By the time your receive this issue the "UMBA Journal" 
should be available, in an electronic form, to millions of 
people world wide.  As an organization dedicated to the free 
exchange of information and the education of the public 
about the craft of the blacksmith, this represents a major 
step.  How did this happen?  Last summer at the 1994 ABANA 
conference, Washington State University, St. Louis, MO, 
donated 250 MEG of harddrive space to ABANA for the purpose 
of establishing an internet site.  Through the efforts of 
Enrique Vega, and many others, this project is growing and 
establishing a presence world wide.  Anyone with a computer 
and a modem can gain access to the ArtMetal Project and 
read, review or download information about blacksmithing 
from all over the world.  Blacksmithing as a subject has 
definitely reached the 21st century!!

I became involved after reading the "Editors Anvil" column 
in the BAM newsletter (reprinted in this issue).  Earlier 
this month the BAM newsletter became the first ABANA Chapter 
publication available on the ëNet.  This month the UMBA 
journal should become the second.  The eventual goal is to 
have ALL the ABANA Chapter publications, in an abbreviated 
form, available for computer access.

What does this mean to you?  I don't know, but I have 
reprinted a small selection of articles about and from the 
ArtMetal project in an attempt to help you answer that 
question for yourself.  The outline of what's available at 
the ArtMetal page is much too long to reprint here, it 
includes articles about building furnaces, sharpening knives 
and tools, finding supplies, and making jewelry as well as 
containing portfolios (with pictures!) of the work of 
various artists.  And this is just the barest "tip of the 
iceberg."

What it means to us as an organization is question that is a 
little easier to answer.  It means that information about 
UMBA events and meetings will reach a world wide audience.  
It means that people casually searching about a topic (i.e. 
Metal Work) may find the ArtMetal project and thus our 
publication.  It means that we may see an increase in 
membership and interest from folks who want to receive the 
complete newsletter.  It means that classified adds 
submitted by our members could reach a MUCH large audience 
and receive many more responses.  The future is unsure, but 
the fire is burning brighter and hotter everyday.

Franklyn D. Garland
Editor