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Thread: Another new guy

  1. #11
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    Charleston, SC
    Posts
    2,147,489,446

    Default SELEM concept...

    Steve-o;

    We hadn't really given it a name because it's going to be a much smaller event. The FLEM name was just a play on the SELEM concept, and was originally done in jest. But hey - FLEM works as well as anything, so what the hell. :P FLEM it is. (Sounds better than "Laser Geeks R Us", right?)

    We're not exactly sure yet just what SELEM will be like. That's one of the reasons why I wanted to get some people together and have a "trial run" in Florida to see how it goes. We know that we want the event to be relatively unstructured... We also didn't want anyone taking control of the event, lecturing the guests, that sort of thing. But beyond that we really didn't know how SELEM would go.

    Since there were 4 or 5 laser geeks in Florida that were all interested in getting together, I figured that we might learn something from a "Mini-SELEM" event in Florida... (Especially since a few of them already had experience doing professional shows and were willing to share their knowledge with the hobbyist community.) So we started kicking the idea around, and as luck would have it, a member here (Paul, aka Clandestiny) had access to a nice meeting area that wouldn't cost us anything to use for a day. 8) So with the hardest problem (venue) already solved, the rest was easy to set up. (I think we're up to something like 7 or 8 laserists, with another 4 or 5 guests, so far.)

    Depending on what we learn from the event in Florida (FLEM, if you will), we should be in a better position to plan the main SELEM event for this summer. One of the thorny questions that needs to be answered is how to handle people that want to attend SELEM as a representative of a laser company. While there are certainly some *very* smart folks in the business (some of whom are members of this forum) that could no doubt offer lots of excellent advice to the hobbyist community, we really don't want this to become a trade show. :?

    It's supposed to be a meeting for hobbyists and enthusiasts; a chance to meet some very cool people, observe some very cool equipment in operation, and learn a little (or a lot) about lasers and laser shows. Above all, it's supposed to be a *social* event as much as anything. I know that some professional laserists will be there, but they've already stated that their goal isn't to show up to promote their laser business, but rather to share their knowledge with those that are interested in learning.

    That's not to say that there's anything wrong with someone bringing a set of galvos to the event in the hopes that he/she can sell or swap them for some other goodies... And it may be that we will open the door to vendors to come and set up a small display table if they'd like to demonstrate, and possibly sell, their products. After all, if a company has a new product that can produce cool laser effects, then the hobbyist community would probably be interested in seeing it in operation. 8)

    But we don't want a commercial display table to completely overwhelm the other hobbyist displays. Especially the one from the guy that drove 12 hours to get to the event; the guy that brought his hand-made projector that uses stepper motors, rotary solenoids, and diffraction gratings to create his laser effects; the guy that was hoping to find someone that could explain how to hook up his newly-aquired galvos to his home-made DAC so he can start projecting graphics for the first time... That sort of thing. I am hoping to make this event as much fun for a newbie as it will be for the old pros.

    Also, some of our "hobbyists" will be bringing equipment that rivals what the professionals use. (At least one member that will be attending FLEM will be bringing a complete Pangolin Pro setup, which should be pretty cool to see in operation.) When it comes to SELEM, last year we had just about every laser show hardware and software combination represented (before we had to cancel the event). We had people asking about 3 phase power and water cooling for their large frame ion lasers. (Which was one of the stumbling blocks in finding a suitable venue.) So there should be a wide variety of hardware to check out.

    Wow - this turned out to be a lot longer than I expected! ops: But that's the reasoning behind the whole event - for what it's worth.

    Adam

  2. #12
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    Florida
    Posts
    4,382

    Default

    Sounds really cool. Yeah, the guy with the home-made laser and projector..that would be me. I'm looking forward to seeing some of those large frame ions. How big is this meeting place gonna have to be? 3 phase power and water cooling? I hope somebody brings a generator-Truck!!
    I'm referring to SELEM, not FLEM.. Wish I still lived in Fla, and could make it

  3. #13
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    Charleston, SC
    Posts
    2,147,489,446

    Default

    We really don't know yet how big SELEM will be. Heck, FLEM started out as a couple people getting together with some solid-state projectors that were rated at under 400 mw total. Now we've got a 1.7 watt whitelight projector comming (all solid state), and possible some larger frame ion lasers as well. So things have a way of growing bigger with time!

    I'd like to avoid a generator if I can for SELEM. It's easier to use house power. But we'll have to see how much interest there is in people bringing their larger lasers I guess.

    As for the comment about guy with the home-made projector... Nearly everyone started there, and some of us are still there. There's no shame in that. In fact, we're specifically inviting those folks. (Hell, I'm one of them!) This kind of event is where people can learn things - things that are otherwise very hard to figure out on your own. That's the whole point.

    Adam

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