Difference between revisions of "Welcome"

Welcome to Sudo Room! This page should help answer any questions you might have about Sudo Room, how to be a member, how to access the space, and more!

Sudo Room is an open membership hackerspace. We are a collaborative and creative community of technologists, activists, artists, and all combinations inbetween and beyond. Most importantly, we are all human beings interested in and working toward positive social change. We strive toward horizontal leadership, meaning all members are equally empowered leaders in the community. Sudoers present and future have a great diversity of interests, so we emphasize inclusivity and solidarity amongst ourselves and with others.  

Sudo Room is committed to [[Access|ACCESS]], so anyone is welcome! You don't have to be "techie," you don't have to be a member, you don't have to know about computers or know how to write code. If you're not sure whether you are the kind of person who is welcome at Sudo Room, the answer is YES.  

Sudo Room is located at [http://www.openstreetmap.org/?query=4799%20shattuck%2C%20oakland%2C%20ca 4799 Shattuck] in north Oakland. The building, called the [https://omnicommons.org Omni Oakland Commons], is home to several other collectives. Ring the bell to get in, and walk through La Commune (the bookstore) to the black paint-speckled hallway and take a left to enter the space we share with [https://counterculturelabs.org Counter Culture Labs]. Full info on where we are and how to get in can be found [[Getting_there | here]]!<BR>

For members, Sudo Room is accessible 24/7. For visitors and non-members, the space is open whenever another member is here to let you in. People are usually in the space most evenings and weekends. We are also here for any events (check our [http://sudoroom.org/calendar/ Calendar] for events). To get in, ring the bell at the entrance (see [[Getting_there|here]]) and if someone is here, they will open the door. To find out ahead of time whether someone is here, the best place to ask is in our [https://sudoroom.org/chat/ chatroom]. Alternately, you can email the [mailto:sudo-discuss@lists.sudoroom.org listserv] and ask if someone is at the space.  

Sudoers use the space to do everything from working on their own computers to building desks! We make 3D printed jewelry, develop inventory systems for hackerspaces, meet up to work on volunteer projects like [http://oaklandwiki.org Oakland Wiki] and the [https://peoplesopen.net Peoples Open Network], use our library to learn new things, host free coding classes and meetups based in co-learning and collaboration, and build radio stations. Check out our full list of projects [[Projects | here]].

We are adding new equipment daily but our current major resources include two [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3D_printing 3D printers], woodworking equipment, laptops, soldering and electronics station, sewing machines, workspace, meeting space, library, [[Audio]] production equipment, and a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CNC_router CNC router].

There are a number of ways to get involved, but the easiest is to come by the space and check it out. You can also sign up for our [mailto:sudoroom@lists.hackerspaces.org listserv], join our [http://webchat.freenode.net/?channels=sudoroom chatroom], or come to one of our weekly organizational meetings that take place at 7PM every Wednesday.

The primary benefit of being a member is getting 24/7 access to '''Sudo Room''', an open, non-hierarchical, collaborative community of humans, including tech developers, citizen scientists, activists, artists--and all combinations in between and beyond!--who are interested in and working towards social change. Access to the space and to all the Sudo Room resources is one of our core values, so everyone is able to access the space and use our resources whether they are a member or not. However, members have guaranteed access to the space and Sudo Room assets. For more information on member benefits, see our [[Articles of Association]].

There are four ways to pay member dues:

#. Create an account on [https://sudoroom.org/humans sudo-humans] and sign up to make a one-time or monthly donation.

#. Send us some Bitcoin - see the link to the left :-)

Sudo Room is, for the most part, funded by member contributions, though we also incur donations for events and the occasional small grant.

Sudo Room started as a website in 2011. After holding meetings in cafes, then at the downtown coworking space [http://techliminal.com/ | Tech Liminal], we moved into a small space in 2135 Broadway in July 2012. In Nov. 2012, we moved into our first real space at 2141 Broadway, which was attached to a common area also shared by the Bay Area Public School, a free university. In July of 2014, after meeting weekly for over 6 months, we moved into our current space, the [https://omnicommons.org Omni Oakland Commons], along with several other aligned collectives.

Join us and help us write the next chapter!

* Check out our [[Articles of Association]]. The articles outline how we run our organization, how we do our budget, how we run our meetings, how membership is determined, benefits of membership, conflict resolution, and more.

* Come to our meetings at 7PM on Wednesday nights.

* Drop by any time and meet everyone! For info on what's happening in the space on any given day, refer to our [http://sudoroom.org/calendar Calendar]

Maybe! We love events like these:

We can promote your event on our [https://sudoroom.org/blog blog], [https://twitter.com/sudoroom twitter], etc. Just ask!

It's still evolving. Here's some history:

* In late 2013, we filed [[Articles_of_Incorporation|Articles of Incorporation]] with the state of California, and elected a [[Board|Board of Directors]]

You can put a useful tool or some hacker ore neatly at sudoroom. Once you put something out at sudo and unless it says "do not hack on it" (and even then) there is no guarantee as to what will happen. You can however also rent a locker at sudo if you need private space, it is $25 per month.

Sudo room doesn't have official hours. If you are a member you can get 24-hour access to let yourself in. If you are not a member, you will have to depend on at least one other member being there to let you in, and you would be their guest.

Soon we will have a phone number you can call.

Complicated. Sudo room does not offer fix-it services. You can come to sudo room, use all our tools, and ask for help in fixing it yourself. Maybe a nice sudoer - and there are some nice sudoers - will help point you in the right direction or explain something that that youtube DIY fixing video didn't go over. If you want to find someone that might be able to help online you can contact the [https://lists.sudoroom.org/listinfo/sudo-discuss high-traffic mailing list]. In general there are no guarantees, but if you are dedicated you can learn to fix your own iBad.

Basically this is the same question as [[#Can you fix my iPhone/iPad/Android Phone/Tablet/Laptop/other Device?]]. Maybe, you'll have to find someone willing to help, which is possible, maybe on the mailing lists or IRC.