SAN MATEO, CA--(Marketwire - May 21, 2009) - At the center of Silicon Valley and the birthplace of the original garage start-up, San Mateo continues to be the hub of innovation, creativity and fun. Representing this tradition is the geek-loving, gadget-happy, do it yourself (DIY) festival known as Maker Faire (www.makerfaire.com), happening on May 30th & 31st. Tickets for the event are selling fast, with geeks and makers from across the country (and even overseas) planning to attend. To welcome them, the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors has officially declared the weekend Maker's Weekend.

"I'm delighted that Maker Faire has chosen to return to San Mateo County and the Event Center. This will be a great weekend for all the creative folks of Northern California and those who visit," said San Mateo County Supervisor Carole Groom. "America has such a thirst right now for creative self-expression and there's an incredible need for out-of-the-box innovation. Maker Faire embodies the best of both these worlds in a way that's smart and fun. We couldn't be happier to welcome Maker Faire to San Mateo and to declare May 30th & 31st, Maker's Weekend."

At Maker Faire, technology meets art, science meets fashion, engineering meets crafting and that's just the tip of the iceberg. It's the world's largest DIY festival featuring cool robots, clever gadgets, backyard inventions, knitted wonders, renegade fashions, cars and bikes like you've never seen before, the occasional fireball, honey-making, a care repair center, clothes-swapping, music-making and much, much more!

                                Maker Faire

                                   When:

                    May 30th, 2009 Saturday 10AM - 8PM

                    May 31st, 2009 Sunday   10AM - 6PM

                                   Where:

                   San Mateo Event Center, San Mateo, CA

ABOUT MAKER FAIRE

Maker Faire is being held on May 30 & 31, 2009 at the San Mateo County Event Center. Started in San Mateo, California in 2006, it has since expanded to Austin and is the premier event for grassroots American innovation. Held annually in each of these locations, the event may expand elsewhere in the future. Maker Faire is supported by Make Magazine, craftzine.com and O'Reilly Media, the premier information source for leading-edge computer technologies. The company's books, conferences and web sites bring to light the knowledge of technology innovators.

ABOUT O'REILLY

O'Reilly Media spreads the knowledge of innovators through its books, online services, magazines and conferences. Since 1978, O'Reilly Media has been a chronicler and catalyst of cutting-edge development, homing in on the technology trends that really matter and spurring their adoption by amplifying "faint signals" from the alpha geeks who are creating the future. An active participant in the technology community, the company has a long history of advocacy, meme-making and evangelism.