Business Websites!

[Kevin]

Reading through old post I'll find great links to websites that have a wealth of knowledge. To make it easier for all, what are your staple websites for information on business ownership?

[Kevin]

I'll try rewording this post

What websites do you frequently visit to gain knowledge on business trends/ideas, relating to construction. For example, I try to visit these forums once a day and other more specific industry forums such as,
Plumbing: http://www.masterplumbers.com/wwwboard/
Tile: http://www.johnbridge.com/vbulletin/index.php
I'm asking because the Internet is BIG! Big in size and big in content and I dont want to miss out on information.

Please share your secrets!

[Jerrald Hayes]

Kevin it seems you're trying hard and not getting much of a response here. I see if I can help you out a little. The best I can do is to provide you with a list of where it is I go. Obviously the list can start with JLC. I’m a JLC-Online Plus subscriber and I think that’s even more helpful and useful than the banter in these forums although the forums are excellent and do serve a purpose. Being able to search the old issues of JLC back to 1986 is probably the best dollar value you can spend on any building and remodeling information resource.

I’m a big fan of the BreakTime (and Knots) forums over at the Taunton Press site (www.taunton.com). From the Forums there you can also easily "click" up a level to the Magazine, Book, and VideoTape sections of their site and search their vast library of publications for information too.

I know a lot of old BreakTime users were not enamoured of the changes they made to the forum system there and migrated over here to JLC but I’m not one of them. The forums there are blazing fast compared to the old system and once you get the hang of it they are extremely fast to move around through and find what you are looking for. You can include pictures in your post and the ability to use HTML in you posts is well supported.

You can click on the link I’ll provide below and you can see how I used the HTML Table tag in one of my posts to create a small spreadsheet to help explain what I was talking about with regard to Square Foot Estimating.


BreakTime- FineHomeBuilding

[Jerrald Hayes]

Knots is the Taunton Press forum geared towards Fine Woodworkers in that it accompanies and complements the Fine Woodworking magazine.


Knots- Fine Woodworking Magazine

[Jerrald Hayes]

After the JLC and Taunton sites I mentioned above I spend a lot of time looking through The Housing Zone which accompanies Professional Builder and Professional Remodeler magazines. A lot of great building and remodeling news type articles there in addition to some great business tools (check out http://www.housingzone.com/worksheets/prtools.asp)


The Housing Zone

[Jerrald Hayes]

For many of the same reasons that I like the Housing Zone I also like Toolbase Services a service of the NAHB Research Center,




ToolBase Services - The Home Building Industry's T

[Jerrald Hayes]

There are a bunch of great forums over on WoodWeb along with a pile of information in what they call their KnowledgeBase and it’s all searchable.

There are forums there for Adhesives, Architectural Woodworking, Business and Management, Cabinet and Millwork Installation, Cabinetmaking, CAD, CNC, Dust Collection, Safety Equipment, and Plant Operation, Professional Finishing, Forestry, Professional Furniture Making, Laminating and Solid Surfacing, Sawing and Drying, Solid Wood Machining, Value Added Wood Processing Forum, and Veneers.

The topics there get pretty industry, craft, and technique specific but if that’s what you need it’s a great place.

It’s also a great place to go to start to find industrial woodworking machinery


WoodWeb

[Jerrald Hayes]

Loosely related to WoodWeb you’ll find Industrial Strength Woodworking which accompanies the publications Custom Woodworking Business and Wood and Wood Products magazines. I search the articles there often and have found them to be very informative and helpful. In fact I was doing some research on their site just this morning.

They also have their own new set of forums at http://www.iswonline.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi but I haven’t checked them out yet.


Industrial Strength Woodworking

[Jerrald Hayes]

While the concentration and interests in my company is in architectural woodwork and metals and I have little understanding or knowledge of HVAC I read Contractor Magazine- The Newsmagazine Of Mechanical Contracting and visit there site pretty often. I like to read the columnists there especially on business and management. I think good business and management advice is good business and management advice no matter where you read it.


Contractor Magazine

[Jerrald Hayes]

Ditto my feelings for Electrical Contractor magazine.




Electrical Contractor Magazine

[Jerrald Hayes]

Painting and Wallcovering Contractor Magazine has the Paintstore.com web site with a bunch of good articles to search through. They also have their own set of message boards at http://www.paintstore.com/board




Painting and Wallcovering Contractor Magazine

[Jerrald Hayes]

For painters there is also The Painters Chatroom which is really a set of DCForum message boards and not chat rooms as the name may imply.


The Painters Chatroom

[Jerrald Hayes]

And for decorative painters and muralist (I’m a mural painter so that why I’m interested in this one) there is Muralsplus "the ultimate resource for faux painting enthusiasts, muralists, stencilers and all decorative painters". A good set of message boards there too.




MuralsPlus

[Jerrald Hayes]

Also you’ll want to check out Inc Magazine if you are not already going there. A great site for small entrepreneural businesses. Tons of information and business tools.


INC Magazine

[Tech-Cor]

I have proposed developing a business skills/management website to my company. I am thinking a site with links to solid business info (like this one), info from gurus like Les Cunningham, - I'd stay away from the technical/hammer swinging side - already many excellent resources out there - but I would key in on getting you guys to those resources.
Would this be of interst/value to you?
Bob
Tech-Cor, Inc.
Applied Research