On the joys of the Internet

I know that I go on and on about getting away from the internet, and going to work at the bench. And I mean it... that's where the real learning takes place. Information out of context and un-applied still won't help you get anything done.

That said, I ran across this blog entry this afternoon, and it reminded me that, for all that the internet can be a time-sucking rabbit hole of esoteric and frequently useless information, it can do a good job of purveying information.

"I think of all the craftspersons who have learned from each other on-line. Popular knitting blogs for instance have taken that old past-time of grandma's and made it mainstream.  Before Etsy and the like, where would a person sell the scarves and hats that they made besides the occasional craft fair?  I mean, a family only needs so many scarves, and then the knitting needles were put away. Communities on the web not only serve as a place to share work and ideas, but that also serve as shops to sell your product worldwide, creating a reason to make more, and to try new, crazy ideas. Kind of incredible."

So that, at least, is a good thing.