online help for people who make tangible stuff, real stuff

[Liberal_in_LA]

A Web Edge for Makers of Real Stuff

Plenty of people want to build a popular Web site and become the next Mark Zuckerberg. But some technology entrepreneurs have a more old-fashioned goal: they want to make something you can hold in your hand.

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Technology specialists say the interest in projects like these is part of a cultural shift, in which shoppers are increasingly looking for a more intimate connection to the creators and the sources of the things they buy, reflected in the surging interest in farmers’ markets and local clothing designers.

“People are becoming more cognizant about where their things are made and are starting to expect the same information transparency about where everything they buy is from,” said Rachel Botsman, co-author of the book “What’s Mine Is Yours: The Rise of Collaborative Consumption.”

“They are looking for smaller suppliers they trust,” she added.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/21/technology/21make.html