To new and returning HBA posters.
Welcome to HBA.
One of the more difficult things for one without a good basic education in physics to is is to learn how to separate the whimsical from the realistic. Much of what one reads in the news, in the “Popular” magazines and on the internet is not bases in reality. The potential benefits of superconductivity is a good example. Even if it could be realized for no cost, the benefits, even at the electric utility scale, are small.
To paraphrase a fellow pilot and successful radio talk show host, don’t believe anything that you hear or read unless you already know it to be true, or until you have independently verified it as true. A deceased, and extremely accomplished, HBAer often noted, “Unfortunately, what you believe is irrelevant is science.”
There is plenty of good information to be had here on HBA. There also is a fair amount of offerings that are not based in science. The trick is to learn to distinguish between the two. To that end, I often go to a poster’s information page to see what information is there. I encourage posters to share as much info there as they are comfortable with. Private messages that don’t require long, detailed, responses are helpful too. Useful text books and other technical references are listed in the stickies; get some and study them. In threads where posters seem to be lecturing you for one of your “bad” ideas, seek first to understand the poster’s point before arguing your position.
Don’t be shy about asking a well thought out question. Do be shy about asking a question without first having studied the issues and science involved. Don’t take comments as personal. This is, after all, the internet, where most posters are anonymous.
Try to meet other HBAers; it will change your attitude about posting. Meet some of us at Oshkosh, or any regional fly-in.
To lurkers: Sign up, tell us about yourself, share your aspirations wrt HBA. You will enjoy it.
Have fun, learn, share, design, build, maintain, and fly.
BJC
Welcome to HBA.
One of the more difficult things for one without a good basic education in physics to is is to learn how to separate the whimsical from the realistic. Much of what one reads in the news, in the “Popular” magazines and on the internet is not bases in reality. The potential benefits of superconductivity is a good example. Even if it could be realized for no cost, the benefits, even at the electric utility scale, are small.
To paraphrase a fellow pilot and successful radio talk show host, don’t believe anything that you hear or read unless you already know it to be true, or until you have independently verified it as true. A deceased, and extremely accomplished, HBAer often noted, “Unfortunately, what you believe is irrelevant is science.”
There is plenty of good information to be had here on HBA. There also is a fair amount of offerings that are not based in science. The trick is to learn to distinguish between the two. To that end, I often go to a poster’s information page to see what information is there. I encourage posters to share as much info there as they are comfortable with. Private messages that don’t require long, detailed, responses are helpful too. Useful text books and other technical references are listed in the stickies; get some and study them. In threads where posters seem to be lecturing you for one of your “bad” ideas, seek first to understand the poster’s point before arguing your position.
Don’t be shy about asking a well thought out question. Do be shy about asking a question without first having studied the issues and science involved. Don’t take comments as personal. This is, after all, the internet, where most posters are anonymous.
Try to meet other HBAers; it will change your attitude about posting. Meet some of us at Oshkosh, or any regional fly-in.
To lurkers: Sign up, tell us about yourself, share your aspirations wrt HBA. You will enjoy it.
Have fun, learn, share, design, build, maintain, and fly.
BJC
