The AM Forum

Yankees win,14 dead, Hitler, Dollie gets Boob Job while jogging, %*&^*&^*(*)&(*7,)

Why the hell do we have to post these items in the "QSO" section of a amateur radio site???

Is this the best we can do!!!!

We post the thread, we make comments, someone disagrees, someone goes over the line, flame wars begin, the post gets pulled , users claim their rights have been abused, censorship, nastygrams, we get slandered on the airwaves, then the process starts all over again.

Am I the only person sick of this crap?  

I second that!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm all for it as well, fewer opportunities for selective whining or playing the victim. Yes, it really is a radio board, specifically about the AM mode.

It's also a good time to remind folks that the Technical forum is a place for technical posts about amateur radio electronics, circuits, parts etc, and not discussions on such things as collecting, selling, standards for restoring, Hitler, Dollie, Baseball, hot dogs, etc. It should be seen as an opportunity to help others or receive good technical advice, rather than a platform for promotion of personal views. Fortunately, it has overwhelmingly been a great source of information for many. Let's keep it that way.

I've been wondering that too...

But, with a section sub-title such as:

"The QSO area is for any subject except political and religious posts. It is like the AM Bar and Grill and of course anything that is posted must be following the guidelines. "


What would you expect?


Time to change the rules..........?

Of course, some people can read something political into anything.

Yep. There was a time that loosely-worded rule worked fine because most AMers spent more time on the air discussing stuff. Some now prefer enjoying amateur radio vicariously through the internet it seems, which means spelling things out clearly for them, including a reminder that this really is an online board, and not a Bar or Grill.  ;)

Well, if someone could figure out how to pour me a glass of wine through the computer...

Geez - is there a problem that is not evident to casual users here?

In other words, as a casual daily user things look rather mellow to me.

Is there some problem talking about restoration & the acquisition of gear??

I certainly have not been offended by any of the posts that I have read, even the "off color" (mild as they are) and borderline "social commentary"...

It seems to me that the role of the moderators is to define the boundaries more or less privately in the case of individual posts or with individual participants, unless the whole thing is running amok?

                _-_-

No

If the subject says something I'm not interested in I don't read further.  No probs here.

Some topics can probably get discussed here with less QRM than on the air.   Some topics on-air seem to draw out deliberate-QRM-trolls.   Internet trolls are a lot easier to ignore or delete.  :)  Not that we have any here.

73

Rob
K5UJ

yep. If it's not interesting to me, I can skip it.

That's when it is time to strap softly and turn up the wick.

This is what I thought QSO was for. We have a plethora of other areas from resto to tech to antennas and all the other crap in between. I know there's other forums where we can go and tak about dolly's massive mams, but our friends are not there, they are here.

Hey G, if you have a whiner buzzing in your ear, let us know. Maybe we need to make a snuff film and post a sticky at the top.

Did somebody say something? :-X

WX is FB OM

Ummmm.... this ain't no democracy, guys. You have no "rights" here. Read the rules (over and over again if necessary). If you can't handle being "censored" don't post. If your post is removed the first thing you should do is figure out what YOU did wrong and correct it.

I ain't no moderator here so I have no real stake in this "discussion".

This is a Benevolent Dictatorship. Remember that.

Yeah it is. Looks like it's going to be a nice day. I have 41deg over OM

SK

G if you have someone who is causing trouble, just ban them.  I don't see any discussion on QSO that does not appear on the air, so I can't see why people should complain.  You have been patient with this and it may be time to exercise a diffent approach. 

Is this the place to make derogatory comments about the ARRgghhL?  ;)

I didn't think that people complaining was the point of G's post.............
Just a back-up statement of sorts.

Maybe it was a troll post!! :o

    Jeesh...Now I'm afraid to make a post! I'll try my best to keep my comments free of any content not directly related to Amateur Radio!

I get the sense it's sort of the same as the posts that appear so frequently on the XXXX (pick your favorite) reflector.

"Please don't post anymore about "YYYYYYYY YYY YYYYY YY.  I'm tired of reading it, and it clutters my inbox".  As though it were some lowlife piling derelict cars wrapped in some ugly color of arse paper in his.her front yard.  ;-)

Much of the "junk" is actually kind of interesting.  And every computer I'm aware of has a "move on"-or equivalent key on it's keyboard/mouse if you find it not so terribly interesting.  I guess we have the incessant drive to make darn sure that no one else is actually interested in writing/reading/doing/saying/thinking anything we personally don't much care for, or at the very least occupies a transitory bit or two in our personal digital space.

Conflict is good.  If you don't think so, abandon ye the board, turn off thy radio, sit ye down in a comfortable chair with a good light and read ""Plain, Honest Men" ...  :-)

Grant/NQ5T

aitch-eye!

Everyone knows the correct way is to squeeze it right from the middle of the tube cz thats where the fresh stuff is. :-X

Hi Gary,

Maybe it's Terminal Moderator Stress Syndrome.

I know I used to get it when I was a moderator here years ago.

The cure is to sit down and have a shot and a beer, and look at the bright side.

Didn't you like that VJB post about the SWL that ended getting his PhD?

I'm sure everyone here will try and do better.

BTW thanks for all of your work on this site.

73

Marty

actually, the more TV I watch and the closer I follow ongoing events the less satisfying I find life to be.

Gary, I think you should take the board off for a week and lets everyone go on holiday.

dont you know by now that ALL boards on the net are just as bad if not worse? Wifey gets on a board thats for beadmakers, as in jewelry.

there is a woman on there that has literally dedicated her life to accusing other beadmakers of tax evasion and serious felony crimes, and is calling any type of lawmaking or regulatory agency in that persons local area to report them. She's a nutjob, a paranoid skitzo, but she is effective. She's managed to shut down some businesses as a result if only for a short time until the owners prove their innocence to the law.

if you're fed up, just shut it off for a week and let everyone go on about their business. When you put it back, maybe people will behave  better - and maybe not. but you'll have everyone's full attention.

I think G is basically right on this one.  It might be nice to just have the focus swing back to radio a little bit more.  .  OT posts
can be fun at times if its interesting, different or humourous.  Lame posts about sports,
politics, religion and such can get tiresome and boring.  The thread that was pulled about a ceratin baseball team is such an example.  As a life long fan of that team, I found the post completely unnecessary.
I love my sports teams but I don't want to read about them here.  I'm  sure others may feel the same way. This place is called "AM FONE" afterall.
my 2 sense.

Which no doubt explains why you posted in that thread with bold print running side to side, eh Jim?

I was the one who started that thread and also the one who dumped it, in anticipation of a redefining of posting in the QSO section. Baseball posts have been made here regularly and never found to be objectionable, nor have they been particularly necessary. If everything posted in the QSO section where graded on content, I'm guessing probably 90% could be seen as unnecessary, and virtually all would lkely have someone who holds a different opinion, doesn't agree, and so on. The bigger issue is what goes on trying to deal with the personalities and pouting of the few.

When Gary came up with the 'Bar and Grill' definition a few years back, most folks were spending more of their radio time on the air and not online. People posted pretty loosely in the QSO section, not specifically radio related. Even moderators have posted things like photos of their motorcycles, topics about about forced blood drawing, trees, houses, food, baseball, or responded in similar threads. No major issues in QSO beyond the occasional out of bounds political or troll post, and nothing that wasn't dealt with and worked out.

But as Derb pointed out, with any online board that's around for some amount of time, it attracts a few who live for being online and draw their sense of purpose from their posts. AMfone is no different. If a person doesn't get on the air, doesn't even like AM, but defines themselves by their posts here or any other site, they're easily upset by things that the rest of us wouldn't even notice. It's easy for us to say ' kick them out' but the webmaster and/or admin has to be diplomatic and understanding, keeping peace and dealing with the problem children and bruised egos. Having served in similar positions since the mid 90s, I know it's beyond thankless. It's downright annoying at times.

While the noise level has gotten high in here on more than a few occasions, the Technical Forum has been quiet and on point for the vast majority of that time. I think most would agree that the Tech forum is the crown jewel of 'fone, benefiting all regardless of their views. So long as that continues, I'm fine with whatever Gary and Jay decide. Despite the minute few who put themselves and their egos before all else, the VAST majority of users are first rate. They're the ones who make this site worth visiting. In my opinion, that is.

Hmmmmm,
Will someone please explain to me what is good and what is bad on this board. Looks like some folks have an ax to grind when it comes to what THEY like.
I read the the qso rules and it seems most folks abide by them. If what Im seeing in this thread is true......than get rid of all the the other topics except the tech topic.
Freeken problem solved.

WHAT IS THE PROBLEM>>>>>>>>>>>> ???

I actually like Derb's idea of closing the doors for a while to let folks get reacquainted with their microphones, but I don't think that's practical.

AMfone is an representation of our mode and all we love about it. It is a place that many can grow their knowledge and many can teach. It is a place where people with the same interest can meet. It is a place where ideas and information is exchanged every day.

I am saying I do not believe it is asking to much to have this site being dedicated to our hobby. After all that is why the site is here. This site was not put here so people had to sift through posts about items having nothing to do with our hobby and available in every newspaper and TV news program out there. Yes there are the "special" events that dictate some conversation but  - - - - most is negative and posted to stir the pot.
 
"Stirring the Pot"

I doubt you would get far posting a thread about your row boat on a high performance car site. I doubt you would post, unless you just wanted to "stir the pot".We have a few pot stirrers on this forum. What is sad is I know a few personally and have severed relations or lost so called " Friends" over this crap. In my opinion people that stir the pot are low life's. They get entertainment from hurting others and disrupting when things are running smoothly. These types are not welcome here and will be removed if their games continue.

This site is not about any one individual, Jay,or myself, it is about us the AM Community. When we post here we post as the AM community. When a new person come to this site they see our community. Then as they read they learn what makes up this community. Check out the stats:106897 Posts in 10407 Topics by 3000 Members. These numbers do not reflect one person.

I do not wish to restrict the QSO area.  Many of us have other hobbies that we all share in also. I can think of three off hand, Astronomy, Cars and Trains. I believe there are many positive topics we could discuss outside of AM in general. Why would we lower ourselves to the crap you can read in the Inquirer.

Years back it was decided that I sucked at a moderator. For one reason I do not believe in it. But as the site grew it became apparent we needed some type of control on content and areas that could put me in a libel situation. Jay offered to handle the moderation under one condition, if he had to take the heat he wanted full control. Sounded good to me!!! Jay is responsible for the day to day on site operations . That would be everything from member registration to moderation. I pay the bills (with help from our members),an keep the site running.

So if you have moderation issues , write to Jay. (your welcome Jay)

We have tried to make this site a comfortable place for all.We have tried to make this site the showcase for our mode on the internet. We are not perfect and we know we will not please everyone but we try.You could help also by working with us.  If you don't like what we are doing here, don't waste our time just move on.

I hope some of this makes sense

G

Upon reflection I think it is good that Gary brings the topics back towards radio.  I can  think of other boards/lists that lose their focus and then, relavence.

I would suggest that a simple, polite, reminder would be all that it takes to get most folks here back on topic.

Thanks to Gary for his good work.


Rich

I really appreciate the expertise of this group about things other than radio like the plumbing question I asked a couple of days ago.  Folks on this board knew that subject inside out and backwards.

I could post the question on a plumbing board but since I've had so much interaction with you guys about antennas, transmitters, receivers, whatever, I can calibrate your responses.  For example, when K1JJ said the solution to the water heater problem was to mount a stack of three of them on a 200' tower, I knew just what to make of the answer.  If someone I didn't know posted that on a plumbing reflector, I might have done it.