If you’ve never been to one, pick a Fry's Electronics store to visit... in fact check out several, most have themes (some better than others) - <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fry%27s_Electronics" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fry%27s_Electronics</a><p>Electonics Surplus Shops - HSC Electronic Supply, Weird Stuff, (there are others others)<p>Pacific Pinball Museum in Alameda - <a href="http://pacificpinball.org/" rel="nofollow">http://pacificpinball.org/</a><p>Musee Mechanique at Pier 45 in San Francisco - <a href="http://museemecaniquesf.com/" rel="nofollow">http://museemecaniquesf.com/</a> great collection of old arcade games and nickelodeons<p>Exploratorium Pier 15 - <a href="http://www.exploratorium.edu/" rel="nofollow">http://www.exploratorium.edu/</a><p>San Francisco Cablecar Museum , free enjoyable and an adventure to find - <a href="http://www.cablecarmuseum.org/" rel="nofollow">http://www.cablecarmuseum.org/</a><p>Bonus photo-op view - Hyde & Lombard Street - (top of the twisty street) you can catch a snap of a cresting cablecar set against a great view of Alcatraz. If there arent too many gawkers in the way - might want to go to the next street lower on hyde to get the pic.<p>Cartoon Art Museum - <a href="http://cartoonart.org" rel="nofollow">http://cartoonart.org</a><p>Some great Japanese (toys, Manga, food, Books, etc.) shops in Japan town in SF (Geary & Filmore)<p>Collect old magazines? The Magazine in the Ternderloin (kinda seedy but if you are into collecting old mags a place to check)<p>San Francisco Public Library - besides the massive computer section, a library card will get you access to their e-books when not in SF<p>Check out SV book stores their computer sections are usually well stocked and up-to-date<p>Makerspaces (someone post suggestions)<p>Ripley's Odditorium at fisherman's wharf - kinda pricey but fun if you like weird - dont buy the maze pass, it's a rip-off.<p>Walk the Golden Gate Bridge - up close and personal with a great engineering marvel for the cost of a city bus to get there.
If you like museums, the California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park is a great place to spend a day. It's also right by the De Young Art Museum, which is also a lot of fun. If you're looking for something more interactive, check out the Exploratorium. It's slightly geared towards younger audiences, but it's a lot of fun regardless.
Maybe the tech shop in SF too. Go on meetup.com as there are always tons of events/talks on different topics. Search for your preferred language, platform, db, etc. Amazon Aws pop-up loft often has events.