Wow. This is my 36th Shuttle. Have I mentioned how grateful I am that Jon McGoran had a midlife crisis a few years ago and decided to become a real author? (Plug: His latest novel, the eco-thriller “Dust Up,” just came out last month. Read all about it at www.jonmcgoran.com.)

Since then, I’ve been able to build on the very robust publication he developed (with the help of hundreds — probably thousands — of Weavers Way members along the way, of course). So you may notice that we have worked up an online version of the Shuttle. Check it out at www.weaversway.coop/online-shuttle. Not just a PDF replica (you propellerheads know what that means, but everybody who has tried to read it knows it’s painful to download), but a proper online version that allows you to click from story to story, click on links and all that other 21st-century Web-browsing stuff. Under the hood, it’s based on a workflow shared with us by the folks at Willy Street Co-op in Madison, WI, to whom I am also grateful. The Willy Street Reader (www.willystreet.coop/reader) is one of the few co-op newspapers around that approaches the, um, ambition of the Shuttle. 

Our Web guy, Paul Weinstein, has toiled mightily to get this working in Drupal, the open-source system our website is built on. (So grateful. Collective propellerhead shudder.) No, it’s not an app, it could be prettier and it currently has no ads. Paul continues to toil on this and all sorts of issues related to electronic communication — he built the new eShopper email we’re sending out every Tuesday and is updating the eNews. (Plug: He’s also a musician, which is another story.) 

The printed version of the Shuttle isn’t going anywhere. In fact, past this issue, I’m not sure we’ll even do another online edition until we get more bugs worked out. But the No-Waste General Membership Meeting on May 15 (plug!) seemed like a good excuse to do our part, even if it’s still (propellerhead alert) in beta. So take a look. And if you’re reading this on paper, RECYCLE THE SHUTTLE!