Membership

If you are interested in contributing to SIPB's computing services and in helping users with unusual computing questions, consider becoming a member. Full membership in SIPB is granted after sustained contribution to the organization, and confers several benefits:

• A permanent Athena account.
• A key to the SIPB office in W20, and a storage drawer in the SIPB office.
• A vote at SIPB meetings and (for current students) elections.

Prospective members interested in becoming full members should attend our weekly meetings regularly (they're Mondays at 7:30 PM), participate in SIPB activities like hackathons, cluedumps, and IAP classes, and either create a new SIPB project or help with some existing SIPB projects. This process generally takes about a term of active participation. Our calendar contains the full schedule of our events.

To get involved in SIPB projects, you can contribute to an existing project—begin by talking to the people currently working on it—or start a new one. The best way to start a SIPB project is to pick some computing-related problem that is important to you, find some like-minded individuals, and try to solve it, discussing your ideas and plans around the SIPB office, and reporting on your progress to the SIPB. The most successful SIPB projects have often been things that the people involved really wanted to do, and found resources or collaborators to do them through SIPB.

You don't have to be a coding ace to become a SIPB member! There are plenty of ways for nontechnical people to get involved: you can write documentation, help organize events, work on publicity or advocacy, or contribute design skills. If you want to contribute to SIPB by coding but don't think you're a good enough programmer, there are many SIPB members willing to work with you to help you get better, and for many people working on a project and learning as you go along is a great way to build your programming skills.

The office

Prospective members are encouraged to hang out in the SIPB office anytime it is open, which it is on a typical weekday afternoon and evening. We strive to make it a fun and comfortable place to work on projects, homework, or anything else by providing an array of amenities:

• Nice chairs, big monitors, many computers, table space for laptops
• Music: ours (CDs or LAMP) or yours (via a certain "printer")
• Tons of equipment and supplies from video adapters to an oscilloscope to Band-Aids
• A diverse technical library, including popular textbooks
• Soda and snacks for late-night sessions, cheaper and closer than Verde's

You

If you have any questions about SIPB or the SIPB membership process, or ideas for projects, feel free to either drop by our office (W20-557) or contact the Chair at sipb-chair@mit.edu.