Maker Faire had us feeling both completely inspired and totally inadequate; here are some more pictures to prove it....

If you stopped by the Austinist table at last weekend's Maker Faire, we might have convinced you to fill out a map of the places or things that are important to you in our fair city. Submissions ranged from informative to sassy to just plain colorful, and we're presenting some of our favorites here. ...

We had a blast at last weekend's Maker Faire. Here's our first set of photos from the event....

The second annual Austin Maker Faire kicks off tomorrow at the Travis County Expo Center. Today is the last day to buy discount tickets to this fabulous celebration of all things do-it-yourself. Discounted tickets are available at the Whole Foods on Lamar and at the Austin Children's Museum until the close of business today. If you can't make it downtown, tickets are available online and will be sold at the door. The number of awesome exhibits, projects, demonstrations, and of course robots is somewhat daunting, but the organized folks from Make Magazine have put together a comprehensive schedule, map, and program guide for the event. ...

Avi Hartman is the mechanical genius behind Carmadillo, a 100 pound, gas-powered art go-kart, which he’ll be showing off at Maker Faire this weekend. The thing, which took about 400 hours to build, really does look like an especially well-fed armadillo and, yes, that’s real fire shooting from its eyes. We had a little chat with Avi about his art. ...

The creators of the original singing Tesla Coils, ArcAttack, will be on hand at this weekend's Maker Faire to show off their electrifying brand of DJ science. ArcAttack uses a unique DJ set up and a pair of Tesla Coils, both of their own creation, to create a one of a kind performance not to be missed. These high tech machines produce an electrical arc similar to a continuous lightning bolt which put out a crisply distorted square wave sound reminiscent of the early days of synthesizers. Joe DiPrima took some time to answer some questions for us in today's maker spotlight....

Science and Engineering will be at the heart of many of the exhibits and activities at this weekend's Maker Faire. Far from overly nerdy or too cerebral, many of these projects are inspiring and entertaining applications of some complex calculations. Even if math sometimes makes our brains hurt, we're excited to check out the many brainy, techy, creations that will be on display. Academy Award winning special effects and stunt coordinator Steve Wolf will be demonstrating how science is used to create special effects and help with stunts. The local chapter of the American Chemistry Society will be supervising a dozen hands on chemical activities in the Maker Kids area. Prospective scientists will be encouraged to check out the Therm Fire Sculpture Robots show complete with four flaming robots, a gigantic Tesla coil, and a turbine powered fire sculpture. Don't try this at home (or, as Maker Faire might suggest, do try it at home with the appropriate safety precautions). ...

On his Maker Faire profile, Peter Ruck, creator of mousetrap catapult guns, states: “With a broken back from a train-hopping incident over 7 years ago, I need ways to stay busy and avoid the pain. Teaching after school and creating is what I do for that.” So he splits his time up volunteering at the YMCA and Make-a-Wish Foundation and “building random things.” The guns he makes are “powered by mousetraps and bungee cords [and are] ready for action. They are generally made of found objects and store-bought goods.” The guns can shoot all sorts of “ammo”—pencils, for example. They’re customized, too—“Some even have a beer opener.” Others incorporate forks and spoons. ...

Bleep Labs likes to say that they design and manufacture noisy objects. Created by Austinite John-Michael Reed, Dr. Bleep himself, the original one of these cute and noisy objects is known as a Thingamagoop. This engaging little creature is a synth in a robot-like body that allows you to control his sounds and reactions by using a number of input knobs. Dr. Bleep and the Bleep Labs crew will be on hand at this weekend's Maker Faire to share the excitement and joy of all of their creations. Dr. Bleep was kind enough to share some of his time to allow us an interview while preparing for their return visit to this year's Maker Faire....

Mark Winkler will be at Maker Faire, with Mongo, his trebuchet—that’s catapult to those of you who aren’t familiar with medieval weaponry. When not building a catapult capable of hurling a fifteen pound watermelon 240 yards, Winkler is a layout design engineer (aka chip designer). He answered a few questions for us about Mongo. ...

Like the myriad of exhibitors at the year's Maker Faire, the arts and crafts offerings will be far from ordinary. At the center of all the craftiness, Swap-O-Rama-Rama will give everyone a chance to become a fashion designer. Anyone attending Maker Faire is encouraged to bring a bag of clothes to alter, modify, or exchange at the Swap. Local designers will be helping out with sewing stations, on site screenprinting, and all manner of clothing mod tricks. There will even be a Swap-O-Rama-Rama reuse fashion show. ...

This year's Maker Faire will feature many exhibits that focus on sustainability and green technology. Do-it-yourselfers of all backgrounds will be at the event to show off their eco-friendly creations. Intrigued tree huggers should start at The Green, Cost-Effective, DIY Extravaganza where attendees can learn how to make a solar oven, build a low-cost graywater system, make a pedicab, or set up an indoor garden. Visitors can also explore and talk to the makers of a hand built earthen oven and a solar powered water distilling device. ...

Tina Sparkles, member of Austin Craft Mafia, DIYer extraordinaire, indie designer and imminent author will be setting up a sewing station at Maker Faire 2008 with First Samples, an Austin sewing and design studio. We caught up with Sparkles to find out about her Maker Faire plans. ...

Once again, The Austin Children's Museum has teamed up with event organizers to let your inner child (or actual child) get messy at this year's Maker Faire. After all, who appreciates making things more than the young at heart? ACM's Maker's Kids Area will feature parachute and kite making, free form woodworking, Lego robots, and hands-on chemistry experiments. The Texas Association of Minority Engineers will help kids make rubber band and mousetrap powered cars to test potential and kinetic energy. On Saturday, kid makers from all over Austin will be showing off their creations at the MakerKids Showcase. The inventive youth in our area have designed a remote controlled cooler, intricate paper ships, and an invention to make homework more fun. Architect and artist Scott Specht will be in the Maker Kids area to help build a Mega Model City at fair grounds. ...

The Maker Faire Preview is taking place at Fry's Electronics (12707 N. Mopac) this Saturday, October 11th from 9am-4pm. Food Makers from the event will be at Whole Foods (525 N. Lamar) on Thursday, October 16th from 5-8pm. ...

The many musical offerings at this year's Maker Faire will compliment the festival's innovative, do-it-yourself focus. The line-up is comprised of more than twenty groups who play a wide range of genres including gypsy punk, shanty tunes, orchestral pop, circus marching band, and many more. A common element the groups share is their often unconventional, hands-on approach to making music. ...

Robots and all things robotic will play a big role at this year's Maker Faire. The first ever RoboGames Texas Cup will be at the center of the robot related revelry. This fighting robot competition will feature contestants from the US and Canada battling to win a Texas Cup in five different weight divisions. Over twenty five fights per day will take place on the RoboGames battlefield, a 1600 square foot bulletproof arena. Contestants will be equipped with flame throwers, spinning blades, pneumatic flippers, and many other frightening implements of robotic destruction. Among the battling-bots will be Austin-based "The Judge" and "Ziggy", a 340lb Canadian crowd favorite. Also hailing from Canada, in the lightweight category, "Texas Heat" will try to live up to its name by breathing fire on the competition. ...

If you do happen to have a trebuchet lying around the house (or if you are willing to build one), consider entering the King of Fling Catapult Contest taking place at this year's Maker Faire. Your hurling machine will be judged on accuracy, and must follow the guidelines laid out in the King of Fling Contest Manual (version 1.2). Eligible catapults can be gravity, spring, or human powered and should be built to hurl four ounce water balloons at targets approximately 80 feet away from the firing line. ...

The second annual Maker Faire is taking place at the Travis County Fairgrounds this October. The event, which features all things hand made, crafted, and engineered, relies on local do-it-yourself-ers to show up and show off their projects. The professional tinkerers behind Craft and Make magazines are currently accepting project submissions for the event. Maker Faire is a showcase for projects in many arenas including science, art, craft, engineering, food, music, and green technology with a focus on interactive exhibits that emphasize the process of making things. The deadline to enter is Thursday, September 4th, so start polishing up your Tesla Coil, dusting your fleet of crocheted creatures, and taking pictures of your art car. Proposals can be filled out online, and selected Makers will be notified by September 18th. ...

“We’re looking for anyone who has something fun to share, something they’ve made with their hands,” said Dale Dougherty, Publisher & Editor of Make magazine. “It can be practical or impractical—it could be something simple like a creative Halloween costume or maybe some handmade jewelry. Or it could be something wild like a bike with ten wheels, or a dog-powered lawn mower. Whatever it is, the more creative and imaginative, the better!”...