文章基本信息

标题：Room for Improvement
作者：Heidi LaFleche
期刊名称：Yahoo! Internet Life
印刷版ISSN：1088-0070
出版年度：2002
卷号：May 2002
出版社：Ziff Davis Media Inc.

Room for Improvement

Heidi LaFleche

Once you��ve dust-busted through spring cleaning, it��s time to upgrade the outer perimeters of your domestic environs. ��After six months in the cabin, everyone is thinking about outdoor living,�� says do-it-yourself icon Bob Vila, who is host of the nationally syndicated Bob Vila��s Home Again and offers online advice at BobVila.com. ��A wish list might include a patio, a screen porch, or window boxes.��

Before you break ground on that sunroom, Vila recommends testing your skills on something more modest. ��When you��re first doing home improvement, remodel the inside of a closet,�� he suggests. ��See if you like woodworking, and see what you can accomplish.�� Or try your hand at tidying a home-office desk: Drill a hole for those messy cables and finish it off with a plastic grommet.

Home-improvement Web sites, including Home & Garden Television [hgtv.com] and DIY [diynet.com], report that traffic increased significantly following September 11. With a renewed appreciation of home life, people are turning to sites such as iVillage: Do-It-Yourself [ivillage.com/home/doit], which offers guides for redoing practically every room of the house.

Ready to tackle the great outdoors? Try crafting a family barbecue site (search picnic table at Home & Garden Television) or new digs for Fido (search doghouse at DIY). If your goals are more technical, the Innovative Technology section at BobVila discusses a wireless network, which he says is ��the next step in home automation.�� Your mouse may be the handiest tool in your belt.