Open Sauce is a confoundingly brilliant Bay Area event

Having a science/tech/maker YouTuber as a role model is arguably better than, say, a fashion model, an actor, a populist podcaster, or a footballer, no?

The real draw of OpenSauce is that it is really mostly a con for the creators, and that the public is invited to some capacity is just a side thing.

The after party is where the real fun begins. Playing with dangerous high-energy devices? Hell yes.

> But the problem is that while kids like it a lot, it doesn't translate to engineering careers.

Gross.

Maybe people should be able to enjoy doing things. Not every moment of child rearing needs to be dedicated to maximizing shareholder value.

And maybe it would be good to extend that attitude into adulthood.

> But the problem is that while kids like it a lot, it doesn't translate to engineering careers.

Absolutely baffling comment.

Like if kids started eating healthy and the complaint was 'yea, but they're not interested in growing up to be professional nutrionists'

Yeah, another side effect is management types are now allergic to things which look like maker projects, even if done with a level of professional engineering seriousness - they are unable to distinguish between the two, so now they dismiss both.

This has been a factor in the slowdown of commercial IoT, as it is often dismissed as science fair stuff.

Is having more tinkerers or Bill Nye's really a bad thing?

From what I’ve seen at maker and science fairs, these events often attract students who feel overlooked in schools that heavily prioritize sports. How many schools have pristine football fields, while the physics teacher is spending money out of their own pocket to build hands-on experiment kits, just to show students that physics is more than what’s in a textbook? (That was the case for my dad)

These fairs open kids eyes to a broader world. One that celebrates creativity, problem-solving, and scientific curiosity.

Not every student needs to become an engineer. What matters is that they feel hopeful about the future and engaged in something positive, instead of turning to drugs or escapism.

I don't see how you go from "it doesn't cause engineering careers" to "it's one of the reasons there's a shortage of engineers".

If everything on show at open sauce were those stupid 3D printed dragons I'd agree with you. But the maker movement is massive and interesting and goes very very deep.

You can self-learn as much about engineering as you'd learn at university. Most kids eventually pivot from wanting to be astronauts/influencers to something more realistic.

IMO tinkering is an amazing hobby which will benefit you in whatever direction your career ends up going in.

> But the problem is that while kids like it a lot, it doesn't translate to engineering careers.

I think there has always been that though. When having a guitar was cool and people thought they'd be famous doing it. Of course 0.00001% actually managed it, but some craft out a career in music or related areas such as being studio engineers etc. (I did)

And for some it shows that it is possible, that people like them can be enabled and make their own stuff.

It might be that they're are organisations needed to bridge this new gap and get people into more formal engineering, but they'll also hopefully realise that people like them might work one day at top tier engineering companies.

I've had a different experience. It probably has to do with my emotional makeup.

I really like engineering; especially the delivery part. That's where I give the results of my work to others, and they use it. It's been that way, since I was a kid.

The delivery part means there's a fairly significant amount of "not fun" stuff, like Quality Assurance, Documentation, and Support.

I don't especially like that part, but the end goal has always made it worth it.

It's been my experience that companies like to pay for the delivery part. For some reason, delivery is important to them.

I'm also "on the spectrum," so process and repetition have always been something I can dig. I find comfort in structure and Discipline, which, in my opinion, are required elements of "engineering," as opposed to "coding."

meet a lady who had built a terrifying battlebot that was too vicious to be allowed in the arena at the event as it would have broken straight though the safety plexiglass.

I think we all deserve to see a video of this battlebot. It's been a tough week.

> Do you like enthusiastically interrogating teenagers about robots they've made?

Definitely one of the joys of being a FIRST robot league parent/volunteer.

This may not matter to everyone but he is very pro-life and attended anti-abortion protests in the past. While I don't know his current stance but you can find some disturbing writing on his blog if you go back far enough: https://www.jeffgeerling.com/articles/religion/abortion-case...

Same, I read everything he writes. I remember reading a bunch of his stuff when I was getting into ansible, and then all his Pi stuff especially when CM4 came out. It's a strange sort of parasocial relationship but for nerds!

Strongly agree for the same reasons. I don’t subscribe to his stuff for any particular niche, I just enjoy the “this is a thing I am going to learn lots about and make a video”.

Sending out a simple reminder email would have made more impact. I did not realize the event was happening until I looked at my personal calendar.

Same, except it's the fear of being randomly detained for a month before being deported.

Yeah, I was wondering to the degree it was different than the Maker Faire. (Took the daughters there for years until it shut down. Covid? I think it's back on bur I'm no longer in the Bay Area.)

Maker Faire got crowded and a bit repetitious from year to year.

Maybe you can characterize — is Open Sauce has slightly less art, slightly more tech? That's my impression watching a few videos now.