in the Horizone Eco-Village in Stirling (2005), the Camps for Climate Action in Drax (2006), Heathrow (2007) and Kingsnorth (2008), plus the No Borders camp at Gatwick (2007). There have had 2 successful gatherings so far – a rural meeting in the Wye Valley in June 2008 and an urban one in Leeds in October 2008.

This evening sees the forward crew of Bristol Wireless volunteers going to site to set up the infrastructure ready for when people start arriving tomorrow. There’s a fair bit of work to be done, such as setting up a reception tent and other infrastructure (LTSP suite, network, kitchen, compost loo, etc.).

The Hacktionlab site has full details of the programme.

Finally, it’s still not too late to sign up for Hacktionlab or join the mailing list.

After more than 3 very happy and enjoyable years in St Werburghs Community Centre, the Bristol Wireless lab is on the move this month to Hamilton House on Stokes Croft.

Of course, moving is one of life’s stresses – and this is also true of organisations; there’s lots of sorting out and packing to be done at one end and lots of sorting out and unpacking at the other. In anticipation of the move, Bristol Wireless volunteer Sean has posted the following email in a search for willing hands and bodies:

Bristol Wireless are moving from St Werburghs Community Centre to Hamilton House sometime in June. It’s a big job. We estimate it will take one day of packing, another day of moving and one more day of
unpacking and setting up at the other end. We will need help from supporters and friends, so we’d like you to tell us what days you can help (if you can help) to aid our planning the best dates for the move. You can email us with questions or any other offers of help (transport, etc.) at info (at) bristolwireless.net or in the notes on the doodle.

All the best and thanks in anticipation.

Sean

Hope to hear from a few of you readers.