LumberJocks eMag - April 2011

Welcome to the April 2011 - issue #46 - of the LumberJocks eMag
Click here to view the LJ eMag archives

Here in Canada, spring has sprung and things are growing fast and furious - just like LumberJocks.com!

When I looked back at previous eMags to compare statistics, I found that we are getting close to being 10 times the size we were just three years ago - that is ten times the comments, ten times the membership, and ten times the number of projects posted. Extraordinary!

I remember when we were anticipating the milestone of 1,000 members and wondering if the supportive, family atmosphere would be lost by such big numbers. Now, here we are at over 26,000 members and that feeling is still here. And that, my fellow LumberJocks, is primarily because of you!

We, the team behind the scenes, strive to do our part to keep LumberJocks true to its original vision - that of a community of woodworkers (with a variety of backgrounds and abilities) sharing their woodworking experiences. We are watching and listening to how people are using LumberJocks.com, identifying new "perks" that can be added and addressing postings that do not fit with the rules of the site.

There has recently been a lot of suggestions posted on our Site Feedback Forum - thank you for sharing your thoughts. Although you may not see changes on the site, be assured that we take all feedback into consideration. Some ideas are implemented immediately, some are put on our "to do list" for future use, and some aren't.

As we consider each idea, we focus on how it is beneficial to the site as a whole as well as to each and every one of our members - regardless of his/her level of skill, age, computer skills, and his/her goals for being a member of our community. It is important for us to remember that everyone uses the site differently and has different needs and objectives. With this in mind, we try to keep the rules and guidelines as minimal as possible, celebrating the diversity of our membership.

Together, we will maintain the supportive, family atmosphere of our site and continue to be the #1 online woodworking showcase!

~ Debbie
(as always, feedback on the eMag is appreciated!)

Where did the "search" button go?
A little revamping to the layout of the site has, once again, created a cleaner look for LumberJocks.com. The "search" button, one of the changes, is now located below the main toolbar allowing members direct access to this valuable tool.

And the not so new ...Staying In The Loop
With so many postings each and every day it is hard to "stay in the loop" and see what is new at the site. Here are some tools to help you out:
* the Pulse - you can use the pulse to see what has been posted since your last visit. The Pulse has a variety of setting options to choose from, to help you save time while staying up to date. Check out the options to find what best works for you.
* the toolbar - you can check out just the projects, or blogs, or forum discussions (etc) by clicking on the desired tab in our toolbar. Using the tabs, you can quickly skim through the recent postings, finding those that catch your interest.
* RSS Feeds - if you don't know how they work, check out Martin's blog here

(Toolbar located at the top of the page)

(Toolbar located near the bottom of the page)

FREE DRAW

FREE Book Draw

Thanks to Fox Chapel Publishing we have another free book draw for our members.
Read the book review here and find out how to enter your name in the random draw.

Chip Carving

CURRENT LUMBERJOCKS' CLASS

Hollow Form Vessels

Class Instructor: Trifern
Class Blog: "Sign-up" and class information

COMING SOON!!

Cutting Boards

Class Instructor: degoose
Class Blog: will begin during the week of May 1st

(NOTE: to the participants of the "Ancient Bucket" Class with Stefang, - if you have finished, let me know. There's a LumberJocks' Certificate waiting for you!)

From 2010

LUMBERJOCKS' GET-TOGETHERS

Michigan, USA: event date is May 21st.
Check out the discussion here for more information

Georgia, USA: date to be determined for the month of May
more information here

One of our "Hot Projects"

LUMBERJOCKS' PROJECTS

Be sure to check out the following:
* Hot Projects (most discussed projects from the last month). See the Projects Page's toolbar)
* Silent Projects (projects waiting for feedback) also on the projects page
* Unanswered forum topics - waiting for feedback

The following are some other projects posted by our fellow LumberJocks:

BLOG LINKS

Dennisgrosen

INTERVIEW WITH A LUMBERJOCK

Here at LumberJocks.com we learn so much from our fellow members - and they don't have to be a master craftsman to be our teacher. Dennisgrosen is, as he put it, "I´m totally a newbie myself still more or less struggling with the first board of pine", but anyone who has spent time here at LumberJocks knows his name and his wisdom.
Read the interview here.

Mark Decou

SHOP TOUR OF THE MONTH

This month we visit the shop of Mark Decou. Three years ago Mark posted a photo series from a balloon ride he took which included images of his shop. For me, the photo series really puts life into perspective: the shop is our focus and yet it is a dot on the horizon in the bigger picture. And in reverse, in the big huge world, the shop is our own little retreat and kingdom, regardless of its size or contents.
The balloon ride photos can be seen here in Mark's blog.

Easy Shop Table

TUTORIAL OF THE MONTH

Easy Shop Table ~ by Lockwatcher
This easy-build table can be used in a variety of ways - "a router table, a miter saw station, and a sharpening station" and so on!

PROJECT OF THE MONTH

Kerfmaker - by Treeman
"If you are like most woodworkers when you make a groove or a dado, you will sneak up on the correct fit through trial and error. This was my standard procedure until..." ~ treeman (read the rest of the story on his project page)

BLOG OF THE MONTH

How I Made A Lazy Susan - by WoodMosaics
Sixty-three photos accompany this tutorial blog - and it also comes with a video!

VIDEO OF THE MONTH

Fibonacci Gauge - by Stevinmarin

And for more about a Fibonacci gauge, read David's blog here.

Gnome Door

GATEWAYS OF THE MONTH

doors (See all projects/skills gateways here)
router safety (See all safety tip gateways here)

April 1/11 26,587 woodworkers making 1,172,945 comments on 45,709 projects, 20,712 blogs, 1,958 reviews and 24,944 forum topics.

Milestones
In 2008, we reached a milestone of "150,000 comments (760 days since the first member joined)" (as reported in the April 2008 eMag). Today we are almost 10 times that amount!
Also, in 2008 we were celebrating 3900 members. Now? ...Oh my!

Our LJ Store

More than just t-shirts!

Our LumberJocks' CafePress Stores (USA) and Canada), along with t-shirts, have such things as travel mugs as shown here, with our treasured LumberJocks logo on them.

Escalate Media

Escalate Media LP
PO Box 591928
Houston, TX 77259
www.escalatemedia.com

LumberJocks.com

Website: http://lumberjocks.com
Advertising: http://www.escalatemedia.com/advertising
Contact: info@lumberjocks.com
Editor: Debbie Pribele (MsDebbieP) ; e-mail

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