On Fri, 22 Aug 2003 02:42:30 +0000, Bay Area Dave wrote:

This is a pretty narrow and egocentric view to take.

Everyone keeps asking for plans, plans, plans. Doesn't anybody have a
clue of what THEY want to make, rather than copying someone else's
ideas?

I know what I want to make, but I don't know how. Not yet, anyway. And
sometimes I just want to make SOMETHING and don't know how. I'm just
getting started in woodworking. The first thing I did was build a cheap
workbench, and I used my leftover materials to build a low assembly table.
I got the workbench plans off the Interweb (har) and I drafted the plans
for my assembly table on my own.

I'm constantly amazed at the things people ask for plans for.

Like?

They even PAY for plans!

So?

The fun in building something for me is coming
up with a design, and then implementing it.

Not everybody has the know-how to draft quality plans that they can
follow. I've done 4 years of hand drafting and CAD, am a decent artist,
and I still can't just whip up plans to whatever I want. What I can do,
though, is measure the area I want to place a piece in and go find plans
for a piece that has the look I want and adjust them to fit my space. Why
re-invent the wheel? Why go to all the hassle of drawing up plans when
somebody else may have drafted exactly what I want?

If I said I was as painter,
I sure as heck wouldn't get a paint by numbers kit and just paint within
the lines.

I don't like this analogy. It doesn't take any knowledge, skill,
experience, or even any real tools to follow a paint-by-number kit.
Suppose you were a painter, however, and masterfully replicated Monet's _Le
bateau atelier_. Would you then be willing to say that you've done
nothing and your painting isn't a hobby because you just copied somebody
else's idea? I doubt it.

That's NOT a hobby. OR is it??

Anything you do on a semi-regular basis to pass the time could be
considered a hobby, in my opinion.

Am I all wet?? Do I have the
wrong idea about what woodworking is about?

Yes, you do. You're mixing woodworking with design. You don't have to be
a masterful woodworking to design a piece. You don't have a design a
piece to be a masterful woodworking. I think most people learn how to do
both at the same time, but certainly many people, especially newer folks
like me, probably lack enough skill/knowledge in either discipline to
design what we want to build. It's also possible that people just want
plans to get an idea of what kind of joints to use, what type of wood
looks good, veneers, what order to do things in, the name of the router
bit to use, etc, etc.

This little rant is designed NOT to hurt anyone's feelings: I JUST WANT
TO START A DIALOG ON THE SUBJECT, AS I JUST DON'T GET IT!

Well, my feelings aren't hurt, but you do come across as a bit
self-righteous. Not everybody does it your way, so you are openly
questioning whether or not they're even "real" woodworkers?

Perhaps the reason that people need plans is they can't think in three
dimensions?? Is that it?

MANY people have this problem. MANY MANY MANY people. You need only
witness how many people can easily cruise through a year of
two-dimensional math in college and just get crucified when they reach the
second year and have to do three-variable calculus. But I think many
people just lack the time, training, expertise, or desire to draft their
own plans, especially if they think there's a good chance that somebody
else had the same idea they had and they don't feel like re-inventing the
wheel.

Just my input on it the topic, as a complete neophyte.