# Key Points from IRC Discussions on Open Hardware and Licensing

• The group discussed accessible neuroscience through projects like SpikerBox, which enables recording nerve impulses from insect legs using simple $20 components, alongside other open hardware initiatives like LavaAmp, Dremelfuge, and Pearl Gel Box.

• Participants debated criteria for legitimate open-source hardware, suggesting the development of a community checklist based on OSI principles to verify if projects claiming to be open source meet proper standards for design file availability and licensing.

• The conversation highlighted significant legal challenges in applying free/open source principles to hardware, with participants exploring various protection strategies including defensive publication, trademark law, GPLv3's patent provisions, and non-assertion promises.

• Richard Stallman's rhetoric was critically examined, with some arguing he uses loaded language around "freedom" that prioritizes end-user freedom while potentially limiting developer freedom.

• The group emphasized the importance of proper design documentation for open hardware projects beyond mere visualization, criticizing the use of tools like Google SketchUp and stressing the need for comprehensive bills of materials and assembly instructions.

• Participants shared technical resources including architectural-scale 3D printing technology (D-Shape), discussions of the Dunbar number's implications for social networks, and a presentation about "apt-get for hardware" suggesting interest in package management systems for open hardware components.