Editing Coop Info

<center>'''Coop Information Page'''</center>

== What is a Coop?==
Basically a way to get parts and PCBs cheaper. Some parts used in our projects can become 20-50 percent cheaper when purchased in quantities and a coop leverages those discounts to benefit our members.
 
A coop manger will post a coop (group buy), then members of DLA can put in requests for the PCBs and/or kits. All hardware on DLA is for DIY (Do It Yourself) and comes as just a PCB (printed circuit board) or as a kit (which would include components and a PCB). If a PCB is offered alone, it is usually because there are no quantity price breaks on the components used.


<the following added 1/18/2012, edit or remove the following as you see fit.>

Currently coops are being limited to a fixed number of units due to the amount and time and effort required to price, order, sort, and ship coop items.  Due to the increased demand, most of coops are hitting the fixed limit within hours of opening.  There will likely be additional coops during the year, as long as the DLA users are considerate and understand that RJ, his Dad JJ, and the coop managers are doing everyone a big favor by taking on a project like this for nothing other than the drive to help us.  Remember that they have lives, families, and jobs just like everyone else.

== What is a Coop Manager?==
A member of DLA who has meet the requirements of the board to be able to run a coop (Please see the [[http://diylightanimation.com/index.php?topic=111.0 Coop Forum Rules]]
). The person in charge of the coop (Coop Manager) will post a coop for the hardware that will be in the coop. Then record how many "kits" each person wants. The manager will get the finally cost from the supplier and tell each person how much they owe him. Once everyone pays up then he can order the possible thousands of parts. Once the parts arrive and he sorts the parts and package everything he will shipped out the kits to the people who ordered them.

== How can I join a Coop?==
Please see the [[http://diylightanimation.com/index.php?board=13.0 Coop Forum]] for any open Coops 

== Can I start a Coop?==
ALL coops on DLA must be approved by the administrators of this site. Please see the [[http://diylightanimation.com/index.php?topic=111.0 Coop Forum Rules]]
.

== Can I get PCBs if there is no active coop?==
Please contact RJ by PM to see if any PCBS are available. All Lynx pcbs are created by RJ and only can be obtained from him.

<Update 1/18/2012>

RJ is trying out a new idea called the "store."  It can be found at http://diylightanimation.com/index.php?action=store or via the link at the top of the forum.  I believe that it shows what PCBS for which he currently has extras.  It may or may not be a real time account as it is still relatively new.

== What are the Coop Rules?==
The Rules are in the [[http://diylightanimation.com/index.php?topic=111.0 Coop Forum Rules]]