From: I Love Memphis Blog
Sep 21, 2010
By Kerry Crawford
It’s Friday night, and the Christian Brothers University campus is dark, save for one room on the second floor of the engineering building. The classroom is completely packed with people sitting at long white tables. A few type on laptops covered in stickers. Others fiddle with circuit boards.
This isn’t some crazy weekend night class – it’s the weekly meeting of the Mid-South Makers. The Makers are a hacker circle, a group of hardcore DIY-ers who meet every week to share ideas, projects and tools. Occasionally, members of the group will teach classes on their craft of choice (some of the upcoming classes are in etching, quilting, and programming).
While the word hacker is usually associated with somewhat nefarious computer geniuses, the Mid-South Makers aren’t those guys. On this particular Friday, members of the group are working on motion-sensitive 3-D software, small candles shaped like skulls, homemade Halloween-themed tote bags and circuit boards.
Eventually, the Makers are hoping to get out of the classroom – they’re working to find a building that they can turn into a full-time hackerspace. The space would function like a gym for the DIY-inclined. For a monthly fee, members would have access to shared workspace, tools and classes.
The Mid-South Makers meet every Friday night at Christian Brothers University’s Nolan Engineering building at 7 p.m. Anyone that’s interested is welcome to join.