I'm not sure what the needs of the Hardware startup community are but I'm not a fan of the super specific subreddits. /r/startups isn't really that subscribed or busy, why not just post articles there?
Yea, this is fair point, but if you saw what we're seeing in HardwareLand, you'd see that we very underrepresented and feel VERY different from the standard startup crowd.
There's some similarities that HN does very well on - general lean startup stuff, etc., but HN will never be a community that up-votes "How to manufacture in China" type articles more than "How to Deploy X web stack in Y way" ones.
Something that most folks can do, and get a better product for the same dollars. Not to mention gaining many of the advantages about learning hardware as programming gives you on software.
It's a control issue. If you start a new subreddit, you "own" that subreddit, and can control posts etc. Also, since you're a mod, your posts garner more attention.
Exciting! I'm glad you are trying to start something up. Maybe a more dedicated site would foster a stronger community later down the line. Are there any existing places that do this?
Yea, I'm with you. I'm actually an awful web developer, so I figured I'd gauge interest with a sub-Reddit. There's a ton of room for resources (see below).
On July 30th in SF I'm organizing an "Map-a-thon" to put together a hardware resources map (like where to buy electronics, metal, etc. locally) for the SF area using a simple gMaps embed and some KMLs.
There also needs to be a "CrunchBase for hardware" because no one tags things "hardware" - it's always "fitness", "maker" or whatever category they're targeting.
We're also doing a survey soon to get some case studies on how people are building these companies.
Finally, we're looking at putting together a knowledge base for how to make things like "How to Design for Injection Molding" - etc. It's easy to find "How to Build X in Rails" tutorials - we need the same for our community.
This is super interesting to me as an Industrial design student masquerading as a Web designer. Unfortunately I am on the East Coast, but if there is any way I can help with this idea let me know.
This is a great idea. I grew up around fab-houses in China and I can say it definitely takes much more effort to even get a prototype down in the States. The cost of parts alone is ridiculous and probably off-putting to newcomers.
It's a real shame, since there's so much talent here that could be building amazing new hardware, but we end up just waiting for big companies like Google to tell us what the next platform will be.
I'll definitely be subscribing to this subr and coming to some meetups. Hell, we can organize bulk orders and get cheaper parts from China!
21 comments
[ 3.4 ms ] story [ 56.8 ms ] threadThere's some similarities that HN does very well on - general lean startup stuff, etc., but HN will never be a community that up-votes "How to manufacture in China" type articles more than "How to Deploy X web stack in Y way" ones.
ECE
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http://www.reddit.com/r/electronics
http://www.reddit.com/r/ECE
http://www.reddit.com/r/AskElectronics
http://www.reddit.com/r/DSP
http://www.reddit.com/r/ECEComponentExchange
RF
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http://www.reddit.com/r/RTLSDR
http://www.reddit.com/r/GNURadio
http://www.reddit.com/r/rfelectronics
Maker
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http://www.reddit.com/r/maker
Something that most folks can do, and get a better product for the same dollars. Not to mention gaining many of the advantages about learning hardware as programming gives you on software.
the rest are talking about actually making things, this one is about buying stuff. not the same thing at all.
do you really think building a pc gives insight into programming!?
On July 30th in SF I'm organizing an "Map-a-thon" to put together a hardware resources map (like where to buy electronics, metal, etc. locally) for the SF area using a simple gMaps embed and some KMLs.
There also needs to be a "CrunchBase for hardware" because no one tags things "hardware" - it's always "fitness", "maker" or whatever category they're targeting.
We're also doing a survey soon to get some case studies on how people are building these companies.
Finally, we're looking at putting together a knowledge base for how to make things like "How to Design for Injection Molding" - etc. It's easy to find "How to Build X in Rails" tutorials - we need the same for our community.
- http://www.meetup.com/HardwareStartupSF
- http://hardwareuncon.eventbrite.com
- http://www.meetup.com/Solid-State-Startups
To name very few - look at the side bar on the sub-Reddit to see more.
http://www.meetup.com/NY-Hardware-Start-up
DM me your info: twitter.com/nickpinkston)
"Special Hardware Event: A Night with OpenROV" http://www.meetup.com/HardwareStartupSF/events/72306272/
(via the link from @nickpinkston)
It's a real shame, since there's so much talent here that could be building amazing new hardware, but we end up just waiting for big companies like Google to tell us what the next platform will be.
I'll definitely be subscribing to this subr and coming to some meetups. Hell, we can organize bulk orders and get cheaper parts from China!