My library is putting the final touches on our fledgling makerspace/digital media lab. It opens December 8, assuming all the details fall into place! I thought it might be interesting to do a few posts on our plans – to share equipment ideas, policies and guidelines, and planning – in hopes that someone else will find it useful.

We are calling it the MakeIT Lab. Our goal is to allow customers to use computers and digital technology to make stuff, including:

• edit and manipulate photos
• create digital art
• create and edit videos
• record music, podcasts, and oral histories
• transfer videos from old formats to newer ones
• scan photos and documents
• and make cool stuff with our 3D printer.

We’ll let customers do this inside the building in the lab, and outside the building by checking out a Media Bag. We’re placing the 3D printer in a very public area with signage about the MakeIT Lab in hopes that it promotes the rest of the makerspace just by … being cool (fingers crossed on that).

This is very much a pilot project for us. We have a starting list of equipment, procedures, trained staff (still working on that one), and a small room. If it goes well, we might need to expand services – more on that next year!

Here’s our starting list of equipment:

For the room:

• Two Apple iMac computers
• Alesis Elevate 3 studio monitors for the computers
• flatbed scanner
• Wacom digital drawing tablet
• MakerBot 3D printer and filament
• Canon Vixia camcorder
• Elgato A/D converter
• tripods and video lighting
• M-Audio Oxygen 25 USB Keyboard controller
• Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 USB Audio interface
• Microphones (Audio Technica AT 2020 and Shure SM57 mics)
• Microphone stands and cables

For the Media Bags. These are bags of stuff that you can check out. We do lots of “bag” things, including Travel Bags, Health Bags, and Book Group in a Bag. Each of the Media Bags will have some basic equipment and a Dummies Guide book in the bag. Bags include:

• Video bag: Canon Vixia camcorder
• Photography bag: Canon PowerShot digital camera
• Field Recording bag (for podcasting, oral histories, etc): Zoom H1 digital recorder
• Songwriters Bag: Tascam DR-40 Portable digital recorder, Audio Technica AT 2020 microphones (2 of them), mic stand and cables.

Software:

• iLife suite (GarageBand, iMovie)
• Google Sketchup
• Adobe Creative Suite
• And probably some other software that I’m forgetting at the moment.

Should be a fun project!