So what is the "Purple" board?

Is there any truth to the rumor Ed is going to start a "Pink Board"? :D
 
Frank Browne said:
There is the sense among some that the "back porch" environment proclaimed here is a bit too stratified, if you get my meaning.
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I find this on alot of boards that have been around awhile. It's not too strong here, but it is here. As a member of the lower stratum I tend to keep my opinions to myself. Not much flight experience so not much to add there. Politically, I don't read the Spin Zone anymore (most of you probably wouldn't like my views). I gave religion up for Lent (actually I want to be a Buddhist when I grow up). Ya know, I guess I belong in the lower ranks. To move on up I would have to expose myself as an authority on something, agree with someone else using a minimum of 200 words, or become a blustering fool bent on antagonization.

What's the point of this post...not sure...should I even hit "submit"? Oh, what the heck...CLICK
 
markb5900 said:
Frank,
I actually enjoy the "purple" board. But the "management" needs to make up their mind. Tom says one thing and you say another.
No one here except for ED is "bashing" the purple board, and I THINK most are enjoying it.
But lets stop the bashing on BOTH of them, they both have their place.
So all of us that wish to can enjoy them both.
Just my .02 Mark B
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That's only a legit complaint if we're operating on the assumption that every answer posted by someone in mgt is the TOTAL and COMPLETE (ie: DEFINITIVE) response to that topic - which is absurd! :) We're each talking about different things, responding to different posts. So far, best I can tell, we've each been telling the truth - the story of the board is comprised of ALL the stories of ALL the people involved. Some came to the blue board and liked it, some came and did not, some never came here at all. And of those three groups, there's a wide variety of experience and opinion, all of which was brought to bear in the formation of the board.

There really isn't any discrepancy between our posts - we're each telling part of the story. The part that is responsive to the post we are responding to!
 
drafttek said:
I find this on alot of boards that have been around awhile. It's not too strong here, but it is here. As a member of the lower stratum I tend to keep my opinions to myself. Not much flight experience so not much to add there. Politically, I don't read the Spin Zone anymore (most of you probably wouldn't like my views). I gave religion up for Lent (actually I want to be a Buddhist when I grow up). Ya know, I guess I belong in the lower ranks. To move on up I would have to expose myself as an authority on something, agree with someone else using a minimum of 200 words, or become a blustering fool bent on antagonization.

What's the point of this post...not sure...should I even hit "submit"? Oh, what the heck...CLICK
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You know Doug, I kinda know what you are saying. And it's a good thing you posted what you did, because some of us don't think about where you or other people who feel like "outsiders" are coming from, or that you even feel that way! But there's nothing that makes me, or anyone, part of a higher caste than anyone else here, except we might be above Kent and Mike because of their love of Macs. :rofl:

Seriously though, when I first joined the AOPA board way back when it was yellow, (2003/2004 maybe) I pretty much just read post and said nothing because I felt kinda the same way. I forget exactly when I first stumbled on the AOPA board, but I was just like you say how you feel - I felt like I wasn't "qualified" to say anything. I even got "yelled at" by Ron Levy for answering someone's question about IR training wrong when I was an instrument student and I thought I knew the answer to the question since I was going through all that at the time. Actually, I never thanked him for it, but that's what really got me to read the FARs over and over and over, and really get to know them, but I digress. The point is, on a message board, you are really going to have to just butt in, and be heard, or else it's really hard to feel part of this community. You don't have to be a professional antagonist like yours truly, or have a condition known as post-itis like Scott Migaldi, or be an authority on anything like, well, me again. :D (Actually, I'm not, I just stayed at a Holiday Inn Express - no wait I didn't do that either - maybe I am.)

But really, you just have to be you. But you have to be vocal, or typal, or whatever term it is that makes it so we can get to know you, and anyone else who might feel "lower ranked." Everyone here has something to contribute regardless of experience - aviation or otherwise. The only reason that some of us might appear to be "upper crust" is because really we're just a bunch of blathering idiots with ego complexes that need to see a bunch of words tied to our name, and can't shut up. If you feel left out, butt in!

You are right, there might be a slight stratification, but it's completely unintentional. So, how did I get to be so notorious, other than being one of those blathering idiots who likes to see a bunch of text tied to my name? Blame Adam Zucker for it. Why him? Cause he's a lawyer. No, not really. Blame him for hosting Wings. Even when this board was started when the old AOPA board was taken down, I didn't say a whole heck of a lot on here, and I didn't really feel part of the "in-crowd" until the first Wings Fly B Q. And even when I went to that I was hesitant about going because I was not going to know anyone there! Actually, I was going to know one person there, because I had met Kath in February when she was in the Midwest. But for the most part I was going to be one of the outsiders, and no one but Adam knew I was coming. But as soon as I got there, it was not the case. Ron and Toby were the first to say hello and Ed Guthrie opened up his house for me to stay at, even though I don't think I ever talked directly to him on the board.

After that we all had a slightly closer tie. We had a handshake, or a smile, or a laugh to put with that stranger sitting on the other side of the monitor. And yeah, that can cause a stratification of sorts on the board, but it's certainly not because we feel that you aren't worthy to be here, or that you don't have anything to offer, because everyone here should be here. Hell, there's people that aren't here that should be here. That stratification is only there because a lot of us have a personal connection to others on the board. Me probably moreso than anyone having been to 3 Gaston's, 3 Wings, and 2 of my own hosted fly ins. But whether we've met you in person or not Doug, just jump in. Join the throngs of blathering idiots, we need more of us. And make it to Wings next May, it will change you forever.

Edit: I just saw your sig. I have 0 logged tailwheel or aerobatics time. You are more of an authority on that than I am!
 
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All seems to be well. That makes me very happy. I fully intend on remaining an active member of PoA. Nothing has changed in that regard. And Doug, I understand where you're coming from. I seldom post on GA topics because I don't feel I have much to contribute. I was forced to give up flying several years ago after an all-to-brief period of flying. So I mostly post in Hangar Talk or the Zone.

Everything is cool. That's good. Oh, I just remembered. I gotta order a couple of new hats. Mine has become a bit weather beaten from fishing and I need one for my grand daughter. She loves airplanes...imagine that! :)
 
A woman buys her husband two neckties for his birthday. He wears one the next day. She asks, "What's wrong with the other one?"

Many of us enjoy all three boards.
 
Very good post Ed. Two things in that really stand out to me.

edfred said:
You are right, there might be a slight stratification
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This happens on all web-boards. Each one develops it's own personality after a while. That's not surprising since (hopefully) all the users have their own personality. You mention the formerly yellow board, now red. I'm sure we can all agree that it really had quite a change in personality over time. It's a great place for hard aviation knowledge, but without the community side, it has, in my mind, become kinda sterile and flavorless. We all have life outside of aviation and being unable to converse about it with other pilots is a big disadvantage. This board does offer that option which makes it much more fun. That being said, "stratification" does occur. Although I don't know how to do the actual numbers, I would bet that maybe a 100 or less users post 80% of the posts. It does become somewhat of a private club. That can be intimidating to a newbie who doesn't know any of the people or the relationships between them.

edfred said:
Blame Adam Zucker for it. Why him? Cause he's a lawyer. No, not really. Blame him for hosting Wings.
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I'm sure Adam will be happy to take the blame for that!! The Wings fly-in was one of the first I'd gone to. In my mind this is really where its at. I'm very lucky that my airport has a very active pilots association. When I first got back into flying in the later 90's, I thought it was great to take a ride and see the sights. However I quickly realized that flying about, alone, wasn't all that much fun. There really is a social aspect to the whole GA experience. Meeting the people behind the screen names is the best part. If anything, whether you have 10 posts or 1000, going to the fly-ins is not to be missed! Met a lot of great people and made some new friends, how could life be any better than that!

Gary
 
Ed, John and Gary have said it so very well. Doug I suppose it can seem intimidating as this is really so much more than a web board. We use the term community and front porch a lot here but its true!! I have to tell ya I have a LOT of people I consider friends here, Gary, Ed, Spike, Kent, Grant and on and on and on. We have 3-4 big flyins a year just so we can all get together.

It can be intimidating seening all these folks who know each other jabbering away at one another but this is not like walking into a High School party where everyone knows eachother but you. I can guarantee you if you say Hi I just joined the board you will have a ton of welcome posts. Join us at one of the Fly Ins, The Wings FLYBQ, Gastons, 6Y9er, Glidathon. I guarantee you will be treated as if we knew ya forever.

Please jump in offer opinions tell your stories. you are as much apart of this board as anyone. And By all means come to one or hopefully all of our flyins.

But as I have said before I hope all the boards do well. After all how much fun would flying be if there were only one airport?
 
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I spend most of my time on this board because I like the variety and tone of the discussions, the friendliness of the members, and the balanced moderation. I also visit other aviation boards (including a Sport Pilot board that I own, and which is struggling a bit), but this is the one I enjoy the most. To each, his/her own, though. Variety and choice are good things.

I have closed down three non-aviation boards this year because the spam and verbal fistfights were getting out of hand and required altogether too much of my time for the meager ad revenue they were generating. I asked other members of those boards if they wanted to take over the admin duties (I would continue to host the boards, do the updates, etc.), but being smarter than me, they declined.

Rich
 
tonycondon said:
btw everyone can view the purple board now, just need to be a member to post, of course.
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Not exactly. Now you can see a list of fora, but when you click on one, it says that there are no threads.
 
yea peggy, they had it open to the public, just no posting unless registered, for a couple hours, then changed their mind. i was just behind on the times i guess, couldnt keep up.
 
flyingcheesehead said:
I don't agree with those who say the more aviation forums, the better. If that was the case... Well, taken to the extreme, that would mean the best case would be every single pilot would have their own forum. Obviously, that is not the best case. The more boards, the more diluted they get and pretty soon the "community" consists of you and Tony Condon.
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Ok, that really did make me laugh out loud. :yes::D
 
oh thanks, it was fun talking to steve. If you didnt catch it, Will Hawkins IM'd me as I was wrapping up with Steve and we had a nice chat for Pilots Flight PodLog #11. pilotwill.libsyn.net I think.
 
Yeah, Tony's like the village bicycle when it comes to podcasts - everyone gets a ride!

I've been kind of lurking on this thread, not wanting to comment because I haven't even clicked on the link to the purple board, but the conversation has taken a turn where I think I can make a semi-intelligent contribution. I, like many people, am a contributing member to many forums, part of the moderating crew of one, and a non-contributing member to a couple more. The "generic aviation" boards I regularly contribute to are PoA (obviously), www.aviationforum.org, www.houstonspotters.net. I also read and contribute regularly to the boards for The Finer Points and The Pilotcast. I really only got into the whole forum thing back in February of this year, when I joined hs.net and The Aviation Forum - I didn't find PoA until a bit later. The Aviation Forum (aviationforum.org) is more of an international blend, with a good mix of GA and a couple of Regional Airline pilots. But, there are a lot of overseas pilots on there too, it's great to hear their perspectives on things. Of all the people on that board, I've only met one in person. I know several people from HS.net as they are local to me, and most are fellow volunteers at the museum or at least they regularly come to our Wings & Wheels events, as those events provide unparalleled spotting opportunities, which is the main focus on that board despite there being several pilots.

But, it is on this board that I've felt the greatest sense of a GA-centric pilot community. I've never felt that there is a caste system, or that I was a "second-tier" contributor. I've met two people from this board face-to-face (well, four if you count the two from HS.net that I convinced to sign up here too) - Spike, who took time away from his trip to Houston visiting family to stop by the museum and congratulate me on earning my PPL in the brief minutes I got to see him before my ride left, and Ric who also lives in the area and has given me tours of the charter outfit he works for and has gone flying with me. In addition to that, when I was busily cramming for my PPL checkride Kent took time out of a couple of evenings to speak with me on the phone to help me study (it was cool to have the voice that's just been in my head for the previous year actually talking back to me). All of the other boards have people that are willing to answer questions and help me out, but none of the other boards have people that go the extra mile to help one another out or visit one another like I've seen here. I can't wait to get to Gaston's and meet many of you in person. Though I haven't met most of you yet, I do feel like if I'm anywhere in the country with a couple of PM's I can have someone to grab dinner or a drink with.

Another great example of community here - Dan (TheCowGod) posted a question over on TAF that I thought could better be answered here. I PM'd him and suggested that he sign up here and ask the question. He did, and got an answer almost immediately. Not only that, but shortly after his first question Steve took him for a ride in the IAR! That opportunity would never have arisen over on TAF!

Anyway, to wrap this lengthy post up in a neat little bow, I really like this board. I'm not saying that the red board (which I never even heard of until I signed on here, despite being an AOPA member for 4 years) or the purple board aren't as good, I choose not to go to either simply because I don't have time anymore to contribute to the boards that I'm already established on, nevermind adding more. I was away from the computer for 8 days because I was busy painting the new house and moving (did I mention that moving sucks?) and when I got back, there were 5 pages of new posts that I needed to go through! And I even have the Zone excluded from my New Post search options! It's taken me two days just to get down to page 2 where this thread was. I still haven't even signed on to TAF yet to see how many are waiting for me here.

I guess my point is that I agree with what a lot of people have said that there are a whole myriad of boards out there, and they all serve their purpose. Despite loving the sense of community here a bit more, I still contribute regularly to TAF and HS.net, because those boards fill a different purpose for me. So, Red Boarders, Purple Boarders, Chartreuse Boarders, keep on keeping on and make sure that if you already post here, keep posting here, and if you don't already post here, start.
 
NoHeat said:
Dang, where is one of those "Holy Necropost, Batman!" images?
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Nicely done!
 
I never would have realized Greg was so naïve way back then....
 
Haha the purple board is where folks give benpilot a hard time lol!
 
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