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Girls Who Code is an organization founded with a single mission: To close the gender gap in technology. Computer coding is relevant to all sorts of interests, not just computer science.
BARN is hosting a Girls Who Code club once again for the 2019-20 school year for girls in grades 6-12. The club will meet every Thursday afternoon (except school holidays) from September 26 through March 5th, from 3:45 - 5pm. Girls will be guided through a progression of coding skills throughout the year.
Prior to signing up for these sessions you are welcome to join us on Thursday, September 19th from 4-5pm for an optional drop-in information session at BARN. Meet our facilitators, learn about the curriculum, and ask any questions you may have about the program.
Details:
Our facilitators:
Rebecca Graham was our club facilitator last year. She is a full-time senior engineer working in the area of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. She began coding in college where she earned a BS in Computer Science and a BA in History from the University of Mary Washington. She lives on the island with her husband, 6-year old son, 3 cats, and 2 dogs. She loves glitter, cartoons, yoga, rock climbing, and creating things with technology. Rebecca will be joined by Alex McKeon, a BARN member who has always found time in her life for creating. She has had a wide variety of professional experiences including work as an expedition leader, yoga instructor, personal chef, snowboard instructor, and nanny. She lives on the island with her husband and toddler and believes that working with young women is one of the most fulfilling uses of her time. ----------------------------------------------------------------
To learn more about Girls Who Code, see: https://girlswhocode.com/
From the Girls Who Code organization: "Girls Who Code's mission is to create gender parity within technology by providing a unique educational experience for young women to learn computer science. Interested participants who self-identify as female are welcome to apply to our programs."
The Ham SIG (Special Interest Group) is open to newly licensed amateur radio operators (and OT/old timers alike), those who are interested in becoming hams and the radio curious.
Each month there will be a different radio-related topic. A presentation will be followed by a discussion and Q&A.
October topic - Intro to Morse Code (CW)
Morse code has been around since the beginning of radio. We will explore:
- History
- Why letters / numbers take different amount of time to send?
- Is CW relevant today with voice and digital?
- Different methods and resources for learning CW
- Automated reception of CW
- Morse skimmers
- Fun CW “game” to refine your CW and contesting skills
- Shorthands for words (hey, you can use them for texting as well!)
You will leave with ability to recognize familiar CW phrases (CQ, HI, QST, …)
This talk is intended for everyone who has an interest in history and wants to learn a little more about this fascinating mode of communications
Cost: Free to members and non-members
Organized by BARC (Bainbridge Island Amateur Radio Club)
AW/TS
No registration needed. Free for members. Open to non-members. For non-members, there is a $20 drop-in fee payable to the studio monitor by cash or check made out to BARN.
All are welcome to drop by during this Open studio if you would like to observe.
Contact: ETA.LEAD@BainbridgeBARN.org
AW
Learn the basic features of Fusion 360, a 3-D design program that will allow you to design objects on a computer screen and turn into items made of metal, wood, plastic or even molds for casting glass.
This class is required if you want to take studio-specific classes in how to run computer-controlled tools at BARN including the plasma cutter in the Welding Studio, the milling machine in the Metal Machining Studio, or the CNC router in the Woodworking Studio. You can also use Fusion 360 to design objects for BARN's 3-D printers.
Please note: You must bring a laptop computer with a mouse and a working copy of Fusion 360 already downloaded to that computer. This is critical as no computers are provided, and the design program does not work well with a trackpad. There is no time during the class to download the program. If you have questions or run into problems downloading the program, please use this form to contact the instructor for help. You can download a free trial by clicking here. Look towards the middle of the screen and click on "Create an Account". AutoDesk will send you a confirmation email. Click on the link and go to Download Free Trial. Be sure you choose "Fusion 360 for hobbyists and makers".
This is a two-session class, designed to allow you to work with the program after the first session and get help with roadblocks or answers to your questions at the second session. Allow time between the sessions to work on your project, which you will get at the first session. A learning reference will be provided on the techniques covered in the class, including:
Instructor: Chris Stanley is a fourth-generation artist/ craftsman who works in a variety of media. After working for many years as a professional model maker in both architectural and design fields, he went into education. He taught computer-aided design and other classes for the Art Institute of Seattle for 19 years.
- JGH
Come build your own state-of-the-art electromechanical ferry tracking apparatus: FerryClock; a self-setting analog wall clock with additional dials and lights to indicate the real-time position, heading, and docking status of the two Bainbridge-Seattle ferryboats. It should prove ferry useful in your own home. Additional routes coming soon…
From a kit, we will assemble, wire and solder the gadgets. At home, you will ‘launch’ your FerryClock by connecting it to your wireless network (internet). The kit includes everything you’ll need: laser-cut parts, motors, lights, wires, hardware, microcontroller, USB cable, ‘atomic’ clock mechanism, hands, battery, and literature.
How It Works:
A proprietary algorithm (conceived by a member of the BIHS robotics team) running in the ‘cloud’ continually compares the up-to-the-minute (every 15s) latitude/longitude (GPS) location of a real ferryboat (via the WSF API) against a reference path to generate a precise sailing progress value. A small, Arduino-compatible microcontroller within FerryClock connects to the FERRY TEMPO server over WiFi to receive fresh data, controlling the lights and motors accordingly.
Update: We will be adding more sessions of this class so be sure to add yourself to the waitlist and we will let you know when it is scheduled.
Instructor Bio: Matt Carrig is a multi-disciplinary designer. To read more about Ferries Over Winslow, click here.
Designed as a user's guide to BARN ETA studio, this free orientation session is highly recommended for all participants. It will cover everything from studio etiquette and policies to an overview of what we have and where stuff is.
You'll get to see the 3D printers, laser cutter, soldering station, hand tools and more. Overall BARN policies as well as studio-specific ones will also be covered.
Participants will also learn about the leadership structure within ETA and about opportunities to participate in helping everything run smoothly. Volunteer jobs range range from serving as studio monitors to helping with studio maintenance.
This event is free but please register so we know how many to expect. Contact: ETA.Lead@BainbridgeBARN.org
TS
Get introduced to 3D printing in this one-hour session. You'll get to see BARN's printers and gain an understanding of how they work and what they can make. You will see a computer file get readied for printing in a process called "slicing." You'll see the different printers we have and learn about filament, the material 3D printers use to make prints. We'll start a print and you'll see the printer print. 3D printing has many uses, ranging from practical to fun, such as replacement parts, mold-making, medical models used in surgery, prototypes and more. Bring your curiosity and questions. You can continue to use the 3D printers at Open Studio where a studio monitor or other member can help you.
Class size is limited to 6.
Product Design and Manufacture (Toys!)
Designing and making actual products is this month's topic. The founder and owner of Just Think Toys, Doug Mackey, will discuss computer aided product design, materials and getting his products manufactured.
This is an informal talk with lots of time for Q&A. This talk has in mind our growing Fusion 360 community and aspiring and current makers of actual products.
Bring your questions. Here are some possible topics up for discussion.
About the Speaker Doug Mackey is founder and owner of Just Think Toys. For 15 years, he worked as a consultant to Plan Toys, a Thai company that is one of the world's leading wooden toy manufacturers. The Plan Toys dollhouse shown in the picture was developed with his input, which focused on enhancing play value by simplifying the design and giving kids access from all sides.
Check out his company's website https://www.just-think-toys.com/ to see more examples.
Free to All, Public Warmly Welcome Tech Talks are free and open to the public. Registration is requested but not required. It's just so we can do a better job of setting up. Share a link to this talk with someone who might be interested. https://bainbridgebarn.wildapricot.org/event-3238880
Questions? Direct any questions to Annette Walker, ETA Studio Lead at eta.lead@bainbridgebarn.org
About ETA Sunday Tech Talks Mark your calendar for the second Sunday of each month when ETA holds a free tech talk. Topics are wide-ranging by design. Free for members and non-members. Contact eta.lead@bainbridgebarn.org to volunteer for a future talk or to share your ideas for an interesting topic.
JavaScript is the programming language that powers the web and is one of the most popular and pervasive, modern coding languages available today. In this workshop we will approach JavaScript from the perspective of creating small, creative projects (sketches) that are media focused (art, animated graphics, sound, and music). You will learn JavaScript basics along side the P5.js library (https://p5js.org/) which greatly simplifies media usage. There will be no programs to install and all of our sketches will be constructed and executed within your web browser (using Chrome) - https://editor.p5js.org/.
Bring your laptop and let’s have some fun coding!
On Monday, November 18th there will be an optional JavaScript Open studio for students of this class to enable one-on-one focused assistance with the instructor.
Skill Level: Beginner - No previous coding experience required.
Ages: Ages 14+ Welcome.
Instructor Bio: Ken Rothmuller
Ken has worked in the computer field (both hardware and software) for over 40 years. He was employed at both large and small companies in Silicon Valley (HP, Oracle, Adobe, Motorola, National Semiconductor, Apple early days, Network Computer and Fotiva - co-founder).
While working, he taught after-hours courses at Stanford and University of Santa Clara. In addition, Ken was an adjunct professor at Cal Poly for six years. You can reach Ken at krothmuller@gmail.com if there are questions
The class covers how to prep a design for cutting and engraving on the laser cutter as well as the set-up, settings and operation of the laser cutter. Optional: Bring a laptop with Inkscape installed. It is the free design software we use with the laser cutter. Click here to go to Inkscape.org where you can download it. There are versions for Windows, Mac OS and Linux. This is not strictly necessary, but will help you get the most out of this class. Successful completion of this workshop is the first step toward becoming qualified for independent operation of the laser cutter. It also prepares you for more advanced laser cutting classes.
Class size is limited to 4.
Contact Annette Walker: ETA.Lead@BainbridgeBARN.org
Learn how to design and create original works using Computer Aided Design (CAD). This class is for beginners who want to explore the world of computer aided design. No CAD or computer experience is necessary. We will teach you the basics of using TinkerCAD, a free CAD design program created with beginners in mind. During this class, you will design and 3D print several original objects of your creation. With these skills, you can work at home and create more complex items. After creating additional items at home, you can bring them into the BARN ETA studio and 3D print them during open studio hours.
Some of the items we will create include customized key fobs, original button designs and holiday ornaments. Bring your imagination with you.
Completion of the ETA Introduction to 3D Printing class is suggested but not necessary. Each student should bring with them a laptop with a TinkerCAD sign in. https://www.tinkercad.com/ If you are not comfortable signing up for the program, this can be done at the beginning of class.
Instructor Bio: Tim Strevell has been working with the BARN ETA for three years now. He comes to BARN after retiring as a high school science teacher. One of his biggest retirement pleasures comes from teaching people new, fun skills.
For questions about ETA please contact the ETA Studio Lead, Annette Walker at eta.lead@bainbridgebarn.org.
November topic TBD.
BARN will be closed and the front and back doors locked down to both Members and Non-Members beginning at 7:00 PM on Friday night as we begin preparations for the Bazaar at BARN.
Doors will reopen to all on Saturday, at 8:00 AM.
If you have questions, please contact Carla our Membership Coordinator at Membership@bainbridgebarn.org.
BARN members wishing to participate in this event must be a member for a minimum of 3 months (must join by August 31st) to participate. You can contact Carla Mackey at membership@bainbridgebarn.org for an application which will be available Monday, October 21.
This is a staff holiday.
Come build your own state-of-the-art electro-mechanical ferry tracking apparatus: FerryClock; a self-setting analog wall clock with additional dials and lights to indicate the real-time position, heading, and docking status of the two Bainbridge-Seattle ferryboats. It should prove ferry useful in your own home. Additional routes coming soon…
December topic TBD.
Join your friends, neighbors and islanders in obtaining a Technician Amateur Radio License. This two session, intensive class will enable you to pass your FCC Technician License Exam offered at the the conclusion of the second session. About two weeks after the exam you will receive your own call sign from the FCC and be able to operate on the amateur radio bands.
In addition to licenses preparation there will be hands-on time to gain practical exposure to radios. After you receive your license and buy a radio, members of the local club will be available to help you get your radios setup and on the air.
As a licensed Amateur Radio Operator, you will be able to serve your community as well as enjoy a wide range of radio related activities, including:
The No-Nonsense Technician Class Study Guide, by Dan Romanchik KB6NU, will be used and can be downloaded for free. https://www.kb6nu.com/study-guides Be sure to click on the FREE PDF Version of the Technician Class Study Guide.
You can take practice Tech License Exams at ARRL Exam Review for Ham Radio at arrlexamreview.appspot.com
This class is co-sponsored by 9BARC (Bainbridge Island Amateur Radio Club)
Any questions? Contact Ken WA6NFA [krothmuller@gmail.com] or Lionel KI7NNi [lionelhlvrsn@gmail.com] or Brent AE7DY [ae7dy@comcast.net]
Class Fee: $25 for Members and BARN Guests
A $15 (cash, check or money order) will be collected on January 28th (the last session of this class) for those taking the FCC Test.
Skill Level: Beginner
Ages: Ages 14+ Bring a bag lunch. We have a refrigerator for you to store your lunch!
Instructor Bios:
Lionel, K7BIX, is a regional coordinator and instructor for the Bainbridge Island and Kitsap County CERT programs. He first learned the importance of radios in emergency communication while working as a New York City paramedic in the 1980s. Lionel enjoys sharing his passion for amateur radio, and is excited about promoting radio as a means of connectivity on the island.
Ken, WA6NFA, has been a ham since his teenage years. This hobby has lead to EE/Computer Science Degrees and a career in tech at a variety of Silicon Valley companies. He enjoys sharing his passions and interests with others and has taught professionally at Cal Poly, maker spaces and after hours, industry sponsored courses. On the ham front, he is active on HF using CW (morse code) and digital modes.
Brent, AE7DY, recognized the potentially lifesaving value offered by Amateur Radio communications during an emergency, which motivated him to earn his ham license. A professional career in IT and networking led him to a focus on the Digital Modes of the hobby in addition to Emergency Communications. He enjoys equipping others with radio communication skills and introducing them to the fun and fellowship offered by the ham radio community
