I decided a few weeks ago that I want a banjo.
Why? A few weeks ago I realized that everything I do is digital. I do a lot of digital photography, I spend my day working on computers, for relaxation I play XBox. I feel covered up in 1s and 0s.
Once in a while, I want to get away from the digital world and do something analog. I am not a guy without hobbies and interests, but I think I am ready to switch some gears with what I do with my free time.
What does this have to do with computers?
Well, when I guy decides to start something new, there is one place he should start… the Internet.
Last night I began my serious search for a banjo. Not knowing the first thing about banjos except I like the way they sound, I decided to learn everything.
I am now an expert in banjos. Within a few hours time I learned the difference between $99 and $400 banjos, but I don't quite have a grasp on what makes a $3000 banjo and I don't really care to find out.
Calling myself an expert is admittedly an exaggeration, but I feel like I know everything I need to for when I go shopping.
In my quest to learn more I have visited several great user reviews on banjohangout.com. That's right, there is an entire website dedicated to banjo lovers. I enjoyed the forums on this site because they didn't make me feel like I was wasting my time trying to learn it. Many forums for other topics get so full of know-it-alls that like to show how much they know that they kind of turn into forum bullies.
I also read a few reviews about what to look for in a beginners banjo on eBay.
Locally, I have only gone to a couple of music stores. That was just enough to be able to see how they feel and what the differences were that I had been reading about. I also discovered that the markup is about 30 percent higher than the standards prices found on the Internet.
Perhaps my article today came off as a piece all about banjos, but it is really about how much you can learn in a short time using the Internet.
When I was working as a writer for a newspaper, I once interviewed a car dealership manager about how the Internet had changed the car buying business. His primary complaint was that the sales person seldom has the opportunity to talk up the advantages of a given model before the shopper has pointed out the disadvantages that he read about on the Internet while researching.
Buyers today walk into the store knowing what they want and how much it costs online. It is a tough task for a local sales person to explain why the shopper should spend 30 percent more just to get it locally.
