coreyshields.com

Yes, long time no blog.. Amidst microblogging and Facebook I haven't had much to say here, but that isn't to say I have given up.. On the contrary, I have about 5 draft blog posts that will probably never see publication. Be it too personal or too ranting, I'll get through it and decide it just isn't right.

In the past few years, a new trend has started amongst people who like the tinker, make things, and void the warranty on personal belongings by tearing them apart and modifying them. OReilly publishing caught on to this and created Make Magazine. I remember when this was launched at OSCON long ago, it was met with great fanfare. Make Magazine is a quarterly that features people making things, and how to do it yourself. From this spun a series of events they call Maker Faire where people can show off what they have done. It is like a mix between a science fair and craft show, with a dash of Burning Man thrown in.

Now, they have taken the next step..

That's right, Make Television. They have had video podcasts for quite some time which I have been a big fan of, but the podcast and quarterly magazines still seem to feed an underground crowd. The television series is designed to reach anyone and everyone. They will air on PBS stations across the country this year (some of them have already started airing). Click here to find where and when at your location. Yet, the really cool thing is that the shows themselves carry a Creative Commons license. This means that you are free to copy and share by any means (with some of the creator's rights reserved). You will find every episode (3 so far) on BitTorrent (click here), and they put it there themselves, legally! Not familiar with BitTorrent? You can find it on iTunes. Don't have iTunes? I recommend downloading Miro and watching it on there. (you will find a whole lot of other great, free, video content on Miro as well! Ditch your cable bill!)

Our culture needs more of this mentality, more tinkering. The Make series helps us all to learn how things work, and by learning how things work we can all come up with newer and better gizmos. When the day comes that my kids want to dive into an alarm clock to see what is inside making the numbers, I will be right there with them eagerly holding a screwdriver!

Tune in, download it, check it out, and tell your friends! The more popular this TV series becomes, the longer it will last!

-C