Updating the Wiki - Patch Notes

Space and infrastructure
1

Hi all, I’ve gone through and added a few supplier businesses that are closer to our new East Van location.

https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=suppliers

Added:

  • FreeGeek - non-profit electronics recycling
  • Maiwa - Textiles and Dyes
  • Our Social Fabric - textiles and notions non-profit
  • Fabrictime Solutions - fabric wholesaler
  • Greenline - plumbing and fitting
  • Castertown - hardware
  • Home Hardware on commercial
  • Allworld - plastics and packaging

I also added an entirely new section for thrift and second-hand stores since we have so many in east van, like Value Village and VGH thrift store, etc. Some of them have electronics while some are just fashion stores for costumes / props.

If you can think of any other nearby businesses that should be added, please post here and I will update the wiki.

Thurs Mar 14

  • Do we have a layout picture of our space? It would be great to have this in the new member page to point out fire extinguishers, first aid kits, etc
  • Re-working Events section of the wiki to create an easier way for folks to create and sign up for events
  • “space pictures” section needs to be updated if not to include Venables location, then to remove and archive photos of old location as not to confuse new folks
  • Completely re-hauled the FAQ section and out it up near the new members section
  • Update the work area page. Hopefully I can take some pictures next week to complete these sections and update them to reflect the new space

Policy stuff

  • I’ve noticed that trash is a reoccurring issue in the space, and it leads to the areas feeling cluttered and unwelcoming. Can we discuss a sort of “Disneyland policy: Top 9 Bizarre Walt Disney World Facts | Disney Dining” where we have lots of permanent and visible trash bins and create a culture of using them and taking out trash?
  • Another issue is coats and bags. If there is a dedicated space at the front of house for coats and bags, people aren’t using it, and they are taking up a lot of needed space by putting their jackets and bags on the tables.
  • Would it make sense to implement, on busy nights, some sort of “cleaning lottery”? When you arrive, your name goes in a lottery, and they are pulled to clean up areas. This can help encourage cleanliness and respect for spaces that aren’t your own. It can also help to root out slackers who rely on other members to do all the work and cause membership burnout.
  • Would we ever consider switching over from Slack to Discord? Discord has all the features of Slack and more, is free, and doesn’t require admin invite. (it can be made private invite or public) Slack vs Discord – Gaming, Working or Both? | Chanty

Main Website stuff

  • Language on the website links needs to be uniform. On the Talk forums, the link back to the main website says “blog” but links to the main page, not the blog.

  • [Q] Is VHS a co-op?
    [A] No, VHS is a non-profit society. Link is broken on the main website, I cannot fix anything on the main website, so I’m just recording it here.

  • inconsistency in rules On the FAQ FAQ - Vancouver Hack Space, the requirement for keyholder status says 3 months.
    On the membership page Membership - Vancouver Hack Space, it says 2

  • [Q] When is the next event?
    [A] Check out our calendar or blog for information about the next event. “blog” links back to the main website, not the blog. We need to decide what is considered our “blog” and what isn’t to avoid labeling and traffic confusion.
    I have edited this to point to the actual blog on the wiki FAQ

  • Updated the wiki FAQ to point towards the new Wiki events section, need someone on the website end to update the site FAQ

    There are some Misc / old / dead pages on the main website that need to be updated or removed

  • Supporters - Vancouver Hack Space

  • Contact Us - Vancouver Hack Space - As discussed before, the contact page needs more information as to who the form is going to and what its purpose is. The reason you are getting unwanted laser cutting service requests is because the form does not explain why it exists.

  • We need to have the board of directors listed on the contact page, even if it is only the directors email and not individual contacts.

  • The Tools page on the main bar links to the wiki, then we also have a link to the wiki later on down the bar. This could be organized better.

  • Membership - Vancouver Hack Space This format of this page is really inconsistent in terms of layout, font, colour, etc, and the large graphic serves little purpose, especially on mobile. The purple colour of the headings isn’t used anywhere else on the website, only on the membership page.

  • Update the red text saying we are moving to a new space.

  • Events Calendar - Vancouver Hack Space Why do we have pings / trackbacks from 2013? Can we delete or update those?

  • Certain pages on the website show the blog archive unnecessarily. The contact page, constitution and bylaws pages and others don’t need to have the blog archive present.

Social Media Stuff

  • Would we consider having a presence on Meetup.com in order to draw in new members?
  • Do we have any standard graphics or logos? Can we / I design some to get consistent branding for our online presence? If there are any standard design elements, where can I find them?
  • The profile pictures for our facebook and twitter pages are pixelated and improperly cropped to fit the circle format. We need ones that look professional.
8 Likes
2

Thanks so much for adding those!

If you add resources, would it be valuable to add physical resources nearby? Such as the other hackspaces, vancouver tool library, tradeworks, and gvwg?

3

I can definitely make a section when I do another round of editing, but I guess we’d have to decide whether adding IRL hackspaces or learning spaces is a “learning resource” or a “supplier”. Couldn’t hurt to double up I guess.

I know we’re also very near the Vancouver Co-lab and its pricey membership :stuck_out_tongue:

1 Like
4

Ok, So the Wiki is going to need… a lot more hours as I go through it. The information on it isn’t necessarily bad, but a lot of it is old, and there’s a lack of systems in place to guide a new user through the experience.

I’ll try to create more concrete organization based on popular usage and flow.

  • Moved FAQ from the bottom of the page to the top, under new members

    • still need to copy over website FAQ to the wiki and add links

  • Deleted Old FAQ section, since lock picking seems to be a specialized topic and doesn’t need to be on the main sidebar

  • Added links to the forums and back to the main website on wiki

  • Updated the learning resources page but it is still very unfinished, and needs a lot more input. I am trying out a system of listing general resources first, then further down we can get into more specific subject matter. Currently things are organized as

  • IRL spaces and workshops like the tool library

    • Groups and meetups
    • Events like maker faire

  • Online resources

    • General online learning like skillshare and khan academy
    • Youtube channels
    • Subject-specific websites like for coding or metalwork
      I will definitely need more input from members about websites to add as most of my lists are just a cursory google search and I cannot speak to the quality of them.

  • Moved member written guides closer to learning resources

  • Made a new page for workshops as a whole and will move workshop suggestions to an internal page

  • Moved the “Edit this wiki” link closer to the in progress section

  • Combined the “how hackspaces work” member guide with the “new members introduction page” and removed redundant page.

  • Added link to isVHSopen.com to main wiki bar

  • Added links to Home page, Forum, and Events calendar to main wiki bar

4 Likes
5

Oh, that’s exciting. More eyes on the wiki is always fantastic. I can add some YouTube links and stuff later this evening, too

6

Hi Laura. Thank you for all the work you are doing in updating the VHS Wiki! Awesome stuff.

Hey full disclosure here. I am a key holder at Colab as well as a key holder at VHS.

I wanted to point out that the Colab property taxes doubled from $16,739 to $33,546 last year. The Colab absolutely needed to address this shortfall and also to plan for probable future increases. Everyone at Colab (Drop-in, Key Holders, Colab Tenants, Semi Private Studio Space renters) faced an increase in their costs. This is the reality of renting commercial space in Vancouver. The Colab has put together a 5 year budget that plans for growth and allows for large tool purchases which will benefit all Colab members.

In terms of drop-in value, Colab provides 16 hours per week, or 64 hours per month, of drop-in access time. A Colab drop in membership is $74 month including taxes. That works out to about $1.15 per hour to access a fully functional woodworking, metalworking , textiles shop with industrial level tools. So while Colab may appear to be “pricey” compared to VHS, I believe that it does provide value for the money spent.

Anyways both VHS and Colab have their pluses and minuses. I think both places are wonderful and I could not do what I have done to date without both of these places.

Mark

2 Likes
7

Here is a photo of the layout plan, however it has changed a little bit since then, and is liable to continue to change a bit, obviously.

Thanks for tackling the wiki. This is really exciting. :slight_smile:

8

I have CAD files for the space, was planning to update it with all the emergency stuff once things get settled. I also want to print out a few copies and put them up in the space with emergency contacts etc.

9

@lukecyca I can’t see that link as I currently don’t have member access

However, updates:

  • Finished cross-pasting the FAQ from the website onto the wiki. I formatted it and added back in all the links
  • Currently working on the admin and governance page as well as the events and workshops page
  • Who is in charge of updating the facebook / instagram / twitter pages? I need their contact info for the admin and events pages
  • Need to update the running a QGM meeting and the AGM meeting page doesn’t exist
  • There are some pages that are entirely irrelevant and several locations old, I haven’t deleted any pages yet, but merely unlinked them. Someone with more authority than I can make final decisions.
  • As you can see form my updated first post, there’s a lot on the main website that needs to happen, and I cannot edit it, so I hope someone who can might be willing to take up the charge
  • In order to draw in new membership, we may want to consider having a presence on Meetup.com with weekly advertisements of our location. I can also look at other ideas for boosting draw once our look is a bit more polished.
  • the_proposal_process [Vancouver Hack Space] pages like… this.
  • " All tools in the “workshop area” (the back half of the space) are members only . Feel free to come down and use our soldering irons, hand tools, and test gear, however." Is this sentence still relevant or is it for and old building?
10

fix’t

11

I’ve gone through and updated the Admin and Governance, Committee and Compendium of Champions pages with everyone’s proper contact info (Some of you Internauts are hard to track down with different unlisted usernames! Should all be uniform now)

Now I’m moving on to updating the area and I need your help

I need photos of the work areas we’ve sectioned (even temp ones, doesn’t matter) that I can use to create pages for.

https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=area

https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=tool:compendium_of_champions

Especially the “Areas” section in the compendium of champions needs to be updated to reflect the new building and the fact that it isn’t 2013 anymore.

If you are in an area, or can provide an updated photo of a tool, please send it in! I will be contacting tool and area champions soon regarding specific info questions.

Sherline CNC mill: Need
Sherline Manual mill: Need
Grizzly G046 mill: Need
Manual Mill: Good, but could use an update
Green Manual Lathe: Good
Wood CNC Router: Need
Millermatic 211: Good, but could use update
Redsail CM 180: Currently using stock photo, don’t have photo of it in the space
Horizontal metal bandsaw: Good, but could use better quality update
Makita 14" saw: Good
Server Rack: Good

Areas: NEED ALL
|[Workshop Area]
|[Material Storage]
|[Craft Area]
|[Solidworks Workstation]
|[Network]
|[3D Printing Area]
|[Monitors + Raspberry Pi Workstations]
|[Electronic Testing Bench]
|[Electronic Components]
|[Soldering Bench]
|[VHS Admin Area]
|[Fume hood]
|[Workshop Table Top Tools]
|[Kitchen]

4 Likes
12

Just finished the local restaurant section. I kept the old restaurant reviews down below and added a new price column. There’s a lot more restaurants further down the Drive, but I’ve kept it to walkable distance for now

https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=food

Be sure to check out Sunrise and Windjammer.
Maybe we can get some Earnest ice cream for our happy hacker house party?

3 Likes
13

That’d be fun. There was one previous SHHH where we made nitrogen ice cream. That resulted in one chipped tooth overall, but well worth it.

3 Likes
14

Note while I’m out: Opus downtown has a public note board and I explained to them VHS, and they’d be happy to put a poster up when we print them off.

20190323_165938
20190323_1659382448×3264 1.74 MB

1 Like
15

Updated the Work Areas section of the wiki into a clickable RPG.

https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=front_entrance

Please add good photos if you have them.

3 Likes
16

I’ve added myself as area and tool champion for the metal shop, as well as renamed “workshop” to “metal shop”. The metal shop area page got a substantial rewrite.

3 Likes
17

Clickable RPG is hilarious, and solves the “what does the space look like?” question that comes up a lot

1 Like
18

Did a lot more chugging away today, you will see some major section reorganizing on the sidebar.

  • Made a separate section for Events, SHHH, and workshops, will add info on how to host a workshop or open house

  • Renamed a bunch of historical minute pages to unified date format.

  • Went through the sitemap and deleted all the extremely reduntant / blank pages, things like “temp page - put info here - created in 2013”

  • Sorted a bunch of pages into wiki sections, created Admin, Events, and wikiattic

  • While going through the sitemap I found a whole pile of unliked pages that contain info that might be relevant, but I can’t quite sort.
    start [Vancouver Hack Space]
    Please check the wiki section “wikiattic” for orphan pages I have found, and help sort whether they are relevant now, worth keeping for the history books, or deletegarbage.

  • I will be going through the main tools page soon, so that page might get a bit disorganized. I will try to double up and create redundant sections before I delete anything for good.

  • Found an orphan page on the history of VHS, so I stuck it at the top. Any old members wish to add or edit this? history [Vancouver Hack Space]

  • Combined improvements page with Venables space setup and linked to major ongoing space projects on the page. Removed improvements page until needed.
    venables [Vancouver Hack Space]

  • Moved ratified policies to the front page, making a list of policies and how to go about policy approval

  • Found orphaned VHS PR response page and put it on front page under policies

5 Likes
19

More work on the Wiki

  • Mostly finished the basic skeleton of the Areas pages. They have a name and a photo, but little else. It it my hope that those with expertise can help fill out the area pages to explain a bit about each area / the tools in them

  • Electronics is still a mess, I know nothing about it. For the love of god, somebody please help me out with electronics, I have been asking for weeks.

  • Did some work on the Admin section

    • Seperated Safety and Code of Conduct into two pages
    • Safety will be updated with exact photo locations of emergency and safety gear, including first aid kits, fire extinguishers, eye wash, sharps, gloves, sight and hearing protection, etc
      admin:safety [Vancouver Hack Space]

There are some pretty glaring safety issues that need to be addressed soon.

  1. Are the Principals of Unity and Code of conduct the same thing?
  2. Is out harassment policy and grievance procedure the same thing?

Related:
We have two redundant pages for member storage
https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=area:memberbins
https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=wikiattic:memberstoragebins

We have two pages for allowed / banned laser cutter materials, can LCC please help combine them into one page:
https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=tool:laser_cutter:materials
https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=tool:laser_cutter:settings

Lastly, we have three policy pages, including two proposal pages
https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=admin:policies
https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=admin:proposing_a_policy
https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=admin:the_proposal_process

I built a photo-explainer section for the front desk area:metal_desk [Vancouver Hack Space] @kleenpwr you mentioned wanting more flow of info to draw new members around, especially to signups, I hope this can help with orientation. I will also add and link safety gear once we can confirm existence and location.

I’m starting to chip away at the weird Member Projects and Member Tutorials sections, I will be hollering at folks soon to clean up their toys… jarret.

Working on the Events section, I want to create a set of pre-made banners to easily advertise member events, like a wood background for woodworking, etc.

  • incorporating social media links into events planning
  • tips on how to run an event and working in past event wisdom
  • @mike brought up a good point about us needing a better system for asking / setting up tool training besides talk. I will try to look into this. Suggestions were made about Trello and Doodle, but these require external signups and checking in. I’m certainly not savvy enough to program something myself so I’ll need help with this one.

I did some work on the 3D printing area section
https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=area:3d-printing

  • Added new photos for Tinkerine, the 2 prusas and form1

  • Retired old 3D printers that no longer exist

  • cleaned up section and divided individual printers into their own pages

  • added parts and nozzles section for tools and accessories
    tool [Vancouver Hack Space]
    @xquared if you can find any of the old documentation you did on Talk, I would gladly add it to the printer sections.

  • added links to orphaned solidworks and fusion360 pages, but I have no idea how accurate those pages of information are.

Found orphaned page for how to get isVHSopen push notifications on your phone. Added to isvhsopen member hack page

Voluntadded @Enquire and @smunky to the area champions page because I was given unlimited editing power
https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=tool:compendium_of_champions

  • Metal Janet added to Welding zone. Filed under Janet, Metal

Pages that need your input:
Do-Ocracy is a bit bland / blank for such an important concept
https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=admin:do-ocracy

History still needs work, if any oldschool members can add info
https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=history
We are presenting this as our face to the public, do we really want to put so much focus on beer?

The New Members section just ends with info about bottomliners, it should really have more info about being a regular member
https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=vhs_member_initiation

How do we run an AGM? Is there a google doc of instructions? This page is entirely blank.
https://vanhack.ca/doku.php?id=admin:running_an_agm

I’m actually getting pretty close to being done, dare I say it, so my hope next is to try to update our main website into something pretty and shiny that will attract members with our professionalism.

5 Likes
20

This topic was automatically closed 365 days after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed.