Open Hardware Miniconf

The 2018 Open Hardware Miniconf registration is now open. Please fill out the form.

Details for the Open Hardware Miniconf 2018 and the hardware kit are at OHMC2018. This includes details of software toolchain, github repo, assembly instructions, etc, that will be used on the day. If you missed out on the day, have broken or need to reinstall your development environment, or are just interested in what this was all about, the info will still be here.

The Open Hardware Miniconf is a 1-day event that runs as a specialist stream within the linux.conf.au conference. It gives participants an opportunity to learn basic hardware skills such as soldering, by assembling their own electronic project, and then the afternoon is filled with interesting talks about various projects and techniques related to the morning project and to open hardware in general.

The Open Hardware Miniconf began as the Arduino Miniconf in Wellington NZ in 2010 and has run every year since. Although Arduino is still a powerful and popular tool for learning about microcontroller development, the event has now grown in scope to cover broader Open Hardware topics including non-Arduino projects. In 2015, it took on its new identity as the Open Hardware Miniconf to reflect this broader interest.

To give you some idea what to expect, this is the hardware assembly session at the LCA2017 Open Hardware Mini-Conference:

And before that the LCA2016 Open Hardware Mini-Conference:

(Photo by Andy Gelme, CC2.0)

After the assembly session is over the room is cleaned up a bit and the talks begin. It's a fun and educational event!

Note: To attend you must first register for the main conference, which provides the venue. The Open Hardware Miniconf is part of LCA as a specialist stream for conference attendees: it's not a stand-alone event. See linux.conf.au for more information.

Registration And Cost

As there is always a hardware build as part of the Open Hardware Miniconf, there is a registration form that needs to be completed, and a $65 cost for the kit.

As the OHMC is a linux.conf.au miniconference, attendance is free for linux.conf.au delegates, but if you wish to participate in the morning hardware assembly tutorial you will need to pre-register and purchase a kit. Space is limited so get in fast!

If you just want to come along and watch or attend the talks, you don't need to do anything. If you wish to participate in the hardware assembly tutorial, please submit the registration form.

See Open Hardware Miniconf 2018 for more information.