A totally DIFFERENT use for our 3D printer

Today a guy came in and asked if he could record our 3D printer as it printed...as in an audio recording.  He is a sound engineer and collects files of different sounds to have on file for future projects.

And for you Cold War veterans, NO, the recorder he used didn't look like this:

Print jobs backlog!

An instructor of a 3D printing class drop off a lot of jobs plus we have a few jobs from other people.  Right now we have 17 jobs in our queue!  If you need something printed send it along but know it might take a couple of days.  We are printing pretty much all of the time that someone is in the building.  

Patron printing prototype parts!

Sanel Smejlovic printing covers for his remote controlled switches.

His switches work with your phone, all kinds of household remotes, and by touch. They are really cool, and he's printing the covers here at UCPL!

We're on the national news!

Our MOREnet funded 3-D Printer made onto NPR's Morning Edition on Wednesday, 4/29/2015 in a story about 3-D printers and public libraries. St Louis Public Radio's Joseph Leahy came to a 3-D printing class at the University City Public Library on Sunday, April 11 and talked to us. You can read the text or listen to the story at:
NPR Story

St Basil's Cathedral as reproduced on our 3-D printer.

St Louis Public Radio

MakerBot Firmware Update

MakerBot recently released firmware version 1.7, check out the details at their site: https://mindtouch.makerbot.com/04_Desktop/Release_Notes/Fifth_Generation_Firmware_Release_Notes
Applying a firmware update is very straightforward.  Download the latest MakerBot Desktop software, attach directly to the printer via USB, and click "Update Firmware" under Devices.

Try printing one of the internally stored models, such as Mr. Jaws, to verify operations.

3D Printer outage

Last week, we experienced our first (and hopefully last!) Smart Extruder blockage.  Unfortunately, even after following the steps on the MakerBot support website for clearing a clogged extruder, we were unable to get filament to extrude.  Contacted MakerBot Support directly today and after working with customer service, determined the extruder should be replaced.  We’re hoping to have the replacement in hand by end of week.

CircTV is now LIVE

On Thursday, October 16, our new digital signage system went live, and we are pleased to have chosen Xibo (http://xibo.org.uk/) to be our content management system.  Some of the compelling reasons for selecting Xibo included ease of use, setup, platform flexibility, support for numerous media types, and colleague recommendations.  For the display screen, we selected the Samsung ME55C LED TV (http://www.samsung.com/us/business/displays/digital-signage/LH55MECPLGA/ZA).  Deciding the primary location for the display screen proved to be challenging as we wanted the best possible location with the least disruption, in terms of installation.  Just about every place considered ended up needing some type of additional infrastructure changes, such as, power and/or network access.  Ultimately, it was determined to install the primary screen behind the main Circulation desk, but additional setup would be needed.  Our fabulous building supervisor reconfigured the bookshelf area, installed electrical, mounting brackets, and attached the TV to the wall.  It turned out beautifully!