Again, I’m in your debt. Last issue I asked for feedback telling me how you use the Web. Your responses were insightful, interesting, and fun. (See the Reader’s Response page for some examples.) I had asked a similar question of the eZine faithful several months earlier, and the comparisons I could draw between the replies were, to me, significant. Although this is far from a scientific study, the number of folks who use the Net for price comparisons has increased. (If I had to put a theme to subscriber Web use, it would be information extraction.)
The number of folks willing to purchase stuff on the Web also seems to be increasing. References to using forums to get woodworking advice or solve woodworking problems did not have the same vigor I experienced the last time I polled the eZine readers. All in all, though, the use of the Net to participate in woodworking seems to be here to stay. Many readers reported a well-thought-out, individual and very practical process to extract information from the Net and put it to use … which tells me that it has value. Thanks for letting me know what you are up to.
I think this calls for a contest. (Like I need an excuse!) Routers and their varied uses seem to be a passion among our readership. So, tell me about your most creative use of a router (in a woodworking context … I don’t want a reprise of the “whipped cream” incident). We’ll toss all your responses in a virtual hat and pick a winner (who will receive a fine selection of Oldham’s Viper router bits). Woodworkers: get your routers revving!
Rob Johnstone, Woodworker’s Journal
