Electromagnetic Field - User contributions [en]

Electromagnetic Field 2014

2014-09-02T20:12:36Z

AndyB: Change date calc to show days since EMF 2014 instead of days until...

__NOTOC__ __NOEDITSECTION__
{{link-banner}}
==Welcome to the official wiki for EMF 2014!==
[[File:Emf1.jpg|left]]
Electromagnetic Field (EMF) is a non-profit UK camping festival for those with an inquisitive mind or an interest in making things: hackers, geeks, scientists, engineers, artists, and crafters.

In the [https://wiki-archive.emfcamp.org/2012/ summer of 2012] we gathered hundreds of people in a field outside Milton Keynes for three days of talks and workshops covering everything from genetic modification to electronics, blacksmithing to high-energy physics, reverse engineering to lock picking, computer security to crocheting, and quadcopters to beer brewing. [[File:Emf2.jpg|right]]To help matters along, we arranged a 380-megabit internet connection, reliable WiFi, and a bar stocked with real ale. Now we're back in 2014 for the next edition: Electromagnetic Field 2014 will take place on the 29-31st of August in [[Location|Newton Longville, near Milton Keynes]]!

It has been {{#expr: {{#timel: z}} - {{#time: z|31 August 2014}} }} days since EMF2014!

EMF2014 is over. Please [[Memories|add your pictures, videos, blogs, etc]], leave [[Feedback|feedback]] and [[Talks|find resources from the talks]]. Most importantly, start telling all your friends how great it was and encourage them to come to EMF 2016!

At each EMF event we give our attendees a great camp badge. Not just a 'Hello my name is" sticker but a nice fun piece of technology that they can take away and use after the event. Information about past Badges including TiLDA, SiNE and our next badge can be found [[Badges|here]]. The idea of the badges is that you take them away and play with them. To encourage this, the person who makes the [[Badge Creations|best thing with their EMF 2014 badge]] will win free tickets to the next EMF event(s).

==Map==
This map shows the [[Villages]] and [[Teams]] at EMF Camp which have a location. Click on the icons to display information.
{{Map}}

== I want to help! ==
Once the organisation team have recovered, planning will start for 2016. Keep your ears open for volunteering opportunites. [[IRC]] and the [[Mailinglist]] are good ways to keep up to date.

=== Contact us on ===
* [https://www.twitter.com/emfcamp Twitter]
* [https://www.facebook.com/emfcamp Facebook]
* [[IRC]]
* [[Mailinglist|E-Mail]]

TiLDA MKe

2014-09-02T20:01:29Z

AndyB: /* Hacking */

The TiLDA MKe project, Code name "ElectroMagnetic Boogaloo", is being headed by [[User:Dpslwk|'RepRap' Matt]] and [[User:thinkl33t|Bob]]
[[File:Badge_Front.png|right|thumb|Front]]

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E_(mathematical_constant) Why MKe?]

=Aim=
The main aim of the 2014 badge is to give camp attendees live schedule updates and notifications. As with the original TiLDA we wanted to keep with an Arduino compatible platform that will allow badge hacking during and after the camp. As with previous badge all code and design files are available.

==Battery Warning==
'''Always make sure you plug your battery in the right way round!''' If you dont, the charge controller will let out its magic smoke and die / become damaged and die later. The badge itself will still work, but it wont have the ability to charge anymore.

We think this is the cause of the charge controller issues a small number of badges had at the event was due to this mistake being made during final assembly on-site.

'''Lithium Batteries are dangerous!''' While these batteries are better protected than the MK1 batteries, they are still scary. Do not short your battery, and if it starts bulging or gets punctured, '''DO NOT USE IT AGAIN''' and dispose of it properly.

==Features and Functions==
[[File:Badge_Back.png|right|thumb|Back]]
* Torch mode - Press the light button next to the screen. It will only light up fully if it's hung upside down to avoid blinding
* Snake
* Tetris
* Weather Forecast
* Schedule
* Can receive notifications about upcoming schedule items you're interested in. Visit schedule.emf.camp to set up your account.

'''Please note that there's a known issue with the badge freezing'''. We're trying to work out what's causing this, but in the meantime pressing "reset" should get the badge back to life. Help with debugging is highly welcome!

== How to get going ==
=== Set up your environment ===
* Plug your badge into your computer via USB
* Download Arduino IDE 1.5.7 from http://arduino.cc/en/main/software#toc3
* “git clone” or download TiLDA source code from https://github.com/emfcamp/Mk2-Firmware
* Start the Arduino IDE.
* Now you have to change the sketchbook-folder to be the folder you just cloned. To do this use File | Preferences | “Set Sketchbook location”. On MacOS, this is Arduino | Preferences
* Restart the Arduino IDE
* Open sketch “EMF2014”
* Set Tools | Board to MKe v0.333 (RTOS Core)
* Set Tools | Port to correct port (you might have to research this - some operating systems like Windows require you to install drivers or become member of a certain group)
** On Macos this is will start /dev/tty.usbmodem with 4 digits, and change for each port
** On Linux this is usually /dev/ttyACM0 but may be a higher number if you have other USB Serial devices
* Hit the upload button
* Wait
* Woohoo - You just successfully uploaded code to your badge

=== Your first “Hello world” App ===
There’s a “HelloWorldApp.cpp” file in which you can play around. In order for it to show up on the Homescreen you have to uncomment line 51 in AppManager.cpp and flash the changed code to the badge. Great app pull requests are appreciated!

=== Why are things so different from standard arduino code? ===
We’re using a library called FreeRTOS that allows us to multitask - something that’s normally not possible with standard arduino code. This allows us to run multiple tasks at the same time. FreeRTOS uses preemptive scheduling to switch between the task. Due to this we have to be very careful about how we do some things. For example we can’t just define interrupts for buttons in every task (imagine the mess!) or write to the serial port directly (your task might stop in the middle of the message).

We’ve also spend quite a lot of time to make the build-in components as easy to use as possible without having every task to write lots of boilerplate code. If you feel like using the build-in components on the badge, chances are we already wrote a wrapper for them that is already used by one of the other tasks.

Have a look at the “Documentation” section in this document for a full list of API functions. You will avoid a lot of headache if you stick to those.
=== How to use the badge with pure Arduino code ===
If you prefer you can always start from scratch without FreeRTOS or any of our code, just keep in mind that you won’t be able to receive messages via radio or use any of the API features we already added. Just start a new sketch in the Arduino IDE for that and get going. If you want to load the main firmware again just change the sketch to “EMF2014” and upload again.
=== Debugging and Gotchas ===
* The USB serial is set up to 115220 baud. There are lots of terminals that can connect to them
* If you can’t revive a badge you can short the two erase pins and press the reset button while holding it down.
* Avoid busy waiting, use FreeRTOS queues and Tilda::delay() instead
* Don’t use low level functions like interrupts or serial ports directly unless you really, really know how FreeRTOS will handle them. For general logging you can use Tilda::log()
=== Code structure ===
* FreeRTOS has the concept of “Tasks” which work like threads. We’ve wrappered them in a class called “Task” (for background stuff) and “Apps” (for foreground, one-at-a-time things)
* Everything needs to be in the main EMF2014 folder. Subfolders are not allowed. This is an Arduino IDE restriction :(
=== Radio infrastructure ===
The radio infrastructure is distributed between DKs. Every “gateway” has a raspberry pi with two ciseco usb radios. We never had the change to actually try it with that many badges in the same spot, so please don’t expect it to work perfectly.
=== Contribute ===
Send us pull request via github - We’ll do our best to review and merge the good ones during EMF so others can use them.

=Hardware=

The following hardware has been included on the badge.

* [http://www.atmel.com/products/microcontrollers/arm/sam3x.aspx Atmel ATSAM3X8E]
** This is the same chip as the [http://arduino.cc/en/Main/ArduinoBoardDue Arduino Due] and gives us the base platform for the badge
** 32bit ARM Cortex M3 * 84MHz
** 512KBytes Flash RAM
** 96KBytes of SRAM
* A 128x64 pixel monochrome LCD display
* [http://shop.ciseco.co.uk/srf-wireless-rf-radio-surface-mount/ Ciseco SRF Radio]
** 868Mhz RF Transceiver
** Simple UART interface
** Low power sleep mode
* [http://www.invensense.com/mems/gyro/mpu6050.html MPU-6050] 3-axis Accelerometer and 3-axis gyro
** I2C interface
** Tri-Axis angular rate sensor (gyro) with a sensitivity up to 131 LSBs/dps and a full-scale range of ±250, ±500, ±1000, and ±2000dps
** Tri-Axis accelerometer with a programmable full scale range of ±2g, ±4g, ±8g and ±16g
** Digital Motion Processing™ (DMP™) engine offloads complex MotionFusion, sensor timing synchronization and gesture detection
* PMIC & LiPo
* Joystick
* Buttons
* RGB LED's
* IR
* Arduino Headers
* Pads for wearable tech

= Firmware Documentation =
== Debugging ==
===Tilda::log(String text)===

This logs “text” to the serial console. To read it connect to it via the Arduino IDE Serial Monitor. Don’t use “SerialUSB.println” or similar -- it’s not thread-safe and you might end up with utter nonsense.
== Buttons ==
The badge has 8 buttons: Up, Down, Left, Right, Center (on the joystick), A, B and Light. You can use arduino-style “digitalRead(BUTTON_RIGHT)” to read the current status of any button, but you can’t define your own interrupt (because we already did that). This doesn’t mean you can’t wait for a certain button to be pressed, it just means you have to approach it slightly differently:

Example: A simple app displaying the button code
void ButtonApp::task() {
ButtonSubscription allButtons = Tilda::createButtonSubscription(LIGHT | A | B | UP | DOWN | LEFT | RIGHT | CENTER);

while(true) {
Button button = allButtons.waitForPress(1000);
if (button == A) {
debug::log(“You pressed button A”);
} else if (button == LEFT) {
debug::log(“You pressed LEFT”);
} else if (button == NONE) {
debug::log(“No button has been pressed in 1000ms”);
}
}
}

===ButtonSubscription Tilda::createButtonSubscription(<buttons>)===

Registers a subscriptions for a defined set of buttons and returns a ButtonSubscription. Multiple Buttons can be combined via “|” (see example above). One button can not be subscribed by more than 10 subscriptions (which shouldn’t really happen, but keep it in mind).

Don’t use this function in a constructor, it requires FreeRTOS to be running. Using it inside the task() function is the only safe place for it.

===Button ButtonSubscription::waitForPress(TimeInTicks timeout)===

This is normally called in a loop. It causes the task to block until one of the buttons has been pressed. If the timeout occurs before any button has been pressed “NONE” will be returned.

===ButtonSubscription::waitForPress()===

The same as above, but without the timeout.

===ButtonSubscription::clear()===

This should be called after an App has been suspended, just before it’s going to be resumed. It causes the Queue to be cleared which could otherwise lead to buttons being reported that have been pressed while other apps were in the foreground. Have a look at the FlashLightApp for an example.

==LEDs==
===Tilda::setLedColor(Led led, Color color);===
===Tilde::setLedColor(Color color);===

Sets the color of all or one led. Color is an object that takes red, green and blue as a value between 0 and 255 each. If no led is defined both leds will be set to the same color.

Example: A simple color-changing task
void ColorfulTask::task() {
while(true) {
Tilda::setLedColor(LED1, {255, 0, 0}); // Red
Tilda::setLedColor(LED2, {0, 255, 0}); // Green
Tilda::delay(300);
Tilda::setLedColor(LED1, {0, 255, 0}); // Green
Tilda::setLedColor(LED2, {0, 0, 255}); // Blue
Tilda::delay(300);
Tilda::setLedColor(LED1, {0, 0, 255}); // Blue
Tilda::setLedColor(LED2, {255, 0, 0}); // Red
Tilda::delay(300);
}
}

==Display==

The Display Library is based on GLCDv3 (http://playground.arduino.cc/Code/GLCDks0108) but adapted to support our screen. The Init routine is called in the setup, and the LCDTask takes care of ensuring the screen is updated every 40ms if required (Unlike the original GLCD library, screen updates are decoupled from the graphics routines.)

Also available is M2tklib (https://code.google.com/p/m2tklib/) which is a nice toolkit library. Further details on using this will come later, but expect the main loop to be handled for you, and just passing the menu structure you require for your app.

Right now, you can call the GLCD functions directly with GLCD.DrawBitmap() for example. This is going to change to be accessed through the GUITask class in the near future, to ensure only one task at a time writes to the screen. Expect this to be simply GUITask in place of GLCD, along with a registering a redraw call back to GUITask.

Extra features that are included, GLCD.SetRotation() will handle rotation of the screen for you, and GLCD.CurrentWidth() and GLCD.CurrentHeight will give you the correct Width and Height for the current orientation. GLCD.Width and GLCD.Height constants are not available, and the GLCD predefined Text areas will not be rotated for you, if you require this define your own text areas.

== Sound ==
There's a piezo on the board, but we haven't added code for it to the current firmware. Pull requests are very welcome!

== IMU ==
=== Tilda::getOrientation ===
returns " ORIENTATION_HELD", "ORIENTATION_RIGHT" (joystick to the right of the screen), "ORIENTATION_HUNG" or "ORIENTATION_LEFT"

== Flash Storage ==
We have 2mb of flash storage, but we're not using it in the main firmware - Please get this working!
== Data: Schedule ==
===Tilda::getDataStore().getSchedule(day, location) ===
== Date: Weather Forecast ==
===Tilda::getDataStore().getWeatherForecast()===
== Radio ==
There's no way of sending messages in the current version of the firmware, sorry :(

== Time ==

=== Tilda::delay(uint16_t delayInMs) ===

Works like Arduino’s delay(), but is FreeRTOS-safe. It’s safe to use this function before FreeRTOS has started.

=== tilda::getClock() ===

Returns an instance of https://github.com/MarkusLange/Arduino-Due-RTC-Library/blob/master/rtc_clock.h

==Settings==
===uint16_t tilda::getBadgeId()===

==2.12. Battery==
===float TiLDA::getBatteryVoltage()===
Returns the current voltage as a float

===uint8_t TiLDA::getBatteryPercent()===
Returns the current voltage as a percentage

===uint8_t TiLDA::getChargeState()===
Returns the charge state

0 Charging
1 Not Charging

=Hacking=
To use our board definition you will need to first get the Arduino 1.5.7 IDE from [http://arduino.cc/en/Main/Software#toc3 here] 
Next you can download the TiLDA MKe Firmware project from either the [https://github.com/emfcamp/Mk2-Firmware github repo] or via [https://github.com/emfcamp/Mk2-Firmware/archive/master.zip direct download] 
Now copy the "hardware" folder to your Sketchbook folder, this is usually ~/Sketchbook/ 
or 
Alternative option is to set the Arduino 1.5.7 sketchbook folder to the Mk2-Firmware directory. 

Start the Arduino IDE and your will be able to select TiLDA MKe v0.333 for the Tools->Board menu

* Draft 3d print-able and laser-able case files [http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:436815 here]
* A Python script (via [https://twitter.com/trotmaster99 @trotmaster99]) that converts a monochrome bitmap image into a format suitable for the Tilda can be found [http://pastebin.com/8XeazQjT here].



= Source =

All the source code and designs are on openly available on Github:

* [https://github.com/emfcamp/Mk2-Hardware Hardware] - the full board design
* [https://github.com/emfcamp/Mk2-Documentation Documentation] - a dump of relevant parts datasheets
* [https://github.com/emfcamp/Mk2-Firmware Firmware] - source code for the badge software
* [https://github.com/emfcamp/Mk2-Software Software] - server-side software for the network

[[Category: Badges]]

Feedback

2014-09-02T06:25:17Z

AndyB:

{{link-banner}}
Please let us know what went well and what didn't go well at EMF this year. We really do care about your feedback and we'll try and improve this for next time.

Add your feedback below:

== Good Stuff ==

* Location
* Badges
* Variety of talks
* Showers [+1]
* Hand washing facilities
* Parking
* Shuttle trailer to car park
** ... and shuttle to BLY railway station. Made coming by public transport a doddle.
* Power & data infrastructure - pretty much rock solid throughout! [+2]
* Speedy response of volunteers/organisers to problem resolution
* Service at the bar was good (while the drinks lasted), and it was very nice to have ''multiple'' indoor social spaces, esp for people who wanted a quieter lounge as well as louder bar.
* Floor panel roads [+2]
* String lights (cut through to showers was awesome!) [+1]
* Ability to hire tables/chairs/marquees/hay bales etc. - were all good quality, too.
* Kids workshops

== Stuff that could be improved ==

* Buy more beer! [[User:Russ|Russ]] ([[User talk:Russ|talk]])
* Toilets... 'nuff said! [[User:AndyB|AndyB]] ([[User talk:AndyB|talk]]) [+2]
** Agreed - I've seen portakabins (like the shower blocks) that containing proper flushing loos. They're ''much'' less stinky and likely to block up than the portaloos we had, which didn't always seem willing to drop their loads into their collection tanks, leading to nastiness and health hazards (even without the pumping contractor being rubbish)
** Additionally, LIGHTS in the toilets. Having to use my phone / badge as a torch to see what was going on while i cleaned off the toilet before sitting down was particularly difficult. [[User:Thinkl33t|Thinkl33t]] ([[User talk:Thinkl33t|talk]]) 20:05, 1 September 2014 (UTC)
* Make sure that drinking water is clearly labelled as such
* More food and drink options
** Eg. non-caffeine / low or no sugar options
** Chips!
** also possibly going on later, a lot of the places shut up shop quite early.
* Survey positions of lanes/tents/DKs as early as possible before items arrive and mark out.--[[User:Sully|Sully]] ([[User talk:Sully|talk]]) 12:06, 1 September 2014 (UTC)
** This was planned but we were let down by the rather poor state of mobile GIS software.
* Make it longer! There was loads of cool stuff I didn't have change to check out :( After all that work everyone does, it was a shame I couldn't experience it all! ([[User:Chewie|Chewie]])
* Visibility of presentations in tents (brighter projectors/darker tents??) ([[User:StuartL]]) [+1]
* washing points over drains/soakaway so the ground doesn't get muddy ([[User:Chewie|Chewie]]) [+2]
* Mark out/allocate spaces for villages who had pinpointed locations on maps ([[User:Markp]]) [+1]
* Use more plasma screens in stages instead of projectors ([[User:Markp]]). Or (better, as then the speaker can point to things) black fabric shades for the screen or marquee roof
* Improved arrangements for washing and washing up (and handling the waste water from that) [+1]
* Provide sanitizer gel dispensers at water points and near loos
* Distribute and display paper schedules (even if their might be some last-minute changes) [+2]
* Much more workshop activity (more hands-on electronics and physical making) [+5]
* Do have component vendors (maybe at their cost for marquee/power/space)
** This is very difficult without a clear list of what will sell, as CPC was arranged to appear but wanted advisement ([[User:Stanto]])
* Pick a flatter site (for ease of disabled access)
* Ask speakers for bio's to include with their abstracts. Given them an abstract length up-front instead of editing it in an ad hoc way. Confirm acceptance to speakers and workshop organisers earlier.
* Make and enforce a clear music curfew (say from midnight or 1am or 2am to 8 or 9am or 10am), to defend those sleeping from (eg) the technoevangelists and the drunk [+3]
* Loos not so near food vendors (pong + visible urinals offputting) [+3]
* stronger enforcement/signage of quiet camping area [+3]
* an explicit invitation (with clear instructions) to report Code of Conduct violations in open ceremony, brochure, Twitter, etc. We had no direct reports to Team Comfort, but several anecdotal tweets after the event -- when it's much too late. [[User:Martind|Martind]] ([[User talk:Martind|talk]]) 20:58, 1 September 2014 (UTC)

==Suggestions==
* A talk (a bit like lightning talks) where people are given 5-10 minutes to share what they did with the previous event's badge. (If someone sends me the competition winners/runners up, I'll co-ordinate it) [[User:MatS|MatS]] ([[User talk:MatS|talk]]) 07:54, 1 September 2014 (UTC)
* Pre-paid accounts for spending money on food/beer/whatever to negate need for cash ([[User:Markp]])
* Have a fleet of communal wheel-barrows to help people transport their stuff from car to campsite [+1]
** Stepney City Farm have a fleet of broken wheelbarrows – fix ’em, use ’em, everybody wins! ([[User:Andylolz]])
* contactless payment gear for food, beer, workshops
* forewarn food vendors to expect all-day demand, not just mealtimes, so they can stock and staff appropriately [+1]
* pinboard (offline) notice board everyone can contribute to (lost property, mini event notices eg rocket launches, would like to meet.., etc) [+1]
* Ask people who want to give workshops if they'd be happy to give more than one session - the blacksmiths' output was extreme, but even giving two or three sessions would greatly increase the % of attendees who could sign up.
* Sign-ups some kind of "express preference" systems, so most people (including those who don't check email regularly) can get at least one of their top choices, rather than first-come-first-served.
* Board games tent in the evenings [+2]
* Be less ambitious with badge functionality [+1]

Feedback

2014-09-01T20:09:00Z

AndyB: /* Stuff that could be improved */

{{link-banner}}
Please let us know what went well and what didn't go well at EMF this year. We really do care about your feedback and we'll try and improve this for next time.

Add your feedback below:

== Good Stuff ==

* Location
* Badges
* Variety of talks
* Showers
* Hand washing facilities
* Parking
* Shuttle trailer to car park
** ... and shuttle to BLY railway station. Made coming by public transport a doddle.
* Power & data infrastructure - pretty much rock solid throughout!
* Speedy response of volunteers/organisers to problem resolution
* Service at the bar was good (while the drinks lasted), and it was very nice to have ''multiple'' indoor social spaces, esp for people who wanted a quieter lounge as well as louder bar.

== Stuff that could be improved ==

* Buy more beer! [[User:Russ|Russ]] ([[User talk:Russ|talk]])
* Toilets... 'nuff said! [[User:AndyB|AndyB]] ([[User talk:AndyB|talk]]) [+1]
** Agreed - I've seen portakabins (like the shower blocks) that containing proper flushing loos. They're ''much'' less stinky and likely to block up than the portaloos we had, which didn't always seem willing to drop their loads into their collection tanks, leading to nastiness and health hazards (even without the pumping contractor being rubbish)
** Additionally, LIGHTS in the toilets. Having to use my phone / badge as a torch to see what was going on while i cleaned off the toilet before sitting down was particularly difficult. [[User:Thinkl33t|Thinkl33t]] ([[User talk:Thinkl33t|talk]]) 20:05, 1 September 2014 (UTC)
* More food and drink options
** Eg. non-caffeine / low or no sugar options
** also possibly going on later, a lot of the places shut up shop quite early.
* Survey positions of lanes/tents/DKs as early as possible before items arrive and mark out.--[[User:Sully|Sully]] ([[User talk:Sully|talk]]) 12:06, 1 September 2014 (UTC)
** This was planned but we were let down by the rather poor state of mobile GIS software.
* Make it longer! There was loads of cool stuff I didn't have change to check out :( After all that work everyone does, it was a shame I couldn't experience it all! ([[User:Chewie|Chewie]])
* Visibility of presentations in tents (brighter projectors/darker tents??) ([[User:StuartL]]) [+1]
* washing points over drains/soakaway so the ground doesn't get muddy ([[User:Chewie|Chewie]]) [+2]
* Mark out/allocate spaces for villages who had pinpointed locations on maps ([[User:Markp]]) [+1]
* Use more plasma screens in stages instead of projectors ([[User:Markp]]). Or (better, as then the speaker can point to things) black fabric shades for the screen or marquee roof
* Improved arrangements for washing and washing up (and handling the waste water from that) [+1]
* Distribute and display paper schedules (even if their might be some last-minute changes) [+1]
* Much more workshop activity (more hands-on electronics and physical making) [+2]
* Do have component vendors (maybe at their cost for marquee/power/space)
** This is very difficult without a clear list of what will sell, as CPC was arranged to appear but wanted advisement ([[User:Stanto]])
* Pick a flatter site (for ease of disabled access)
* Ask speakers for bio's to include with their abstracts. Given them an abstract length up-front instead of editing it in an ad hoc way. Confirm acceptance to speakers and workshop organisers earlier.
* Make and enforce a clear music curfew (say from midnight or 1am to 8 or 9am), to defend those sleeping from (eg) the technoevangelists
* Loos not so near food vendors (pong + visible urinals offputting)
* stronger enforcement/signage of quiet camping area

==Suggestions==
* A talk (a bit like lightning talks) where people are given 5-10 minutes to share what they did with the previous event's badge. (If someone sends me the competition winners/runners up, I'll co-ordinate it) [[User:MatS|MatS]] ([[User talk:MatS|talk]]) 07:54, 1 September 2014 (UTC)
* Pre-paid accounts for spending money on food/beer/whatever to negate need for cash ([[User:Markp]])
* Have a fleet of communal wheel-barrows to help people transport their stuff from car to campsite
* contactless payment gear for food, beer, workshops
* forewarn food vendors to expect all-day demand, not just mealtimes, so they can stock and staff appropriately
* pinboard (offline) notice board everyone can contribute to (lost property, mini event notices eg rocket launches, would like to meet.., etc)
* Ask people who want to give workshops if they'd be happy to give more than one session - the blacksmiths' output was extreme, but even giving two or three sessions would greatly increase the % of attendees who could sign up.
* Sign-ups some kind of "express preference" systems, so most people (including those who don't check email regularly) can get at least one of their top choices, rather than first-come-first-served.

Feedback

2014-08-31T22:01:56Z

AndyB:

Please let us know what went well and what didn't go well at EMF this year. We really do care about your feedback and we'll try and improve this for next time.

Add your feedback below:

== Good Stuff ==

* Location
* Badges
* Variety of talks

== Stuff that could be improved ==

* Buy more beer! [[User:Russ|Russ]] ([[User talk:Russ|talk]])
* Toilets... 'nuff said! [[User:AndyB|AndyB]] ([[User talk:AndyB|AndyB]])
* More food and drink options