BricolabsNet

BRICOLABS

 
Bricolabs is a collaborative exchange between Brazilian, Indonesian, UK, Chinese, Indian and Dutch open source experts, exploring mutual interest in distributed generation of tools, and soft/hardware skills. We focus on knowledge exchange, development of new business models and the building of a critical discourse for the current generations  of young artists, designers and social scientists.
 
This the idea: to draw on the expertise of all experimental places that have the conceptual grasp of taking advantage of low tech and the full loop of open content, software and hardware for working locally in the communities and globally as no longer a countermovement against wild capital, IP and patents but a parallel one.
 
We build on the Brazilian expertise gathered in the process of establishing Points of Culture (Pontos de Cultura) “free-software studios, built with free software, in hundreds of towns and villages throughout Brazil, enabling people to create culture using tools that support free cultural transmission.” and will introduce a next phase of focus and scope: bricolabs.
 
== GENERIC INFRASTRUCTURES ==
http://www.genericinfrastructures.com/
 
"Electronic techniques recognize no contradiction in principle between transmitter and receiver. Every transistor radio is, by the matters of its construction, at the same time a potential transmitter; it can interact with other receivers by circuit reversal. The development from a mere distribution medium to a communications medium is technically not a problem. It is consciously prevented for understandable political reasons. The technical distinction between receivers and transmitters reflects the social division of labor into producers and consumers."
 
Bricolabs investigate the potentialities of the combination open societies, open hardware and open labs. Its aim is to create a brand neutral and non proprietary generic infrastructure. Following the wikipedia definition of generic drugs:
 
a generic infrastructure  is bioequivalent to a brand or proprietary infrastructure with respect to electric and applicationcodynamic properties.
 
The concept of generic infrastructure claims that only by educating all citizens in their increasing connectivities will foster an atmosphere of realistic acceptance of new nano, sensor and bio technologies through the abilities of ever increasing wired an self educated individuals to work on the principles of these technologies not from the closed ever increasing alledgly simple interfaces. We argue for more complexity. We believe that citizens of the YOU11 generation are very capable of handling this.
 
=== Generic Information Devices ===
The goal of the ["GID"] project is to create an open, reworkable hardware test bed for a generic information device. Using standardized components and open source software, bricolab participants ( and others such as design schools or private companies) can create custom information devices for their own particular contexts and needs. The development and design of the resultant devices will be shared as “how to’s” on a publically accessible internet site, encouraging shared expertise and the development of a generic information infrastructure both within the bricolabs project as well as by external individuals and groups. The GID will thus serve as a “shared object” facilitating cross-bricolab communication as well as the involvement of design schools and private companies.
 
More on the ["GID"] wiki page.
 
== BRICOLABS: HOW? ==
 * Check BricoLabsPrinciples.
 * BricoLabsEuCall
== BRICOLABS: WHERE? ==
=== Existing places ===
 * Felipe Fonseca,  LaMiMe, Sao Paulo
 * Braulio "Stalker" Britto, [http://estilingue.sarava.org/moin/BricoLab BricoLabBH / Estilingue], Bello Horizonte
 * Inke Arns, HMVK, Dortmund
 * Gustaff Harriman, Common Room, Bandung
 * Venzha, House of Natural Fiber, Yogjakarta,
 * Nenad Romic aka Marcell Mars, Mi2Lab, Zagreb,
 * Lotte Meijer, MMMlab, Amsterdam,
 * Marcus Neustetter, The Trinity Session, South Africa,
 * Rasa Smite, RIXC, Riga, Rasa Smite
 * Maja Kuzmanovic, Fo.am, Brussels
 * [http://ianlawrence.info Ian Lawrence] [http://blogs.metareciclagem.org/manaus Borala] Manaus,Amazonas
=== Festivals ===
 * Annette Wolfsberger, John Bywater Enter, Cambridge
 * Drew Hemment, Futuresonic, Manchester,
=== Coming up ===
 * Rob van Kranenburg, Hilversum
 * Ben Schouten, Eindhoven,
 * Li Zhenhua,  Beijing,
 * Espaço Estilingue, Belo Horizonte, Brasil - http://estilingue.sarava.org
=== Friends ===
 * Jaromil, Dyne.org
 * John Bywater, Appropriate Software Foundation
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