Do you have an unfinished website, or perhaps a few? Are you interested in learning how to build a website from the ground up? Then the Ballarat IndieWeb Meetup is for you. We’re creating a relaxed monthly space for sharing projects, learning from one another, and tinkering with the smaller, stranger and more independent side of the web: a place where you own your identity, publish your own content and have a site to call your own. Come along and meet local people who understand how the pieces fit together, from choosing a domain and setting up DNS to finding hosting and publishing your first page. Whether you’re starting from scratch or have been building websites for decades, there will be people willing to share what they know. There will be no pitches, growth hacking or pressure to turn your hobby into a startup just people making and sharing interesting things and helping one another along. Come along to show off what you've made or just to get some inspiration. Beginners, experienced builders and the merely curious are all welcome. All proceeds from ticket sales go towards keeping Ballarat Hackerspace running. Existing paying monthly or full-time Hackerspace members may attend free of charge, but a ticket is still required so we know you’re coming. Held at Ballarat Hackerspace, 136a Albert Street, Ballarat Central (of course we have our own indieweb website too: indieweb.au)

Practical AI Skills Anyone Can Learn Simple ways to work smarter and feel more confident with AI. No tech background needed. AI is changing how work gets done, and you don't have to be technical to benefit. Whether you're in admin, customer service, retail, hospitality or any other frontline/support role, this session gives you simple, practical ways to use AI in your everyday job. No jargon. No assumed experience. In 90 minutes, you'll learn how to: Save time on the repetitive stuff: emails, meeting notes, reports, admin Write prompts that get you better results, including fact checking and styling Understand what's safe to use at work, and what's worth checking with your employer first Build real confidence with tools like ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, and Gemini Apply AI directly to things you do day-to-day You don't need specific questions to come along. You're welcome to just listen, try things out, and see what other locals in similar roles are doing with AI at work. Hosted by Adrian Holtham from Plainlight, an AI training and consultancy firm based here in Ballarat. Adrian works with local businesses to help their teams understand AI in plain English and use it confidently in everyday work. Dr Rob Layton from BRAIN, the Ballarat Regional Artificial Intelligence Network. Rob has more than 15 years of experience working with AI, leads the Ballarat AI Meetups, and is a highly experienced technology trainer. This is a collaboration between BRAIN (www.brain.net.au), Plainlight (plainlight.com.au) and the Ballarat Hackerspace. Tickets are required and seats are limited, so grab yours early. Experienced with AI, or want the technical deep-dive? Try our AI Tooling Workshops (BRAIN meetup) instead. See the previous session and the next session.

The Ballarat Hackerspace is hosting "Introduction to Laser Cutting for Makers and Artists" workshops on the 3rd Wednesday of every month. NOTE THE CHANGE OF DATE FROM ORIGINALLY ADVERTISED Whether you're an amateur maker, artist, professional product designer/prototyper, or just keen learner of hands-on crafts, this is a casual workshop evening for adults of all skill levels to learn how laser cutters work, go through the workflow from creating/finding artwork and editing/formatting the files, to a small finished product/item that you can take home with you. Absolutely no experience necessary, volunteer members of the Hackerspace will be on hand to show you through the process. We're also doing "Introduction to 3D Printing" workshops on the 1st Wedneday of every month. Check our website for more details if you're interested in that. Thanks to the City of Ballarat for helping fund these workshops for the community. Tickets are required for all participants (including members), and bookings close 24 hours before the event so that we can plan appropriately for numbers.   These workshops are 18+ only due to insurance/liability reasons. Tickets are free for existing members of the Hackerspace. If you're currently a member and wish to attend, please make sure you're logged in to TidyHQ and the free ticket below will process for you.