OK, if you don't want to evaluate wood by hardness, I'll add weight also.
Hard Maple: 1450 lbf (pounds-force) (sugar maple), 44 lbs/ft3 (pounds per cubic foot)
White Oak: 1350 lbf, 47 lbs/ft3
Red Oak: 1220 lbf, 44 lbs/ft3
Black Cherry: 950 lbf, 35 lbs/ft3
Soft Maple: 700 lbf (Silver Maple, there are many species used), 40 lbs/ft3
Alder: 590 lbf, 28 lbs/ft3
White Pine: 380 lbf, 25 lbs/ft3
Soft + light = easily damaged.
So as you can see, alder again is at the bottom of the hardwood list and just barely above white pine. There are many more statistics that show Alder being in the low end of the hardwood category. Again used as a cost lowering method.
I'm not trying to sway everyone into never using alder. Heck, I even used white pine for cabinets in my own house. Just want to make people aware of it's characteristics and hope they don't make a decision based on the sales pitches alone or looks alone. Sales pitches are all about $$$$. If you are very careful about how you use your cabinets and furniture, alder will probably be fine. If you use your stuff hard, stay away. If all you care about is looks and price, go for it, forget about the facts.
Q
Interesting design behind stove
Q