Hi all,
TL;DR: The Formlabs printer and Lulzbot printer really need some love. Let's spend a couple of hundred quid on each or throw them out. Can we approve a budget of up to 400 GBP to get it under control?
At the moment the printers are taking up space on a bowed desk in the lab and need maintenance to be usable for all.
In the case of both, we're at the point of use it or lose it. We're carrying a lot of stuff and there's nothing less appealing for new faces than "oh yeah, i remember when so and so used that successfully once, but we've got 7 not-really-working-3d-printers".
Let's get them moved to a dedicated, flat, stable workspace and invest in makign them usable and repeatable.
I suggest the old radio area that currently houses a boat anchor and TV, maybe combined with the table housing a sewing machine. The Desks are flat steady and reliable.
Formlabs (SLA):
This has sat unused for a long time as we're a bit afraid of it, but it's an outstanding printer which is easy to use and, if dialled in and cared for, should be a pull factor to the space.
Items/Parts/Hardware it needs are:
* New Tank
* Resin
* Wash / Cure
Tank: This is the thing the resin sits in and the print rises out of. Formlabs considers them consumable, and ours has sat with semi set / set resin in it since the last time anyone tried to print. [1]
Resin: the printer will take all kinds - I sugest we standardise on something cheap from Amazon[2] and get that dialled in.
Wash/Cure: Once someone has printed something, it needs exposure to UV to cure and IPA to wash off excess resin. Floating around there's an ultrasonic cleaner and a UV Lamp, but with the explosion of home resin printing there are dedicated products on the market that are affordable, we just need to match our print area in size [3].
Lulzbot (FDM):
The hackerspace has always been a bit crap at FDM 3d printing with printers that almost work. The lulzbot is currently in the liminal state of mostly working but being a bit disappointing. Every print I've done this year has had a warping/lifting issue [4] and layer 1 is a bit crap, I don't really know where to start on improving that.
It would really benefit from someone dismantling the hot head, cleaning it thoroughly and assessing if we need to repair/replace/update the whole thing or the nozzle or something else.
Similarly, it has mounting holes for a plastic enclosure to improve temperature regulation of the print area. Is this something we need? [5]
We have a lot of old filament that isn't well stored, which probably isn't a great starting point for good printing. Does anyone have any opinions on whether we can revive it, or are we best to chuck it out, invest in some decent storage [5] [6] and start from scratch? I lean towards a new and controlled start.
Computer:
Wipe it and restart//recover the root password and update.
Cura LE [8] is now under active maintenance again, get that installed.
Other Printers:
When these two work, let's give away every other 3d printer we have as 'free to a good home, no warranty' on facebook marketplace/somewhere else as a ploy to both clear the shelves and get people in the door.
[1] https://www.solidprint3d.co.uk/shop/spare-parts/3d-printer-spare-part/resin…
[2] https://www.amazon.co.uk/ELEGOO-Washable-UV-Curing-Standard-Photopolymer/dp…
[3] https://www.amazon.co.uk/ELEGOO-Mercury-Machine-Station-Double-row-Yellow/d…
[4] https://www.simplify3d.com/resources/print-quality-troubleshooting/warping/
[5] https://www.3dupfitters.com/products/lulzbot-mini-enclosure
[6] https://www.123-3d.co.uk/Polymaker-PolyBox-Edition-II-filament-drybox-70180…
[7] https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dry-Store-Multi-Filament-Container-Materials/dp/B0…
[8] https://lulzbot.com/support/cura
--
Dave Hibberd <hibby(a)debian.org>
Debian Developer
Packet Radioist
MM0RFN
Code the City have got their own building. Have been a couple of recent news stories that do a better job of explaining what + why than I could:
https://postabdn.com/historic-aberdeen-building-reimagined-as-tech-and-comm…https://aberdeenbusinessnews.co.uk/aberdeen-charity-transforms-empty-buildi…
I, and a few other people, will be there¹ on Saturday morning looking at what we can do for tech/IT/IoT stuff and hopefully making a start on setting some things up.
Plans include setting up network, putting in some LEDs, setting up Home Assistant, looking at control for the door lock and discussing what else it would be useful and/or fun to do.
I'm aiming to be there from 10:00 - 13:00. If anyone would like to help with any of this, or just drop in past and have a look round the building, you'd be very welcome.
Robert
¹ https://osm.org/go/e6mQQqL6v?layers=P&way=923091890
________________________________________________________
Robert McWilliam rmcw(a)allmail.net argh.technology
I go the extra mile.
Usually because I missed the turning I was supposed to take.
I am thinking of heading down to space this evening for a couple of hours at about 8ish to move the 3d printers around. Anyone want to come play?
I could do with a hand moving that boat-anchor of a radio that's sat on the old radio desk if anyone's about.
Relatedly, can the owner of the big boat anchor radio receiver retrieve it from the hacklab or find someone to do so, it would be much appreciated.
Cheers,
Hibby
--
Dave Hibberd <hibby(a)debian.org>
Debian Developer
Packet Radioist
MM0RFN
Hey, hello, happy Tuesday
Hope you're well, it's Tuesday again, so open evening at the hackspace.
We're in the throbbing heart of Bridge of Don south, at...
Suite H Kettock Lodge
Innovation Park
Campus Two
Bridge of Don
Aberdeen
AB22 8GU
...there is sort of useful blurb on...
https://www.57north.org.uk/open-evenings
...and...
https://www.57north.org.uk/contact
...just press buzzer H and someone will come and let you in after a brief
wait. Reply if you have any questions, if you want to share your plans, or
if you'd like a lift.
I'll be along around :30, will be doing some tinkering with PHP, pootling
about, and bits and bobs.
See you there :)
Hi All,
After taking a look at the Large Format Printer in the lab it will need at
minimum a Maintenance Cartridge. It is highly unlikely that any other parts
would be required as the print cartridge - if gunged up - can probably be
cleaned and made to work and we have additional ink cartridges if any of
the ink is unusable
LCL MC-10 Maintenance Cartridge ink Replacement for Canon MC-10 Replacement
for Canon imagePROGRAF iPF750, iPF755, iPF760, iPF765, iPF670, iPF680,
iPF685, iPF770, iPF780 (1Pack) : Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories
<https://www.amazon.co.uk/LCL-MC-10-Maintenance-Replacement-imagePROGRAF/dp/…>
let me know your thoughts but I believe there is a high likelihood that
this would be the only required part
We have next meeting of python user group coming up on Wednesday with a talk + coding challenge on LLM delusions.
> "Digital Delusions and the Dirty Little Secret of LLMs." -Tim Clarke
>
> Ever wondered why LLMs confidently spout fabrications as fact? Uncover the "dirty little secret" behind managing these digital delusions. Diving into the why from tokenization to training data. Then, explore practical techniques like RAG and semantic search to bring accuracy back to the forefront. Finally we will build a Streamlit-based semantic search tool to give you an introduction to the hands on experience of serving up the truth to your LLM.
>
> Bio: Tim is driven by a passion for harnessing cutting-edge technologies to bridge the gap between humans and machines, transforming the way we understand, interpret, and interact with information. Holding an MA in Religious Anthropology and an MSc in Data Science, Tim has had a diverse career, initially working internationally in the Energy Sector before shifting his focus to tech, specifically Natural Language Processing (NLP) and Knowledge Graph techniques. In his current role at Katoni Engineering he looks at implementing digital technologies to empower the workforce.
https://ti.to/code-the-city/apug-mar-2025
Robert
--
________________________________________________________
Robert McWilliam rmcw(a)allmail.net argh.technology
I go the extra mile.
Usually because I missed the turning I was supposed to take.
I’ll be in around 7:30 probably. Looking at server stuff. Maybe thinking about spacefed if things go well enough to move onto the next phase in the auth project.
If anyone is having issues accessing hub since the change I can help you get back in.
Iain.
--
*Iain Learmonth* MSci MBCS AICB PM.Dip (he/him)
This email is sent in a personal capacity. The views expressed in this email do not necessarily reflect the views of SR2 Group Limited, its subsidaries, or any other organisation in which I am a member, officer, employee, or volunteer.
On Tue, Mar 4, 2025, at 11:42 AM, 57North Announcements wrote:
> Fit like,
>
> Happy UNESCO World Engineering Day to those who celebrate!
>
> It's Tuesday, so we will have our weekly open night! I
>
> If you've not heard of us, 57North get up to a range of activities on
> Tuesday nights in our shared workspace, including (but not limited to)
> social contact, programming, manufacturing weird things, consuming
> sugary treats and the odd can of alcoholic beverage.
>
> We're located at:
> Suite H Kettock Lodge
> Innovation Park
> Campus Two
> Bridge of Don
> Aberdeen
> AB22 8GU
>
> Instructions for getting in are here:
> https://www.57north.org.uk/open-evenings .Hit the buzzer (Suite H) and
> someone shall come and rescue you from downstairs after a brief wait.
>
> There's plenty of parking, but if you don't have transport, then get in
> touch either here or IRC and someone may be able to help you out! The
> number 1 bus comes nearby too.
>
> If you're new, I'd suggest you bring a laptop, and perhaps a project
> you want to work on.
>
> If you're not new, shoot a reply to the list and tell us what you'll be
> up to, and maybe consider bringing a friend. Please mention a time if
> you'll be in before me!
>
> We like our space being accessible for all. When visiting, please
> ensure you tidy up after yourself, clean any dishes, cups, cutlery and
> store them away. There are vacuum cleaners too, for cleaning the floor.
> If you have any questions, please ask one of the regular visitors or
> members for advice.
>
> I will be in today from about 8pm, presumably thinking about our new
> auth system, remote members and looking at things which are linux
> shaped while grumbling about software.
>
> What are you up to?
>
> --
> Dave Hibberd <hibby(a)debian.org>
> Debian Developer
> Packet Radioist
> MM0RFN
> 57North Hacklab Ltd. is a company registered in Scotland (No. SC470230).
> 57North and 57North Hacklab are trading names of 57North Hacklab Ltd.
Hi All,
tl;dr: The way you login to hub has changed. You'll get sent to "Keycloak" and will need to do a "Forgot password" and then reset your password via the emailed link. You shouldn't notice any difference after that other than the login screen is different.
If you go to log in to hub you will find that you get sent to a system called "Keycloak" instead of the former 57N ID. The old ID application served us well for many years, but had a dependency on a very unsupported and early version of node.js. Updating that code was going to require someone that knew not only modern node.js but also historic node.js to ensure the update was correct and complete.
Keycloak is a modern single-sign on system that implements protocols like OAuth2 and OIDC which means that we can integrate this with many of the existing space applications, like Home Assistant and the wiki. I have also configured it using an LDAP backend for user account and password information so we could use this for applications that only support LDAP authentication. We are lucky that someone has also provided a CAS plugin, as that's what Hub uses, and so no changes were needed to Hub at all other than re-pointing where it was looking for the CAS server.
I will be publishing the Ansible playbook used to deploy the system shortly under the BSD 2-clause licence. I'm also using it for my company and for one of my company's clients that runs digital security helpdesks. At some point it will probably get audited professionally.
The stack is built on a rootless podman setup, using quadlets to define the services. Network isolation is employed to prevent interncontainer connections between applications that do not need to communicate. The full stack includes:
• Nginx
• Certbot
• Keycloak
• 389ds (LDAP server)
• PostgreSQL (Relational database used by Keycloak)
Right now this is running on a Vultr VM while we continue to work towards retiring finzean. I believe the last service there is Hub which I think we can containerize and add to the podman setup. At that point we can migrate the whole stack to a replacement finzean.
The podman features we require only exist in Debian testing, and finzean currently runs Debian jessie, so we cannot do this upgrade in place.
You *can* enable 2FA to secure your Keycloak account but this is *not* required. We may later choose to require this for some or all of our applications but as this is something that needs documentation I don't think we should do it until we have that documentation.
If you have any questions then you can ask them and I might answer them.
Thanks,
Iain.
--
*Iain Learmonth* MSci MBCS AICB PM.Dip (he/him)
This email is sent in a personal capacity. The views expressed in this email do not necessarily reflect the views of SR2 Group Limited, its subsidaries, or any other organisation in which I am a member, officer, employee, or volunteer.
Hi all,
I need to make an RS order. If you want to get small things and not pay delivery then please let me know. You can get the stuff at space Tuesday.
Thanks,
Iain.
--
*Iain Learmonth* MSci MBCS AICB PM.Dip (he/him)
This email is sent in a personal capacity. The views expressed in this email do not necessarily reflect the views of SR2 Group Limited, its subsidaries, or any other organisation in which I am a member, officer, employee, or volunteer.
Hey, hello, happy Tuesday
Hope you're well, it's Tuesday again, so open evening at the hackspace.
We're in the throbbing heart of Bridge of Don south, at...
Suite H Kettock Lodge
Innovation Park
Campus Two
Bridge of Don
Aberdeen
AB22 8GU
...there is sort of useful blurb on...
https://www.57north.org.uk/open-evenings
...and...
https://www.57north.org.uk/contact
...just press buzzer H and someone will come and let you in after a brief
wait. Reply if you have any questions, if you want to share your plans, or
if you'd like a lift.
I'll be along around 7 ish, will be doing some mixture of looking at sewing
machines, 3d printing, tinkering with PHP, pootling about, and moving
things around in a semi intelligible way.
See you there :)
