This week and next, Vince, our chief technology officer, will be making changes to the SharableThings website.

The new underscored words “learn more” near our logo link you to this blog posting. And this blog posting is supposed to make perfectly clear how you can use SharableThings.

That is a pipe dream, of course. How you can use this site is simple (see below) but also as complicated as the ways you can imagine to use it. We are counting on you to invent new ways.

We have adopted more concrete terms at the site. We hope they will help you more clearly realize what and how you can give, get, and use things with others, but not restrict your ability to invent and discover new ways of doing that.

In this iteration of the website, you will find more concrete terms like "co-own (willing owner)" and her corollary "co-own (willing purchaser)", "for rent" and its counterpart "want to rent", "for loan" and its first cousin "want to borrow", "swap" which can do double-duty, the benevolent "free" (although perhaps it really only is junk)and the hopeful "want for free".

Here are some fictional examples of how these terms and other features are used at the site:

1. Brenda covets a book called A Treasury of Knitting Patterns. At SharableThings, she starts to create a sharing interest by clicking on "Add it" in the calls to action on the landing page or by clicking on "Add a Sharing Interest" on any page. What will she call her sharing interest? As a title, she just fills in the name of the book. Then she indicates that she is willing to co-own, rent, or borrow it, or get it for free or swap a book called The Knitters Book of Finishing Techniques for it. In the description box, she tells a little more about the book she wants, why she wants it, and the terms on which she would like to get it. Then she creates category tags (knitting, knitting book); location tags (Bellingham, Washington State); and an association tag (Ravelry) -- all of which help people narrow their searches. She uploads a photograph of the book. She prints a copy of her sharing interest and puts the printout on the notice board at work. She also emails a copy of her sharing interest to a friend.

2. Thomas creates a compound sharing interest with the title "Beneteau First 37" and "sailing opportunity". He explains in the description box that he has a Beneteau First 37 which he would be willing to share an interest in but that he is also looking for keen sailors to crew aboard his Beneteau in race season. He tags his sharing interest with category tags (sailing, boat, sailboat, sailboat racing), location tags (Fort Lauderdale, Florida); and an association tag (Lauderdale Yacht Club). He emails a copy of his sharing interest to the club racing secretary and posts a hard copy on the yacht club notice board. A different sailor might have created two sharing interests where Thomas created one.

3. Mark's snowmobiling days are over, but he can't face getting rid of his snowmobile. He likes looking at it and maintaining it. At SharableThings, he starts creating a sharing interest with the title "XP Ski-Doo", indicates "for loan", puts in the description box that he will lend his snowmobile to any member of the Trailbreakers Snowmobile Club; uploads a nice photograph of his machine; and enters "snowmobile" as a category tag; "Thompson, Manitoba" as location tags; and "Thompson Trailbreakers Snowmobile Club" as an association tag. He makes his privacy choices, as did Brenda and Thomas. While looking at his sharing interest, he uses the email a friend function to email a copy of the snowmobile sharing interest to a friend in the snowmobile club who will be able to post a paper copy at the club and who will forward the email to other snowmobilers.

4. Linda in Yonkers occasionally needs specialty power woodworking tools. At SharableThings, she makes three sharing interests, titled "13 inch portable planer", "15 inch floor drill press with dual laser guide system", and "16 inch variable speed scroll saw". She uploads a photos of each of them. She is willing to rent, borrow, or swap for the use of these machines, so she indicates all these possibilities. For category tags, she enters "tool, power tool"; for location tags, she puts "Yonkers, New York City, New York"; and as an association tag, she puts Northeastern Woodworkers Association. She waits for other power tool owners to see her posting.

What Brenda, Thomas, Mark and Linda did was create “sharing interests”. Any visitor to the site could browse or search for these sharing interests.

So: if you want to recoup part of your investment in an asset (boat, plane, cottage, car,...) or reduce your maintenance costs (in the same sorts of belongings!); if you have things that could be rented; if you have a storage problem (e.g., grandma's furniture) or a surfeit of storage space (that empty garage); if you want to save the planet by riding a motor scooter part-time or trading your beater for a 10-speed; if you just want to be a philanthropist and give things away (your Harley Davidson) or lend them out (your swimming pool or tennis court or business savvy)...try creating a sharing interest. And as the site gets going, look for things to share - or do we mean rent, borrow, co-own, get for free -- in your (online) neighbourhood.

We look forward to seeing how you use SharableThings.