Commit to well-labelled storage

Clear drawers are super storage option

As with any new initiative, committing time and money are of utmost importance. But no less critical is the issue of storage!

Has the library made a commitment to housing all the supplies and tools necessary to run a small electronics lab? A sewing center? A crafting corner?
We are lucky to have a lockable multipurpose room with built in cupboards (it used to host an in-house cafe for patrons which didn't work out). The cupboards provide a welcome location to tuck away tool kits, painting supplies, boxes of costumes, recyclables, etc. that we were using for our annual 4th of July parade float and various on-going programs to which we had made a commitment.

When the notion of a Makerspace came up, we all thought of the Resource Room immediately, but, as the chief "Maker of Messes," "Uncontrollable glitter-meister," in the Resource Room, I was keenly aware of the danger of making this space unusable for the many, many other programs the library supports.

Luckily, our local Maker Mentor, Chris Connors, gave us a whole bunch of clear drawers that we could label and tuck away in a corner. Parents of our Middle School DIY club came up with some super plastic bins that have proved invaluable for bulky storage.

Samurai Cardboard Warrior,
Guardian of Makerspaces

Be SURE to take the time to label everything as best you can. This makes the equipment accessible to other staff members and opens the whole Makerspace initiative up to more and more creative ideas!

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3D Printing Signs for the Library Collection

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Cozmo has a new brother, VECTOR!

If Amazon Alexa and Cozmo got together and had a kid it would be Vector , the latest from the Anki company. You can ask Vector "Alexa" questions like "what's the weather?" plus he he has all the charm of Cozmo. He can recognize your face, he has better motion sensors (so he doesn't fall off the table like Cozmo tends to do), and he knows when to go back to his space to recharge. He's more like your personal assistant than a robot child who always wants to play games with you and WIN. He has a timer, built in camera (you can ask him to take a picture), and can play Blackjack with you. He also syncs with Alexa so you can add items to a shopping list, set reminders, control household devices, and more. He will even come when called! I love their website. They joke around about the "robot evil overloads" because once you see it, you know we're all thinking it. Good thing he's still tiny.

LIBRARY AS MAKERSPACE

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