Always Random
Just worth saying
Fading Light
TEDEX may slowly fade into the sunset. It is a web forum I started about five years ago, sharing information about machine shop hobby activities. I had already shared web space in my The Hobbyist’s Machine Shop web site with about eighteen people with projects and equipment they wanted to show off. I figured I could provide a separate forum where everyone could enter their projects and share information.
That is the reason TEDEX was born. Little did I know then that the creeping crud was laying-in-wait to slither into open forum doors. It has been a constant challenge to stay clean and probably the main reason many small forums shut down. For them, the Internet garbage collection just isn’t worth the effort.
I persevered because there were enough active users to justify the cause. That just isn’t the case any longer. I started a blog (two actually) here where I post my personal activities. I am torn to re-post again in TEDEX.
Registration to TEDEX is currently turned off. Registered users can still have full access. Non users can enter but do not see the photos. I dropped about 100 old non-participants from the rolls. The house has been cleaned and the doors locked. There are still a few resident suspects but I will see how they behave. The good guys still have the keys and can share the space.
If there are no postings or knocks at the door I will just let it set for awhile. Then…
Merry Christmas
‘Twas the night before Christmas and all though the shop, Not a machine was turning, Not even grand pop’s…
North Texas Open Invitation
I made a plea over in the TEDEX forum for local North Texas home workshop enthusiasts (hobbyists) to rise from the chips and identify. I receive inquiries from usually beginners who are seaking a place to go to associate and learn about their new interest.
Yes, I have been in many such organizations and the new folks can sometimes be a pain to the old curmudgeons. But the new folks bring life to these organizations. The fear is sometimes, “I am not good enough to teach the new folks.” Well, that’s not really true. I do my best with this web site and I always claim not to be the expert. A few locals sometimes get invited to my shop.
There are many forums out on the Internet. I don’t intend to compete with them for good information. I also don’t get a prize for number of members. 🙂 If you can drive to or are within the North Texas area (and if you are from here, you know what means) go visit TEDEX and sign in. Thanks!
Moving In
It’s done. I have moved most of the articles dealing with my hobby metal shop and other shop crafts here to “The Hobbyist’s Machine Shop” Blog. I may have some fine tuning to do when I see things that are not yet quite correct. All past members and readers of Ramblin’ Dan will have to re-join here. I could move a few of the regulars but it is a manual entry process so I would rather you do it for yourself. 🙂
I set the privileges a bit higher so (I think) you will be able to post your own messages, rather than just comment. So you can ask questions or post your own project. We’ll see if anyone is interested.
North Texas Hobby Board (or Blog)
I sent emails to the posted contact persons for two (as they identify themselves) North Texas home machinist groups. Neither post that they have a web site, just a contact email. I offered to create a free message system (either a Blog or BBS) for North Texas home machinists to contact each other. I don’t intend to start another organization, just a common communication site, since they do not seem to have one. Â My involvement would be completely invisible other than top level administrator. The board activities would be controlled by others. In fact any group could have their own space if desired.
No feedback yet so it is as I suspected, probably old contact data or they are waiting for their next “meeting”. In any case, if you are located near Dallas (That includes Oklahoma or elsewhere) and would like to see a localized board for posting about home workshop activities let me know. Does anyone think a bigger “service” area should be included?
What I would like to see is a place where any creative hobby can be posted, metalworking, woodworking, boat building, quilting (huh!), etc.. A place to brag what you do or ask questions on how-to. Also a place to find out about something you need. Say a quilter is looking for someone local who could build a nice wooden storage case. Get the idea?
This Blog is too personal for this and TEDEX works well but is also too associated with my activities. I dislike commercial boards (Yahoo, etc.) as they are heavily marketing directed. Maybe people like the ads and the fact they are tracked.
The truth is the software is free and I have already paid for all the server cost in my other activities. Other than the time… Continue reading