Hacktionlab Manchester 2011 Notes

Groups

People here are involved in the following projects:

• Mute
• Bristol Wireless
• Network23
• Catalyst Radio
• Be The Media
• Indymedia - Oxford and Alba
• Aktivix
• No Flag
• Manchester Mule
• Indy.im

Making connections brainstorm

• Hosting
• List of radical-friendly hosting - what is radical-friendly hosting?
• Sharing costs & good suppliers
• Tachanka - how to promote?
• Developing trusted (personal & tech) networks
• Clear guidance on how trust systems work & how people can access services
• Repeated cross linking - embed codes
• Include propaganda in for e.g. welcome messages for new accounts
• Sharing skills e.g. how to set up hosting
• Combined media releases
• Accessibility of entry point - e.g. welcoming web sites
• Model letter to suggest people use radical resources
• Simple aggregation of other project's content
• Using each others resources - e.g. email list providers
• How to keep up to date with each other - Jabber, indy.im, diaspora?

Tech Tools for Activists Booklet v 2.0

• Intro to old booklet
• What publishing system to use?
• Give bookie a try as a collaborative tool - can also be used for updating post-publication
• Export to Scribus to print copy - try and replicate this with bookie
• Get an ISBN number so book is visible to book sellers?
• Use print on demand (POD) 44p / copy + £12ish P&P for 300
• Keep similar format - explain the why & what, but not the how.
• Hows can be linked
• Could made a larger book that includes the how
• *Agreed* Ben G to be project slave driver whip-cracker type of thing
• Other roles ...
  • Content providers
  • Proof-reading - Beth, Becki (?)
  • Design
    • Art work - illustration
    • Cover design
    • Pics
    • Layout, fonts, etc.
  • Copy writing
  • Promotion
  • Distribution ( could be somewhat improved from v1 or words to that effect)
  • Finance
• Licence? Not decided
• *Content*
• Do we need a new focus - 1st edition was very security focused
• Is the title the best one?
• Better intro - what the booklet's about, what you'll get from it.
• Revisit intro to each chapter & make very very very simple.
• Use real case studies
• New / revised content
  • Status net / indy.im
  • Anon blogging
  • Internet radio / catalyst
  • unspeak.im
  • Secure hosting
  • SSH
  • VPN
• Editorial process? Let list know before completely overhauling somebody else's content
• Time scale: content writing will be over by Christmas

intro session - 30mins

• WTF are we to?
• How our projects interact

Hacktionlab on the road - 120mins

• lab - some content is offered from Mute
• hacktionlab - on the road tour, how to organise this - a look at
• funding - is the under the hacktionlab remit? - some things we might need paying for
• festivals - do we do festivals?
• social centres - do we do social centres/unis/colleges
• courseware -lesson plans/online activities/too ambitious?/open
• licence - how can we work on workshop materials together?

Tech Tools for Activists Booklet v 2.0- 60mins

• new version of Tech_tools_for_activists?
• booki.cc - get tech tools from source to publishable document HOW?
• editor - tech tools needs an editor
• epublishing - how can you make ebooks - structured books - progressive
• publishing system (PPS)

BeTheMedia front page - 90mins

• session to sort this out this content, looking at how BTM works with other groups
• Make a working process for the tech group - Drupal

catalyst website - 90mins

• streaming server trouble needs sorting, airtime
• skills to share, create a wishlist, look at the airtime GUI to suggest features/bugs
• Strategy for world domination
• media players - look at online media players and how to use them

outreach/publicity session - 6omins

• Ideas
• new hacktionlab website - wiki is a bit inaccessable currently - new front end WP or Drupal

Closing plenary - 45mins

• defining ourselves - where next?