Forum Use Questions/Comments

[Freebird]

I certainly hope this will not be viewed as controversial, I just want to ask for comment on the above subject.

I have read the rules for "The Sandbar" as Doug presented them, and I have tried my best to conform to them, especially as of late. Along the way I have obviously run into problems, all of which were unintentional (with a few exceptions where my emotions got the best of me ), but I truly do want to fit in with the program and think I have made strides to better myself in that quest. I have taken the time to observe and learn about members as suggested, but there still seem to be problems from time to time. Not so much from the members themselves who I address directly, but from those who misinterpret statements and conversations which simply do not involve them. "Off topic" seems to vary in interpretation on a regular basis, and not just where I am concerned. No need to go off on that subject any further.

My primary purpose in asking this is that I would love to share with members the trip I took aboard that 70CPMY back in January. Scott started a thread that kept everyone up to date for the most part, but there was much more to that trip that I think most of you would find both interesting and beneficial. You know I will try to make it entertaining, because it was for the most part as boating on a Hatteras should be.

I am just uncertain of what would be deemed inappropriate as to length of commentary and numbers of photos. I assume there is a preset limit as to how much volume can be posted as I know I have run out of allowed space on PM's and had to resort to emails. This was due to the fact the person I was PMing used their quote button with each response, and I eventually had to eliminate their quotes to make my response fit it, but it just became too much trouble so I went to email. The PM thing has its quirks which are a little bit inconvenient, like having to wait 60 seconds between PMs where only five members can be copied per PM

I suppose I could just sit down and start the thread and see if it exceeds any preset limit or draws criticism for length, but I would rather ask ahead of time as to avoid any potential problems for myself or anyone else.

I have never gotten an "overload" message on a thread I posted, but in additon to the one I got on the PM section, I also got one on my signature which I ultimately made fit into the designated space allowed. This still proved to be unsatisfactory (no offense Karl) even though I did not fill it with a description of every non-Hatteras boat I own or links to personal or business websites, so I reduced it to what you see today in order to keep the peace. I like the new one better anyway as it pertains to The Serenity Prayer which I originally listed in its entirety while eliminating "self-aggrandizing" items. I've been thinking about changing it to "I am very intolerant of intolerant people", but I like the Serenity Prayer thing better as it seems to be the story of my life. Yes, I do have Hatts, and I will most certainly travel!

My point is that there are gray areas in the posting regs, and I would like some clarification. I can only assume some members besides myself would like clarification also, maybe not. I don't want to make this personal, but it would appear that there is a bit of personal criticism being tossed about which seems to be against the rules as well. Again, this is not just about me and my experiences in this area, deserved or not, which have been very obvious to anyone who views this forum on a regular basis. Many members have commented about this on a private level as I apparently have earned myself a bullseye based on past digressions and disagreements or differences, none of which were personal on my part, with moderators.

Again, this is not an attempt to cause controversy, just an attempt to avoid it. What do you honestly think?

[UNIQUE_NAME]

randy,

you could start a running blog like mario has.
hope all is well.

jim

[Pascal]

why are you the only one who always end up asking questions about the rules ?

this is not really a question, so don't bother answering it :-)

i dont' think anyone has ever complained about cruising stories and pictures...

the only issue will be the number of pictures you can store on Sam's server, upload them somewhere else and linnk them.

[Freebird]

why are you the only one who always end up asking questions about the rules ?

this is not really a question, so don't bother answering it :-)

i dont' think anyone has ever complained about cruising stories and pictures.

Why do I bother asking questions, because I want answers.

BTW, I have finally figured out what you do with those different things like :-), it's a manual smiley face! I'm glad to see you were smiling when you made that statement!

Let me state once again, I did not want to start a feud by asking if it was okay to post a long cruising story with lots of pictures. The suggestion that I use some type of link was one response I was expecting and I will do that if you guys think it is more appropriate than simply listing it as a thread. If that seems to be the case, expect me to post a thread on how to do that because I simply do not know. If I truly did not care, why the heck would I have asked? I plan to do a lot of cruising this spring, and I am just trying to get some feedback for future reference, that's all.

Pascal, as to your statements, yes, I distinctly remember certain members complaining about cruising stories and even a picture of "Passages" having a hippie type fishing mate hold up a goofy looking fish. Why, because I responded to it, there can be no other explanation as Jim was never (before that time) a "jester".

I remember a certain non-owner member even complaining that I had changed my mind about selling one of my boats! He went on to complain about the fact that it was irritating to him to have members mention my name after I voluntarily left this forum, and that everything would have been back to "normal" if I had stayed gone another month. "Normal" was no Sandbar. Why the heck bother attending the Republican convention and complaining they are doing it wrong if you are a died in the wool Democrat?

This all happened AFTER the birth of The Sandbar which everyone seems to want to give me credit for. Look what happened when I left? The bar was still open for business with threads on sports cars, coffee temperatures... you name it!

Karl blasted other members for simply associating with me as he used the analogy of keeping company with a loud mouthed drunk in a bar would have them viewed as less than desirable and subject to tighter scrutiny. He chose to blast me again when I came back, but why? Still wonder why I might be a tad confused despite my sincere attempts at conforming to the rules? You and Karl can PM me as to the answers to these questions, but I have the feeling many members would like to hear your answers publicly, and I will not be offended as I simply do not take all this stuff personally.

Maybe I am a little paranoid, but you started me on that path old buddy! Hell, I wouldn't be so paranoid if I didn't think you and apparently now Karl were out to get me! The jury is still out on Jim, but I have sent you guys numerous PM's to try to make peace. Give me credit for that at least.

I don't want to put words into Doug's mouth, but his primary problem seems to have been dealing with people who want to bombard him with complaints, justified or not. You and I have met in person, we got along fine, and I took up for you on a post where some guy "menzies" blasted you on the Boat US forum. I would have loved to have seen you again in Miami, but that didn't work out. Maybe next time. I was simply amazed by the fact that none of the moderators have ever met Doug in person. It would seem that only one has had a phone conversation with him. Forgive me, but I find that somewhat strange. Doug is a hell of a nice guy and a very smart business man who along with Steve and myself found ourselves in a business quite by accident being victims of circumstance in previous jobs. We found we have many things in common other than affiliation through a Hatteras yacht.

Like Doug said when we met, if we could all see each other's faces when we post on here, we would never or rarely have any problems with one another. I have met you and Doug, and would like very much to meet Karl and Jim someday. This is not a popularity contest, I just really enjoy speaking and meeting with people of similar interests even though we may not see eye to eye on every detail. That is what makes life interesting, don't you think? I am not offended when people do not agree with me as that is their right and sometimes they actually bring me to think like they do. It is called learning from others.

I've watched a lot of off-topic posts recently where nobody complained, but let's face facts Pascal, deserved or not, I am often treated differently for doing the same thing others now do on a regular basis. How many more times can I apologize for past transgressions where I admittedly got carried away?

I hope nothing I have said will be viewed as offensive to you or anyone else. I sincerely appreciate you taking the time to respond to this thread, and I will take what I think was your advice to post as long a thread as anyone cares to read along with as many pictures as the site will allow. If I have misinterpreted this advice, please let me know. To you, Karl and Jim, let me know if you have a problem with this or any other post I make. I have always invited criticism but just asked that it be constructive, at least in public. Send me a PM and blast me all you want, and as you well know, I will not return fire. I think we are all more than capable of getting along, but if I ever get to the point where the majority or even close to that view me as a PITA, I will in fact leave the public side of this forum for good, but I will never leave the friends I have made on this forum, never.

I truly think the "silent majority" would want to speak up in more ways than one. Why the heck are you guys a part of this forum if you do not participate in any conversations be it on The Sandbar or the Tech side? Speak now or remain silent especially where pestering Doug is concerned. Give me your best shot if you have a personal issue with me, I promise I will not bite!

Dang, all this talk and still room for more. Maybe my little story about cruising from Charleston to Ft Myers on that 70 will fit after all! This will take a while with inserting pictures to match the dialog, so don't anybody worry if you don't see it for a day or two!

[Freebird]

randy,

you could start a running blog like mario has.
hope all is well.

jim

Jim,

I would love to do a blog thing, but I simply do not know how. I know I would need a card for my laptop to be able to receive internet while on the boat, buy I am too damn cheap to pay Verizon $80+ per month to do it!

As to all being well, Michelle and I seemed to have found common ground for communication to the point we are back together and will attempt to work things out which have caused us problems. Hell, looks like I have a hard time communicating every where I turn these days! I'm gonna have to learn Spanish, that's all there is to it! That way I can cuss her and still sound like I am being a loving and understanding husband, and I can finally figure out what Dyline is saying about me in front of Carl!

Here, as is the case at home, I have never claimed to be a perfect person with no blame for problems perceived or otherwise, and I am always ready and willing to receive CONSTRUCTIVE criticism in order to make things better for all concerned. I have plenty of room for self-improvement as long as it does not involve me being hit in the head with a hammer!

To that end, a sincere extension of appreciation once again to all of you who have taken the time to show your support over the past months where my personal problems are concerned. It has make the Hatteras experience truly worthwhile!

[thoward]

Dang Bird, why bother? Post the thread and if people continue to blast you while you take the high road I am sure Doug will see that and deal with it for the good of the site. We just had a thread that covered politics and everyone behaved. We all know how to behaveand have done it. So, bygones and carry on. If you don't like it don't read it .

[eclipsarkanna]

Freebird:

Well put as always and although not normally a 'follower' I echo your posting and questions. I don't have answers but I will say one thing at the risk of irritating those who you sometimes seem to rub the wrong way. In addition to the great technical knowledge I get from the HOF, another major reason for visiting the Forum is to read postings such as yours - as opposed to those who sit in the bushes firing one sentence rockets in critism. Gee, if I have offended the Forum rules for this opinion, then let the Moderator say so and I am gone.

[newinlet]

The Sand Bar
Is that not where you can talk about anything else
I get a kick out of some of the topics on the bar
If I dont like the topic I just wont read it, no big deal !!
the technical side of this site is great My old hatteras and I really appreciate the knowlege of fellow boat owners.
As far as the sand bar keep going at it boys its nice to have a good laugh now and then

[Freebird]

Dang, it sure is good to be home!

Nuff said, I'm working on the new thread regarding the cruise from SC to FL. I promise it will be PG-3 to keep everybody happy without being boring.

It is simply amazing how the new guys have caught on to the fact they are not required to read things on here that they do not wish to read. Good job boys, go to the head of the class!

If somebody doesn't like it, you had your chance. If it doesn't fit into the one space alloted, I'll talk to myself with replies 'til the job is done!

Good thing Michelle and I are back on terms. She is a computer wiz and can help me make something really purty for ya'll.

Stay tuned, the mouth of the South is gonna go it agin! This time with pitchers!

[Freebird]

Yep, I'm talking to myself again, but I forgot something that I know I will need help with.

I used photobucket.com to post pictures on past threads, but the photos seem to appear and disappear for no reason. At first, I thought maybe Pascal was messing with me , but that was obviously not the case.

I asked a question regarding this and found myself in controversy once again. Now then, can somebody tell me why my pictures are off and on? Am I doing something wrong? Should I use another method of posting pictures than photobucket.com?

I don't plan to use a whole lot of pictures, just enough to depict the more interesting parts of our journey. It was a fun yet eventful trip, so maybe I'll just make a Hollywood style trailor and charge ya'll to see the whole show!

Maybe I should have started a new thread on posting pictures, maybe I should have picked up where the old one on this subject left off, maybe I talk too much, maybe I shoud stop now, maybe.....