Foulab is having it’s annual Christmas party on the December 14th, starting at 20:00. Themes are great, and we have a small addiction to neon and retro-future stuff so wearing neon and bringing synthwave carols is encouraged.

-Bringing food is encouraged.

-We are also having a Festivus party, December 14th starting at 20:00 at Foulab, same theme.

September… the month of going back to school, the month of Labour Day. And what’s a better way to learn, and to honour the power of your labour, than to work on a project at FOULAB?

Here’s what the locals have been cooking up:

Demonstration of Resilient Infrastructure Through Open Sessions (aka Infrastructure Night) - Tuesday September 10th @ 20:00 - 20:30

Infrastructure nights are back!

FOULAB’s Infrastructure Nights are small, bite-sized lectures and workshops on Foulab’s internal IT infrastructure - how it works, how to use it, and how to fix things that inevitably go wrong in it.

This time, eigma is showing us the internal workings of bahamut.lab - Foulab’s internal dead drop storage. Learn how to use a public resource here for you, learn how it is set up - maybe get a few ideas for a storage system of your own!

Sunday Mesh Morning - Wednesday September 11th @ 19:00 - 22:00

Mesh networking? Yessir. Routers? Yessir. Sunday morning? It’s a little bit more complex this time.

The Sunday Mesh Morning is a Wednesday evening event dedicated to mesh networking in all its forms. From discussing it, researching and testing alternative network topologies, to practical exercises in deploying peer-to-peer infrastructure in FOULAB and around it.

kryma is hosting - join us, and you’ll be hosting too. (Haha, decentralized joke - get it?)

Warhammer Night 4 - Tuesday September 17th @ 20:00 - 22:00

Time for another Warhammer night! Last month, we were stretching the definitions and learned that Zoids and Warhammer blend together better than expected.

Warhammer Nights are a recurring event dedicated to the Warhammer series, and similar strategic tabletop wargames that we play over the course of an open night.

Fighters and strategists, der_moderne_man calls upon you - we’re having another deathmatch this month. Bring your army, or borrow a veteran’s.

FOULAB Monthly Meeting - Thursday September 19th @ 20:00 - 21:30

Meeting meeting! We are hanging out, eating pizza, and discussing important FOULAB things. Things like new ACs (yay!). Things like the new more compact biolab! Things like optimizing the cans system and other chores!

This public night will have a special time slot for an organizational meeting. Join us to talk about FOULAB - make your voice heard on things that matter most.

Killed by Dice Presents: Three Sixteen II - Sunday September 29th @ 16:00 - 19:00

Three Sixteen is back! A playful riff on Starship Troopers as a tabletop RPG lets you kill all the space bugs you need. A dinosaur can be a space bug, we learned last time - who knows what else lies ahead.

Killed by Diodes is a regular collaboration between the NDG tabletop roleplaying group Killed by Dice and FOULAB. RSVP to join us for a monthly open game - slots are limited.

This time, der_moderne_man invites you to take the charge blasting aliens - drop in for three hours of sci-fi action!

October is here! We’re open every Tuesday and Thursday, 6:30 PM to 11 PM. Do I need to say more?

Of course I do. Take a look at some of the wonderful things going on at Foulab:

Wednesday Mesh Evening - Wednesday October 9th @ 19:00 - 22:00

The mesh effort returns on the 9th - we will be dissecting a highly directional router, and working on a Tor proxy.

The Sunday Wednesday Mesh Morning Evening is a Wednesday evening event dedicated to mesh networking in all its forms. From discussing it, researching and testing alternative network topologies, to practical exercises in deploying peer-to-peer infrastructure in FOULAB and around it.

Hosted by kryma as usual, this is a fantastic entry point for all your mesh networking interests. Bring your own mesh, or join one of our ongoing experiments!

Warhammer Night 5 - Tuesday October 15th @ 20:00 - 22:00

Warhammer Night returns, looking for new and recurring players alike! Who would win - ten cowboy ninjas or one giant robot? Join us in the most practical way to resolve the old playground question.

Warhammer Nights are a recurring event dedicated to the Warhammer series, and similar strategic tabletop wargames that we play over the course of an open night.

Another fight is brewing - der_moderne_man invites you to participate!

Creative Recycling: Making Art with Scrap Material - Saturday October 19th & Monday October 21st @ 19:00 - 22:00

Miss Creative Recycling yet? The team’s back, and ready to teach you how to empty your trash bin in the most unconventional ways. Put your plastic bottles to good use, get your Halloween costume going!

Creative Recycling is a semi-recurring workshop that shows how to creatively incorporate refuse plastic and aluminum into aesthetically pleasing sculpture. The workshop is entry level - students with no previous experience are welcome to attend.

Local cyberpunk and independent artist stuntman invites you to join him for two evenings of sculpture again. Come by and learn from experience - anyone can make something beautiful.

FOULAB Monthly Meeting - Tuesday October 22nd @ 20:00 - 21:30

Last meeting, we discussed a lot of potential improvements in the space - from problems with the communal sink to the ongoing resurfacing of the main tables. Those problems are being worked on as we speak - show up on the day to hear the latest updates, and maybe bring something up yourself!

This public night will have a special time slot for an organizational meeting. Join us to talk about FOULAB - make your voice heard on things that matter most.

FOULAB BIRTHDAY / HALLOWEEN PARTY - Thursday October 24th @ 18:30 - 23:00

Imagine a world without hackerspaces. Spooky, eh? Let’s have two celebrations about this. Let’s host them at the same time too.

FOULAB will be hosting a party in honour of both Halloween, and its 16th birthday! Bring a good mood and whatever food can help make it better, and let’s have fun celebrating another year of this du College warehouse we’ve all grown to love.

(And ghosts or something.)

Killed by Dice Presents: Three Sixteen III - Sunday October 27th @ 16:00 - 19:00

The Three Sixteen tour continues to the next planet. While the players are having a blast killing all sorts of new and exciting aliens, their characters are pitted against some serious threats to their well-being. Human weaknesses are uncovered, political plays at the coveted Lieutenant rank begin - oh the intrigue!

This is a regular collaboration between the NDG tabletop roleplaying group Killed by Dice and FOULAB. RSVP to join us for a monthly open game - slots are limited.

der_moderne_man wants YOU to serve Earth - will you be joining?

Spring has sprung! Some of these events you’ve heard of before, some more we’ve got just now. Perfect time to drop by the lab for some hacking.

KDE 6th Megarelease Launch Party - Friday March 8th @ 18:00-22:00

Have you heard? A new major release of KDE Plasma is coming out! Swing by for an extra open night in its honour - we will discuss new features, demo some KDE apps, and try to get as many people as we can onto the Path of the Gear.

Pizza? We got that.

Customizability? We got that.

Join our cool technomancer cult software community.

FOULAB Monthly Meeting - Saturday March 16th @ 15:00 - 17:00

Another monthly organizational meeting comes. Points of discussion - moving forward, financial transparency, the new dead drop. More, if you want - come talk lab with everybody!

These meetings are open to everyone.

Introduction to Mastodon and the Fediverse - Sunday March 17th @ 12:30 - 14:00

Lately, there has been increasing interest in alternatives to corporate social media. Mastodon and a wide variety of other apps that make up the “Fediverse” are the forefront of these alternatives. Come and learn about what the Fediverse is, how to use Mastodon, and why it matters.

If you’ve been curious about Mastodon, or maybe set up an account but felt a bit lost, then this is the workshop for you! Our resident Fediverse expert n00q will cover the basics, the background, some (light) theory, and demonstrations of how to get started and navigate Mastodon. Bring your questions! More experienced Fedi folks are also welcome.

This workshop will be presented in English mais l’animateur parle aussi Français.

Killed by Dice Presents: Data Dive, Cyberpunk Role-playing with The Pool - Sunday March 17th @ 16:00 - 19:00

A double feature! Killed by Dice is bringing you another thrilling roleplay experience, headed by the local RPG artisan der_moderne_man. Beginners are welcome - register on Eventbrite to join a badass Sunday gang of cyborgs and punks.

Happy New Year! Foulabers are organizing some fresh new events - come join us!

Macintosh Day Trivia Night - Wednesday January 24th @ 19:00 - 22:00

Macintosh Day is right around the corner. And not just any Macintosh day - 24th of this January marks a 40-year birthday of the system itself, the original Apple Macintosh!

Come join us for a special trivia night celebrating the device’s history, hosted by none other than our very own kida - with the potential help of a fellow Macintosh historian kattheborg no less! Last time was a blast - we think swinging by the lab for this one is a very good idea.

FOULAB Monthly Meeting - Saturday January 27th @ 15:00 - 17:00

Our monthly organizational meeting - the first in 2024! Foulab business will be decided, members will be sworn in.

Interested in demystifying a little of the lab for yourself? Want to coordinate a gathering of your own? It’s the secret society event to be at.

Killed by Dice Presents: Cyberpunk - Sunday January 28th @ 15:00 - 19:00

der_moderne_man’s Killed by Dice, a regular organizer of our staple tabletop gaming events, returns for another exciting sci-fi one shot. We are going to be playing the original Cyberpunk tabletop RPG - and you are invited!

Click here to RSVP. Slots are limited.

The last month of the year is here! Work winds down, people start working on projects, and with it, a whole stack of interesting things to do appears around the lab. Here are just some of them:

Tuesday December 12th @ 18:30 - 23:00

You may have heard of our last unofficial Project Night - an informal gathering where people demo cool stuff they have worked on lately. Good news - our member noi is hosting another one just next week! Drop by to see our community’s work from professional to casual, or even demo something of your own! See you there.

Sunday December 17th @ 15:00 - 19:00

The last event by Killed by Dice has unfortunately been canceled due to a COVID scare. Foulaber der_moderne_man’s tabletop RPG community returns to invite guests to an afternoon of Mothership once again. Join us in a thriller RPG set in the far off future. Fight off cosmic horrors on a Sunday? Sounds good to us. RSVP here if you want to join us - be wary, slots are limited!

Thursday December 21st @ 18:30 - 23:00

A Christmas party? A New Year’s party? A weighted average of all the winter-related parties in one convenient Foulab package? Yo!

If there are any events around Foulab to visit this month, this is definitely the one you should show up to. Enjoy a festive mood with fellow hackers and grab a slice of pizza as we send this old year off together 🎉

Saturday December 30th @ 15:00 - 17:00

Another organizational meeting. We’ll tally up 2023, and discuss how we plan to go forward with the things that transpired. Spoiler alert - it’s looking pretty good. Join us to see the internal workings of this space, and maybe even make your voice heard on an issue you care about!

Whether to move, turn, send a picture or change color, all fixtures and other gadgets receive their orders through the protocol ANSI E1.11 - 2008 USITT DMX512-A. I invite you to build your “DMX” interface with an Arduino controller, discover lighting control programs and discuss all issues around the DMX myths.

The invitation is for all the curious, potential users, artists, designers, stage technicians, designers and other techie!

Whether you have a possible project or the installation of your biggest life contract in lighting control, come live and discuss what DMX communication standard. Camaraderie and learning are the foundation of this meeting.

When: Saturday, March 7, 13 h 30
Where: at Foulab (999 du Collège, suite 33B, Montréal, Québec, Canada, H4C 2S3)
Reserve: Please reserve with dmx7mars (at) stephanebarbeau.com as the number of places is limited
Price: A $10 donation to the lab is suggested

• Interface creation: Transmitter only (without programming)

  • Materials:
    • 1 x Arduino or USB serial interface,
    • 1 x 75176 or Max485,
    • 1 x 100 ohms,
    • assembly plate.
    • Computer to host the control program. (PC, Mac or Linux)

• DMX reading (might be interesting to make a tool.)

  • Materials :
    • 1 x Arduino Uno or Pro mini,
    • 1 x 75176 or Max485,
    • 1 x 100 ohms,
    • assembly plate and some wires.

• Software Installation:

  • Take a tour of selected software
    • Q light + (Windows, Mac OS X, Linux)
    • Martin M-PC
    • Other

• Discussion of the protocol and test with electronic equipment (scope).

  • Cabling test
    • Type (zipcord, micro, cat5, cat6, various, recommended)
    • Length (short, long and very long)
    • Type variation on same length
    • Configuration test (to understand, should do or should not do)
    • Y, star configuration…
    • With and without terminator (100 ohms)
    • With Opto-isolater

If several people are interested, a group for Arduino (or copy) purchasing could be created.
I will have some parts (75176 mainly) for sale.

A list of resources (circuit, interface and program) is available on my website.