Thank You Doug!

[f1rocket]

Every once in a while, I'm reminded of the pleasure we all enjoy on this list directly as a result of the work that Doug and others provide to moderate these forums. As a past long time member of the Matronics list, I occasionaly scan the archives over there for useful bits of information. Recently, there was another classic Matronics "flame war" over a simple question about venting your crankcase. If you are so inclined, you can check out http://www.matronics.com/listbrowse/rv-list/index.html and look for "breather run into exhaust" if you have an hour to kill.

I am sooooo glad to not be a part of that anymore. Thank you Doug once again for providing all of us a safe haven for respectful discourse on all things RV.

[randylervold]

Originally Posted by f1rocket

Every once in a while, I'm reminded of the pleasure we all enjoy on this list directly as a result of the work that Doug and others provide to moderate these forums. As a past long time member of the Matronics list, I occasionaly scan the archives over there for useful bits of information. Recently, there was another classic Matronics "flame war" over a simple question about venting your crankcase. If you are so inclined, you can check out http://www.matronics.com/listbrowse/rv-list/index.html and look for "breather run into exhaust" if you have an hour to kill.
I am sooooo glad to not be a part of that anymore. Thank you Doug once again for providing all of us a safe haven for respectful discourse on all things RV.

Amen brother! Randy, you hit the nail on the head, the goal is a forum for "respectful discourse on all things RV". Monitoring/managing content rather than taking a Matronics style anyone-can-post-anything approach is indeed a fine line to walk, but Doug has managed to pull it off in fine fashion and we all benefit from it with higher quality content.

[Mike S]

I am in total agreement with the above, in addition to the friendliness and decorum, I am unendingly and utterly amazed the the depth and breadth of information here in the "VAF data base"

Thanks to Doug for making it possible, and thanks to all who participate for the information here.

Mike

[LettersFromFlyoverCountry]

It even motivated me to write stuff and connect sentences.

[Ironflight]

I have pondered for awhile on what makes these forums so unique, and what that elusive quality of "Civility" really means. For me, it all comes down to this....it's OK to criticize "things"....but don't criticize "people". Go back and read contentious threads on this or other forums, and I think that you'll see that little test really works - as long as we argue about methods, techniques, hardware, etc....it might get a little warm, but no one really takes offense. Once someone starts using terms that imply that they are criticizing the person (saying an idea is "stupid" implies the person is.....), then it no longer becomes fun!

I also like to mention that along with Doug's leadership in setting the tone for this place, it really is the population of the membership that does a marvelous job. Doug and I have chatted, and we guess that maybe 0.01% of posts even get moderators attention, and less than that are ever touched. That says a huge amount about this community's commitment to keeping it special!

Paul

[DeltaRomeo]

Thank you!

I have to say that 'keeping the civility' is actually quite easy given all the help this forum has. I still get the occasional 'hot' email, but that comes with the territory. I think Bob's article on 'communities within communities' was a great read, and spot on.

I have a lot of friends and I don't ever take that for granted.

b,
d

[rv969wf]

If you are so inclined, you can check out http://www.matronics.com/listbrowse/rv-list/index.html and look for "breather run into exhaust" if you have an hour to kill.

I'm making popcorn NOW!!! Who wants some? This might get interesting. LOL, just kidding

I agree with Bob Collins article, worth reading. Words well used Bob, keep up the good work.

[mdoyle]

I don't make many comments, but I have to chime in on this one, I agree with what's already been said. This is a great place to relax and discuss our avocations! The vast majority of comments are constructive, informative, and helpful! Like many of you I have enough stress and conflict in my day job, I certainly don't want to experience that here!

[IowaRV9Dreamer]

I agree that this forum is certainly one of the best; thanks Doug for all you do.

That being said, even here of course "stuff" happens. As a very early newbie, in the pre-build phase, I innocently posted a concern about the nosegear tipping issue (I had no idea what I was stepping in). One of the "big time" regular posters told me that I was clearly not cut out to build an RV-9, because I hadn't learned to land without mistakes. In fact, he told me that I disrespected airplane in general. It was a bit discouraging for someone unfamiliar with Experimental aviation.

After that posting I've tried to stick to factual or question type posts, which I find the forums very useful for.

[LettersFromFlyoverCountry]

Worth pointing out, I think, that the birth of VAF comes -- as I recall -- as a result of some of the flaming of the RV List. I think Doug started the group on Yahoo as a result of that. And that morphed into VAF.

Back on the old Yahoo -- on which I was a moderator -- there was a lot of discussions about moderating.

There were, to be fair, a few, ummm, jerks on there too. And they were always the ones bellowing about how they didn't need moderating.

Moderation comes in many forms. There's the "comments don't get posted until approved" method. But there's also the "whack the guy upside the head off the list" method which works even better.

The point is, while the fact the list here is mild is a testament to the people who post here (although, curiously enough, some of the folks who were involved in the RV List brouhaha also post here and have had a few, shall we say, borderline posts), I think the real reason is the moderators who also are very thorough in their approach, and have made the standards known.

Overall, the key is the same as it always was: stay away from politics, stay away from religion, and you're 2/3s of the way "there"