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OSHUG #9 - Chips, Thursday 21st April 2011.
by Andrew Back 24 Mar '11

24 Mar '11

OSHUG #9 — Chips (Programmable Logic, Computer Conservation with FPGAs, OpenCores & OpenRISC 1000) On the 21st April 2011, 18:00 - 20:00 at Skills Matter, 116-120 Goswell Road, London, EC1V 7DP, UK (51.525335, -0.099056) Registration: http://oshug.org/event/9 Programmable logic, and in particular field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), is a topic that has frequently come up at OSHUG meetings, both in informal discussion and in presentations (see use of FPGAs in projects covered at OSHUG #5 & OSHUG #8). This is a particularly exciting technology in the context of open source hardware, as it presents an opportunity to realise performance gains approaching those that are associated with custom silicon – an Application-Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) - albeit without the enormous foundry start-up costs which make this largely the reserve of major industry. Furthermore, the design artefacts lend themselves to collaborative development and can be handled in a manner similar to that employed with the source code to computer software. At the ninth OSHUG meeting we will be given an introduction to programmable logic and the associated development cycle, we'll hear about applications in computer conservation, and we will learn about open source chip design, the OpenCores community and the MIPS-like OpenRISC 1000 CPU. // A Brief Introduction to Programmable Logic Programmable Logic Devices - mainly FPGAs – are frequently utilised in high speed and computationally intensive applications, and with modern devices containing several million transistors and many gigabits/second of connectivity they are becoming increasingly popular in the race to achieve exascale computing power. But what does this all mean and how can FPGAs achieve this processing power? How do they differ from the good old CPUs we have in our everyday computers? In essence, an FPGA is a device that contains configurable blocks of logic along with flexible interconnect between these blocks. They can be configured to contain exactly and only those operations that appear in the algorithms employed in a particular application, which can potentially give them quite a bit of an advantage in terms of throughput and efficiency when compared to static instruction set processors such as a traditional x86 CPU. In this short introductory talk we will cover the basics of programmable logic devices and talk about the design, synthesis, simulation, implementation and programming cycles associated with FPGA projects. Omer Kilic is a research student at the University of Kent working on dynamically reconfigurable architectures and embedded systems. When he is not busy working on his PhD project (a reconfigurable heterogeneous computing framework) or running lab classes, he enjoys tinkering and drinking good beer. // Computer Conservation with FPGAs Having acquired an IBM System/360 Model 30 mainframe whilst he was at university, Lawrence Wilkinson brought it back to life, then abandoned it when the rent and power costs became a drain, and has since felt very guilty. As they became obsolete in the early 1970s, very few IBM System/360s now exist in running order. To make amends he embarked on a project of re-creating the Model 30 as a gate-level simulation, using the original circuits and microcode. While the software-based Hercules emulator is available to run all 360 and 370 software, Lawrence's programmable logic-based solution faithfully replicates the Model 30 with its limited storage and I/O capability, and provides a front panel interface. The basic CPU is implemented in a Xilinx S3 FPGA and the VHDL is available for download under the GPL. Development of the project continues with the further addition of storage and I/O devices. Lawrence Wilkinson started out as an Electrical and Electronic Engineer in Auckland in the 1980s, transmogrified into an IT and Accounting support person in the late 80s, then went back to hardware and low-level software upon moving to England in the mid 90s. Eventually ending up with the new BAR Formula 1 team, he spent a few years writing and supporting on-car control software, won the World Championship with Brawn Grand Prix in 2009, and currently supports various factory test systems for Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix in Northamptonshire. // OpenCores, Chip Design and the OpenRISC 1000 Opencores dates back to 1999 as a forum for open source chip designs, primarily intended for FPGA, but also used in ASIC. It now hosts several hundred designs, and has over 100,000 registered users world wide. This talk will look at what is involved in putting together an open source chip design. In particular the licensing issues represent a challenge, with standard F/OSS licenses having serious weaknesses when it comes to licensing hardware. It will finish with an overview of OpenCores' flagship project, the OpenRISC 1000. This is a 32-bit MIPS-like RISC processor, with a full reference SoC design. It comes with a GNU development tool chain, a number of RTOS ports and an up to date uClibc Linux kernel/BusyBox implementation. In recent years the entire front-end design flow has become open source, as open source electronic design automation (EDA) tools have become available. It has now reached the stage of maturity where some of its development is by commercially funded engineers, as well as a large community of volunteers. Dr Jeremy Bennett is Chief Executive of Embecosm Limited. Embecosmi provides open source services, tools and models to facilitate embedded software development with complex systems-on chip. He spends two days a month working as the Embedded Systems Champion for the Electronics, Sensors and Photonics KTN, which seeks to improve the flow of knowledge between academia and industry. He can be contacted via jeremy.bennett(a)embecosm.com. Note: Please aim to arrive for 18:00 - 18:20 as the event will start at 18:30 prompt. Registration: http://oshug.org/event/9

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Open Source 5 axis CNC Router & Plasma Machine Plans 5'x10'
by Andrew Back 15 Mar '11

15 Mar '11

A nice find by Sebastien of the MilkyMist project... Cheers, Andrew -- Andrew Back mailto:andrew@osmosoft.com http://carrierdetect.com

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OSHUG #7 - BBC Radio 5 Live.
by Andrew Back 15 Feb '11

15 Feb '11

I asked the speakers at last week's OSHUG meeting a few questions for Outriders on BBC Radio 5 Live. This was broadcast in the early hours of this morning and is now up as a podcast. http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/outriders/2011/02/histories_stories_and_current.… Cheers, Andrew -- Andrew Back mailto:andrew@osmosoft.com http://carrierdetect.com

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Why the Arduino Won and Why It’s Here to Stay.
by Andrew Back 14 Feb '11

14 Feb '11

http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2011/02/why-the-arduino-won-and-why-its-he… -- Andrew Back mailto:andrew@osmosoft.com http://carrierdetect.com

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OSHUG #7, Thursday 10th February.
by Andrew Back 10 Feb '11

10 Feb '11

Hello, Just a quick note to say that if you haven't yet registered for the next OSHUG meeting you would be advised to do so soon, as we are almost at capacity. Also, bearing this in mind, if you have registered and find yourself now unable to attend please can you cancel your booking so that someone else may register. http://oshuglearning.eventbrite.com/ Cheers, Andrew -- Andrew Back mailto:andrew@osmosoft.com http://carrierdetect.com

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Open Source Hardware Definition 1.0 released.
by Andrew Back 10 Feb '11

10 Feb '11

http://freedomdefined.org/OSHW Regards, Andrew -- Andrew Back mailto:andrew@osmosoft.com http://carrierdetect.com

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OSHUG #7 - Learning, Thursday 10th February.
by Andrew Back 08 Jan '11

08 Jan '11

Hello, Registration is now live for OSHUG #7: http://oshug.org/event/7 Details below. Cheers, Andrew -- OSHUG #7 — Learning (BBC, Tinker London) On the 10th Feb 2011, 18:00 - 20:30 at BBC White City Media Centre, 201 Wood Lane, London, W12 7TQ, UK (51.513359, -0.227874) The ability to study and improve the design of open source hardware is a core principle and it follows therefore that as a methodology it is well suited to learning environments. Community, collaboration and ecosystem are also central open source hardware, however, ambitious projects that embraced these principles existed long before its advent. At the seventh OSHUG meeting we'll be hearing from ex-BBC employees that were intimately involved in the BBC's Computer Literacy Project, the creation of the BBC Micro and the Domesday project. First hand experiences from that heady time during the 1980s when the UK was at the forefront of microcomputer development will frame the opportunity that faces us once again. Whereas lessons learnt will help us to build on these experiences and to strive to ensure that pitfalls are avoided. We will also be hearing from Tinker London about experiences of teaching open source technologies and how this differs from more traditional approaches to learning. Kindly hosted by BBC Learning Development. // The BBC Computer Literacy Project Why did the BBC embark on one of its most ambitious projects - the Computer Literacy Project - in 1982? What was the scene like then and how successful was the enterprise. What technical issues were involved? 85% of schools used BBC Micros and millions were sold, along with best selling books and software, including 'telesoftware'. What is the legacy - if at all? How did the work then benefit BBC technology now? After being Head of Science at Beaumont and Stonyhurst Colleges, David Allen joined the BBC in 1969 as an Assistant producer/director. He became producer and then executive producer of a range of programmes. As a programme maker, he was series editor of the BBC Computer Literacy Project 1982-1986 and intimately connected with the creation of the BBC Microcomputer. He received seven awards (including the New York Film Festival, Sony Innovation awards, RTS Judges Award and Times Technology Programme of the Year two years running. With BBC R&D helped evolve radio cameras and virtual studio production. When David retired he was executive producer in Production Modernisation. He is currently making documentaries for BBC R&D and for Historic Royal Palaces. // The BBC Domesday Project - If I could Do it All Over Again The BBC Domesday Project was an interactive media production made as part of celebrations of the 900th anniversary of William the Conqueror's Domesday Book of 1086. It was a technical triumph, combining digital data with analogue pictures, video and sound with an innovative user interface running on an 8-bit BBC Microcomputer controlling a state-of-the-art laser videodisc. 25 years later it has still not been possible to republish something that over a million people helped to make, and despite sometime heroic reclamation and preservation, it is still virtually impossible to access the original software. Andy Finney was one of the project founders and he produced some of the material in the project. He will explain the origins and technical background to the Domesday discs in the context of both it 1980s origins and how much of what it pioneered has since become commonplace. Andy Finney started in radio and moved into television, video and interactive video within the BBC over a 21 year career. Since leaving he has concentrated on web-based technologies including databases, these days with a lean towards digital television reception. He worked with the then Public Record Office and the BBC to help preserve the audio-visual content of the Domesday discs and still keeps a fatherly eye out for re-publication. // Standing on the Shoulders of Hackers Learning is an intrinsic aspect of open source projects. Practices such as documenting and sharing work, following one’s own interests, and ad hoc organizing open up - and complicate - opportunities for learning and teaching, especially in informal and semi-formal contexts. Drawing on his experiences teaching Arduino workshops, Daniel will talk about how both the hardware and open-source aspects of OSH affect processes and tools for learning and teaching. Daniel Soltis is an interaction designer specializing in physical interfaces, play and games, and the rough edges where engineering, design, art, and learning meet. He has been working with Tinker London since 2008, studied physical computing and game design at NYU’s Interactive Telecommunications Program, and in prior life had various adventures in math and physics, teaching, editing, and medical writing. He has taught Arduino, Processing, and rapid prototyping for events and institutions including Thinking Digital, CIID, the V&A, and dConstruct, and has spoken about games and hardware at events including SXSW, the SIGGRAPH Video Game Symposium, Playful, and Open Hardware Camp. Note: Please aim to arrive for 18:00 - 18:15 as the event will start at 18:30 prompt. Note also that the venue is the Media Centre at White City and not the main White City building itself! On arrival please report to reception. -- Andrew Back mailto:andrew@osmosoft.com http://carrierdetect.com

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Thursday and interviews.
by Andrew Back 15 Nov '10

15 Nov '10

Hello, Just to remind folks that the next meeting is this Thursday and that this month London Hackspace have kindly offered to host us. All the details can be found at: http://oshug.org/event/6 Also, a few weeks ago I interviewed folks from Scrap Creative Reuse, Leeds Hackspace and Oomlout for the Outriders programme on BBC Radio 5 Live. This is now available as a podcast: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/outriders/2010/11/being_digital.shtml Whilst the common theme was makers I did get to briefly chat with Aaron at Oomlout about their open approach to product development/licensing. Cheers, Andrew -- Andrew Back mailto:andrew@osmosoft.com http://carrierdetect.com

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HPSDR slides (OSHUG #5).
by Andrew Back 15 Nov '10

15 Nov '10

All, I've just uploaded the slides from John Melton's excellent HPSDR talk: http://oshug.org/presentations/OSHUG5_HPSDR.pdf Regards, Andrew -- Andrew Back mailto:andrew@osmosoft.com http://carrierdetect.com

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The Opening Up of GSM and blogs.
by Andrew Back 31 Oct '10

31 Oct '10

Hello, I just posted an entry to the OSHUG blog at DesignSpark that may be of interest: http://www.designspark.com/content/opening-gsm Why at DesignSpark and not at blog.oshug.org? Well, we can have the latter also if folks think that this would be a good idea and/or would like to contribute. And if anyone wants to contribute to the DS blog they are welcome to and can e-mail me off-list. The rationale for posting to DesignSpark was that this appears to be growing into a sizeable community of electronic design engineers, and thus may present a good opportunity for extolling the virtues of open source approaches to hardware design. Getting back to oshug.org, I was thinking about setting up planet.oshug.org for aggregating member blog posts on OSH. With the hope being that folks can then more easily contribute and don't have to commit effort to a third party thing. As ever, I would welcome your thoughts. Cheers, Andrew -- Andrew Back mailto:andrew@osmosoft.com http://carrierdetect.com

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OSHUG #6, At Home (Tacticalendar, Denkimono Clock).
by Andrew Back 28 Oct '10

28 Oct '10

Hello, The theme for the sixth OSHUG meeting will be At Home, with talks on the Tacticalendar and Denkimono Clock projects. The date for the meeting is Thursday 18th November and the kind folks at London Hackspace have agreed to host us. For more information and to register see: http://oshug.org/event/6 Cheers, Andrew -- Andrew Back mailto:andrew@osmosoft.com http://carrierdetect.com

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Reminder: OSHUG #5 tomorrow!
by Andrew Back 20 Oct '10

20 Oct '10

Hello, Just a reminder that if you are planning on heading along to the fifth OSHUG meeting tomorrow to register if you haven't already: http://oshugradio.eventbrite.com/ Cheers, Andrew -- Open Source Hardware User Group Event #5 Radio (HPSDR) Thursday, October 21, 2010 from 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM (GMT) London, United Kingdom HPSDR is an open source (GNU type) hardware and software project intended as the "next generation" software-defined radio for radio amateurs and shortwave listeners. It is being developed by a group of software-defined radio enthusiasts around the world, and in a modular hardware fashion to help promote experimentation by both hardware and software developers. John Melton has held an amateur radio license since 1984 when he was first licensed as N6LYT while living and working in California, and he was assigned the UK callsign of G0ORX on moving back to the UK. He became interested in developing open source software in 1990 with the launch of AMSAT Oscar 16, an amateur radio satellite with a store and forward messaging payload. He developed an open source software package to communicate with the satellite that ran on Linux (pre 1.0) and subsequently wrote an open source fully automated satellite ground station software package in Java. John has been a software engineer since 1970 when he was employed by Burroughs Corporation, and for the last 14 years he has worked for Sun Microsystems who were acquired by Oracle this year. -- Andrew Back mailto:andrew@osmosoft.com http://carrierdetect.com

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OSHUG #5 - Radio (HPSDR).
by Andrew Back 12 Oct '10

12 Oct '10

Hello, This month we have a talk on the very cool High Performance Software-Defined Radio platform: http://openhpsdr.org HPSDR is an open source (GNU type) hardware and software project intended as the "next generation" software-defined radio for radio amateurs and shortwave listeners. It is being developed by a group of software-defined radio enthusiasts around the world, and in a modular hardware fashion to help promote experimentation by both hardware and software developers. John Melton has held an amateur radio license since 1984 when he was first licensed as N6LYT while living and working in California, and he was assigned the UK callsign of G0ORX on moving back to the UK. He became interested in developing open source software in 1990 with the launch of AMSAT Oscar 16, an amateur radio satellite with a store and forward messaging payload. He developed an open source software package to communicate with the satellite that ran on Linux (pre 1.0) and subsequently wrote an open source fully automated satellite ground station software package in Java. John has been a software engineer since 1970 when he was employed by Burroughs Corporation, and for the last 14 years he has worked for Sun Microsystems who were acquired by Oracle this year. For more details and to register: http://oshug.org/event/5 Cheers, Andrew -- Andrew Back mailto:andrew@osmosoft.com http://carrierdetect.com

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Fwd: Reminder: Open Hard&Software Event in Munich (4th/5th December) - we still have room for more topics & speakers
by Bryan Bishop 08 Oct '10

08 Oct '10

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Dr. H. Nikolaus Schaller <hns(a)computer.org> Date: Fri, Oct 8, 2010 at 2:19 PM Subject: Reminder: Open Hard&Software Event in Munich (4th/5th December) - we still have room for more topics & speakers To: discussion(a)lists.en.qi-hardware.com We still need some more speakers and proposals for the German Open Hard&Software Workshop/Event that we plan for December in Munich. Details can be found here: http://wiki.openmoko.org/wiki/Open_HW_SW_Event/de Please register to the specific German language mailing list to stay up to date and discuss the agenda. Topics are e.g. (depends on participants who organize a session or have something to contribute): • Openmoko • Nanonote • Freerunner Navigation Board v2 • BeagleBoard • SHR • QtMoko • FSO • Arduino • OpenPandora Note: workshop language will be German _______________________________________________ Qi Hardware Discussion List Mail to list (members only): discussion(a)lists.en.qi-hardware.com Subscribe or Unsubscribe: http://lists.en.qi-hardware.com/mailman/listinfo/discussion -- - Bryan http://heybryan.org/ 1 512 203 0507

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osh suggestion
by Peter Kämmerling 06 Oct '10

06 Oct '10

Hello, I am new to the oshug list. I would like to post a suggestion about a osh project. Would this be welcome in this forum? ------------------------------------ TREE Peter Kämmerling PeterKa(a)TreeDev.eu

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Open Hardware Summit stream is go
by Bryan Bishop 23 Sep '10

23 Sep '10

Open Hardware Summit is streaming live today. stream: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/open-hardware-summit-2010 schedule: http://www.openhardwaresummit.org/schedule/ about: http://openhardwaresummit.org/ twitter: https://twitter.com/openhwsummit featuring: * Limor Fried * Bruce Perens * John Wilbanks * .. well, and lots of others :-) - Bryan http://heybryan.org/ 1 512 203 0507

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OSHUG #4 this Thursday.
by Andrew Back 20 Sep '10

20 Sep '10

Just a reminder that it's OSHUG meeting #4 this Thursday and if you plan to attend but have not already registered to please do so. We've a great agenda with talks on mbed, DesignSpark and London Hackspace. For more information and to register see: http://oshug.org/event/4 Regards, Andrew -- Andrew Back mailto:andrew@osmosoft.com http://carrierdetect.com

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Event #4 - Community, 23rd September.
by Andrew Back 28 Aug '10

28 Aug '10

Hello, Details are now up on the website for the fourth OSHUG meeting: http://oshug.org/event/4 Still waiting for a few more details from DesignSpark and London Hackspace, but registration is now live. We'll add further details as and when we have them. The theme for OSHUG #5 will be radio and we have a talk on the extremely cool OpenHPSDR platform confirmed. http://openhpsdr.org/ Still looking for a couple more speakers. Might be nice to have a talk on the affordable Softrock SDR radios, or perhaps something non-ham related, e.g. an open source hardware GPS, RFID, UWB or more classical radio platform or project. As ever suggestions and offers to present are most welcome and indeed encouraged. Cheers, Andrew -- Andrew Back mailto:andrew@osmosoft.com http://carrierdetect.com

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Arduino: The Documentary (trailer)
by Andrew Back 01 Aug '10

01 Aug '10

http://vimeo.com/13781339 Cheers, Andrew -- Andrew Back mailto:andrew@osmosoft.com http://carrierdetect.com

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London hackspace party
by Adrian Godwin 28 Jul '10

28 Jul '10

In case anyone here isn't aware of the London Hackspace, you might like to know that they've opened a new space in Hoxton. To celebrate this, there's a spacewarming party .. come along and find out about the hackspace group and the space facilities. http://wiki.hackspace.org.uk/wiki/Spacewarming_party -adrian

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Open Hardware Summit
by Paul Downey 16 Jul '10

16 Jul '10

I wondered if any oshugers were headed to the Open Hardware Summit? http://www.openhardwaresummit.org/ -- Paul (psd) http://blog.whatfettle.com

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Fwd: draft of open hardware definition released!
by Andrew Back 15 Jul '10

15 Jul '10

Forwarded at the request of Ayah: From: ayah bdeir <ayahbdeir(a)gmail.com> Date: July 15, 2010 12:03:21 PM GMT+03:00 To: Bryan Bishop <kanzure(a)gmail.com>, Open Manufacturing <openmanufacturing(a)googlegroups.com>, cc-patents(a)lists.ibiblio.org, diybio <diybio(a)googlegroups.com>, Open Source Hardware User Group <oshug(a)oshug.org> Subject: draft of open hardware definition released! Hello all, I've had a discussion about this with a few of you already, but thought would be much better to email the lists. Yesterday, a group of us, who had been working on an open hardware definition, released version 0.3 for public comment. http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2010/07/open_source_hardware_-_oshw_draft_… We would love your feedback, questions, and signatures! It's very important for this effort to be inclusive. We are also holding an open hardware summit: http://www.openhardwaresummit.org on September 23rd in New York. I will send an official call for submissions later this week, but in the meantime, please do consider attending, submitting or supporting. thanks! ayah -------------------------------------------- ayah bdeir - www.ayahbdeir.com MS. MIT Media Lab - www.media.mit.edu adjunct faculty at NYU - ab197(a)nyu.edu senior fellow at Eyebeam - www.eyebeam.org founder - www.littlebits.cc

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Open Source Hardware Definition draft & Sept Summit.
by Andrew Back 14 Jul '10

14 Jul '10

Hello, An Open Source Hardware Definition has been drafted and has a growing number of signatories, some of which are fairly prolific: http://freedomdefined.org/OSHW And in related news, there is to be an Open Source Hardware Summit in New York in September: http://www.openhardwaresummit.org/ Regards, Andrew -- Andrew Back mailto:andrew@osmosoft.com http://carrierdetect.com

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Meeting this Thursday.
by Andrew Back 28 Jun '10

28 Jun '10

Hello, Just to remind folks that if they intend on coming along on Thursday they will need to register: http://oshugsuccess.eventbrite.com/ Apologies to those who have already registered. If possible try and arrive between 17:45 and 18:00. If you arrive later you may need to give one of us a call on the number of the door, so that we can come down and let you in. Regards, Andrew -- Andrew Back mailto:andrew@osmosoft.com http://carrierdetect.com

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Re: [oshug] [austin-hacker-space] More on open patent pools - Open Invention Network
by Bryan Bishop 24 Jun '10

24 Jun '10

On Thu, Jun 24, 2010 at 10:50 AM, Matthew McCabe wrote: > Hmm, so where does this leave the inventor who does not have a day job and > wants to make a living creating new products? I am a bit torn on this issue R&D phase does take resources and money so that you can coast while your stuff doesn't actually exist yet. That's true. There are all sorts of arrangements to make that happen. After that, it's sales/branding mostly. > I am interested to look at hybrid models where a product IS protected by a > patent or copyright but much of the info needed to produce the thing is > given away for free. Thus, you basically choose to license the patent to > whomever wants to use it for personal or, possibly, commercial use. I have > been thinking about how to apply this idea and it is tricky... How, for > example, do you make a profit from something if you are giving it away for > free? Uh, how about you just use an open source hardware license (something akin to TAPR but not necessarily TAPR) and then a non-assert agreement (if you have a patent)? This is along the lines of the Creative Commons / Science Commons with the PPL license -- but there are some minor differences I recall. In the case of the Open Invention Network, they are literally transferring ownership of patents into the pool. IMHO transferring ownership of the patents is only because that's what everyone understands (everyone understands a patent pool) but it's not necessary, I think. You make money by selling kits, instructions, a good user experience. > I would love to hear other perspectives on this issue. Also, we may want to > schedule a talk with one of the IP attorneys in town to get an idea of how > to appropriately protect IP (or not). And to prod them a bit about these > hybrid models or just giving something away for free. I have been looking to work with (as in, hire/pay for) an IP attorney to help draft a better open source hardware license, plus non-assert agreements, for Gnusha- the open source tech co-op. However, I strongly encourage this to be completely separate from Austin Hackerspace internals-- that'd be cause for alarm and abandoning/jumping ship. - Bryan http://heybryan.org/ 1 512 203 0507

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