Ohhhhhh Boy . . .
Being a *ham* myself, I can say most of the websites that are ham-related can be quite caustic as someone already put it. I also visit those sites from time to time but have myself been verbally run into the ground on a few occassions while there. One might think you could run into a *better* group of people by frequenting ham radio websites, and, dare I say, this is usually not the case. In short, you will find the same potential of being verbally assaulted on a ham radio website as you will anywhere else on the Internet - probably more. Being a ham seems to intensify this effect in some people though.
Now I'm not saying this applies to ALL ham radio operators (or ham sites), but you'll notice I'm here instead of there. Those sites have their purpose and can be as useful as any site dedicated to a particular hobby. However, I have found that newbies asking questions aren't always met with kindness and understanding.
I can't thank the users of this site enough for their assistance thusfar, which has been minimal at this point. But the help I've received has been kind, courteous, and funny at times, and doesn't make the person asking the questions feel like they're at the bottom of the food chain and equally as stupid.
Speaking from experience . . .
Randy
KE4RWS
