Hello!

[Ironhinge]

My name is Matthew I’m in Austin, TX. I have lived in shacks and other tiny places for a while now, and have grown to love it. I have been thinking about a travel trailer for a while and have latched on to a few. The trillium trailers, a homemade Vardo or possibly an old project 10' camper. The scale has thrown me off, every hut or shack I have built when I think about towing it down the road... Its a different ballgame. I’m new at this trailer and mobile part, so I signed up. This forum seems to have a good design, build support network. I want to warn you that I am not so sure about the Internet and usually work and help with whats in front of me. Wish me luck and good luck to y'all

[pchast]

Welcome!
Good luck with your build.

[capnTelescope]

Howdy, Matthew. Welcome. It's good to see another central Texan on here. There's several of us here.

[bc toys]

welcome to this great site hope you enjoy it

[Glenn Butcher]

Matthew,

This is one of the better examples of the 'good' Internet; lots of good information and help.

Teardrops are a good mix of 'tried and true' from others' experiences combined with your decisions as you build. Pore over the build threads; there's a LOT of good experience there to shape your thinking.

[Ironhinge]

I have ended up on this site quite a few times over the years and I agree about the "Good Internet". Time and time again I’ve been impressed with this communities desire to experiment and built together.
I do have to say I am getting a little overwhelmed, this is my first forum and I am not so practiced communicating by text.

Anyway, thanks for the welcomes and encouragement, I needed it.

-Matthew

[Ironhinge]

oh and anyone interested in helping me find my way Ive got some questions

#1 How long is due diligence reading and searching for your answer? If it doesn't come up in a search should I just ask It? I have been reading forums long enough to realize how annoying questions that have been answered a few pages back can be, but the foamie original string is thousands of posts and it seems like so much is probably hidden in there.( I do plan on reading it, its just daunting.)

#2 Should I error on the side of concise or explained? Seems my text doesn't always come across as clear. Concise seems to get my in trouble if its taken the wrong way, explained becomes burdensome. I need more practice to hit the middle, what do I do now

#3 How do I resolve problems on the fourms and in PMs if I do miscommunicate. It seems easy to block or be blocked, should I try to work it out or grow a tougher skin?

Thanks,
-Matthew

[2bits]

Matthew,

It seems like you are just new to internet communication but you appear to have a kind nature and that is what keep the good boards going. Most of the time you don't really need to worry about working out problems because in essence they really aren't problems at all. It's easy to just let things go within a web forum and just move to the next topic. I wouldn't worry about the whole blocking thing. If you are enjoying a conversation within a "thread" as they are called, and it gets ugly or someone starts taking things too seriously, the easiest way to resolve the issue is to choose the unsubscribe to topic link this won;t remove you from the board, you will just stop being notified through email when any new replies are posted (if you have that option turned on).

When searching the forum, I honestly haven't had much luck because of the way the search results come back they may not be relevant at all. I am more of a browse searcher, meaning I go to the section that should have my topic (plumbing for example), and then just start reading and reading. Many times this is where I gained knowledge about a topic that I didn't even have a question on that helped me solve a problem that I hadn't even had yet!

I think alot of us here prefer that line between concise and detailed. We love hearing stories and the stories behind things. but when it comes to questions when you have a problem, the more detailed the better. I am bad about that and tend to write six paragraph posts but I feel that everything I say has meaning to my question of experience. (I hope anyway LOL).

Keep up the great attitude and time to make some sawdust!!

PS: the Shasta sold last week, sorry I hadn't replied, my truck broke down and I've been going a mile a minute trying to make a teardrop gathering this weekend that is starting tomorrow (that I won't be able to make )

[nevadatear]

I'd say if you are spending this much time being concerned about appropriate behavior here, then you will do just fine. the admins work hard to make this a friendly place. if you don't hear from them, you can assume you are fine. Just remember the rules posted in the general information. Basically, treat members here with respect. Don't talk politics or religion (just like Thanksgiving), don't call names, and don't assume everyone agrees with your opinion or beliefs (whoops, back to politics and religion). There are treehuggers and climate science disbelivers here, as well as preachers and atheists, all united by our love of camping and small trailers. just better to leave those topics alone. Talking anything teardrops, camping, and even off topic stuff is fine in the off topic areas i've made lots of new friends here, even taken off the forum to camping in real life.

oh, and just a couple more suggestions, (sorry if you already know this) try not to type in all caps, it feels like shouting, use spell check ( doesn't seem to be a problem for you, your posts look great!). don't worry about perfect spelling or grammar, we are not English teachers here, but it is just respectful of your reader to not have to work too hard to try to figure out what you Ar writing. And one or two punctuation points will do the trick. 15 !!!!!!! Just looks like your typewriter key got stuck. it's always helpful to r-read your post before you push the "submit" button. That way you can check for glaring errors or tone issues. It is sometimes hard to see how it might sound in print.

And most of all welcome! Enjoy your time here, it is worth the effort.

if you follow these simple rules, you will never be blocked, and certainly never be banned. so welcome and don't be afraid, this is a great place to learn, be entertained, and just have fun. it is really not so scary once you get started.

Deb p.

[Ironhinge]

There is quite a bit of info about forum etiquette, and also plenty of types of posts/posters that are just obviously annoying. As a non-member reader it is easy to forget that the posts are between people who talk on a regular bases and that each of them has earned a reputation in the community, for better or worse. Day to day life we pick up on the social contract just by growing up in the world, the Internet on the other hand often feels like its run by over-caffeinated grade schoolers (it is by the way, my 13 year old cousin laughed at me when she helped set up my smart-phone)

Thank you for your replies, it reinforces my hope that I have found a good place to get my sea legs. I had managed to forget my password after a few busy weeks and just got back on-line to find your posts. Means a lot to me
-Matthew

P.S. I write my posts in a word possessor and then copy-paste them... It takes forever