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This year Tim Manasterski, roboticist, will host a 45 minute session on how to make a robot. The robot will be a simple line following bot consisting of two gearhead motors, drive and micro-controller. An infrared LED sensor array will provide the feedback for the line following and although the robot kit will come fully programmed, it will have a USB port for future modifications and customization. A line following robot was chosen for the workshop because they embody a host of robot technologies and are just plain fun to build and watch!

This workshop will cost $85, but you get to walk away with an assembled, fully functional line follower! For the workshop we only have 15 spaces, so please email us at atlminimakerfaire@gmail.com if you would like to get your name on that list!

Credit: Jeoff Davis

Lifehacker.com recently wrote a great article describing what a hackerspace is and why you should join one:

How to Find and Get Involved with A Hackerspace In Your Community

Did you know that we had (or will very soon have) four different hacker/makerspaces around Atlanta? They all have different emphases, but making is still at their core:

Freeside Atlanta
My Inventor Club
MASS Collective
Geekspace Gwinnett

They will all be present at the Faire this year so you’ll be able to get to know all of them and figure out where your interests might fit in best. The Atlanta area spaces will also be joined at the Faire by a number of other spaces around the Southeast:

Knox Makers - Knoxville, Tennessee
Hackerspace Charlotte - Charlotte, North Carolina
Chatt*lab Makerspace - Chattanooga, Tennessee
Makers Local 256 - Huntsville, Alabama

So be sure to check them all out to see what these Maker communities have created!

Credit: @the_la_l5p

Free Art Friday Atlanta wants to give you both.  Local artists create small pieces of art and hide them around Atlanta on the first Friday of every month.  Using twitter they leave clues about where the treasure is,  if you recognize where it is, and make a mad dash it can be yours.  Some of the artists will be at the Faire showing off their work, talking paint and magnets, and working a station where you can make free some free art yourself.  The hard part is deciding whether to keep your new creation, or to leave it somewhere special for somebody else to find.

Do you guys remember how smoothly the event ran last year? No one caught themselves on fire, the makers were able to set their booths up on time, the attendees found the place just fine, and the only hiccup was the lack of water. Do you know why that happened? Because we had some volunteers.

Last year was a relatively small event compared to this year, and that means we’re going to need even more volunteers to help out. We’ve split the day into bite-size chunks on our volunteer form so you’ll be able to give us a hand as well as peruse all of our lovely makers. AND you get a free t-shirt!

If you’re interested in helping the day run smoothly, please sign up to be a volunteer on our Volunteer Form. We thank you in advance!

Check it out – Georgia Tech’s Tech Lawn in all its green glory:

Now take a second and imagine the sidewalks lined on both sides by makers – R2 droids, wearable planters, book binding, live art installations, SMT soldering workshops, printmaking experiences, autonomous aircraft, blacksmithing demos, handmade jewelry, children artists, interactive art projects, mini welding workshops, make-your-own-soap demos, clean cookstoves, free art making stations, make your own animation setups, conductive electrical interfaces, art activists, mold making demos, Rube Goldberg machines, and budget screenprinting.

Then fill those sidewalks with people thirsty for interaction. Well over half our booths have some opportunity for participation, so whether you want to learn how to screenprint with pantyhose, a credit card, and cheap paint or you want to laser cut your own custom size project box from a sheet of wood, we’ve got you covered. We honestly do have something for just about everyone.

Unless you’re a hermit. And if you ARE a hermit, you may be in luck because there’s talk of someone bringing a geodesic dome for you to hide in. So if you know a hermit, please be sure to invite him/her.

See you on October 6th from 10am-5pm at 349 Ferst Dr NW, Atlanta GA 30313!

Hooray! As you know, the Atlanta Mini Maker Faire is 100% free, but we do need a way to track the number of people to expect so we’re asking everyone to sign up for a ticket through Eventbrite. It’ll just take a minute AND it’ll get your name in the hat for a few giveaways! Please feel free to use this link or just go through the form below:

Credit: Eric Weinhoffer

That, my friends, is Mr. Sean O’Shea, and he’s a blacksmith. Last year he showed up with his portable forge and small anvil, and he pounded out miniature swords for $1 each. Didn’t get one, did you? Well if you happen to show up at Georgia Tech on October 6th of this year, you can fill that void!

Credit: Flex Family Arts

Seeing the same thing IN PERSON! Or how about Bea Arthur from the Golden Girls? Maybe a Jackalope? And don’t forget the King!

If not, then John-David Warren of Prototype Robotics and RediculouslyGoodLooking.com can show you the way! This robotics guru will be “bringing as many of my robots and hacked toys as I can fit in the truck” to the Faire. This guru, author of Arduino Robotics, was a huge hit last year with his Seg-Bot and Lawnbot 400, and he’ll be back this year to show off even more of his project!

Caption: John-David Warren

I have to admit that I surely don’t. BUT Jan Ford of Heavenly Handspinning does! And if you come to the Faire, she’ll bring her whole setup to demo the process of turning raw cotton into rady-to-use yarn.

Credit: Jan Ford