How to inform new, enthusiastic, would be boaters?

[John V]

He did write some other stuff but I never read them....to be honest I think that the Hitchiker was the best I struggled with the others

[YamYam]

Agreed, just wished they had taken his advice and never made the film of it. As he predicted it was an absolute travesty

[MtB]

Agreed, just wished they had taken his advice and never made the film of it. As he predicted it was an absolute travesty

 

I never saw the fillum. Good job so it seems!

 

Odd, because the books translated into the radio and the TV programmes really well IMO.

 

MtB

[Phil Ambrose]

 

GCSE Biology and another science (and other GCSEs including A-C at English and Maths), then onto A-Level Biology and 2 more including another science (not sure on that), then get your head down and aim for A grades at the A levels, then do a bunch of applications for med schools?

Paul does'nt need all that , he already has all that is needed in his toolbox, Cordless drill, junior hacksaw, full size hacksaw (for big heads) hammer, chisels plus by raiding his sewing kit, needle and thread. Sorted

Phil

As far as Newbies are concerned, I reckon we should all bite the bullet and offer whatever advice we can while pointing them at the search function.

[Zig Zag]

I found that going out into Google and searching there usually finds me a pertinent thread or two that I couldn't find by using the internal search function.

I'm a newbie, so I know you're not really asking me, but maybe this is useful:

 

It's not massively easy to find relevant things using the search function on here, I've found (maybe there's some knack to it that I haven't cracked) - but some of you oldies (in experience, not years) have somehow found links to previous threads for me that didn't come up when I thought I was putting relevant words into the search. I don't think anyone who is asking a question that has been asked before would mind a steer in the direction of a previous similar thread or two - I certainly don't.

 

The thing about a lot of the 'standard' questions is that it depends on your frame of reference (of course) - for me, living on a boat is WAY cheaper than living in a house, but that's because my house was in London with a considerable mortgage. I also spend a fair amount less on energy (although more on maintenance, and now I have a car which I didn't before, so that make it different again). Maybe sometimes, because you've answered the same question a gazillion times, you get a bit shorthand about it, and then when newbies respond they sound like what they are saying is "I only want to hear you if you confirm what I already think", but what they mean is "Let me give you a bit more information about me specifically so you know where I'm coming from". I can see why that would be annoying - again, a prod in the direction of a similar thread, or even a hint as to a good phrase to search for might work (it would for me).

 

Whichever way, you are all clearly kind, helpful people, which makes it especially unpleasant to feel the sharp end of your frustration, or to feel like you've overstepped a mark you didn't realise was there.

Both very good points.

 

As very very newbie that has already asked loads of stupids questions that have all ready been asked and I'm sure I will more.

When it's obvious to you I know it's annoying I have been on forums before about things I know more about and yes it's frustrating but I know I have been helped by other post so much that people have took the time to answer me things that are obvious to them, I just help where I can. And sometimes yeah search is great and you can find answer to your questions but when you are completely out of your league sometimes it's just slightly different that someone else is asking and you just like to have the reassurance on your unique to you situation.

 

So sorry guys for all feature tedious post. And sorry on behalf of all other newbies to Narrowboating

Edited June 17, 2014 by The zig zag

[John Williamson 1955]

 

Can't find the "tongue in cheek" emoticon.

Imported from usenet. :-?

[carlt]

It almost 7 years since I lived aboard and nearly as long since I had a boat on the canals.

 

Despite once being a professional boat fitter I feel that advice I gave back in the day is no longer relevant and have stopped offering advice about living aboard, merely offering my opinion.

 

An example of this was somebody recently asking for advice about a Kestrel alternator controller and I was ready to chuck in my two pennorthworth when I remembered that even I'd stopped pulling old alternators out of scrap Series Land Rovers so the kit was now obsolete and someone had offered the correct advice...Get rid and get a proper alternator.

 

In the past I've offered advice to newbies and seen them develop their knowledge until they could be advising me and that is why I am averse to stickied "wiki" type threads.

 

The information changes constantly so each time the question is asked the answer will evolve and change.

 

Besides, this is a discussion forum so leave the rigid instruction manuals to others because there are plenty out there, mostly rubbish too.

Edited June 18, 2014 by carlt

[mango]

 

I never saw the fillum. Good job so it seems!

 

Odd, because the books translated into the radio and the TV programmes really well IMO.

 

MtB

The radio series came before the books, as far as I know. It seemed a wonderful send up of science fiction and I remember trying to annoy a serious sci fi enthusiast on my first boat trip, but he liked it too.

[RLWP]

And because you love the boat, have fallen in love with the lifestyle and the idea of living on a boat, you'll think all the above is just a load of rubbish.

 

It is not.

 

 

The thing is, us blokes often cherish a dream of getting an old boat and doing it up to live on. By pointing out the reality we are pouring cold water on the dream.

 

This is why people pitching up here with questions like this sometimes decide the answers are the load of rubbish Junior mentions.

 

<snip>

 

MtB

 

I've lifted these from here: http://www.canalworld.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=67642

 

This is it really. New people turn up here with a dream - perfectly fine, I keep saying owning a boat is an irrational act. Who actually needs a canal boat?

 

Taking Carl's point about advice changing with time, I'm beginning to think a pinned post might say something like:

 

If you have come here to ask for advice, please have the courtesy to accept it*

 

Richard

 

*That's too pompous, it needs working on

[Wanted]

Could it not be that the answers hold as much within how they are presented as to how they are recived? I don't think 100% of the ownus should be on the person asking the question.

[BruceinSanity]

Agreed, just wished they had taken his advice and never made the film of it. As he predicted it was an absolute travesty

The Eoin Colfer attempt at number six, And Another Thing, gave me a pain in the diodes all down my left side...

[dor]

The radio series came before the books, as far as I know. It seemed a wonderful send up of science fiction and I remember trying to annoy a serious sci fi enthusiast on my first boat trip, but he liked it too.

I followed the radio series when it was first broadcast - must have been the late '70s. I recorded it as well on cassettes which I lent to someone who then moved to the Netherlands... I thought the TV series was a reasonable interpretation of the books, but not the film.

 

One of my favorite lines (not entirely word perfect)

 

Slartibartfast: Come along or you will be late

Dent: How will I be late?

Slrtibartfast: Late, as in the late Arthur Dent

[RLWP]

I followed the radio series when it was first broadcast - must have been the late '70s. I recorded it as well on cassettes which I lent to someone who then moved to the Netherlands... I thought the TV series was a reasonable interpretation of the books, but not the film.

 

One of my favorite lines (not entirely word perfect)

 

Slartibartfast: Come along or you will be late

Dent: How will I be late?

Slrtibartfast: Late, as in the late Arthur Dent

Late, as in the late Dent Arthur Dent

 

Please get it right

 

Richard

Edited June 18, 2014 by RLWP

[John Williamson 1955]

 

I never saw the fillum. Good job so it seems!

 

Odd, because the books translated into the radio and the TV programmes really well IMO.

 

MtB

As DNA was heavily involved in both radio series and the TV series, that's not surprising. He wasn't involved in the film, which is one of the most annoying films I've ever watched, with many build-ups to payoffs, and a rapid cut away to the next gag before the payoff was delivered every time. I even bought the French version of the movie, just in case the edits had got screwed up somehow, but that was exactly the same. The original TV Marvin did a cameo appearance in the movie, though, which showed up the new, blobby version in the movie as the fake it was.

 

And the sequence of release as I remember it was:- Fits one to six episode radio series, the vinyl LP version, the original trilogy, Fits seven to twelve radio series, TV series, fourth and fifth books, Omnibus edition of the books, film, latest radio series, which seems to have been cobbled together by others from the fourth and fifth books.

 

The first 3 books were based on the radio series, not the other way round.

 

Maybe I should admit here that I have every version available at my fingertips, except for the movie, which is probably still in the charity shop that I donated it to after watching it.

[Jerra]

Just a thought about the thread subject. I have noticed many would be live aboards who ask questions are at first reluctant to accept things aren't as they anticipate. Eventually after a number of people say the same thing they start to accept it. Perhapsit iskinder (if a bit of a nuisance) to tell them how it is and them convince them, rather than direct them to an FAQ which they read and go away thinking "who ever wrote that doesn't know what they are talking about"

 

Carlt makes a good point about things changing as well. I suspect change is going to become faster (particularly with regard to living aboard) as the years go by.

[patty-ann]

I think thats human nature to continually question especially if the answer is not the one sought. It's only when many say the same becomes believable.

[RLWP]

Just a thought about the thread subject. I have noticed many would be live aboards who ask questions are at first reluctant to accept things aren't as they anticipate. Eventually after a number of people say the same thing they start to accept it. Perhapsit iskinder (if a bit of a nuisance) to tell them how it is and them convince them, rather than direct them to an FAQ which they read and go away thinking "who ever wrote that doesn't know what they are talking about"

 

Carlt makes a good point about things changing as well. I suspect change is going to become faster (particularly with regard to living aboard) as the years go by.

 

 

I think thats human nature to continually question especially if the answer is not the one sought. It's only when many say the same becomes believable.

 

I think we may be reaching a consensus.

 

It's annoying to arrive at the forum with a dream and have people apparently picking holes in it

 

It's annoying to be asked for advice and be told you are wrong when you give it

 

However, these are just inevitable features of the process. The solution appears to be repetition of advice by different people - something an FAQ wouldn't do

 

So, we don't need a pinned page of advice, I conclude I am a grumpy old git

 

I've found this discussion useful, thanks everyone

 

Richard