[Update 2] Reports are that offers are being posted now via the eHow Writer’s Compensation Panel.   Also, if you didn’t get an offer, and the email you received is different than below, you probably won’t get one.  Read past the break for the alternate (read: we’re not buying your articles) version of the email eHow sent.

[update] No article buyout numbers in my control panel yet.  I’ll update this with some buyout vs. earnings numbers if I get them.

A sign that Google’s Panda update(s) did turn a few heads over at Demand Media, here’s the letter they just send to eHow writers regarding the eHow articles for which they’ve been getting monthly earnings payments.

Gee thanks eHow – A buyout offer!

Hi XXXXX,

We want to personally thank you for the time spent writing articles for eHow.com and helping contribute to the growth of our site. As a valued writer who’s written articles for eHow, you know we’re a site that is focused on excellence and delivering the best possible experience to our readers.

As you might remember, we stopped accepting user-generated articles under eHow’s Writer Compensation Program (WCP) in April of 2010. However, we kept articles published by members like you so all contributors could continue earning money for their work.

As eHow.com continues to evolve and become a leading destination for trusted information, we are working hard to ensure all content is professionally created and editorially vetted. After much consideration, eHow has decided to close the WCP and remove a number of user-generated articles from the site beginning May 5, 2011.

Now, what’s exciting for YOU is that we are extending attractive offers to a select group of great writers to purchase the articles they’ve written for eHow so that those articles can be vetted through our current editorial process, which includes professional fact checking and copy editing. Needless to say, your great work has put you in this special category!

Beginning today, your WCP console will have the details of your offer. The offer includes the purchase price of your articles, which is based on historical earnings. You will have until May 31, 2011 to accept our offer.

By accepting our offer you are agreeing to sell all the rights of your articles to us.  We would own the articles from that point on, and will have the ability to review and revise them to ensure they meet our editorial standards. Following the acceptance of the offer, you will receive three payments: one for regular earnings paid in June for money earned from May 1-5, and two equal installments for your buyout offer, which will be paid by June 15 and July 15, 2011 via PayPal. However, if you choose to decline the offer you will receive your last WCP payment for money earned from May 1-5 by June 15, 2011.

If you agree to sell your articles, we ask that you immediately remove the articles from any other sites that have published them. If you decline the offer, articles will begin to be removed from eHow.com. However, you will retain complete control of all the content you have written and will continue to have rights to publish them anywhere. Additionally, if you choose not to accept our offer, you’ll have an opportunity to retrieve your articles from us between May 17th and May 31st, if you wish to retain them for your records. Further details for article retrieval will be shared through your WCP console.

We truly value your contributions to eHow and know that the site would not be what it is today without people like you. Thank you again and please feel free to contact support@ehow.zendesk.com with any questions you may have.

Best,
eHow Team

 

Here’s the altnerate email.  Seems this is the version you if they don’t want to buy your articles:

Hi XXXX,

We want to personally thank you for the time spent writing articles for eHow.com and helping contribute to the growth of our site. As a valued writer who’s written articles for eHow, you know we’re a site that is focused on excellence and delivering the best possible experience to our readers. As eHow.com continues to evolve and become a leading destination of trusted information, we are working hard to ensure all content is professionally created and editorially vetted.

As you might remember, we stopped accepting user-submitted articles in April 2010. At the same time, we also closed the Writers Compensation Program (WCP) to new participants and stopped accepting articles through that program as well. Though we stopped accepting user-generated articles, we kept legacy articles that had been previously submitted and published online so that readers could continue to find and enjoy that information, and participants who opted into the WCP could continue earning money for their work.

After much consideration, eHow has decided to close the WCP and remove user-generated articles from the site. We’re doing this because these articles were not vetted through our current editorial process, which includes professional fact checking and copy editing. Your article(s) will be taken down from eHow.com this month. If you are opted into the WCP you will receive final payment for earnings through May 5, 2011, during the regular monthly payment schedule in early June. Even though your articles will no longer appear on eHow.com, you retain all ownership of your articles for use on other websites.

We appreciate the time you’ve spent writing articles for our site and want to make it easy for you to have a record of your contributions. You’ll have an opportunity to retrieve your articles from us between May 17th and May 31st, if you wish to retain them for your records. Further details for article retrieval will be shared through your writer’s console.

We truly value your contributions to eHow and know that the site would not be what it is today without people like you. Thank you again and please feel free to contact support@ehow.zendesk.com with any questions you may have.

Kind Regards,
eHow Team

Vintage Audio Online is a website dedicated to one of my hobbies/business – Vintage Audio. I tried to zone in on what I felt the vintage audio enthusiast wants – pictures and information.

TabletReviews.co.uk – The iPad brought in the age of the tablet, so fittingly, a site dedicated to the latest tablets, tablet news, and like the name says, tablet reviews.

DutchCityBike.com – I spent the month of October in Holland, and it reminded me of what  a great thing the bicycles is.  Dutch bikes are making headway into the States too.  This site is a bit of fun, it’s an interest of mine, and an experiment to see if I rank on some Dutch bike terms.

CouchSeattle.com – Couch Seattle is my friend Ameer’s store.  Ameer built the site on his own, and it was hosted on WordPress – even though he already owned the CouchSeattle.com domain name.  I finally convinced him to make the switch to host wordpress himself on his own domain.  At the same time, I’m putting some working into optimizing his site to drive organic traffic.  He’s also taking Adwords on, as opposed to paying the local SEO company in Seattle he used before.

Steve Jobs on netbooks

lol.

American Airlines miles expired

The price of oil went up, the economy turned down and the airline industry has been one of the hardest hit.  As a result, we got fuel surcharges, seat assignment charges, baggage charges to name but a few.  The airlines also decided to levy an expiration date on your hard earned frequent flyer miles.  That means, in most programs, your miles will expire if there isn’t qualifying activity in as little as 12 months (see table after the break for expiration times).

However, there are some easy ways to prevent your miles from expiring, even if you don’t plan on flying.  Read on to learn how I rescued my AAdvantage miles, and how you can rescue your miles today.

In my case, I had about 25,0000 American Airlines AAdvantage miles that were going to expire.  I had no plans to fly American Airlines, but I made a qualifying purchase through the AAdvantage Eshopping proram at Bose.com, which deferred my expiration date for another 2 years.  You’ll notice that my miles actually expired, but were re-credited when my Bose.com transaction posted.

Un-Expired American Airlines Aadvantage Miles

All the large American carriers have affiliates online trough which you can earn miles.  Often, there are partnerships with large online store such as Target, Ecost or Bestbuy and if you’re lucky you can even find something you needed anyway with free shipping.

Alternatively, you can sign up for a Dine for Miles program.  These programs allow you to earn up to ten miles for every dollar spent at local participating restaurants.  A quick take-away burrito may be all you need to rescue your miles.  Just like the shopping option, just visit your airline’s website to see how you can participate.

Here’s a list of the expiration periods of the major US airlines and please share your experience in the comments below.

AirTran A+ Rewards Credits = 12 months.
Alaska Mileage Plan Miles = 3 years
Aloha AlohaPass Miles don’t expire.
America West Dividend Miles Miles = 18 months
American AAdvantage Miles = 36 months
ATA Travel Awards Points = 24 months
Continental OnePass Miles don’t expire.
Delta SkyMiles Miles = 2 calendar years
Frontier EarlyReturns Miles = 2 calendar years
Hawaiian HawaiianMiles Miles = 36 months
JetBlue TrueBlue Miles = 1 year after the date earned
Midwest Midwest Miles Miles = 36 months
Northwest WorldPerks Miles = 3 calendar years
Southwest Rapid Rewards Credits = 24 months
United Mileage Plus Starting = 18 months
US Airways Dividend Miles = 18 months

Day One: Purchased via CL ($60  + 3 beers)  Schwinn World Sport 63cm circa 1980

-Removed Harley low rider bars (bent)
-Removed rear brakes (no room on new bars)

+1 new inner tube (rear).
+Added upside down Bianchi road bars

Rode down Telgraph Ave. Great success!

The finished product

I set out to build a simple, cheap workbench for my audio project.   I found some simple workbench plans, which I modified for length, height and width.  I sketch everything out quickly and tabulated the sizes I would need and set off to Home Depot.  The best bargain of the day is that Home Depot will cut all of your lumber to size – a huge timesaver for me, especially since I don’t own a powersaw.

In total, build time was about 1-2 hours.  I really took my time – I think if you’re experienced and focus you could do it in about 30 minutes.  Alternatively, you could paint it as well to finish it off, but I think I’ll keep the ‘natural’ look.

Materials:

(7) 2″ x 4″ @ $2.30 each = ~$16
(1) 8′x6′ OSB Board = $9
(1) Box of 2.5″ screws = $5
(1) Ikea ‘Franklin’ 29″ Stool = $29

Total cost:  $59

Build progress pictures after the break.

DIY Workbench Supplies

The back of the Workbench

Using a clamp to hold the corner in place temporarily.

Just missing the top and sides

Almost done

Complete with OSB top