Miami Valley, Ohio Robotics Club

If I lived near Dayton I'd come!

In addition to posts here, you might consider starting a Yahoo group for
your club. You can post messages there, and interested folks can sign up
to be members.

Speaking of Reprap, I once saw in action an FDM to create some amazing
3D parts. I can't imagine how much it cost, but I always thought if I
ever won the lottery I'd buy one -- if nothing else just to have it! But
it one could really be built with just $400 worth of parts, I wouldn't
even need to win the lottery.

-- Gordon

I live in Dayton too, I started this group (http://groups.google.com/
group/DOROBO) on google groups a while ago, but it doesn't get much
interest. Sounds fun, I think it would be great to have an actual
place to do robotics projects, were people can pull resources together
and create bigger and better things than they would be able to on
there own.

I haven't seen evidence that there is large hobby robotics following
in the Miami Valley area, but I do know a few people that are.

Joe McKibben

You have to let people know about it, and the timing has to be right.
The interest appears highest in tech centers of the country, and around
colleges that specialize in technical courses. It'll be hard to start
any club during the summer. At the start of the new school year shoot
off some e-mails to the department heads of the nearby high schools and
colleges to let them know about the group.

Post your own projects and "seed" the board with your own postings. It's
not exactly cool to go to one board and lure away users to another, but
there's nothing wrong in inviting cooperation and interest.

Be sure to get your group added on all the FAQs and link lists that are
out there.

-- Gordon

Oh, I am sorry I did not mean to try to lure anybody away from this
board, I'm kind of new to this forum/message board thing. I was just
showing I was trying to do the same thing and looking for people who
lived in Dayton that were interested in Robotics.

I do apologize though, I just thought it was neat somebody else kind
of had the same idea I did. You had suggested starting a Yahoo group
and I was just saying that I had started one in Google Groups and we
have a few members already that live in the Dayton area.

How do I go about getting my group added to theses FAQs?

Sorry again and Thanks,
Joe McKibben

Sorry if I gave that impression! I didn't mean to suggest you were.

What I meant was in the context of publicizing your board it's usually
OK to venture into other boards as long as it's not too "spammish." On
the one hand you need to do publicity, on the other you need to remain a
member of good standing in these other forums, so you don't want to get
booted out. C.R.M. is a global resource so publicizing your local group
every now and then here could hardly be a bother to anyone.


The FAQ authors are in the FAQ itself; shoot off a quick e-mail noting
you'd like to be added.

There are also some Web sites that list local users groups. Do a Y, G,
or MSN search and you'll turn these up. Send them an e-mail with your
particulars.

-- Gordon

Thanks for the info.

Speaking of that RepRad Fabricator. I just received my Popular Science
magazine in the mail today and it has an article about the same type
of thing in it.
It gives a website (www.fabathome.com). It has blueprints to build
your own fabber and its open source and stuff.

It looks pretty cool. A machine that can make about anything. It seems
that it would be pretty useful for building robots. You wont have to
worry about having a myriad of machine tools just one single device
for all of your fabricating needs.

Thanks,
Joe McKibben