Yolo Makers Group: Maker Faire Bay Area 2012

"Make what you desire. Make what you have to make. Make what you can't not make, because it will make the world a better place." ~Adam Savage

It's hard to believe that a full week has passed since Maker Faire already. That means only 51 weeks until the next one.

Possibly the best part of exhibiting is being able to see the Maker Faire being set up on Saturday morning. My phone snapshot hardly captures the sense of Expo Hall coming to life, but it was in stark contrast to the crowded, bustling lineup of booths just a couple hours later.

The trolley, now with pedal power and painted blue, was unloaded.

And we were free to walk around the fair for the day.

It's near impossible to explain Maker Faire to someone who hasn't been there. There is truly a little bit of something for everyone: anything that fits under the umbrella of creative life has a place here: robots and vehicles, food and sustainability, costuming and gemstones. This year there seemed to be a special focus on education and developing the natural maker sensibilities of young people. Dale Dougherty spoke on several occasions about this idea, particularly in regard to his launch of the Maker Education Initiative.

There were several talks going on at any one time, so that even if all one did was visit speakers, it was impossible to hear everything (not to mention that many of the venues were packed). Fortunately, several talks were filmed and can be seen here.

3D printers were also noticeably in abundance this year.

Perhaps the most impressive sight this year was the gigantic firebreathing dragon bus called Gon Kirin.

Our group's exhibit slot was at 6pm, just as the fair was winding down. For better or worse, this meant that fewer visitors stopped by. But all the kids got to talk to a few people about their projects and how they were made.