Iffy Books | 404 S. 20th St., PHL

☕️ Coffee Talk
2026-08-03 18:00 - 20:00, 2026-07-20 18:00 - 20:00 (America/New_York) | Iffy Books, 404 S. 20th St., Philadelphia, 19146, United States
A social hangout every first and third Monday for trans and non-binary people, their significant others, and allies. We have snacks and coffee.

🏠 IndieWeb Homebrew Website Club
2026-08-02 18:00 - 20:00
Homebrew Website Club is a growing world-wide network of meetups for everyone who wants to take back their web experience from social media silos, and own their online identities & content, or just want support with blogging!

🔊 DJ Basixxx with Mixxx
2026-08-02 16:00 - 18:00, 2026-07-22 14:00 - 16:00, 2026-07-19 16:00 - 18:00
If you’re curious about DJing but don’t have money to drop on equipment, this workshop is for you! You’ll learn to use Mixxx, a free and open source DJ program for macOS, Windows, and Linux. Mixxx supports a wide range of DJ controller hardware, but to make it more accessible we’re using regular QWERTY keyboards with stickers on the important keys. We’ll teach you to find tracks on the web, load them into Mixxx, and get started with beatmatching. It’s easier then you think!
You’ll need to bring your own laptop and headphones for this workshop. We also recommend bringing a separate USB keyboard if you have one, ideally with a row of function keys (F1, F2, F3, etc.). If you have an external audio interface, you’re welcome to bring that too.
The DJ controller sticker sheets we’re using are available on our online store. Or print your own (4″ x 4″) on sticker paper!
➡️ Workshop instructions
Register:
Registration for this event is now closed. We'll offer it again soon!

CircuitPython code for turning a Pi Pico board into a USB keyboard

📡 Meshtastic 101
2026-08-01 10:30 - 12:00, 2026-07-18 10:30 - 12:00
Join us for an introduction to Meshtastic, an application that lets you send private text messages over the air using pocket-sized LoRa radio transceivers. We’ll show you how to flash the latest Meshtastic firmware to the device, customize the settings, and start chatting with your friends.
Here’s a link to our zine on LoRa + Meshtastic.
Register:
Registration for this event is now closed. We'll offer it again soon!

📍 Offline GPS Unit Workshop
2026-07-31 14:00 - 16:00, 2026-07-17 14:00 - 16:00
In this workshop you’ll build a device that displays your GPS coordinates and the current time, without connecting to the internet or transmitting anything. 100% passive and off-grid, no internet or cell connection needed!
We’ll use the MicroPython programming language and the Thonny IDE, following the instructions on this page.
You’ll need to purchase a kit to complete this project, which includes the following parts:

RP2040 Pi Pico microcontroller unit w/ pre-soldered header pins
830 tie point solderless breadboard
NEO-6 GPS unit w/ antenna
0.96″ OLED display
Single-core 22AWG jumper wire (30″)
rubber band (to attach GPS antenna to breadboard)

Register:
Registration for this event is now closed. We'll offer it again soon!

🎶 Hack + Jam: Strudel Pattern Language
2026-07-30 18:30 - 20:30
Please join us at the wonderful Iffy Books for this month’s edition of our livecoding jam! We will be making music using strudel. NO EXPERIENCE REQUIRED!
If you have any questions, or want to help with jam setup, please join our discord!
Organized by the Philly Electronic Music Club

🔋 Beginner Soldering: Li-Ion Battery Pack
2026-07-30 14:30 - 15:30, 2026-07-23 14:30 - 15:30
Make a rechargeable battery pack for your LoRa node, a microcontroller such as an ESP32 or Pi Pico, or anything that runs on 3–4 Volts. Perfect for folks who’ve never soldered before!
To complete this project you’ll need to buy a li-ion battery pack kit for $3.99. Here’s what it includes:
• 18650 battery clip w/ attached wires
• TP4056 charge controller board
• PH2.5 plug w/ attached wires
• 1/8″ heat shrink tubing (1.5″ long)
• 1/2″ heat shrink tubing (1″ long)
You’ll also need a lithium-ion 18650 battery, available separately.
Register
Registration for this event is now closed. Sorry!

🪐 Speculative Futures Reading Group: 'Ignore All Previous Instructions' by Ada Hoffman
2026-07-29 19:00 - 20:30
Our July book is Ada Hoffman’s new Ignore All Previous Instructions, and we’ll wrap up our summer with Louise Erderich’s Future Home of the Living God in August.

📓 DIY Digital Notebook Workshop
2026-07-29 16:00 - 18:00
In this workshop you’ll build a digital notebook, a pocket-sized device for taking notes with a USB keyboard. We’re using affordable, widely available components: a Seeed XIAO ESP32-S3 microcontroller, a 1-inch OLED display, and a microSD card reader, arranged on a solderless breadboard. The ESP32-S3 connects to the display via the I2C (Inter-Integrated Circuit) protocol, and to the microSD card reader uses the SPI (Serial Peripheral Interface) protocol.
No soldering required! Cutting and stripping jumper wires requires a degree of manual dexterity.
Please bring a laptop if you have one! If not it’s OK.
Instructions
Register:
Registration for this event is now closed. We'll offer it again soon!

☀️ Solar Music Synth Workshop
2026-07-29 10:30 - 12:30, 2026-07-15 10:30 - 12:30
Join us and build a tiny solar-powered square wave generator on a breadboard. No soldering required! The workshop is free to attend, but you’ll need to purchase a kit for $12.50 to complete the project.
Here’s a link to the how-to zine we’ll use.
And here’s a diagram of the oscillator circuit we’ll build:

Register:
Registration for this event is now closed. We'll offer it again soon!

✏️ The Writing Room
2026-07-28 17:00 - 19:30, 2026-07-21 17:00 - 19:30
Come co-work with other writers in three 40-minute units of silent writing. Writers and projects of any type welcome. 10-minute breaks and accountability check-ins between units. BYO coffee, water, computer chargers, notepads, etc.

✨ NFC Sculpture Workshop
2026-07-27 18:00 - 20:00
In this workshop we’ll make little clay sculptures with NFC tags embedded inside, which you can use to trigger shortcuts on your phone. Fun!
Here’s a link to a blog post about this project.
Register:
Registration is closed for this event. Stay tuned for the next one!

🏴 Anarchy Summer Reading Group: 'The Utopia of Rules' by David Graeber (1st half)
2026-07-26 18:00 - 20:00
We’re meeting every two weeks to discuss classics of anarchist literature, starting with Anarchism and Other Essays by Emma Goldman and The Conquest of Bread by Peter Kropotkin.
Stay tuned for more details!

💻 Cyberdeck Meetup
2026-07-25 10:30 - 12:30
A cyberdeck is a DIY laptop based on a single-board computer (SBC) such as Raspberry Pi, with a tiny LCD screen and keyboard enclosed in a folding case.
Bring an SBC to this meetup and start building your own! We’ll have LCD screens and keybaords for sale, as well as wooden boxes in various sizes. If you’ve already built a cyberdeck, you can show it off and help others get started!

Photo credit

⚡️ B̶e̶g̶i̶n̶n̶e̶r̶ ̶S̶o̶l̶d̶e̶r̶i̶n̶g̶:̶ ̶L̶E̶D̶ ̶S̶p̶i̶n̶n̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶T̶o̶p (canceled this week!)
2026-07-24 14:00 - 16:00
We’re canceling this class due to a scheduling conflict. Sorry for the inconvenience!

📼 Analog A/V Session
2026-07-22 10:30 - 12:30
Come experiment with VHS tapes and audio cassettes! We’ll have equipment on hand for analog-to-digital and digital-to-analog transfers.
Register:
Registration for this event is now closed. Sorry.
Here's a link to future workshops in this series!

🤔 FAFIO Beginner Tech Meetup
2026-07-16 18:30 - 20:30
FAFIO is a meetup for folks who want to learn new tech skills, but aren’t sure where to start. Let’s fuck around and figure it out. FAFIO means there is no instructor. Instead we learn by talking and sharing knowledge, reading info in zines and online, and hands-on trial and error.

🔋 Beginner Soldering: Li-Ion Battery Pack
2026-07-16 14:30 - 15:30
Make a rechargeable battery pack for your LoRa node, a microcontroller such as an ESP32 or Pi Pico, or anything that runs on 3–4 Volts. Perfect for folks who’ve never soldered before!
To complete this project you’ll need to buy a li-ion battery pack kit for $3.99. Here’s what it includes:
• 18650 battery clip w/ attached wires
• TP4056 charge controller board
• PH2.5 plug w/ attached wires
• 1/8″ heat shrink tubing (1.5″ long)
• 1/2″ heat shrink tubing (1″ long)
You’ll also need a lithium-ion 18650 battery, available separately.
Register
Registration for this event is now closed. Sorry.
Here's a link to future workshops in this series!

🐌 Slow Living Support Group
2026-07-15 18:00 - 20:00
For people who value connection, sustainability, and creativity — without AI.
Bring:
• writing projects
• craft projects
• books & book recommendations
• CDs
Do not bring:
• screens
Provided:
• zine-making supplies
• snacks

📓 DIY Digital Notebook Workshop
2026-07-15 16:00 - 18:00
In this workshop you’ll build a digital notebook, a pocket-sized device for taking notes with a USB keyboard. We’re using affordable, widely available components: a Seeed XIAO ESP32-S3 microcontroller, a 1-inch OLED display, and a microSD card reader, arranged on a solderless breadboard. The ESP32-S3 connects to the display via the I2C (Inter-Integrated Circuit) protocol, and to the microSD card reader uses the SPI (Serial Peripheral Interface) protocol.
No soldering required! Cutting and stripping jumper wires requires a degree of manual dexterity.
Please bring a laptop if you have one! If not it’s OK.
Instructions
Register:
Registration is now closed. We’ll offer this workshop again soon!

✏️ The Writing Room (canceled this week due to heat)
2026-07-14 17:00 - 19:30

✨ NFC Sculpture Workshop
2026-07-13 18:00 - 20:00
In this workshop we’ll make little clay sculptures with NFC tags embedded inside, which you can use to trigger shortcuts on your phone. Fun!
Here’s a link to a blog post about this project.
Register:
Registration for this event is now closed. Sorry.
Here's a link to future workshops in this series!
