narrowboatworld

Charlie you're missing the point...

If you want to see the North Pole you don't go to the equator!

Forum posts should be relevent to the forum they are originally posted in. No I don't follow CWDF but surely that was the place for the original reply comments to be made!!

I read NBW by and large because it educates and entertains, I don't read CWDF because from what I have seen it's just a place for whinging!!!

As Tom will no doubt say soon (hint) END OF, OK!

Best wishes,

Kevin

Going back to Captain Pugwash's remarks about Alan Fincher, I don't really see how he can possibly comment on the replies to a post on a forum that he admits he has not seen!

That is just crazy.  How can he form a reasonable judgement if he didn't see what the man wrote in the first place attacking NBW.

Charles Black

Three cheers for Katheyn's post!

Forums are here to stay for the foreseeable future and can be an excellent place for asking for and receiving useful information both technical and 'social', they can put like minded people together (for better or worse) and can enable individuals to state their position on a topic.

However, I do agree that due consideration should be be made before hitting the 'save' button, and should never be written in haste (unless passing on crucial safety warnings).

As I know from my Army days... 'firing from the hip' is totally inaccurate!

Orph

Hi Kathryn,

I agree with you 100%, far too much 'shooting from the hip' goes on in forums, and I think I can safely say that Tom would agree too that Forums are a PITA!!

Best wishes,

Kevin

Some years ago when I was in gainful employment with a large multi-national company I oversaw the shut down of a number of discussion forums.

We shut them down for commercial reasons in the main – too much time spent when real work should be the priority - but there were other underlying reasons why it was equally important which not only apply to forums (call them what you will) but also to most forms of electronic communication. You just cannot easily get the real meaning you are intending over in an electronic way. Some of the staff described one of the databases we shut down as ‘the electronic discussion around the coffee point’ and whilst that is a reasonable description of most forms of electronic discussion (which can include E-Mail) we found that the misunderstanding that could be generated far outweighed any benefit (commercial or otherwise) that accrued from the databases.

Electronic communication is instant and sometimes there is little thought put into ‘gut reaction’ replies. I remember some advice given me by my Mum more years ago (and before electronic communication) than I care to remember – ‘write your reply, put it in the desk drawer, take it out the following morning, read it and ask yourself if you would have liked to receive it. If the answer is no then bin it as the recipient wouldn’t like it either’.

The waterways community is disparate and there are probably as many views as there are members (may be more!) but from my experience it is critical that everyone understands that you can’t easily put innuendo, a wink, a tone of voice, body language or any other subtle meaning into a written communication and if it is possible for someone to take something the wrong way they invariably will.

I have not looked at the issues described in this thread (I am not a BW or CaRT Licence holder) but I would be fairly certain that if the contributors all sat down with their favourite tipple around a table the likelihood is that they would all come out at the end with a common agreement.

Clearly forums are here to stay, in one form or another, as the waterways community is so widespread but I suggest that one has to remember that those using the forums should understand that it is easier to take things the wrong way than it is to get the implied meaning first time. Perhaps it is time to be a little more patient with others and to think very hard before pressing the ‘commit’ button.

Kathryn

Captn Pugwash (Kevin)

Could I respectfully suggest that you actually read what both Pam and I have written. At no point to we take a swipe at anyone, only what was said about factual inaccuracies replacing fact to give 'entertainment' to the readers of narrowboatworld. 

On the subject of inaccuracies (by insinuation), no contributor to narrowboatworld (to my knowledge) is rewarded financialy for their trouble. Personally I write for

a. my own pleasure,

b. to pass on information

c. to share a little knowledge

d. vent my spleen on stupidity where I see it.

Other than recovering some costs from advertising, I don't think Tom gets owt either for all the effort and cost of setting up and operating narrowboatworld. 

Orph

PS. I put these comments in the Forum as the editor is (generally) out of the loop and would no doubt advise about rising to answer in this way but I couldn't let it go. Orph

Well Pam, Orph & Victor, I DO NOT AGREE !!

You all have aparently seen and read the article in question on CWF, I have not, so this is a very one sided bashing of Alan Fincher.

As he has not, to the best of my knowledge, written anything on the NBW pages to cause such a reaction might I respectfully suggest you tone it down a bit, there are far more important issues you should be attacking!

Tom, I'm not impressed with your staff on this matter.

Kevin Lockie aka Cptn Pugwash

p.s. Before anyone says anything to the contrary, I have never met ANY of the persons I have named in this post, I am NOT related to any of them, and I'm NOT receiving financial recompense for my views (which in my opinion are priceless anyway... LOL)

To Orph and Pam I agree entirely.

Keep up the good work - more power to your pen - we both enjoy the twaddle free zone - have a greenie!

Mick n Mags

Rose of Arden.

I stand firmly alongside Pam P on this and I expect the other contributers to narrowboatworld do too.

From my own experiences I fully appreciate that the editor ensures that none of our articles contain any personal insults or insinuations, facts are checked, verified wherever possible and published in as short a timeframe to make things News and not history.  I have had items 'spiked' when writen in haste and seething from some daft action or proposal, but that is what editors do.  Also I see occaisional topics included to encourage a debate that the editor knows will inflame some.

However we are all human and errors in 'facts' can be made or incorrectly reported (as in most hard copy newspapers).  Thankfully any such as these are usually corrected or a correcting article from the person who spots it is published.

Hopefully we columnists and all the other contributers will continue to support narrowboatworld

Orph