

Hacker Dojo Meets Fund-Raising Goal  - kfarzaneh
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/19/hacker-dojo-meets-fundraising-goal/

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ChuckMcM
Great news, I is gratifying to see the support out there for these sorts of
things. Now if we can get the Hacker Dojo enlisting people on disrupting the
whole ADA 'racket' (where the cities exploit the ADA to raise revenue,
egregious example: they changed the shade of 'blue' needed for parking spaces,
need to re-paint them and get re-inspected, sigh.) That would be fabulous.

~~~
_delirium
The regulations here don't seem to be a "racket" nor relating to trivialities
like color of parking spaces (if _that_ were the problem, it'd be easy). As
the article notes, the two "big ticket" problems, which are real problems but
expensive to correct, are: 1) the facility doesn't meet fire code for a
structure that's going to be filled with people regularly, as opposed to
storing inanimate goods as a warehouse; and 2) there are no wheelchair-
accessible bathrooms. If a building is going to regularly host gatherings of
hundreds of people, sometimes 24/7, imo it's not a particularly bad idea that
it should follow fire code and be disabled-accessible.

~~~
ChuckMcM
Absolutely, these are needed things, they also get abused by cities. Both
statements can be (and are) simultaneously true. I've been orchestrating a
facilities move and dealing with requirements, some of which I don't quibble
with at all like the number of fire extinguishers in a building or placement
of fire detection/alarms. Other things I do quibble with (like 3.5% incline in
the parking lot vs an allowable 3% [1] incline, you show me a building
inspector that can accurately survey a parking lot to a tenth of a degree and
I'll show you a civil engineer. When the guy puts down his iPhone to use the
'level' app to measure in one spot, you wonder what they are trying to
achieve.

[1] <http://www.ada.gov/reg3a.html> \- A4.8.2 Slope and Rise. Ramp slopes
between 1:16 (3.58 degrees) and 1:20 (2.86 degrees) are preferred. The ability
to manage an incline is related to both its slope and its length. Wheelchair
users with disabilities affecting their arms or with low stamina have serious
difficulty using inclines. Most ambulatory people and most people who use
wheelchairs can manage a slope of 1:16. Many people cannot manage a slope of
1:12 for 30 ft (9 m).

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andyl
It is fascinating that this low-budget warehouse space is worthy of NYT
coverage. I have gone to a bunch of meetups at HD & made a small contribution
to the fund - it is a great local resource. I'm just surprised that this
inconspicuous venue attracts national media.

~~~
bluehat
Hi, I'm the director of development at Hacker Dojo and handle most of our
press work.

For us, there have been two things which have really helped us get picked up
by conventional media. The first is spending the time to figure out what
stories will be interesting to their readers, and how events can be best
presented in an entertaining and newsworthy format. The second is to develop
relationships with the reporters that are meaningful. Send them story leads
that you don't benefit from in any way. Talk to them when you're not asking
for anything. Treat them like humans.

You can see some of the other press on this story at:

VentureBeat: Silicon Valley community Hacker Dojo finds a savior in YouWeb
incubator [http://venturebeat.com/2012/09/19/silicon-valley-
community-h...](http://venturebeat.com/2012/09/19/silicon-valley-community-
hacker-dojo-finds-a-savior-in-youweb-incubator/)

Wired: Embattled Hackers Save Dojo With Help From Unexpected Savior
<http://www.wired.com/business/2012/09/hacker-dojo-saved/>

Vator: YouWeb creator Peter Relan saves Hacker Dojo
[http://vator.tv/news/2012-09-19-youweb-creator-peter-
relan-s...](http://vator.tv/news/2012-09-19-youweb-creator-peter-relan-saves-
hacker-dojo)

GigaOm: Andreessen Horowitz, Wozniak, Google, and others give to save Hacker
Dojo [http://gigaom.com/2012/09/19/investors-step-in-to-keep-
mount...](http://gigaom.com/2012/09/19/investors-step-in-to-keep-mountain-
views-hacker-dojo-open-for-business/)

Mercury News: Hacker Dojo fights to the finish; last-minute donation propels
organization to $250K fundraising goal
[http://www.mercurynews.com/peninsula/ci_21578858/hacker-
dojo...](http://www.mercurynews.com/peninsula/ci_21578858/hacker-dojo-fights-
finish-last-minute-donation-propels)

SJ Biz Journal: Hacker Dojo hits fund goal to upgrade co-working space
[http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/blog/2012/09/hacker-
dojo-...](http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/blog/2012/09/hacker-dojo-raises-
funds-to-upgrade.html)

Remember, we were partnered with YouWeb's media team for this particular
effort, so kudos go to them and their skills as well.

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YokoZar
Last night I gave a tour to my friend who'd never seen the place before. Just
before midnight, we left a dollar in the donation box. This morning this story
comes out.

I can only conclude I made the difference.

edit: and by sheer coincidence, I also work for one of Peter Relan's companies
(Agawi)

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lsiebert
Awesome... I was able to check it out once during the summer and it was really
nice, but I expect I'll be spending more time there once my classes near there
start up.

We'll see if I can afford the membership fee, or will have to salve my guilt
with occasional donations.

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suyash
This is great news, I can't wait to attend more classes and meetups at Hacker
Dojo, I hope they will go back to hosting bigger meetups there!

