The Cowtown Computer Congress

If you’re coming from the south (for example, Johnson County, K-10 Highway, etc):

South Map to CCCKC

1. Take I-35 to the Rainbow Blvd. / 7th St. Trafficway exit.
2. Turn Right onto Rainbow and get in the left lane.
3. Turn Left onto Southwest Boulevard. Stay right.
4. Turn Right onto 31st St, just after passing QuikTrip.
5. Follow the curve and take 31st St to Mercier, just after Dean Machinery.
6. Turn Right on Mercier, then hang a quick left into the parking lot next to the elevator tower marked 3101 (photograph shown here)
7. Take the elevator to the lower level. Suite 404 is a few doors to the left.

If you’re coming from the North (I-70, Kansas City, Liberty, etc)

North Map to CCCKC

1. Take I-35 to the Southwest Trafficway exit. This is a left-lane exit!
2. Merge onto Southwest Trafficway and continue on to 31st St.
3. Turn Right onto 31st St until you get to Mercier.
4. Turn left on Mercier, then hang a quick left into the parking lot next to the elevator tower marked 3101 (photograph shown here)
5. Take the elevator to the lower level. Suite 404 is a few doors to the left.

CCCKC Underground Lab
3101 Mercier, Ste. 404 [MAP]
Kansas City, MO 64111

Saturday, March 7th will bring a full day of workshops and classes with a random smattering of presentations on a wide range of topics.

Soldering Workshops

Ever been curious about learning to solder? Come learn basic soldering and de-soldering techniques and come away with a fully complete and functioning blinky robot! There is no need to own a soldering iron or the kit in advance (though if you have another kit you want to work on during the day feel free) as we will have all the supplies on hand!

There will be two sessions at three hours a piece. Space is extremely limited so be sure to RSVP to someoneknows2000@gmail.com early to secure your spot.

Session 1: 0900-1200
Session 2: 1300-1600

Introduction to the Arduino

1300-1400
The Arduino is one of the fastest growing platforms for electronics development on the market. Jestin and Vince will cover some of the basics and will be ready to help you do some programming for either your Arduino or Boarduino.

E-Textiles
1400-1500
Sure, making electronics to carry around is cool, but what if you could wear your creations? Whereischaio will cover some of the basics of creating electronic textiles…just don’t wear them to Logan Airport.

Wii Device Hacking
1500-1600
The Nintendo Wii changed the way we play video games, taking us from sitting on the couch to…standing in front of the couch! Learn how to utilize that Wii controller (and the balance board of course) in different ways from controlling your PC to building your own Wiibryinth.

Information Flow Management
1600-1700
With every passing day the volume of information bombarding our lives increases. There must be some way to wrangle the different sources of information in such a way that things like email are useful again. This talk will cover show tested techniques to filter information and deliver it to multiple devices with every component including your office computer, home computer, laptop and mobile phone.

Other talks to be announced here as they are confirmed.

After Party at Dolce!
Featurnig music from Chicago DJ GAZEBO!!, laser graffiti and plenty of liquid refreshment, we will migrate from the Underground Lab to Kansas City’s new Ultimate Lounge, Dolce for the culmination of a week of events.

Think hackers don’t know how to party? You’re mistaken my friend. From the HacDC party at Shmoocon to the legendary Hackerpimps and Ninja Party at DEFCON these are blow outs that make your fraternity formal look like a night at the old folks home. You’re not going to want to miss this!

Friday, March 6th will feature some amazing talks from our membership. After the talks finish up, we’ll be screening Hackers are People Too and GRL the Complete First Season while we set up for the LAN party. Pwnage will happen with a number of old and new games so feel free to bring out that gaming rig that’s been in your basement for a while.

Fun with the Fon – AsmodianX and Ax0n

The Fon router is one of the coolest and most hackable wireless devices on the market. Learn how to turn this low cost device into one of the most powerful and useful nodes on your network.

An Airport HiJacking – hevnsnt

It’s easy to get excited when you find that the airport you’ve found yourself at for a long layover has free Wiffy. What evil lurks on these networks where all users are inherently transient?

Implementing and Scaling Moodle for Fun and Profit – Asomodian X

So you’ve enrolled in classes and picked up a hot new Apple or Linux notebook, only to learn that the school you’re attending uses Blackboard. Now you’ve got to figure out a way to get Internet Explorer running. Lame. Learn how Moodle is changing the way technology is implemented in higher education.

Retro Computing – Frogman and Ax0n

Got old hardware that you think is dead and ready for the trash heap? Think again. Featured old-school tech used for modern purposes includes a Zenith ZWL-184, HP Jornada 720 and a Mac SE.

The History of Lock Design – Ulysses

We interact with locks multiple times throughout the day. Learn how they work, how they keep our stuff safe and how some locks are vulnerable to attack.

Thursday, March 6th we will have our regular member meeting. Our meetings are a great time to find out what’s going on in the larger sense with the organization. While they certainly aren’t mandatory, they are a lot of fun. The business end of things usually lasts for about an hour with people staying and chatting about projects and ideas for a couple more hours.

We will also be distributing keys to the members at this meeting. If you’re one of our members, here are the things you’ll need to do before picking up your keys:

• Make sure your dues are current
• Download, fill out, and print the forms in your membership packet. Bring in the pieces that exec will be retaining and you’re all set

The most exciting part? The Underground Lab will never be closed again.

Wednesday, March 4th we will be hosting a showcase of member projects. This is a great night to come out to see what kind of work will be done in the Underground Lab and get a real feel for what hacker spaces are all about.

Here are just some of the projects which will be on display for you to take a look at and be inspired by:

The Wiibrynth

Sure, you can play a labyrinth like game with Wii Fit, but why not dig out the lanbyrinth from your youth and turn it into a real party game? Using ~$60 worth of parts (minus the labyrinth and balance board) Jestin and Vince have brought old and new technology together.

Fun with Lasers

hevnsnt will be bringing in some of his laser creations, including a repurposed Blu-Ray laser diode which is extra useful if you need to pop balloons or start fires. Seriously.

Kung Fu Robotics

Mike Overstreet will have his humanoid robot on hand to lay the beat down on any other robot who thinks they are up to the challenge.

Alternative Energy Generation with the Seebeck Effect

Randy Childers likes green technology…a lot. Generating power using nothing but water and the sun? No problem. Learn more about how the Seebeck Effect works and see what’s next in this rapidly developing area of technology.

Pedal Power