I am not referring to comments about flying.

There are a number of posters who think the attacks on me on were uncalled for and out of order, Bjornhall being the more eloquent of them.

This is much ado about very little, in fact. I shouldn't have fed the flames I suppose - I'm sorry, I really didn't think it would be taken that seriously and like anyone else, I like a bit of debate.

I'm really NOT going to get involved in any such discussion on this forum ever again. I'll keep to innocous and non-controversial subjects. Maybe post some photos.

This is so ridiculous, I just can't believe it!

Let me steer the thread in a slightly different direction. The purpose of this forum, at least for the owners, is simply to make money. At the very least, sufficient money to cover the expenses in hardware, electricity, bandwidth, maintenance, and maybe even a tiny (or huge, I have no idea) profit.

If you look around your screen you'll see that the main way of trying to do this is by advertising. While I'm typing this my scrollbar on the right indicates that I'm only viewing approximately one tenth of the total page and there are already three ads moving and flashing to attract my attention. If you're on a reading instead of posting page, the number goes up even higher.

I'm not judging this. Most free forums and other places on the internet use advertising these days to generate an income.

These advertisers normally only pay for their advertising based on page views. The more an advert is seen (and clicked on, hopefully) the more money PPRuNe gets. Do me a favour and hover over one of the adverts on the current page. Don't click on it, but watch where the URL takes you. It's not directly to the company that pays for the advert. Instead, you go to a website of an intermediary first (doubleclick.net seems to be the preferred one right now) who immediately forwards you to the proper website. But through clever usage of links and cookies this intermediary is able to establish that you clicked on an advert showing on a PPRuNe page so PPRuNe is owed money.

Okay, so PPRuNe is helped with as many page views as possible. That means it's in the final interest of PPRuNe to have heated debates here, with lots of people participating and venting their opinion, and even larger numbers of people just reading the discussion without participating. For this reason, PPRuNe should encourage people like David and Sternone (remember him?) to keep stirring the pot, even when it means making an *ss out of themselves.

There is a drawback though. A forum can only tolerate a certain amount of stirring (for lack of a better word) before the regular posters, the ones that really have something to add here, decide to walk away. G-EMMA being a case in point (and I'm glad you're back, G-EMMA) but there are definitely others whose contributions were valued by a lot of people, who decided to leave here.

The Trimming, Landing & Instructors thread stands at just under 5000 views as I write this. I don't know how many views there were before David resurrected the thread on Sep 12, but it will have been far less. In pageviews, it's only topped by the Doncaster Sheffield thread, a bunch of sticky threads (no surprise there) and The Private Flying Photo Album which, as far as I'm concerned, does not need sticky status because it's at the top of the pile almost continuously.

But if you look at the TL&I thread you'll see that near the end it was the same small group posting the same things over and over, with no significant amount of new content or interesting views being added (a few posts excepted). That may well have been in the interest of safety and trying to convince David that he was wrong, but it wasn't in the interest of PPRuNe anymore.

An empty forum, or a forum filled with windbags, means no readers thus no pageviews thus no advertising income. That's where moderation comes in: people like BRL to make sure that the worst offenders, the ones that might turn others away eventually, get banned. First from a single thread, but the next step should be from the forum and eventually from the site. Kudos to BRL for making sure the discussion petered out at TL&I thread. Of course calling the Chucks and Eds of this forum "nazis" did not exactly help Davids case.

So back to the original question. Contentwise the purpose of this forum is not dictated by the PPRuNe management. It's not even dictated by the moderators. It's what we ourselves make of it. As long as you conduct yourself reasonably and responsibly, don't go too far in calling people names, be prepared to accept answers to your questions that may not quite fit with what you know, and are prepared to invest a little time to learn whose opinions can be trusted and whose not, anything goes. As long as it has to do with Private Flying.

And as long as it attracts a large number of readers, thus pageviews thus advertising income.

Yeah, I remember.... It was sort of like: "I resign. If I forget I resigned, and show up for work again, please fire me." The moderator (boss) was unhappy enough with you, he called your bluff, and fired you on the spot.

If I don't like a particular restaurant, I don't say to the waiter: "if I come to eat again, please ask me to leave", I just don't go back. It's so much easier!

Being accepted into any group is a privilage extended by that group, not a right - you chose the group, not the group chose you. Standing at the outside edge of a group can be done, and I suppose verges on being a right, but if you make enough noise, the group will turn on you. Groups are made up of people, and all people have their capacity for nonsense! If you want to be accepted into a group, figure out what that group sees as being nonsense, and keep it the minimum! You got the warning about what nonsense is here, before the group turned on you....

Pilot DAR

Didn't notice the ads at the top of the page until now. They're actually quite interesting!

In 5 years time, come back to any of these threads and then let us know what you think of the comments then.

What you have consistently failed to grasp in my eyes is not about the flying or about the actual statements, but how you have tried to justify an untenable position. This isn't a peeing up the wall match. Again you mention that one person has jumped to your defence whilst convieniently ignoring the fact that it takes an awful lot to rile up people like Chuck and DAR. Neither are known as vitriolic posters and yet with just a few lines you've got them reaching for the blood pressure pills. (I've just noticed Stik's comment as well. Also not one of the people I usually expect to get wound up easily. He's usually far too relaxed. It's all that G he likes pulling!)

It's quite a skill! I'm far easier to wind up, so that's no where near as much of an achievement.

Do please continue to post here

Thanks Backpacker!

I had never thought of that aspect! I know a lot less about websites than airplanes!

Let the balancing of all forces continue.....

You've been one of the most consistent and interesting of the posters - Say Again Slowly! Sort of on the fence but more on their side than mine - but that's ok.

Well at least I can take comfort is that all this free entertainment is at my expense!

My girlfriend will be happy if I never fly again...

Planning on getting an ATPL for £33,000 are we?

Or perhaps for an individual of your caliber the B747 line training as provided by Eagle Jet International?

David I haven't stepped in until now, have just been watching this and other posts grow, with morbid fasination.

What you have in your hands as a PPL holder is a licence to learn, nothing more nothing less. You have met the basic requirements needed to hold the licence, nothing more.

I was told by one of the many examiners that I have had that with the PPL the examiner was happy for me to fly him as a passenger. With the CPL he was happy for me to fly his family. With the ATPL, I leave you to guess that.

Please be aware that the examiner passed you for one reason, on the day you carried out the sections of the PPL test to the required level of competence, nothing more.

It is a licence to learn, many have gone before you who don't want you to make the same mistakes they did. Please learn from them.

Its an unforgiving enviornment we operate in, when it goes wrong it tends to big time. Don't let your attitude make you the next statistic.

Too old for that, mate.
No I just want to watch the videos on Loop TV

I know that only too well, Flying Farmer.

I will say one thing David, your age is shown as 56 and you have a girlfriend, does the mrs know?

mrs long gone.

That is the problem David you don't know how wrong it can go, you really haven't the experience to have encountered what can go wrong!

Well at least I have two lovely children (not children any more mind you)

I wonder how much I've earned for Rithwork Aviation the past half hour?

David, I can assure you I am not on the fence in any way.
I agree with everything the "others" have said, but I just have a different way of saying it. I realised very quickly that losing my temper would be counter productive, all I wanted to do was to try and help you, as did everyone else.

Hopefully you might have learnt something from all of this. I've never known so many to spend so long trying to change one persons opinion on here.

You should be quite priveleged really!

Sorry lads. I am going to lock it. You know why.