Technology

Activities For The Civic Geek: Technology Refurb And Access

by

Technology is critical to people’s lives these days.  Not everyone has access to computers and computer knowledge.  Technical geeks can make sure people have access to technology – and teach people along the way.

If you don’t have internet and computer access, you’re at a disadvantage in the modern world.  A lot of people have trouble getting computers.

Ironically, a lot of people are also throwing equipment away.

These are two causes that can come together – refurbishing computers and getting them to people that need them.  After all, why throw it away when you can fix it, update it, maybe teach a few lessons – and then get them to people who need them.

There’s a few ways to do this:

  • First, you have to collect equipment and get it to people that can fix it. Just the collecting alone can keep you busy – as long as there’s someone to fix it up.
  • Then there’s fixing up and refurbing the equipment.  Any kind of technical geek can probably rally people to do this – or find people that do.
  • Finally, get it to people who need it.  If you can combine this with the fixing, it becomes extra educational.

You can do one or all of these parts of the process to help people out.  But there’s also many ways to do this:

  • Your local club/group/con can do one or all of the parts above.
  • Your can ally with other groups like hackerspaces and schools to do the work.  It might build great alliances.
  • You could combine this with other events – what if you have a fix-it workshop at a convention?  With a hackerspace fix-it session?
  • You could combine this with other educational activities in computer literacy or fix-it skills?  People could make their own computer from old parts.

People need technology.  You can make sure they get it – while learning and make electronics recycling easier.

Resources:

  • Close The Gap – Takes computer donations from european countries and refurbishes them for emerging nations. Also works to recycle unusable equipment safely.
  • Computers With Causes – Takes donated computers and either gets them to charitable programs, or sells them for funds used to go to programs.
  • Free Geek (Portland) – A Portland nonprofit that recycles used computers and parts to provide computers and job training to those in need.
  • Free Geek Chicago – A Chicago nonprofit that recycles used computers and parts to provide computers and job training to those in need.
  • Little Geeks – A Canadian charity that refurbishes donated computers, and gets them to children in need.
  • Motor City Free Geek – A Detroit nonprofit that repairs and recycles computers, teaches and educates, and works on Open Source.
  • PCS For Schools – Refurbishes and upgrades donated computer equipment and uses it to bridge the technology gap in schools
  • World Computer Exchange – A US and Canadian non-profit that reduces the digital divide with education, donated computers, and more.

Activities For the Civic Geek: Fix-It-Ups

by

Rally your geeky friends and cohorts to help others out by applying your technical, creative, and constructive skills for repair.

It’s easy to take for granted how we can buy stuff to replace broken stuff – though it’s a bit wasteful to just throw things away (and some like electronics are a bit hard to recycle).

It’s also easy to take for granted the skills that let us repair things so we don’t have to throw stuff out.  I imagine you’ve got a few friends or even a whole club very good at making and fixing things, from cosplay to computers.

So, hold a Fix-It-Up Event.

Maybe at a convention or a hackerspace or a church or what have you, go and hold an event where you repair things for people.  You don’t just help them save and reuse things, you might teach people valuable skills:

  • Cosplayer?  Do clothes repair for people or charities.
  • Technical?  Computer repair and reuse or repurposing might be your bag.  If nothing else dead systems can yield parts for others.
  • Handy?  Repair appliances, furniture, and more.
  • Gamer?  Help people repair or clean their treasured old systems.

There’s also many ways you can combine this.  A clothing repair shop can reuse cosplay scraps.  Handy geeks who help out with basic repair can also use their skills to do convention setup.  Combine electronic repair with good recycling practices and education.

Plus, when you team up, you can combine tools, though you’ll probably get very territorial about who owns what.

So go ahead and try and do some fix-ups.

The Dotcom Bubble 2.0 – And Not Quite

by

So over at Rawstory there’s an article asking if “The dotcom bubble is about to burst again.”

I’ve been wondering about this for awhile since the first one was pretty damn awful – and now that I live in Silicon Valley, a bit closer to my heart and wallet.

Over time however, I’ve come to a different theory.  I don’t think we’ll see a repeat of the previous bubble – we’ll see something else.

Yes, there’s plenty of money going around startups.  Yes there’s some truly lame ideas people sink money into.  Yes, I’m sure there will be some very dumb investments and purchases.

But there’s also a sense going on that people know they’re gambling.  There’s balancing the odds.  Startups have been running leaner and smarter (easy when you have so much infrastructure).  We have large, stable players providing some anchors to IT.

In short, most people know what they’re in for, and I think enough awareness is built into the system to avoid a large bubble.  Small ones of course are entirely possible.  In fact, I think we’ve had mini-bubbles for quite some time.  Little areas that burst and fail early.  Regional ones.  You’re always hearing little stories, seeing stock drops and spikes/etc.

So I’m not that worried about a big bubble.

What I am worried about is a kind of weardown of the system.

Right now we have lots of people chasing startups and basically placing bets.  But if things go sour for a lot of them, investors may slowly dry up or move on – not right away, but over time.

Right now we have skill issues.  IT creates more senior jobs than junior.  Junior people may be worn out or when their startup fails not have the skillset to take other jobs.  Wages are very distorted by external pressures.

Right now we have constantly raising stakes – at some point people may not want to invest.  Maybe after awhile they go for something more stable and less erratic.

Right now we have people looking to “disrupt” the economy – but how much disruption can you do, and how much may damage the economy or cannibalize others in your space?

Also out here in Silicon Valley the insane living prices don’t exactly help.  It’s a great place, a wonderful place, but let’s just say I’m glad I have a roommate.

So my concern is not so much a bubble, but that the “frothiness” of the whole IT and dotcom world gradually goes flat from structural issues.  More financial caution.  Skill issues.  People and investors just getting worn out.  Economic changes going faster and faster until a lot of the foundation is changed or gone.  Financial challenges limiting those who can benefit – and limiting those that can make a contribution.

I’m not worried about a bubble.  I’m worried about the dotcom world and IT going kind of flat and tepid.  That, though it could go on for years, or over a decade, going “flat” is a lot harder to recover from.

  • Steven