At this workshop you'll learn about VisiData, a lightweight command-line tool that can help you explore just about any kind of dataset, from spreadsheets to databases. Led by Dave Slinger. VisiData is an interactive multitool for tabular data. It combines the clarity of a spreadsheet, the efficiency of the terminal, and the power of Python, […]

Found-document fiction can be dismissed as a gimmick, but Tenacity Plys’s new novella Family Curse - Field Notebooks (1880-2020) proves that when the form fits the content, that’s when the magic happens. Ten will give a reading, then discuss how xe crafted the form to fit the content while developing the story. Plus, xe’ll give […]

Our next permacomputing meetup is on Sunday, October 16th at 1:00 PM EDT. You can join us in person at Iffy Books (319 N. 11th St. #3E, PHL) or via Jitsi audio stream. ➡️ Jitsi Stream Link

"Selective Attention: Interventions into the Computational Gaze" Featuring the work of Kelsey Halliday Johnson, Lisa Marie Patzer and Roopa Vasudevan Opening reception: October 18, 2022 5:15pm – 7:00pm Annenberg School for Communication, Room 500 3620 Walnut St, Philadelphia, PA The opening reception is open to the public. More event info here. Algorithms and computation are […]

On Wednesday, October 19th, we'll discuss our first collection of short stories, Multispecies Cities, which gathers work from writers across Asia and the Pacific to imagine futures that emphasize the importance of interspecies justice. Register:

Iffy Books will be tabling at WOPR Summit 0x01 on Friday, October 21st. We'll be there roughly 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. That means our shop at 319 N. 11th St. will open at 5 p.m. instead of 2 p.m. Sorry for the inconvenience! We'll be open until 9 p.m. > WOPR Summit is an […]

On Sunday, October 23rd at 2:00 p.m. we'll meet outdoors at The Rail Park to build tiny solar-powered musical instruments. Each participant will receive a free kit with a breadboard, solar panel, and all the required components. You can enter The Rail Park at N. 13th and Noble St. (wheelchair accessible) or enter at the […]

Want to get some writing done? Come co-work with other writers from 5–8 p.m. at Iffy Books. Writers and projects of any type are welcome. The session will be organized into three 40-minute units of silent writing with 10-minute breaks and accountability check-ins in-between. BYO coffee, water, computer chargers, notepads, etc. See you there!

On Saturday, October 29th at 2 p.m. EDT, Emily Boda will give a talk on how to make a heat map visualization that shows commute times to a specific location. Here's a blog post about the project. This will be a hands-on workshop, so you may want to bring a laptop if you have one. […]

➡️ Video Stream Link ➡️ Donate to @PHLRUA on Venmo What can sex workers' labor organizing teach the contemporary labor movement? Join Kim Kelly (author of Fight Like Hell: The Untold History of American Labor) for a reading and a panel of Project SAFE participants for a discussion about the intersections of sex workers' labor struggles […]

Want to get some writing done? Come co-work with other writers from 5–8 p.m. at Iffy Books. Writers and projects of any type are welcome. The session will be organized into three 40-minute units of silent writing with 10-minute breaks and accountability check-ins in-between. BYO coffee, water, computer chargers, notepads, etc. See you there!

THE DEGROWTH OF SOCIAL MEDIA a short film by KC Legacion Based on their master’s research, KC Legacion has produced a short film that reimagines social media in ways that support socioecological transformations. The film offers a conceptual model of social media informed by degrowth: a framework that (1) critiques societies driven by the need […]

Virtual Zine Swap & IFFY Books November 5–6, 2022 12:00–20:00 Also this year the Virtual Zine Swap is active again. This is a program which can accessed both at the physical location and online! The idea is that you upload a PDF or HTML of your zines for others to download, and also download zines […]

We'll be tabling at Philly Zine Fest! (And the shop will be open 12–8 p.m. as usual.) The Philly Zine Fest returns live and in person! Saturday, November 5, 2022 from 12–5pm Mitten Hall at Temple University (1913 N. Broad Street, Philadelphia PA) Hosted by the Center for Humanities at Temple, with major support from Temple […]

Want to get some writing done? Come co-work with other writers from 5–8 p.m. at Iffy Books. Writers and projects of any type are welcome. The session will be organized into three 40-minute units of silent writing with 10-minute breaks and accountability check-ins in-between. BYO coffee, water, computer chargers, notepads, etc. See you there!

On Thursday, November 10th at 7:00 p.m. we'll host a free workshop on FFmpeg, an essential command-line tool for transcoding audio and video files (i.e., converting them from one format to another). Here's our zine on FFmpeg, which covers Windows, macOS, and Linux: • Screen reading PDF • Print-imposed PDF Registration (optional but helpful):  

On Saturday, November 12th from noon to 2 p.m. we're running our Solar Circuit Bending Workshop at The Chocolate Factory (2201 Margaret St., PHL). It's part of a music & electronics festival called Velocities, which runs from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Hope to see you there! In this workshop you'll build a tiny solar-powered […]

On Sunday, November 13th at 1:00 p.m. we'll host a darning workshop and mending session. Total beginners welcome! Register:

Want to get some writing done? Come co-work with other writers from 5–8 p.m. at Iffy Books. Writers and projects of any type are welcome. The session will be organized into three 40-minute units of silent writing with 10-minute breaks and accountability check-ins in-between. BYO coffee, water, computer chargers, notepads, etc. See you there!

Presented by Philadelphia SRA, Bleeding Control Basics will go over first aid as it applies to severe bleeding. We will cover scene safety, injury assessment, basic bleeding control, and tourniquet application. This class doesn’t provide any kind of certification, and is just meant to provide essential information to as many people as possible. This workshop […]

Are you looking for an alternative to Twitter? Join us Saturday, November 19th at 1:00 p.m. for a Mastodon/fediverse onboarding session with Nelson Chu Pavlosky (@skyfaller@jawns.club). Nelson is an admin and mod at jawns.club, a Philly-centric Mastodon instance. You'll learn about Mastodon's history, how it works, and how it fits into the wider fediverse. We'll […]

Our next permacomputing meetup is on Sunday, November 20th at 1:00 PM EST. You can join us in person at Iffy Books (319 N. 11th St. #3E, PHL) or via Jitsi audio stream. ➡️ Jitsi Stream Link

Want to get some writing done? Come co-work with other writers from 5–8 p.m. at Iffy Books. Writers and projects of any type are welcome. The session will be organized into three 40-minute units of silent writing with 10-minute breaks and accountability check-ins in-between. BYO coffee, water, computer chargers, notepads, etc. See you there!

We'll be closed on Thursday, November 24th. On Friday we'll open at noon and close at 9 p.m. Photo by CakeWalk

On Monday, November 28th the Philadelphia Anarchist Black Cross is hosting their monthly letter writing event at Iffy Books. Come out and write letters to anarchist prisoners! What is Anarchist Black Cross (ABC)? ABC chapters around the world autonomously support people who are imprisoned for their thoughts and actions for justice and freedom from oppression, […]

For our November reading group we'll discuss Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler. See you there!

The Philly 2600 meetup in December will be at Iffy Books on Friday, 12/2, starting around 6:00 p.m. See you then! The January Philly 2600 meetup is at 30th Street Station. The Philly 2600 meeting is a monthly gathering of local hackers, phreaks, nerds, geeks, activists, tinkerers, developers, infosec professionals, and other interesting people. Philly […]

Join us Saturday, December 3rd  at 2:00 p.m. for a reading & discussion with Mary F.E. Ebeling, author of Afterlives of Data: Life and Debt Under Capitalist Surveillance (University of California Press, 2022). ➡️ Video Stream Link What our health data tell American capitalism about our value—and how that controls our lives. Afterlives of Data follows […]

Want to get some writing done? Come co-work with other writers from 5–8 p.m. at Iffy Books. Writers and projects of any type are welcome. The session will be organized into three 40-minute units of silent writing with 10-minute breaks and accountability check-ins in-between. BYO coffee, water, computer chargers, notepads, etc. See you there!

Modular Synths 101: In this crash course you will learn the basics of sound design with a modular synthesizer.  We will cover all the basic components from shaping sound waves to the end of chain effects, a little synth history, and debate west coast vs east coast style!  No experience needed. This is an introductory […]

Join us at Saturday, December 10th at 6:00 a.m. (yes, really) until noon and participate in UnTechCon 1! It's a virtual unconference organized by Geeks for Social Change in the UK. We'll have coffee and donuts! UnTechCon 1 FAQ Learn more and buy tickets for UnTechCon Register for the meetup:

Philly Makers Syndicate presents: A Holiday Vendor Bender! 3–9 PM, December 10th at The First Unitarian Church of Philadelphia - 25+ vendors and 4 bands upstairs between two rooms at The First Unitarian Church of Philadelphia. There will be hot food available in the connecting hallway between spaces. - The church has a BYOB WITH […]

On Sunday, December 11th we'll host a fundraiser for Philadelphia Anarchist Black Cross. Stay tuned for more details! What is Anarchist Black Cross (ABC)? ABC chapters around the world autonomously support people who are imprisoned for their thoughts and actions for justice and freedom from oppression, also known as political prisoners or prisoners of war. […]