A couple weeks ago, I had the chance to witness the birth of a brand new hackerspace while visiting Austin for a few days.
The aptly named Austin Hackerspace is located a few minutes south of downtown (on Ben White Blvd.) in an unassuming shop building (very easy to miss, look for the enDesign sign).
By California standards, the space is pretty big (insert joke about Texas here):
The founders are taking an interesting approach to building the hackerspace. Studios are being constructed around the outside of the space. They are renting 1/4 studio slots to interested hackers that need a place to store their stuff or work on projects in a quiet, air conditioned environment.
Access to the common areas is free (as long as a key-carrying member is present). There are already some tools available for shared-use, such as the large CNC X-Y stage (a work in progress) shown here:
There is also lounge with a video projector for meetings (dorkbot!) and some comfy chairs.
Drill presses and other tools (which I assume will be available for use in the space) are being temporarily stored inside a large paint booth, which will also be available to members.
On my way out, I spotted some evidence that there will be some interesting hacking happening here in the near future…
Interested in helping out? They are looking for volunteers. More photos are here, and more info about the space is available at austinhackerspace.org.
