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278 Making Things Move

Hardware is a different issue. Patents protect designs and things, but there is not yet
a CC version of a patent that allows you to reserve some rights to your work but
encourage sharing. Luckily, the Creative Commons organization is working on that. A
good summary of legal issues around opening hardware exists at http://eyebeam.org/
events/opening-hardware, which is the archive of a workshop held at Eyebeam Art +
Technology Center, led by Ayah Bdeir with Creative Commons. The first Open Hardware
Summit addressing these types of issues and releasing a definition of open source
hardware was held on September 23, 2010.

Analog
International festivals and fairs like Maker Faire are great places to share your work
and get inspiration to do more making. On a local level, there are plenty of events,
hackerspaces, galleries, university programs, and performance spaces that encourage
you to share or showcase your work. Check www.makezine.com/groups for a list of
maker community groups and spaces.

Digital
I’ve already mentioned a few places where you can post your designs online to share
or sell. You can post just about any makeable digital file on Thingiverse. Share, make,
and sell work that can be laser cut on Ponoko.com, and do the same on Shapeways
.com for 3D models. Instructables.com is a user-friendly site you can use to write
detailed instructions on how to make something and include pictures so other people
can do the same. You can even open your own online shop, or use Etsy.com as your
storefront.

Reference

1. Saul Griffith, “Simply Cad,” Make Magazine (Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly,
Volume 6).