by Mary Therese

Created on: April 08, 2008

Learn how to do virtually anything by going onto the World Wide Web. I've learned about a wide range of topics and gained or honed skills such as delivering effective presentations, painting in watercolor, writing calligraphy, making sushi, cooking, and playing classical guitar - all by reading instructional material online and watching instructional videos online. The emergence of video-rich sites like YouTube has enabled knowledge sharing for millions of people. In this article, I will highlight a handful of the many sites which you can visit to achieve a new skill or use as a vehicle to share your own abilities and knowledge with others.

HTTP://WWW.INSTRUCTABLES.COM
Promoting itself as "The World's Biggest Show and Tell" site on the Internet, this is a great place to learn *how to do* something as opposed to learning *about* something. In other words, you'll gain new abilities, not just information. Instruction is delivered through step-by-step videos and some titles include:
- how to make wine
- custom antenna balls
- how to sew
- Altoids tin watercolor box
- how to photograph steam coming from your cooked food
- electric umbrella

HTTP://WWW.5MIN.COM/
The "5min Life Videopedia" provides a wealth of brief video guides submitted by the public; videos are based on the notion that "everybody is an expert in something" and this site is a platform for sharing knowledge and practical skills through short videos. Videos provide answers to questions like:
- How do I prepare for a job interview?
- How do you draw a silhouette?
- How does acupuncture work?
- What is life in Hawaii like?

Videos cover skills such as:
- making chocolate-covered strawberries
- playing baseball
- coaching baseball
- playing chess
- performing magic card tricks
- giving a foot massage

These are two of the premiere instructional websites currently on the World Wide Web. They are treasure-troves for the self-directed learner. Learn something new at one or both of these sites and perhaps someday you can contribute your expertise so that others may learn from you!

Learn more about this author, Mary Therese.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.