More About Dan Shapiro and the Glowforge CNC Laser Cutter (Video #2)

Yesterday Glowforge Co-Founder and CEO Dan Shapiro told us that the Glowforge machine is a CNC laser cutter and engraver, not a 3-D Printer -- even though the first words on Glowforge's main page are, "The First 3D Laser Printer," a description Dan says is there for people not familiar with things like laser cutters and 3-D printers, who want to call the Glowforge a 3-D printer even though people who know about this stuff know what it is at first glance. He also talks about his previous startup, Robot Turtles; what it is, how it came to be, and why kids like it so much. This interview is worth watching (or reading) for the Robot Turtles section alone, especially if you have children or are thinking about designing board games for kids.

Comments

What is this

[Holi]

Recurring Advertisements for what? did Slashdot get paid for all this coverage?

Re:What is this

[Roblimo]

Unless a story or video is marked SPONSORED CONTENT or ADVERTISEMENT it is not a paid ad on Slashdot. Sometimes a Slashdot editor -- Tim in this case -- gets interested enough in a person, group, service or product to do a video interview with the person/people behind it. The theory behind the Dan Shapiro interviews (and we have two more to run after a while) is that they're a great primer on how to use crowdfunding to kickstart your company. His Glowforge product is obviously not unique, and we have said so and linked to several competitors, which should be a clue that it's not an ad.

We looked at what Shapiro had to say as good info for entrepreneurial Slashdot users who may want to start their own businesses one day. You may not be one of them. Please understand that many thousands of people hit Slashdot every day, and stories that interest you may not interest each and every one of them. And stories that interest some of them may not be your cup of milk.

A funny datum for you: We ran an excerpt from an interview at http://passionatevoices.org/ - whose owner Erik first contacted me about our videos; he wondered if they were paid ads. Obviously they're not, because when Erik submitted his first video on passionate voices, this is what happened: http://news.slashdot.org/story...

We are happy to accept and run reader-submitted videos and we love suggestions for people we should interview. You can use the submission form or email me, robin at roblimo dotcom.

Got any good ideas? :)

- Robin

Play on words

[Anonymous Coward]

He uses 3D printer because that's the buzz word used to get funding for his project. Why would it matter if people not in the know didn't get it? That means they don't need a laser cutter.

Re:Play on words

[hey!]

It's perfectly sound marketing logic.

Explaining things to people who aren't up to speed yet is difficult and tedious; and in any even people don't have the patience to sit through explanations. So the obvious thing to do is to describe your product in terms that confuse everyone, equally.

slashadvertising.org

[Anonymous Coward]

Love the new slashadvertising.org website!! Definitely sign me up for 2 of everything and please take my credit card to fund every silly project that pays to advertise here!!

I see at least TWO problems with that last project

[Thud457]

A project called Robot Turtles with no ROBOTS nor TURTLES involved?!!
Hell, he could have made that cool by having a option to integrate a physical turtle robot so kids could see how virtual code can make things move in the REAL world.
#YAY!KICKSTARTER!!

Down with video

[rubycodez]

make a text article for each video or lose readers

stupid twats are running slashdot these days

Re:Down with video

[Roblimo]

Sigh. We supply text transcripts with almost all videos. Look for the link -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H... tells you how to use a hyperlink (or 'link' for short).

To see that link, click on the video's title or on the "read more" link below the video where it appears on the main page.

Have a nice day, and may everyone you meet be as courteous to you as you are to Slashdot staff!

Thanks,

- Robin

Re:Down with video

[vux984]

I've little interest in watching video interviews myself; can't skip around in it, can't easily review it, can't copy and paste from it to reply in a comment, etc, and worst of all I'm stuck listening to it as fast as you recorded it which is glacial compared to reading a transcript. etc.

Frankly I'm truly stunned how many people on the web want video. Youtube videos exist for how to set a browser preference. Who needs a 3 minute video, complete with introduction, just to watch someone narrate while they use their mouse to navigate to a menu item. If I could block those from my search results I would do so in a heartbeat.

The upshot is the transcripts here are much appreciated.

Re:Down with video

[Anonymous Coward]

What is this stupid story doing on the front page two days in a row? Follow the money...

Re:Down with video

[antime]

Why are you not reporting on Sourceforge bundling malware with open-source software?

Re:Down with video

[Anonymous Coward]

Nobody wants video, except content and internet service providers. This is spoon fed to masses just as many other things these days.

It is true that for the average and below IQ moving things on a screen can garner some attention, since it has only been a few thousands of years since something moving could meant to be killed or to have sex, and we learned to react, and we are completely desensitized of static placards.

I am sure the overlords of /. have wet dreams about overtaking youtube, it will be too late when they will realize that it will not.
I think if we could make an effort to not comment on any such video posts, it ought to send a message.
Over and out...

Re:Down with video

[Anonymous Coward]

You must be new here. Stupid twats have always run Slashdot. Starting with Rob Malda.

Re:Down with video

[rubycodez]

Courtesy? After slashdot beta we're fresh out.

"Almost" all videos?

Re:I see at least TWO problems with that last proj

[ArcadeMan]

#YAY!KICKSTARTER!!

YAY!

Demo and questions

[Anonymous Coward]

Is there somewhere with a demo video of this machine in action. I see it described as "etching" metal, can it cut metal, say aluminum in thicknesses of 4 hundredths to 8 hundredths of an inch. There might be some potential market in the sign making industry.Also have you experimented with it at all in shaping, cutting, or carving high density urethane sheets.

Re: Demo and questions

[Anonymous Coward]

Generally a bad idea to apply heat to urethane. Mill that $#!t

I never thought I'd ever say this..

[Anonymous Coward]

But bring back Bennett's Brainfarts.
Please, anything is better than this shite, what the fuck has happend to you Slashdot ? , it's almost like you just can't be bothered anymore.

AND FURTHERMORE...

[Thud457]

If any of these kiddie code-camp dingbats were serious about getting kids interested in coding, they'd see about getting Big Trak re-resurrected. They had a modern version available for about five minutes around 2009. Add a WIFI interface to the the thing and Bob's your uncle.
While they're at it, make available add-on modules for a camera(s), and a freakin' lazor, maybe a robot claw.

Re: AND FURTHERMORE...

[Anonymous Coward]

What the fuck is a "lazor"?

Thank you for clarigying that I have no interest

[TheCarp]

Dan: Yeah, exactly. And once youâ(TM)ve created something, itâ(TM)s going to sit in your library, so you can just call up from your phone again and say, yeah I just want another one of those go, go, go. It is natively connected all the time. So, if you donâ(TM)t have an Internet connection in your shop, if you are up and about , you are going to either have to find a mobile spot or this wonâ(TM)t work

Keep your overpriced junk.

I don't even know what more to say. I don't want a device that requires somebody else's service to work. I don't want to invest in a future brick, and not just a future brick, but one I can't even use to design my own things and decide whether or not its 100% private?

No, I pay you for the device, then you get copies of all my designs? Everything I work on? AND if you decide you don't care any more, or have enough designs copied, you can just switch it all off and everyone is shit out of luck?

Anyone who pays good money for this, I hope they understand the real limitations and risks before they buy their future brick.

"First 3d Laser Printer"

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm sorry but that claim is clearly bullshit and damages the credibility of the nobody making it. I've never heard of glowforge but I've seen enough "me too" glorified 3-5 DoF Nema17/Nema23 stepper motor powered desktop fabrication gadgets over the past 10 years to last me a lifetime.

Tom Swift...

[Anonymous Coward]

...and-his-cnc-laser-cutter-would-make-a-great-book-title dept?

You obviously know little about Tom Swift, at least in the first series.
Each book built on or improved inventions mentioned previously.
First would be "Tom Swift And His Non-Clogging Printhead", followed by "Tom Swift And His Refillable Ink".
Introduce lasers in "Tom Swift And His Light Amplifier", and then 3D in "Tom Swift And His Additive-Subtractor".
And then, Tom will need a special form of Platinum, and he has to go covertly to Russia to obtain it, where he is helped by Bolsheviks...
Wait, that was done already in "Tom Swift And His Air Glider".

WTF

[Going_Digital]

So this is just another laser cutter/engraver like the millions that are already out there, put this one in the trash!

Re:Thank you for clarigying that I have no interes

[JaredOfEuropa]

This. A device isn't mine unless I can run it offline. Why does it even need to be in constant touch with the mothership; the website fails to adequately explain that. As a hobbyist I'd *love* to have one of these, but it needs to be able to run on its own.