This page is for adding workshop proposal for future BarnCamp-style events and will most likely be used to develop the workshops to be run during BarnCamp 2011.

We aim to keep half of the space for the weekend free so that people can turn up and arrange a workshop. This follows in the traditions of BarCamps and unconferences. However this is a hybrid event where there are also some planned workshops, this allows people time to prepare and lets other attendees know what kind of workshops are likely to happen.

Template

Copy and use the following template to describe your workshop idea:

Title of Workshop

Proposed by: put your name or alias here
Number of people: put min and max here, e.g. 5-20
Duration: put time in minutes, e.g. 45 mins
Required space: e.g. indoor, outdoor, field, barn, river
Facilities: say whether you need computers, a projector, a sledge hammer, etc.
Description: say something about your workshop in this space, write as much or as little as you like at this present time.

Audio, video & media

How to run your own activist radio station

Proposed by: adeladye
Number of people: 5-15
Duration: 60-90 mins (90 required for good practical)
Required space: indoor
Facilities: projector, audio mixer, microphones, computer
Description: this workshop will look at how to set up and run a small internet radio station using low-cost off-the-shelf equipment and free software. It will look at what audio kit to have, how to use a simple audio mixer, microphones and techniques, different types of audio connectors, headphones, compressors and what help they can be, the pros and cons of external vs internal sound cards, software for streaming running under Linux/FreeBSD, Mac OS X and Windows, and the Icecast streaming server. It will also introduce several streaming platform projects (such as G.I.S.S) and look at how existing radio projects operate.

How and Why to set up an anonymous blogging network

Proposed by: m3shrom
Number of people: 5-15
Duration: 60 mins
Required space: indoor / barn
Facilities: projector
Description: Wordpress.com and Blogger.com are an amazing asset to online organisers. These services have done a lot of work to make setting up a website / blog and using it as easy as possible. However as media activists we can do an even better job by providing the same service and community with out the dangers of your anonymity being compromised, or your account being withdrawn for dubious reasons.

This workshop looks at the network23.org anonymous blogging service, as a template for other groups to use or to replicate. We'll look at the rationale behind it, how to promote anonymous blogging and the practicalities of how to set up a blogging network.

Distributed Social Networking With Diaspora

Proposed by: yossarian
Number of people: 5-10
Duration: 60 mins
Required space: indoor /barn
Facilities: projector, outbound network access, an available wireless lan in the barn
Description: To a greater extent than any other computer system in history, Facebook has connected humanity with itself - and with a ruthless surveillance-based business model. What alternatives exist? People obviously want the connectedness and communications options which social networks bring to the table, but are there ways to meet these needs without a centralized system? We'll examine a few of these political questions, and then dive into setting up our own "pod", part of the Diaspora social networking system.

Airtime - (Campcaster revisited) an online Radio Scheduler

Proposed by: m3shrom (someone else feel free to step in)
Number of people: 5-10
Duration: 60 mins
Required space: indoor
Facilities: projector
Description: At previous Hacktionlabs we've looked at Campcaster a radio scheduler, and well, rejected it. However, it has been rewritten from scratch with a different playlist technology (LiquidSoap). We'll get a version of it up and running in the Barn and use this session to learn how to use it and to test it. We may get our own radio station working for the weekend.

More info on AirTime here - http://en.flossmanuals.net/airtime/index/

Programming

The HTML 5 <canvas> element as seen through a fractal eye: a brief introduction

Proposed by: adelayde
Number of people: 5-20
Duration: 30-60 mins (depending on whether we go into the maths)
Required space: indoor
Facilities: a projector and screen, I'll supply the laptop.
Description: Years ago I was into fractals, and wrote a lot of code for the Atari ST with a friend to produce Mandelbrot and Julia sets. Recently I was excited to see that HTML 5 has an element <canvas> that allows you to draw directly in to it, so I ported the algorithm for producing Mandelbrot and Julia sets to Javascript so that I could have a play. I thought this might make an interesting workshop. It could cover:

A brief introduction to fractals, Benoit Mandelbrot, Gaston Julia, et al.
A look at an algorithm to produce a Mandelbrot Set, based on those given in the book The Science of Fractal Images, along with an introduction/refresher on imaginary and complex numbers and how the pictures are drawn.
Taking the formula Z -> Z*Z + C and turning it in to code in Javascript.
A code walkthough of the final solution.
Reflexions on what code be done to improve the fractal demo I've done: new features, and ideas for what we could do with <canvas>.

It's obviously a bit of a techie workshop this one, and it would help to have a background in maths (up to A level would be helpful, though not essential) and some programming experience, especially familiarity with HTML and Javascript.

Other tech

Email accounts & lists - non-corporate options

Proposed by: penguin
Number of people: 5-20
Duration: 60 mins
Required space: indoor
Facilities: projector
Description: Why and how to use activists providers instead of Google, Hotmail, Yahoo, etc. Vague agenda is

What's wrong with corporate providers?
What are the alternatives?
How to set up email accounts and lists on non-corporate providers.
Social (i.e. non-tech) considerations in setting up & managing email lists.

Help! - would be great to talk to a aktivik person about this workshop.

TAILS

Proposed by: Ben Green
Number of people: 0-40
Duration: 15
Required space: indoor - poss laptops outdoors in the shade
Facilities: one computer with USB boot facility, a projector if lots of people want to see
Description: A look at the potential of the TAILS distribution - it goes on a USB key and doesn't tell anyone what you are doing: https://amnesia.boum.org/

More info - The Amnesic Incognito Live System (Live CD, Live USB) is aimed at preserving your privacy and anonymity: all outgoing connections to the Internet are forced to go through the Tor network; no trace is left on local storage devices unless explicitly asked.

Ecological and Social Costs of IT Hardware

Proposed by: Syder
Number of People: 0-40
Duration: 30-45mins
Required Space: Indoor
Facilities: Projector
Description: A talk looking at aspects of the production process for some forms of IT and media hardware, and the associated ecological and social costs which we tend to hear little about. Presentation online at http://prezi.com/frkvvv2hzaoa/media-materiality-and-the-environment-exploring-the-ethics-and-sustainability-of-hardware/

Low/Non-Tech

Wool Technology

Proposed by: Juley
Number of people
Duration
Required space
Facilities
Description

Wild Food Walk

Proposed by: Ben Green
Number of people: 40
Duration: 120
Required space: 40acres of woods and fields
Facilities: none
Description: I'm sure you can guess. Walking around looking for food and plants useful in other ways too. Learning to indentify what's edible and what's poisonous.

Get Knotted

Proposed by: Pete
Number of people: as many as are interested
Duration: not long, 20-30 minutes i guess
Required space: a bit of space
Facilities: none
Description: Has anyone ever told you to "get knotted" but you've not been able to because you don't know any knots? well if so then this workshop is for you. i like knots. they're very useful. next time someone says "get knotted" you can say "c'mon i need some more specificity here; should I use a figure-8? an 8-on-a-bight? a taught-line-hitch? a whiskey-bottle-hitch? a clove-hitch? fisherperson's knot? double-fisherperson's knot? or even the infamous 8-on-a-bight-on-a-bight?".

BarnCamp 2011 Workshop Proposals

Contents