[sclug] Boxes and people for fortnightly free sw display

[Tom Chance]

Ahoy,

I'm currently talking to various people about setting up a fortnightly open 
access lab, where anyone can walk in and use computers to be a bit creative. 
If anyone ever wants help they just ask, and if you ever hear anyone ask for 
help with something you know about then you have to help them. We're basing 
it on a similar effort in Sheffield, after a really good chat with their main 
man (access.lowtech.org)

It will run under the aegis of Remix Reading (www.remixreading.org) and focus 
on arts software, but there's no reason to limit what people will do. The 
whole lab will run 100% free software, so obviously I'd like to get other 
people from SCLUG involved. It will hopefully be hosted by the Rising Sun 
Arts Centre, who really like the idea, and will run every other Saturday. To 
begin with, to keep numbers high, we'll invite youth groups in and do some 
workshops.

Basically, what I need at the moment are donations of computers and 
peripherals (scanners, drawing tablets, anything else arty people might want 
to get rid of). Ideally I'd like to get some company to just donate between 
six and ten identical computers so we can just clone the hard drive and save 
ourselves a lot of hassle hardware niggles. But individual machines are also 
cool.

Obviously the more powerful for better, especially if people want to work with 
large media files and load-heavy apps. The minimum spec would have to be 
something like:
CPU: 350 MHz
RAM: 128 MB
HDD: 6.4 GB

Once we get the venue and equipment sorted, I'll also need help installing the 
machines (to be done on a Sat afternoon as an install fest & trial run), then 
maintaining them and running the lab each fortnight.

Can anyone offer help with:
- Machines? (main priority right now)
- Peripherals?
- Installing?
- Maintaining / helping each fortnight?

Regards,
Tom

-- 
I'm aware that e-mails to me may be blocked by my host
because they are mistaken as spam. If this happens, 
please e-mail me at: telex4 at yahoo.com