You may be aware of this little side/fan project I have:
I’ve been writing the first versions with (outstanding) support from @WillAdams and a number of people from the community credited in the ebook, but over the past two years the bulk of the community has shifted to the Shapeoko4 and Pro (and now HDM) and while most of the ebook content still stands, the pictures and some of the information is getting obsolete.
Also, I’ve been wanting to add information (more project examples, more troubleshooting tips) but can’t seem to find time or good opportunities to do so.
If some of you would like to contribute to improving that ebook for the community, I’m (now) open to that. It could be as simple as providing up to date pictures of the SO4/Pro/HDM to add to the SO3 illustrations in the existing sections, but you could also propose any edit/addition to the current content to improve the book. Anyone willing to contribute content would need to register for a gitbook account, and I would add them as “editors” of the gitbook project. Gitbook “editors” can access the project’s content in gitbook’s…editor, modify it in their private branch, and then submit “merge requests” (this is gitbook’s way to not have everyone modifying content in the main line, to keep things under control)
The only rules are:
the ebook is and will stay free (of charge), this is intended to support the community. So any contribution would be voluntary.
I will still get to decide which content makes it in the ebook and what doesn’t, I’m not picky at all but I need to ensure the content is not all over the place and the overall structure is maintained.
Anyway, if you are interested, drop me a PM and we can discuss ways to make the ebook better.
Even though your book is free you may consider copyrighting the book.
I am not sure what is involved but it does make the book intellectual property and will protect your content. (I believe?) I am not an attorney by any stretch of the imagination.
It does have a copyright licence (near the bottom of the first page), Creative Commons BY-NC-SA, which basically means that it’s ok to use it for anything non commercial, and if crediting the authors (in this case, me and the various contributors)
It’s basically a decent license for such a hobbyist/community endeavour. But I’m no lawyer either
I hadn’t looked at the book at all. I was just trying to help. But if so, he should be ok as long as he hadn’t copied any others work. (Again, not an attorney)
Another not-a-lawyer here, but I think that in the US and UK (at least) everything is under copyright as soon as it has been created. It has to be explicitly freed from copyright to allow it to be copied or used elsewhere.
I can attest to the quality as well. Awhile back I scoured the internet gathering every scrap of info I could on machining and CNC.
Then I started reading the Shapeoko ebook, quickly realizing everything I’d gathered was already in the book, nicely explained and well formatted.
I’ve thought about contributing some knowledge…but I’ve not found anything not already covered
Happy to hear the Shapeoko ebook can still be useful to some after all this time.
I went from very being involved in this forum to basically just lurking now (life got in the way), but it is still refreshing to come here regularly and check out the fantastic projects people do! #Carbide3DRocks
Couple of quick questions on this. When did you start working on the ebook? was it mostly you, or a team effort? Do you accept thanks via PayPal or Venmo? And did you get all your CNC knowledge by using your Shapeoko, or did you come in as a machinist or with a base of electronics knowledge?
It was mostly me but I got great support from a number of community members (credited in the intro of the book). I did learn everything from scratch using my beloved Shapeoko3, which I bought in 2017 and got immediately hooked with CNC in general and having fun with the Shapeoko specifically. It did help that I am an engineer with an appetite for tinkering with the electronic side of things.
No donation needed, this was my attempt to give back to this very helpful community!
Do you still have the original S. 3 machine, or did you get a 4, Pro or 5 Pro sunce then?
Ever tempted to get another machine just to see what an Altmill or Onefinity is like?
I’ve used CC BY-NC-SA on some of my guitar instructional files out there. Also worth noting the SA Sharealike chiefly adds to the non-commercial and accreditation clauses that it can be adapted. In this case let’s say someone is an enthusiast of another CNC platform, it would be okay for them to take your ebook as a template and alter the content to their own hardware and software, then share it non-comercially with credit. If you are okay with that in makes sense.
A few years ago I donated my (by then very customized) Shapeoko3 to my nephew so that he too gets the CNC virus, and got a Shapeoko Pro XXL, which I am still using quite regularly.
Nope, I’m sure they are good machines too but I am very happy with my SO Pro XXL and I know it inside and out so I have no specific interest to look elsewhere. I don’t have ballscrews, but the large belts on my XXL work perfectly for things I do. So surprisingly, I don’t have gear lust (anymore)
Yes, we had that discussion on the forum back when I started the ebook, and I am quite ok with that situation, it’s a fan project anyway
