[OpenDesign] overview of Fab Labs

[Laura James]

Do you mean FabLabs, or other spaces?  There's a pretty diverse
ecosystem of such spaces, from TechShops to hackspaces, and FabLab is
an interesting classification which overlaps with some hackspaces but
not others. It's pretty much the only term (other than TechShop which
I think must be trademarked) which has a specific and concrete
meaning, too.

There are self-declared lists such as
http://hackerspaces.org/wiki/List_of_ALL_Hacker_Spaces

I have no idea if there's any formal literature but I'd be keen to see
it if you find any; the closest I've found is
http://surveys.peerproduction.net/2012/07/mapping-hackers-diy-community-survey-2012-results/6/
  I'm hoping to do a study this autumn into the terminology
"makerspace" and "hackspace" and how people understand and use the
terms, at least within the UK, because I've come across a lot of very
different understandings - to be expected at this stage of the
evolution of the concept but as more spaces and communities set up,
something that needs to shake out soon.

Laura



On 3 September 2012 15:15, Kohtala Cindy <cindy.kohtala at aalto.fi> wrote:
> Hi all
>
> I wonder if there have been any good publications (preferably something with a platform - like a conference paper or a peer-reviewed journal - not just a blog entry) on the labs in the Fab Lab network? possibly including other maker spaces and labs too
>
> I know that e.g. Peter Troxler addresses business models in certain labs in "Bending the Rules" (http://square-1.eu/site/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/TroxlerWolf2010_BendingTheRules_FablabInnovationEcology_pub.pdf) and I've seen the matrix in the Libraries of Peer Production chapter. Anything else, Peter, that I've missed?
>
> Just wondering if there is a larger overview - what Fab Labs are open now, are they institutional or commercial, which ones have explicitly green agendas, business models, user types, project and output types etc.
>
> Thanks for all info
> Cindy in Helsinki
>
> P.S. Welcome to my event at the Open Knowledge Festival!
>
> Cindy Kohtala
> Doctoral researcher
> Department of Design
> Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture
> Helsinki, Finland
> cindy.kohtala at aalto.fi
> +358 (0)50 564 0400
>
>
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