Required Reading: Instructables
January 31, 2012, By Jack Heffron 2 comments
There's an old saying that goes something like "The more I learn the more I realize I don't know." I feel that way a lot. Even as I'm mastering one new skill I come to realize that there are no end of vaguely related things I don't know how to do. It can be frustrating, sort of spinning your wheels on the road of life.
But I found a place where I can learn a little bit about how to do a whole lot. It's called Instructables.com. On it you'll find instructional videos, step-by-step text with photos and downloadable ebooks—whatever you need to learn the process of completing a task. The channels cover Food, Living, Outside, Play, Technology and Workshop.
You can learn how to make everything from a tablet stand to a coat for your dog, from Special K bars to a guitar stand. Want to water ski? Instructables shows you how. Clean a fish or fix your boat? They've got you covered. If you're feeling more adventurous, learn to make a combination bookshelf/shoe rack with industrial pipe or cook a tri-tip roast with a coffee-based meat rub.
Eric J. Wilhelm created Instructables after co-founding Squidoo.com and earning a PhD in mechanical engineering at M.I.T., where, according to the site, "he developed methods to print electronics and micro-electromechanical systems using nanoparticles." I don't actually do much of that around my house, and I'll got out on a limb and assume you don't either. But Instructables offers an astounding array of instructional videos and articles on stuff that you do do—or would do if you knew how.
With Instructables, you'll soon be the go-to guy not only around your house but throughout your neighborhood. Of course, as Spiderman says, with great power comes great responsibility. But you're up to the challenge. You now have a secret weapon.
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