About SYN Shop

SYN Shop is a hackerspace located in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is a space for sharing, creation, collaboration, research, development, mentoring, and of course, learning. Our motto is: "Let's make stuff awesome!''

History

SYN Shop was started back in 2008, when a bunch of DIY enthusiasts decided that instead of hiding in our garages, workshops and offices, we should instead come together and start a community around the things we are passionate about.

Who We Are

We are hackers, makers, artists, innovators, inventors, people of knowledge, and people who want to learn. We are people who take things apart to see how they work. We design the new because it has not been done before, and we reinvent what has already been done for the challenge of doing it ourselves. We're here to discover the unknown. To teach others, and to put our mark on the world by helping others. We're here to form a community of people who come together to share resources and knowledge to build and make things.

What We Are Not

We may be hackers, but we are hackers in the same sense that Steve Wozniak or Dean Kamen are hackers. We're not here to break into your ex's cell phone/computer/automobile, etc. We're not the people who attack and deface web sites, steal people's credit card information, or even identities. In fact many of us work in industries which protect against such people.

How To Get Involved

If you are in the Las Vegas valley area and are interested in the hackerspace idea, join our discord, sign up to one of our Mailing Lists, or show up to a SYN Shop event. Or just stop by during our open hours to check the place out.

The Name

What does the name "SYN Shop" mean, and why do we call ourselves by that name? When computers need to talk to one another over the network, SYN is the first packet sent out during the TCP three-way handshake. Since Hacker Spaces are about communication, we felt this was a good way of symbolizing what we do. You can also say that Syn, could stand for "Synergy". Synergy is defined as two or more things functioning together to produce a result not independently obtainable, which also fits well with the Hacker Space ideals. And lastly since we live in Las Vegas, SYN is a fun play on words and the city's often heard nick name "Sin City."