Abbenay Hackspace is a hackerspace located in Stockholm, Sweden. We want to build a haven for experimentation and creation where we can share our knowledge and tools, a place where we can explore, build and play with everything from reverse-engineering toys to wireless darknets to mechanized greenhouses.
We are currently hanging out at UFS' office. The address is Polhemsgatan 38.
What is "hacking"
Originally when i turned up to a hackerspace meeting i figured it would be geeks doing security hacking into computer networks. To my delight its nothing of the sort; instead its hacking in the broad sense of "hacking away at something - anything".
Hackerspaces are a remedy to problem of large multinationals making stuff and keeping the hardware & software that runs it hidden and closed. In our "disposable society" i think everyone has had enough of things being:
- Designed for obsolescence; to break down after the warranty period has expired.
- Designed for buying the next model in 2 years time; they bring out the new model next year, and all they did is add a few buttons and nobs and add some small amount of functionality to the software.
- Designed for inflexibility; you need to upgrade your model to get the extra special functionality. You cant add cumulatively.
Hackerpaces allow people to break away from their dependence on closed hardware. Instead we build hardware & software that is open, changeable and 90% of the time much cheaper. Because they are designed to be upgraded, they are also very environmentally friendly and dont need to be replaced, and dont need to end up on land fill as much. They create local and global knowledge and act as incubation areas for new commercial spins offs to the local market, and create jobs and innovation.
The term "hackerspace" is now a worldwide movement. They are literally in every capital city and smaller towns around the world. The open source movement happened in software, and everyone realized the potential to expand exponentially, instead of re-inventing the wheel every time (because its closed source). This is how civilizations expand. Language was the first "open source" thing we did because it allowed us to pass knowledge onto our offspring, instead of relearning everything each time we are born. Closed systems are evil because they force society back to the "reinventing the wheel level of advancement". Hackerspaces are about people empowering themselves to have choice and knowledge and independence from manufacturer lock-in. Hackerspaces are the next evolutionary step - Open source hardware and software.
History
Abbenay first meeting was held in the summer of 2009 at Cafe Edenborg. After that Abbenay hung out some time at squat called AK4 in Liljeholmen in Stockholm. In september 2009 Abbenay became a member of Young Researchers and has since then had meetings at the Stockholm district of Young Researchers office.
To read more about how we are organised go here Administratrivia