Welcome to a new blog section where we feature the work of our incredibly talented members! Look for a new hack every Tuesday, and learn just what we all get up to at SSD.
This week, Skyler Fly-Wilson shared this video of a dancing LED demo he put together using Arduino. It’s super cool, and he’s got some great thoughts on where to take it next. Check it out!
April 17th, 2013 
lizbaumann 
Comments Off We are having an event to celebrate our move to our new space:
WHAT: The Solid State Depot Grand Opening
WHEN: Saturday April 27, 2013 from 3pm to midnight
WHERE: Our new location at 1965 33rd. St. Unit B, Boulder, CO
WHY: To celebrate moving into our new space!
COST: Free for everyone to attend; donations appreciated*
FOOD + DRINKS + LIVE MUSIC + FUN PROJECTS AND FUN PEOPLE
We’re here to show you what kind of projects people have worked on, what tools we have available for your projects, and introduce you to a proactive community of awesome makers making things at our new location!
If you are already a member, bring some friends who might enjoy our company. If you’re new to our group, stop by, say hello and check out our new digs.
AGENDA:
3pm- meet and mingle
4:30-6:30pm – food & drink**
7:30 – Special Project Surprise event to blow your mind!
8:30-12 – Live music, hang out, have fun
WHAT TO EXPECT
***At the event there will be a sign up for 2 workshops held the next day that you can only sign up for at our Grand Opening
***We have 3D Printed prize giveaways and a raffle.
***Awesome music will be playing and you can even get your hands on a theramin!
***We’ll be presenting an awesome project at 7:30PM that will blow your mind!!
WHAT ELSE?
*Currently we are trying to raise funds to become a legitimate nationally recognized 501c3 Non Profit and to fund for the adjacent space next to us so we can build an even more solid hacker foundation here in boulder. For the biggest contributors we will mill out a piece of aluminum with your name on it and hang it on the wall for all to see in gratitude for helping SSD succeed!
**SSD will only be providing non-alcoholic beverages. If you would like alcoholic beverages feel free to BYOB, or you can visit the Twisted Pine tap house right around the corner from us. They will be open from 12pm-9pm the day of the grand opening.
We have outgrown our current space and are moving into a new, better space. Come help us get settled in.
We can use all the help we can get. Whether your a long time member or just recently found the group, you’re welcome to come join moving party. You can check out our new digs and see what we’re all about.
Here is the tentative plan:
Packing has already commenced. If you want to come in tonight to help pack that would be great. Friday day will also be packing time for anyone who can make it. Friday evening after the bulk of us are off of work, we will begin taking small loads to the new space and continue packing anything else left over. Saturday, We will be getting a rental truck to move most of the furniture and equipment. Times for the rental truck have yet to be determined, but I’ll update this post as soon as we know. Most of us plan on being there starting at 8-9am and working most of the day. If you can come at any point during Saturday, this is when we will need the most help.
OLD ADDRESS:
5311 Western Ave. Suite 115 Boulder, CO 80301
NEW ADDRESS
1965 33rd Street, Building E B*, Boulder, CO 80301 (located around the corner from Twisted Pine, and on the backside of The Spot, next to Anco Engineers). It’s a U-shaped building, we are inside the U.
*oops – our lease said E, but it is actually unit B.
We plan on having people at both locations throughout the day (mostly the old location in the morning), if you show up at either location, I’m sure there will be plenty to help with.
We will be supplying beer and pizza.
Bring your friends, bring your family, come check out the new space, and most of all come help your local hackerspace!
If you have any questions don’t hesitate to ask.
March 6th, 2013 lizbaumann Comments Off We have a few workshops scheduled for March:
Monday, March 11, 6-9 pm: Arduino Hack Night
We will answer (hopefully) all the questions you have about Arduino, and potentially getting you started (or finished) with an Arduino project. This is a free BYOB (Bring your own board) event open to members and non-members alike. See the meetup page for full details and to RSVP.
Saturday, March 16, 1-4pm: PCB Etching Workshop
We will teach you how to etch your own PCB prototypes using common household supplies. This class is free for paying SSD members. For non-members the cost is $20. See the meetup page for full details and to RSVP.
Saturday, March 23, 1-4pm: PCB Design Class
Learn how to make a schematic and layout a PCB to create your own electronics projects. Bring a laptop – we’ll install and use Eagle (in Linux, Windows, or OS-X), circuit CAD software with a free version. Cost: $10 for non-members, free for members. See the meetup page for full details and to RSVP.
All events will be held at our space at 5311 Western Ave, Suite 115 in Boulder. Happy hacking, hope to see you soon!
February 6th, 2013 lizbaumann Comments Off This past fall we had a visitor from the Loveland-based company Aleph Objects, Inc. which makes Lulzbot 3D printers. After the visit, they offered to sponsor us by providing us with a LulzBot AO-100 3D Printer Package.
The printer was basically ready to go – nearly no assembly time and already calibrated. We were printing within 10 minutes of taking it out of the box! For most other printers, it takes many hours to assemble and calibrate.
The LulzBot AO-100 is similar to the MendelMax but with LulzBot’s own printed parts. It prints faster than the Reprap Prusa Mendel we have had at our space since last spring.
Stop by our space in east Boulder on a Tuesday night and chat with us to find out more and perhaps see the LulzBot in action. If you want to use it, become a member and get some instruction from one of our 3D printing gurus. Also, if you are in Denver this Thursday afternoon, you can chat with the LulzBot team and see some of their printers in action at a 3D printing open house, which is being held from 3-6 pm at the 3D Printing Store at 4603 Monaco Street, Denver.
For more information about LulzBot, please visit their website at www.lulzbot.com. Thank you to Jon and LulzBot for sponsoring us with a new printer!
January 26th, 2013 dixon Comments Off We had Arduino night last Thursday. The big win was all the mentorship happening around the room on Arduino, projects and discussing the how’s and why’s. It was a terrific buzz with a wide range of activity.
From simple beginner projects…
to “The Midi Mushroom”, a really cool project Chris is working on that sends Midi instrument signals when you hit it.
We saw more of the hardkernel Odroid. It runs either Android or plain Linux.
.
Looks like some “projects waiting on the shelf ” were there too.
Most of the rest of us got some LEDs blinking or hooked up some device. Except the LED project which shone with the light of a thousand burning suns, but didn’t get a picture of that.
And hey, if anyone has a spare bipolar stepper motor (4 wires), post on the list! For everyone else, see you at the next Meetup or at the next Arduino night.
January 26th, 2013 dixon Comments Off We had a great turnout with still more new faces. Big shout out, we also passed the 100 member mark on our Meetup Group. Great projects continue to kick off! Thanks to Chris and Kenny and all the other new folks who came out. We saw some hardkernel ARM Odroid boards. That was pretty cool, driving LCD, ethernet, bluetooth, you name it. The ARM revolution continues (and accelerates).
Open house again next Tuesday!
November 29th, 2012 Joel E B Comments Off 
Are you sick of all the commercial Christmas hullabaloo? Do you want to give your loved ones gifts that you actually made instead of bought? Do you want to bring back the holiday cheer? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then come on down to Solid State Depot on Friday, December 14, 2012, staring around 6:00PM. We will be having a DIY Christmas Gift Making Extravaganza.
What does that entail you ask? Simple, if you have a skill and/or supplies, and you want to share that with others while learning in return, then this is the event for you. People will bring in supplies, show others how to make simple yet impressive gifts, and learn how to make other gifts in return. The idea is to have every person who attends show at least one other person how to make something, and make something themselves, possibly involving a new skill. You don’t have a skill, you say? I don’t believe you. Are you a software developer? Show me how to make a personalized e-card, or how to photoshop a traditional card. Are you a 3-D printing whiz? Show me how to make a customized ornament. Electronics are your thing? Let’s add some LEDs to that ornament. Know how to paint? Let’s make some art! The possibilities are endless!!!
This will also be a Christmas celebration for all those who haven’t skipped town for the holidays, so bust out the ugly sweater, dust of the Christmas albums (or mp3s) and bring a mug for eggnog. (eggnog will be provided; if you want to add anything to that nog, you’ll have to byob)
WHO: You and your friends, this is for all paying and non-paying members
WHAT: Making gifts, learning new skills, sharing old skills, using up all those old supplies, drinking eggnog and having a happy holiday
WHEN: Friday, December 14, 2012 @ 6:00PM-??
WHERE: Solid State Depot, 5311 Western Ave #115 Boulder, CO 80301
WHY: To take back Christmas into the hands of those who love to make
If you plan on coming, please, please, please RSVP on the Meetup page (or here if you don’t have or desire a meetup account), and please add a comment there (or here) regarding what skill you plan on sharing, what you would potentially like to learn and what supplies you are willing to bring. This is a no-spectators event. If you come, you will be expected to participate. Hope to see you there!
Soldering Workshop: MintyBoost
What: MintyBoost Mobile Device Charging kit
When: Saturday, October 13, 2012, 12:00pm – 3:00pm
Where: Solid State Depot, 5311 Western Avenue, Suite 115, Boulder, CO 80301
Why: To learn to solder! And, to have a sweet mobile device charger that you built.!
Who: Instructed by Joel.
Cost: Members: $13, Non-Members $25
Want to learn to solder for the first time? Want to hone your soldering skills that may be a little rusty? Then this is the class for you.
We will start by covering some soldering basics, and then we will be putting together MintyBoost kits, which allow you to charge mobile devices with AA batteries. The workshop will last 2-3 hours, and when you are finished, you will have a fully functional MintyBoost. Soldering iron and other tools provided. (Altoids tins NOT provided) Please bring your own if you have some.
SSD Members, please pay here, under the donations section. Non-members, please pay on the Meetup site linked above. The deadline to RSVP is tomorrow, Friday October, 12, 2012 at 12:00 noon.
Hope to see you there!
September 28th, 2012 Joel E B Comments Off Summer is coming to an end, and that means school is back in session. To get into the swing of things we’re putting on workshops/classes galore! We will be putting on events three weekends in a row starting October 13th. We are now hosting all of our events through Meetup.com. This will slightly change the way you sign up for events with us. We are dividing events into two categories:
Registration and payment for events will proceed as follows:
For Members: Both classes and workshops are free for all current paying members of SSD. If it’s a workshop, members will get the materials at cost. Members are required to RSVP on the Meetup.com site to register for an event. However, they are not required to pay through the Meetup.com site (unless they want to pay full price 
) Instead, a separate donation can be made through the SSD website for the member cost of the workshop. This should be done at the same time as RSVPing. Both member and non-member costs will be posted in all event announcements. If the event is a workshop, payments will need to be made in advance so materials can be purchased for the event.
For Non-Members: There will be a cost associated with both types of events for non-members. To register and pay for events, use the Meetup.com site. If the event is a workshop, payment will need to be made in advance. If the event is a class, payments can be brought on the day of.
We accept all of the following payment methods:
And now, on to the good stuff….
Soldering Workshop: MintyBoost
What: MintyBoost Mobile Device Charging kit
When: Saturday, October 13, 2012, 12:00pm – 3:00pm
Where: Solid State Depot, 5311 Western Avenue, Suite 115, Boulder, CO 80301
Why: To learn to solder! And, to have a sweet mobile device charger that you built.!
Who: Instructed by Joel.
Cost: Members: $13, Non-Members $25
Want to learn to solder for the first time? Want to hone your soldering skills that may be a little rusty? Then this is the class for you.
We will start by covering some soldering basics, and then we will be putting together MintyBoost kits, which allow you to charge mobile devices with AA batteries. The workshop will last 2-3 hours, and when you are finished, you will have a fully functional MintyBoost. Soldering iron and other tools provided. (Altoids tins NOT provided) Please bring your own if you have some.
SSD Members, please pay here, under the donations section.
Who: Anyone interested in printing 3D objects. Instructed by Lee.
What: 3D printer workshop
When: Saturday, October 20th, 2012. From 2pm-4pm.
Where: Solid State Depot 5311 Western Ave, Suite 115, Boulder, CO
Why: To put objects YOU design on your computer into YOUR hands!
Cost: Free for members, $20 for non-members.
We will be covering the basics of 3D printing from the hardware to the software. 3D printers are robotic machines capable of extruding plastic in ways that create real, physical objects that you design. You will leave with an understanding of what a 3D printer is capable of making, how to operate it and how you can build your own. You will learn how to use open-source software tools to configure and control the printer, and “slice” your own designs for printing.
No tools required to attend, although you can bring a laptop if you wish to setup printer software on your own computer.
Introduction to Pure Data Class: Oscillators, Sampling, and Filters
Who: Instructed by Chris.
What: Pure Data Class
When: Saturday, October 27, 2012. From 1pm-3pm.
Where: Solid State Depot 5311 Western Ave, Suite 115, Boulder, CO
Why: Why not? Also, to mix up a bit and get some software classes in the lineup.
Cost: Free for members, $10 for non-members.
Pure Data (Pd) is a visual programming environment for generating, processing, and manipulating audio. With Pd, you can design your own synthesizer, build custom effects for your guitar, or compose music algorithmically. This workshop will introduce the basic concepts of working with audio in Pd, with a focus on oscillators, sampling, and filters. No experience necessary. We’ll start with a group install; Pd is free and open source software.
What to Bring:
-A Laptop (Windows, Mac, or Linux)
-> If you can install Pd before the workshop, that will save some time. What you want is pd-extended (http://puredata.info/downloads/pd-extended)
-Headphones
-MIDI controller (optional)
