I'm glad ya'll seem to have a good group but I've heard criticism of
POA in the vein of web-based group problems I mentioned above. I hope
it flourishes and I'm sure I'll come over for a visit sometime in the
near future. If nothing else, it may be a breath of fresh air, It's
really stinky in here right now!

Thanks for the thoughtful post, Ricky.

I, too, have loved rec.aviation for over a decade. I, too, have a hard time
giving up the ease and freedom of the Usenet interface. Web-based groups
invariably have more tools and shortcuts to use, which makes them more
complex, which often makes them a PIA to use (at first) -- and PofA is no
different. (Although, I must admit, some of those whiz-bang built-in tools
are very nice, once you figure the damned things out.)

I hear what you're saying about these things being cyclical, and we've seen
trolls before -- but never to this degree. The irrational bitterness, the
knee-jerk rancor, the personal attacks and downright meanness of posters
here is at an all-time high (low?). It is simply not possible to maintain a
thread of any kind here without devolving into the
"Bertie/Maxwell/MX/Mikey/Rich Troll-o-Rama Show", which -- after nearly a
year of this -- has left this group in shambles.

Which was their goal, of course.

So, I offer a great alternative to our friends who are still here. PofA is
far from perfect, but it's about FLYING and PILOTING, is chock-full of a
great bunch of pilots (many of whom you might know from here, from days gone
by), and the moderators keep a firm grip on the tiller when it comes to
children who won't play well with others.

http://www.pilotsofamerica.com/
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
Ercoupe N94856
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"