Portland Opera Preview
Join Portland Opera for an hour of story and song from their latest production, La Traviata.
Join Portland Opera for an hour of story and song from their latest production, La Traviata.
From the celebrated and award-winning composer Dave Malloy comes Natasha, Pierre and The Great Comet of 1812, an electropop opera based on a scandalous slice of Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace. Young and impulsive, Natasha Rostova arrives in Moscow to await the return of her fiancé from the front lines. When she falls under the spell of the roguish Anatole, it is up to Pierre, a family friend in the middle of an existential crisis, to pick up the pieces of her shattered reputation. Following a critically exalted premiere at Ars Nova in New York City, a subsequent off-Broadway transfer and an acclaimed run on Broadway, this award-winning musical expands the possibilities for the genre with its daring score and bold storytelling.
Music and Lyrics By Dave Malloy
Prompt to Profit is a 3-day online bootcamp focused on helping founders, builders, and creators set up the systems they need to move from idea to execution. Across three focused sessions, we’ll work through the foundations of product development, workflow systems, and practical next steps for building something people can actually use, test, and grow. This bootcamp is designed for early-stage founders, hackathon builders, vibe coders, solo entrepreneurs, and anyone with an idea they want to turn into a real product or business. You’ll learn how to organize your idea, define your product, build simple systems, and create a clear path from concept to launch. Schedule Friday: 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM Saturday: 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM Sunday: 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM Location Online Bring your idea, your laptop, and your willingness to build. By the end of the weekend, you’ll have more clarity, more structure, and a stronger foundation for turning your prompt into profit.
Step into a slippery world where the line between truth and fiction is all in the packaging. It’s 1936, and a pair of passionate filmmakers has landed their next big project: a sweeping Spanish Civil War film with the potential to change American hearts and minds. It just happens to be bankrolled by the KGB. Spain by Jen Silverman is a seductive and tense thriller about the power of art to change the world — for better and for worse.
by Jen Silverman, directed by Josh Hecht
One of the most ambitious productions in recent Profile history, Spain is a grand cross-disciplinary spectacle featuring multiple partnerships with arts organizations throughout Portland, including live opera developed in partnership with Portland Opera, and both recorded and live music performed by musicians with 45th Parallel.
Trans-Siberian Orchestra is back with a spectacular new production of The Ghosts of Christmas Eve: The Best of TSO and More – featuring the fan-favorite holiday rock opera alongside TSO classics, and rarely performed gems.
Shows:
November 28 at 3:30pm & 8pm
WSU Vancouver MIS club and the Oregon Data Community host a free one-day training event for data professionals and students using the Microsoft Data Platform.
Session topics include SQL Server, Microsoft Fabric, Power BI, Azure Synapse, data analytics, visualization and more!
Coffee and Beverages will be provided, and lunch will be available for a small fee.
Conference attendance is free, but registration is required. Use the QR code below.
One of the most beloved operas ever written, La Traviata pairs soaring melodies with a deeply personal story of love and sacrifice. At its center is Violetta, an independent woman navigating desire, societal expectation, and the fragile possibility of happiness on her own terms. As romance and reality collide, Verdi’s luminous score reveals the emotional complexity of living authentically in a world determined to impose its rules. Tender, tragic, and timeless, the opera continues to resonate for its compassionate portrayal of Violetta’s vulnerability, resilience, courage as she chooses personal truth in the face of public judgment.
The Portland SIMposium is a premier event designed for IT leaders, taking place at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel in Portland, United States. This all-day event brings together CIOs, CISOs, and technology leaders from across the Pacific Northwest, offering a unique opportunity for collaboration, insight, and innovation. Attendees will engage in a series of mainstage panels, breakout sessions, and fireside conversations that delve into key themes reshaping technology leadership today. Topics of discussion will include AI-driven transformation, cybersecurity resilience, workforce evolution, and the human side of digital leadership. Participants will hear from executives who are at the forefront of technology change across various industries, as well as thought leaders from Oregon's vibrant innovation ecosystem. The event also features the prestigious Oregon CIO & CISO of the Year Awards, highlighting exceptional leadership and impact within the region. With the chance to connect with over 150 regional technology and business leaders, attendees can expect to gain actionable insights that will enhance their strategic governance and leadership effectiveness. The Portland SIMposium promises a day filled with knowledge-sharing, networking opportunities, and community engagement.
Imported from: http://calagator.org/events/1250482744
NODES 2026 is Neo4j's free, 24-hour global online conference, running across every time zone on November 12. The program is aimed at developers, data professionals, architects and AI engineers, with sessions on modern application development, multi-agent workflows, graph-backed retrieval and building context-rich systems that hold up in production. Talks are grouped by experience level, so there are introductory sessions for people new to graph databases alongside deeper technical material on knowledge graphs, agent orchestration and graph analytics at scale. Because the event streams continuously for a full day, Pacific-time attendees can join sessions in the morning, over lunch or in the evening, and recordings are typically published afterward. Registration is free through the Neo4j eve https://neo4j.com/event/nodes-2026-engineering-better-intelligence/
For more than 20 years, Portland Opera to Go (nicknamed POGO) has shared opera experiences with communities around the region. The Crown Maker is a world-premiere opera inspired by the life and legacy of Eva Castellanos, a Mexican American healer, artist, educator, and tireless advocate for immigrant rights. Rooted in Oregon history and shaped by the traditions of community storytelling, the work explores how creativity, compassion, and cultural knowledge can transform lives across generations.
Told as a traditional corrido, The Crown Maker blends poetry, history, and music to explore how one woman’s vision empowered generations through art, healing traditions, and fearless community leadership. Through an evocative score and intimate storytelling, The Crown Maker honors Castellanoz’ lifelong dedication to uplifting others through art, healing practices, and grassroots activism. Her work created spaces where identity, heritage, and belonging could thrive, even in the face of social and political barriers. The opera examines the lasting influence of those who build community not through power or prestige, but through care, vision, and persistence.
Created especially for Portland Opera to Go audiences, The Crown Maker blends poetry, history, and music to explore how one woman’s vision empowered generations through art, healing traditions, and fearless community leadership. This production brings a uniquely Oregonian story to life, while speaking to universal themes of resilience, memory, and self-determination. The Crown Maker celebrates the power of cultural inheritance and the people who preserve it, inviting audiences of all ages to reflect on how stories, traditions, and acts of courage continue to shape communities today.
Nov. 14 — Two performances at Walters Cultural Arts Center in Hillsboro at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.
Dec. 4-5 — Three performances at the World Trade Center Theatre.
Jan. 10 — Watch at the historic Clatskanie Cultural Center at 2 p.m.
Jan. 24 — Join the Happy Valley Library at 2 p.m.
Make an augmented reality environment in an hour? Yes, it can be done.
Come to the workshop led by Brenda Grell and see.
PARTS -- the Portland Area Robotics Society -- is an Oregon non-profit formed to help people interested in robots. Monthly meetings are open to the public and everyone is welcome, from complete beginners to experienced builders. Meetings typically include show-and-tell of members robots and projects, short technical talks, build discussions, and plenty of time to ask questions about motors, sensors, microcontrollers, power and control software. The group gathers at PDX Hackerspace (CTRL-H) in Section 2, the main space you enter through the front door, at 7608 N Interstate Ave in Portland. Bring a project you are working on, or just come to see what other people in the Portland robotics community are building. Free to attend, and a friendly landing spot for students and hobbyists getting st https://events.pdxhackerspace.org/occurrences/parts-portland-area-robotics-society-2026-11-01
Portland Fabric User Group It's that magical time of year again where we have our all day FREE technical conference at a local site. This year, we are once again holding our conference at Washington State University Vancouver, up in the Salmon Creek area. As many of you know, the active leadership lives in the Vancouver area, so we've naturally migrated the event to Vancouver due to the availability of high-quality sites with excellent parking. We're in partnership with WSU Vancouver and the WSU
Portland Analytics Club Join a global, open-format gathering for those building and questioning AI — from real-world use cases to critical conversations around ethics, bias, and transparency. Every month, we create space for developers, researchers, and policymakers to connect in meaningful, unmoderated dialogue — with flexible chats, peer learning, and 1-on-1 video networking. Watch how it works: **[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOYkxBjrAYY](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOYkxBjrAYY)** **Wh
Saving Throw Studio presents G.A.T.H.E.R., previously called Beginner Friendly App Building for Innovators: a three-hour, innovation-focused workshop for people building software without a technical background. No experience is required and the session is structured to be judgment-free -- guided, founder-friendly building rather than a lecture. This edition digs into prompting accuracy, breaking complex features down into plans a non-engineer can actually execute, and the architectural decisions behind front-end design. Bring a laptop and whatever refreshments you want; there is no dress code. Hosted by Ryan Green at North Bank Innovations inside the Vancouver Innovation Center, 18110 SE 34th St, Vancouver, Washington. Park in Lot 1, the red lot. Weekend doors are locked, so latecomers sho https://luma.com/j9rh2whz
Speed Dating Tonight!
Music & Libretto by Michael Ching
Based on a concept by Dean Anthony
Portland State University’s Opera program kicks off its 50th anniversary season with Michael Ching’s “Speed Dating Tonight!” (2013). Set over the course of a single evening at a local bar, this clever, heartwarming opera follows a revolving cast of singles searching for that elusive spark. There's the dreamer, the hopeless romantic, the bashful, the over-sharer, the chronically distracted, and everyone in between, each getting their moment in the spotlight through music that is equal parts tender, heartbreaking, and hilarious.
Written with duets and ensembles for up to 45 voices, “Speed Dating Tonight!” has a flexible modular structure that can be customized to fit any cast size, voice type, or gender identity. PSU Opera’s version of “Speed Dating Tonight!” features 35 song selections and arrangements specifically chosen to reflect the unique assortment of voices in the 12-member cast.
At its heart, this is a show about the universal human longing to be seen and cherished by another person. Woven through the interactions is another question: can a genuine connection actually happen in five minutes or less? With Michael Ching’s delightful opera, the answer is decidedly yes.
Visit the Speed Dating Tonight! web page to learn more about this production, including additional dates, cast and crew information, photos, and more as we get closer to opening night.
Learn more about the Opera program at Portland State University's School of Music & Theater.
Topic: "The Most Human Documentation", talk by Christian Miles at WTD PDX 2026. Video followed by discussion.
Pizza will be served at 5:15pm.
Zoom Registration: https://pdx.zoom.us/meeting/register/0vPArxYIRa-VkJX47Ryn0g
Portland Analytics Club Calling all developers, AI engineers, software architects, data scientists, DevOps professionals, and tech enthusiasts — **TechConnect** is your ultimate destination for career growth, project showcasing, and global peer networking in the tech ecosystem.
Hosted in a self-led, Slack-style virtual space, this **virtual tech networking event** invites you to connect, collaborate, and innovate with a diverse community of tech minds and hiring professionals from around the wo
The Technology Association of Oregon convenes the Agentic AI Summit, a gathering for Oregon technology professionals focused on agentic AI - systems that plan, take actions, and use tools on a persons behalf rather than simply answering prompts. The program is aimed at engineering leaders, product teams, data and platform practitioners, founders, and the operators who have to decide where autonomous agents genuinely earn their keep. Expected themes include practical deployment patterns, evaluation and guardrails, security and data governance for tool-using systems, cost and reliability tradeoffs, and lessons learned from teams already running agents in production. As with other TAO summits, expect a mix of talks, panels, and structured networking with the regional tech community in downtow https://www.techoregon.org/event/agentic-ai-summit
LFDT Oregon Join us for a webinar with Cosmos Labs, an LFDT general member, on Designing Tokenized Deposits for a Multi-Ledger Future. Most tokenized deposit initiatives start within a single institution or consortium, but the architecture choices banks make today will determine how effectively deposits can reach new markets and power new use cases. This session examines how an interoperability protocol fits into a tokenized deposit stack, covering how deposits and data can be exchanged across l
Join us at CtrlH in the Kenton neighborhood for Home Assistant Community day! Talk about your projects\, demo what you've created\, and learn how to convert that old Amazon Echo dot into a voice assistant to use with Home Assistant. Snacks and drinks are available!
Event page: https://events.pdxhackerspace.org/occurrences/home-assistant-community-day-2026-11-07
Portland Opera To Go (POGO) proudly presents the latest installment of the Our Oregon series--a collection of original youth operas that examines Oregon history by highlighting the lives of extraordinary Oregonian women through a variety of lenses.
Discover how contemporary AI applications can serve as powerful tools for independent living, lifelong learning, and daily problem-solving. This interactive workshop demonstrates practical accessibility functions hidden inside everyday tech, such as instant text-to-speech audio conversion, natural voice-command interactions, and real-time smartphone image recognition (perfect for reading small labels or identifying objects). Moving into deeper research skills, we will outline advanced prompting methods while unpacking the distinct structural limits of large language models. Learn exactly why AI should never replace professional advisory services, and discover specific strategies for spotting online medical misinformation.
For this session, participants are asked to bring smartphones, laptops or tablets with internet access. Hands-on activities will also include more in-depth prompt writing techniques.
Taught by Adult Services Librarian April Younglove of the Lake Oswego Public Library, with one‑on‑one assistance provided by students from the Lake Youth Leadership Council.
For more information and to register for this free class, please call the Adult Community Center at (503) 635-3758. This class will take place at the Adult Community Center, located at 505 G Avenue, Lake Oswego. This event is sponsored by the Lake Oswego Adult Community Center and the Lake Oswego Public Library.
Summary: Let's talk about the use (and abuse) of tmux! We'll cover the basics of how it works, how I use it for both good and evil, and the terrible things other people have done with it (hint: tmux is turing complete). This will be a helpful session for people who are just getting started, and (hopefully) amusing for people who have been using tmux for years. Bio: TBA
Tags: plug, linux, tmux
Imported from: http://calagator.org/events/1250482770
As young musicians passionate about opera and about their hometown, Emily Nelson and Bethany Schweitzer Goshorn thought, "What better place for an Opera on Tap chapter than our fair city known for its beer, wine and cocktail culture?" Thus Opera on Tap PDX was born - one of 16 nationwide chapters of Opera on Tap. Northwest native Sadie Gregg joined the Managing Diva team in 2016, after singing with the Boston chapter.
Why are we so passionate about opera? Opera speaks to the human condition. It expresses human emotion and relationship in a very unique and profound way. The human voice in all its glory has a visceral effect on us. In a culture focused on instant gratification with short attention spans, opera demands your full attention and rewards you with a wild ride on the emotional roller coaster.
Chances are that people who say they don't like opera have never heard it live! Opera on Tap seeks to change this by bringing the genre back to the people in familiar places: community gathering spaces, restaurants, and bars - much how music was historically enjoyed in Germany pubs. We seek to share, educate and bring simply fabulous music to an audience that might not otherwise be able to enjoy the art form. So grab your friends and your favorite pint, and join us for Opera on Tap!
Opera On Tap Nationwide
Opera on Tap (OOT) was born in 2005 at Freddy's Bar and Backroom in Brooklyn and incorporated in 2007 to promote opera as a viable, living, and progressive art form and to support the developing artists who continue to keep the art form alive. What began as a small monthly gathering of ambitious, classically trained singers looking for more performance opportunities has grown into a producing organization that has gained a loyal audience base and national recognition as an innovative force on the classical music scene. Through its Chapter program, which now has sixteen vibrant national chapters, OOT has created a large network of performers, creators, and supporters.
Speed Dating Tonight!
Music & Libretto by Michael Ching
Based on a concept by Dean Anthony
Portland State University’s Opera program kicks off its 50th anniversary season with Michael Ching’s “Speed Dating Tonight!” (2013). Set over the course of a single evening at a local bar, this clever, heartwarming opera follows a revolving cast of singles searching for that elusive spark. There's the dreamer, the hopeless romantic, the bashful, the over-sharer, the chronically distracted, and everyone in between, each getting their moment in the spotlight through music that is equal parts tender, heartbreaking, and hilarious.
Written with duets and ensembles for up to 45 voices, “Speed Dating Tonight!” has a flexible modular structure that can be customized to fit any cast size, voice type, or gender identity. PSU Opera’s version of “Speed Dating Tonight!” features 35 song selections and arrangements specifically chosen to reflect the unique assortment of voices in the 12-member cast.
At its heart, this is a show about the universal human longing to be seen and cherished by another person. Woven through the interactions is another question: can a genuine connection actually happen in five minutes or less? With Michael Ching’s delightful opera, the answer is decidedly yes.
Visit the Speed Dating Tonight! web page to learn more about this production, including additional dates, cast and crew information, photos, and more as we get closer to opening night.
Learn more about the Opera program at Portland State University's School of Music & Theater.
Westside Coding Club We'll be working on some *LeetCode* problems. If you have any specific problem or topic in mind, drop a message for the event.
See you there.
One of the most beloved operas ever composed, La Traviata combines sweeping emotion with some of the most recognizable music in the operatic repertoire. Giuseppe Verdi’s masterpiece tells the story of Violetta Valéry, a woman determined to live freely and authentically despite the rigid social expectations that surround her. When she falls deeply in love, she is forced to confront the painful realities of class, reputation, sacrifice, and the cost of pursuing happiness on her own terms.
Adapted from Alexandre Dumas fils’ La Dame aux camélias, the opera broke new ground in its portrayal of a contemporary woman whose emotional life is treated with dignity, complexity, and compassion. Verdi’s luminous score captures both the exhilaration of love and the devastating consequences of societal judgment, moving seamlessly from moments of intimacy and joy to heartbreaking tragedy.
More than a romantic drama, La Traviata remains a powerful reflection on personal freedom, vulnerability, and the tension between public expectation and private truth. Its enduring resonance lies in its humanity: the opera asks what it means to truly live according to one’s own values in a world eager to define worth through convention, status, and appearance.
Portland Fabric User Group Explore how the Port of Portland is blending machine learning and AI with traditional BI to support operational and customer experience insights. Using the PDX terminal passenger‑arrival forecasting model and the Customer Experience Scorecard as examples, we’ll trace the end‑to‑end data journey – from raw data to Databricks pipelines to Power BI. The session emphasizes practical design considerations for surfacing AI‑generated data products or advanced analytics in a w
Write The Docs PDX Hey, Write the Docs PDX!
Join us for our next meetup on **Thursday, November 12 @ 5:30 PM**. It's our annual supermeetup with the Tech Comms program at Portland State University. We'll meet somewhere TBD at the PSU campus, but you can also join us remotely using the Zoom link you get after you RSVP on Meetup.
Show up at 5:15 for pizza and/or come out afterwards for a drink/snack at the nearby [McMenamins Market Street Bar](https://maps.app.goo.gl/QjArSwJFKcDoqWQd6).
We'll m
Better Futures Club is a weekly event (alternating Tuesdays and Thursdays) focused on imagining and making better futures. Imagine an artist community, a think tank, and a research center in the same building. People in all of those fields working alongside each other imagining and creating different futures together. Cross pollination and inspiration. Liberal Arts and STEM and R&D. Photographers, physicists, authors, astronomers, musicians, makers, mathematicians, designers, developers, fashionistas, climatologists and all manner of imaginative optimists. All Better Futures Club events are covered by the Contributor Covenant Code of Conduct (https://www.contributor-covenant.org)
Tags: ruby, STEM, liberal arts, community, hacking, AI
Imported from: http://calagator.org/events/1250482760
Portland Code & Coffee Code & Coffee is an inclusive, informal co-working session: drink your beverage of choice, bring your laptop, and hang out with your peers! Have engaging conversations, or focus on work or projects. This is a great opportunity to learn from others, share your knowledge, and possibly collaborate on side projects, online courses, or even your day-to-day work.
\-\-\-\- Schedule \-\-\-\-
**Drop** **in** **at** **any time!** Everyone has commitments from time to time so **join** **us** **when** **you** **can!**
**Introductions are informal and** **unscheduled** \- practice your personal elevator pitch\, or take things slower to build your confidence\.
\-\-\-\- Venue \-\-\-\-
**Fly** **Chai** allow us to informally and freely use their space. If within your budget, we'd appreciate your help to sustain our use of the venue, by purchasing **[something tasty](https://order.toasttab.com/online/fly-chai-12520-sw-farmington-rd)**, whether Chai or otherwise.
Find us at tables with a **Code&Coffee** **sign** \- or a group of laptop\-users\!
**Wifi** and **power** **outlets** are available. The meeting area should be **accessible** \- please let us know if you have concerns\.
\-\-\-\- What to expect \-\-\-
* A smaller, less intimidating, lower pressure, cozy atmosphere. * A mix of regular and new faces, week to week. * A simpler schedule - every week, same time, same place - that you can drop into when you like. * Being closer to you than other events.
If those are to your liking, we hope you'll drop by sometime!
\-\-\-\- Getting to the venue \-\-\-\-
Fly Chai is between Watson & Washington, and Farmington & the pedestrian 1st Street commons.
The meetup page has a Google map, or use alternatives like [OpenStreetMap](https://osm.org/go/WIDNi6~gt-?m=).
Let us know if you have advice on the travel options below!
\-\- Parking \-\-
A lot outside the venue has 4 regular and 1 accessible space.
Beaverton City maps indicate:
* On-street parking within \~2-3 blocks is limited to 2 hours. * On-street parking to the South between 3rd-5th have indefinite parking * A public parking lot bounded by Hall & Washington, and 3rd & Beaverton City park (next to Beaverton City Library)
Paid parking is available at the Beaverton central district garage, near the Beaverton Central MAX stop, for $1/hour up to 8 hours.
These are all up to 5-10 minutes from the venue.
\-\- Public Transit \-\-
Beaverton Central (Red/Blue MAX), then [walk~ 8 minutes](https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=45.4904681%2C-122.8070937%3B45.4867379%2C-122.8052808#map=16/45.48864/-122.80644&layers=N)
Beaverton Transit Center (Red/Blue MAX, bus, WES) then [walk ~11 minutes](https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=45.4912376%2C-122.8009972%3B45.4867379%2C-122.8052808#map=15/45.48905/-122.80314&layers=N)
For a shorter walk to the venue, take a bus from Beaverton Transit Center (52 to Farmington/Hall, 76 to Watson/Broadway, 57 to Canyon/Watson)
\-\-\-\- Supporting the events \-\-\-\-
Purchasing items from the venue helps us maintain a healthy relationship with them.
If you attend semi-regularly then please consider signing up to be a co-host. This reduces the load on other co-hosts, and provides backup for the event if another is unable to attend. To get involved, please chat with a co-host at an event!
\-\-\- Links \-\-\-
Still uncertain?
Information on the wider Portland Code & Coffee group is available on [meetup](https://meetup.com/portland-code-coffee). The channel #portland-general is available for the group to chat on Discord.
That and the set of nationwide Discord channels may be accessed at [codeandcoffee.chat](https://codeandcoffee.chat/), or the Discord button at [codeandcoffee.org](https://codeandcoffee.org).
Further information about the central Code&Coffee organization and their other events is available on their [website](https://codeandcoffee.org/).
That PLUG Clinic you like is coming back into style! The PLUG Clinic returns again this month on November 15, from 1pm-5pm. We are back at the Albina Branch Library this month. If you need help with your Linux computer, or want to offer help, you are welcome! Volunteer helpers are as desirable as helpees. Helping is fun and rewarding. If you've ever helped out at a PLUG Clinic before, come checkout the space! Thanks to the taxpayers of Multnomah County for the beautiful new building!
Tags: Linux Help, plug, clinic
Imported from: http://calagator.org/events/1250482768
Working with data that's too large, too slow, or too messy for regular CSVs? Join us for an introduction to the {arrow} package in R. We'll explore how Arrow and Parquet files can make large datasets faster to store, read, and analyze, all while using the familiar dplyr workflows you already know and love. Using Portland's Biketown data, we'll convert, query, and visualize millions of rides without breaking a sweat (or our laptops). Bring your laptop if you want to follow along. No need to RSVP via Meetup, but we might share info ahead of time in the event comments!
Tags: data, r, women in tech
Imported from: http://calagator.org/events/1250482764
Tech talent pool This is a fun networking event to play pool and talk tech. We will have free tables to play on and Happy Hour runs until 6pm. Everyone is welcome, you do not have to be great at pool to attend!
The Tech Academy **How can developers use AI effectively without losing sight of the fundamentals?**
AI is changing how software is built and how developers approach everyday problems. For students and early-career engineers, keeping up with new tools and practices can feel overwhelming. Understanding how the industry has evolved and learning to make thoughtful decisions about AI can help you adapt and build skills that last.
Our guest speaker, **Bethany Janos**, is a senior software engineer
PDX Women Coders Join PDX Women Coders for a back-end study session, where we read and discuss *[Designing Data-Intensive Applications (2nd edition)](https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/designing-data-intensive-applications/9781098119058/)* by Martin Kleppmann. We plan to go over one chapter (or so) each session, and we will be meeting every two weeks for 7-8 months to finish the book. Each session, we'll go over that we learned in that chapter, and explore key concepts in distributed systems,
We are an Oregon non-profit formed to help those interested in robots. Our monthly meetings are open to the public. Everyone is welcome.
More info: https://portlandrobotics.org/home.php
Event page: https://events.pdxhackerspace.org/occurrences/parts-portland-area-robotics-society-2026-11-01
Veterans in Technology First Thursday of the month at Tap Union Freehouse, 1300 Washington St #200 Vancouver, WA.
Join NWVIT for our meeting in Vancouver, WA. Join us at this informal professional networking event. No presentation/agenda for this meeting. Bring your spouse! Connect with other veterans in the Vancouver, WA area.
Strategic Sponsors - Oregon State University and Beacon Lake Oswego
LO TECH FORUM meets quarterly to hear from a speaker on the cutting edge of technological progress and presents a Lake Oswego version of "Shark Tank."
Watch this space as details emerge.
Want to join the mailing list for this group? Email [email protected].
If your Company would like to Sponsor an LO Tech Connect or Forum event, please click here for more information.
Join Adult Services Librarian April Younglove from the Lake Oswego Public Library for a hands-on, four-part series designed to demystify artificial intelligence. Learn how to navigate the digital world, protect your privacy, and use AI tools with confidence and skepticism. Sessions include clear, live demonstrations, interactive discussions, and personalized tech support. Free for all participants.
Foundations for Everyday Use
Kick off the series by stripping away the tech jargon and discovering how artificial intelligence can simplify your day-to-day life. This foundational session introduces core AI concepts and terminology—including AI summarizers, generative chatbots, and natural prompting—in clear, approachable language. Through live demonstrations of Claude AI, Microsoft Copilot, and ChatGPT, you will learn how to safely use these tools to brainstorm recipes, plan custom travel itineraries, and organize daily tasks. We will introduce the essential "Ask–Tweak–Verify" (ATV) framework alongside critical privacy guidelines to ensure you protect your personal data right from the start.
One-on-one lab assistance is proudly provided by student volunteers from the Lake Youth Leadership Council to help you configure settings on your personal devices.
Date / Time: Tuesday, September 15 | 2:00–3:30 p.m.
Class Number: 34825
Hands-On Skills and Sandbox Practice
Build directly upon your foundational knowledge with a supportive, highly interactive sandbox session dedicated to mastering digital assistants. In Part 2, participants shift from watching demonstrations to writing and refining their own prompts. Under patient guidance, you will practice conversational techniques, discover how subtle shifts in word choices yield dramatically improved answers, and learn how to implement standard internet safety boundaries. A major focus of this workshop will be learning how to cross-reference and fact-check chatbot output to ensure your digital interactions remain secure, accurate, and productive.
Personalized, one-on-one tech support will be provided throughout the hands-on practice intervals by members of the Lake Youth Leadership Council.
Date / Time: Tuesday, October 20 | 2:00–3:30 p.m.
Class Number: 34826
Helping Seniors Navigate Daily Life With Confidence
Discover how contemporary AI applications can serve as powerful tools for independent living, lifelong learning, and daily problem-solving. This interactive workshop demonstrates practical accessibility functions hidden inside everyday tech, such as instant text-to-speech audio conversion, natural voice-command interactions, and real-time smartphone image recognition (perfect for reading small labels or identifying objects). Moving into deeper research skills, we will outline advanced prompting methods while unpacking the distinct structural limits of large language models. Learn exactly why AI should never replace professional advisory services, and discover specific strategies for spotting online medical misinformation.
Personalized, one-on-one tech support will be provided throughout the hands-on practice intervals by members of the Lake Youth Leadership Council.
Date / Time: Tuesday, November 17 | 2:00–3:30 p.m.
Class Number: 34827
Becoming a Confident, Critical AI User
The final installation equips you with an essential digital defense toolkit to evaluate whether online content is authentic, accurate, and trustworthy. We will break down common system errors, reveal how "hallucinations" occur, and introduce quick, library-approved methods for verifying data across independent sources. Crucially, this session helps participants recognize how malicious actors deploy technology for modern fraudulent schemes—including cloning voices for identity scams, fabricating hyper-realistic deepfakes, and pushing complex cryptocurrency traps. Leave with the confidence and critical awareness needed to enjoy modern digital conveniences safely and securely.
Personalized, one-on-one tech support will be provided throughout the hands-on practice intervals by members of the Lake Youth Leadership Council.
Date / Time: Tuesday, December 15 | 2:00–3:30 p.m.
Class Number: 34828
Missed a previous session? Access archived video recordings, interactive presentation slides, and educational handouts from our past technology literacy classes below:
Is It AI or Is It Real? How to Spot Computer-Generated Content Like a Librarian (Digital Dive #1)Explore the sophisticated tools and methodologies professional librarians utilize to identify computer-generated texts, altered documents, and artificial imagery. This session provides actionable, real-world clues to help you differentiate between genuine human creations and artificial content in your daily newsfeeds and correspondence.
This class was originally presented at the Lake Oswego Public Library.
Navigate the rapidly-evolving digital landscape with clarity and balance. This session pulls back the curtain on automated "content farms," breaking down how social media algorithms, financial pay-per-click incentives, and strategic influence campaigns purposefully accelerate the distribution of false narratives. Learn to evaluate source motivations and protect your digital footprint from predatory content design.
This class was originally presented at the Lake Oswego Adult Community Center.
For questions or more information regarding our technology programs, please contact Adult Services Librarian April Younglove at [email protected].
ARTHACK is a monthly evening of discussion for computer enthusiasts and artists, hosted at ADX in Southeast Portland. The group talks about and shares work that explores the intersection of code, art, hardware, and society -- generative work, creative coding, physical computing, hardware hacking, net art, and the social questions that come with all of it. Bring a laptop and you can share something on the open projector: works in progress, experiments, failures, and half-finished ideas are all welcome alongside finished pieces. No experience with either art or code is required, and there is no formal program -- it is an informal, conversation-driven night for people who like making things with computers. Free and open to all. ADX is at 417 SE 11th Avenue, Portland. https://artdesignxchange.com/events/arthack-mtd89-53dw5
People doing strange things with electricity! Dorkbot PDX is an informal show-and-tell for electronic artists, circuit designers, microcontroller programmers, retro computing enthusiasts, video game designers, digital archaeologists and modular synth gearheads. Bring something you have built and talk about it, or just come along to see what other people in the Portland hardware and electronic art community are up to. Presentations are short and casual, and range from finished installations to half-working prototypes and instructive failures. The meetup usually draws 20 to 50 people, is free, and is very welcoming to newcomers -- no project required. Hosted at PDX Hackerspace (CTRL-H), 7608 N Interstate Ave, Portland, in Section 2, the main space you enter through the front door, from 6:30 https://events.pdxhackerspace.org/occurrences/dorkbot-2026-11-09
Come hack the hackerspace or visit our open house! Open to the public\; let us know if you'd like a tour or bring your own project to hack on! This is a great time to learn about the space\, apply for membership\, meet people at the space\, or for new members to receive orientation.
\nWork Party+Open House is every Saturday *except* the last Saturday of each month\, which is a closed work party for members only to focus on repairing and improving the space.
Event page: https://events.pdxhackerspace.org/occurrences/work-party-open-house-2026-11-07