[talk] MakerFaire

[George Rosamond]

Not sure who else made it, but went for one day.  I did see Brian R...I
usually see a dozen people I know well.

It really feels like it's on the decline, unfortunately.

Attendance was definitely lower, and the commercialization creep is at
hand.  There was Lexus, but no TOOOL lockpick village for two years now.
I think I heard Make wanted to charge TOOOL even though they provide a
the free lockpick workshops that are wildly popular.

Apparently, Make jacked up the pricing on EFF, to the point that even
they didn't have a table.  Not sure if the same happened with others.

There were most of the usual SoC/embedded manufacturers, but their
presence might be dictated by the market as much as the fees.

I did speak to one long-time MakerFaire staffer.. we both recognized
each other since we've both been at them all since the Queens one started.

They mentioned that there's a a recognition among the MakerFaire staff
that it's getting increasingly commercialized, with less of a 'tinkerer'
feeling to it.  And is supposedly a discussion that the Make upper level
doesn't quite get.

There was still a lot of hands-on soldering, etc, activities though.
Lots of universities were there, but the massive 3d printing presence
was negligible. But I did get to see two fathers in a physical fistfight.

Usually I go for both days, and am happy to spend the time. This year,
one day was enough.  It really doesn't reflect what seemed to be the old
Tim O'Reilly vibe in the beginning... I wonder if the $40 bucks I spent
for today will seem worth it next year...

g