

OpenHack: 17 cities strong and counting - qrush
http://openhack.github.com/?new

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whit537
My favorite thing about this is that it's not focusing on a specific
technology. I'm pretty involved with the Python group here in Pittsburgh, but
what I really love is _doing_ stuff, not necessarily getting together and
talking or sitting while someone else talks. It seems wrong to me somehow to
make a particular technology the focus of a group. They're tools! And,
honestly, they're pretty similar tools--Python, Ruby, JavaScript, etc. It'd be
like if carpenters had Hammer user groups and Mallet user groups and Maul user
groups. Can we just build some shit, please?

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b3b0p
I'm looking to get a regular weekend meetup going in Tulsa, OK. I created a
preliminary page and put in a pull request. I know we have some fellow hackers
on here lurking. Hopefully some people on here see this that live nearby
interested.

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exolxe
Interesting concept, love the intention.

At first glance it seems OpenHack provides the organizer with the concept,
branding, and inclusion on their site... anything I'm missing? what are the
next steps?

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qrush
Yep, it's more of a "flag" to fly under, and a template to run meetings. We
should definitely have a page for "How do I schedule my first meetup?".

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exolxe
Good idea, lead potential organizers into the next action steps... I'm out in
CA and down to help if you want any help connecting with meetups/organizers.

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whit537
What has been produced so far by groups under this banner? That's the
interesting question, to me. Anything you can link us to?

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pserwylo
While this is an interesting question, and it would be nice to know, I don't
think its the only reason to have these get togethers. For someone like me, it
would be more about experience, networking, and fun. I like to code in my
spare time, but often work on my own and it kinda detracts from the fun.

Perhaps another interesting question is "Is there anything which
differentiates this from a local HackerSpace?". If the goal is to not focus on
specific languages or environments, then why not go one step further, and not
focus specifically on software?

I understand that there is need to draw the line somewhere, so I don't have
any problem with them focusing on just software, however another HN article
could be:

HackerSpaces: Over 500 cities strong and counting [0]

[0] - <http://hackerspaces.org/wiki/List_of_Hacker_Spaces>

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whit537
Correct me if I'm wrong, but HackerSpaces are more about the space since you
have to store your hardware somewhere and there's more tools involved. With
software all you need is a laptop so an OpenHack could maybe migrate around
more easily.

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joefearnley
Heard about this on the In Beta podcast. Love the idea. Looks like the design
has been updated a little since. Very nice.

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barce
This is such a great idea! If I were Meetup, I would be scared.

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qrush
We're using Meetup to help RSVP for the Buffalo one. The github page is here
to organize them all and provide a more centralized "home" for them.

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lilerer
love this idea, cant wait to get started!

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qrush
Awesome! We have a page on how to get started. Let me know how it goes.
<http://openhack.github.com/yours/>

