It’s not in the poll?
Rebranding µMeet?
I can’t fix it without starting the poll again
Only two votes might as well
- µMeet
- Electronics Night
- Electronics and Microcontrollers Night
- Hack Evening
- Hack Night
- Hardware-Software-Technology User Group
- Electrotechnology++
- Other (they all suck)
0 voters
So now I’m going to canvas for ‘Hack Night’ —
‘Hack Night’ to me sounds open and interested. Technology, for the curious. That’s something I’d like to promote, and I feel has a broad remit across our membership.
I get a whiff of territorialism with most of the others. I get the plain-speaking description of say ‘Electronics night’, but thinking of the last things I’ve done there, it wouldn’t be my first description - I helped a guy code up an LED umbrella, and my own work was just as much electrICS and code as was electronics.
I think of hacking as all about the code or modified consumer tec it excludes ground up progects.
Just my opinion.
So nobody liked the idea of calling it
where do all the pocket calculators go night…
Bits ‘n’ Chips
(I told you I liked puns 
)
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As a person who will never attend this session but sometimes needs to explain to prospective or new members what happens in the space on Thursday nights, I didn’t like the name uMeet as what went on there was a complete and utter mystery to me and it sounded a bit like a secret and closed society. I like electronics night, & also Bits & Chips because it’s cute as well as descriptive.
But like I say it’s not relevant to me so feel free to ignore!
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Electronics Night, to me, represents a shift in interest.
Previously it was about microcontrollers, but now it can also include microcontrollers.
If Joe and Marco are running it, that’s probably fair enough.
In my opinion I think that basic electronics is in danger of being lost amongst the black boxes of Pi and Arduino. But that also says that I at least view them as separate fields of interest.
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I believe people wanting to do black box electronics should learn basic concepts first to help their projects. and I say basic concepts the things you learn in 1st week of an electronics degree. also we need to draw up a plan of action regarding correct handling of electronics including static discharge, high voltage and correct use of instruments to stop accidents happening in the future
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I agree. I can see ‘analogue’ electronics too easily slipping into the background, and that would be a terrible thing.
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I think the common statement would be interfacing a digital device to an analogue world.
that’s pretty much what the old name said to me, too: I didn’t even recognise all the letters in the night’s name, let alone know what the name meant. (having said that, I’m not the target market).
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That was really my point in starting the thread. Not just that I thought the name should change, but that the stated interest of the group should broaden to the subject of electronics as a whole (and coding and other related activities as well if they are not disruptive and they are what people want) because it was otherwise dead. The only purpose served by my desire to change the name was to reflect this broadening of interest. It wasn’t that I thought the name was silly, although we have heard from two members in this thread that they did not even know what was going on in the group.
So why don’t you two come along and make something , me and marco are more than happy to help complete beginners .
It’s suprisingly practical subject that doesn’t have to turn into maths and computers.
Interesting. I wonder if that’s an impression others get. I posted about the impression “electronics” made on me, I really do think what’s important for this name is the perception of others.
To canvas some more – Doesn’t the phrase “Hacking on something” suggest developing something tech-y with tinkering or cunning? Isn’t that the kind of broad thing all these activities could happen under?
Psst, Joe. What’s a ‘ground-up’ project anyway? You mining your own metals? 
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I guess I’m canvassing from the point of view of Makerspace promoting a night with broad appeal, in the hope of more activity and community stuff happening. That’s a very different thing to saying “Joe and Marco will be there on a Thursday and can help you with Electronics”, especially given I pretty much can’t come down on a Thursday.
Yes i have pulled stuff out of the ground snd made a diode for a radio as a kid , but i was more thinking about just buying standard parts .
Alot of stuff seems to be sticking together modules wich is fun but not the real deal
My 2 cents, “Hacking” even though I know better still seams to be the hooded bandit behind a terminal hacking at some government agency mainframe trying to steel information and generally being bad. 
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