Experts on Line

[Dave&Ginny]

This group is greatly diverse which is a real benefit and could be a great source of information. For example we learned that "brenko" is an insurance guy. So since he works in the insurance industry it would stand to reason we could see him as a resource to answer questions about insurance in an unbiased way.

If I'm not mistaken "hooserguy" is an electrical engineer. So in the past when questions were asked about electrical, I trusted his posts more than others.

If I'm not mistaken, Vaughan "piperguy" has a background in large pleasure boats and currently works with high end vinyl for lettering.

I'm in sales/publishing/marketing owning and producing magazines in the retirement and medical fields.

Please post your background so when a question is asked on the forum that might be in your area of expertise your opinions might be more heavily considered. Even if you don't feel like your background might contribute to questions on the forum, it's interesting to see all the backgrounds that we have on here.


"Brenko", "piperguy" and "hooserguy" please post a more accurate description of what you folks do so I don't misrepresent you

[atom ant]

I think if someone wants their background available it can be in their profile. Knowledge of backgrounds circulate well enough behind the scenes without have to call it out.

There are times when its appropriate, but routinely throwing out a "qualification card" sometimes is viewed as offensive to the others that took the time to answer the OPs question. Same thing happens when members try to push the question to the "resident experts" rather than listening to anyone one else. I know you are trying to make something good Dave - but it sometimes comes off as bad as I witnessed on a prior forum I was on when they picked a couple of "experts".

I don't think owning a Redwood is a career, so to me, if you own a Redwood you are already an expert on what it takes to keep it rolling and I value your input on a fix, whether you bake bread or fly rockets as your career.

Besides, I haven't found anything "industry standard" on an RV, so how can we have experts unless they work in the RV industry itself.

[JerryL]

I guess this thread is going to die because AA is uncomfortable with someone being knowledgable in a certain field.

FTR, I'm pretty knowledgable in the piping and plumbing field, and have worked on most issues with RVs for the last 20 years

[mhs4771]

I don't think it's so much a case of being uncomfortable, it's just that this is the Internet and anyone can claim to be anything from a bum to the President of the US and how do you prove or disprove if they're an expert or not.

[JerryL]

Originally Posted by mhs4771

I don't think it's so much a case of being uncomfortable, it's just that this is the Internet and anyone can claim to be anything from a bum to the President of the US and how do you prove or disprove if they're an expert or not.

This is an Rv community, trying to help each other, not a group intending to take over the world. I like the idea of having resident experts in certain fields.

[mhs4771]

Bernard Madoff was an Expert, now people that took his advise aren't so happy. That's all I'm trying to say.

[JerryL]

Originally Posted by mhs4771

I don't think it's so much a case of being uncomfortable, it's just that this is the Internet and anyone can claim to be anything from a bum to the President of the US and how do you prove or disprove if they're an expert or not.

It's not like someone here is going to give false info to try to destroy your RV. We are an RV community, not RV terrorists. I'm almost 100% sure there isn't someone on here like Bernie, trying to mislead people in their RV fixes.

[atom ant]

As usual Jerry, you take my comment out of context and run with it (you are an expert in that)!

I'm just saying, if you put the focus on one person as the "expert" in a specific area, such as Dave's example of electrical, it kind of shuts down the enthusiasm of others that may want to express their own experience on the issue.

I would consider a Redwood Engineer or Redwood assembly person an expert! The rest of us, regardless of our background, are just owners and we all end up on the side of the road or scratching our heads because the lights don't work and somehow we get it figured out and have a story to tell that is useful to others.

[johnboytoo]

maybe i too misread the intent ...
are we saying no one else should post related to the topics of the experts ?

a forum can become a smaller and smaller forum of just those few elite members if not careful

so, if the experts are not online,
should the lessor members not try to offer any help ?

[atom ant]

Originally Posted by johnboytoo

maybe i too misread the intent ...
are we saying no one else should post related to the topics of the experts ?

a forum can become a smaller and smaller forum of just those few elite members if not careful

so, if the experts are not online,
should the lessor members not try to offer any help ?

That's exactly where I'm thinking John - if you create "elite" members, it discourages the rest. Happened to the last forum I was on, the Tire Expert and Mechanical expert dominated the space, and everyone else just stayed quiet or left.

[Dave&Ginny]

I think your missing my point

[atom ant]

No I don't think so Dave, this one kind of summed it up:

If I'm not mistaken "hooserguy" is an electrical engineer. So in the past when questions were asked about electrical, I trusted his posts more than others.

I guess all questions about electrical should now be forwarded to hooserguy, because no one else can be trusted.

I think there was another post where you have already "referred" the OP off to hooserguy as the "resident expert" on electrical. Not a good path to go down if you want others to participate.

[Dave&Ginny]

There's a wealth of information on this and other forums and it all should all be scrutinized regardless of who offers it. That's the problem with the web.....everybody with a key board becomes an expert and all information should be offered and received as a suggestion only.

As many have stated over the past couple of years, this forum has been very useful due to the amount of information and the willingness of folks willing to help others. There are however people on here that have more knowledge in certain areas due to their expertise.

For example....I know of one person on this forum that works for a RV manufacturer. Although many of us on here think we know how these trailers are made due to touring a factory a few times, I listen to this persons opinions more than others offered when discussing the fine art of RV building.

[Dave&Ginny]

Originally Posted by atom ant

No I don't think so Dave, this one kind of summed it up:

If I'm not mistaken "hooserguy" is an electrical engineer. So in the past when questions were asked about electrical, I trusted his posts more than others.

I guess all questions about electrical should now be forwarded to hooserguy, because no one else can be trusted.

I think there was another post where you have already "referred" the OP off to hooserguy as the "resident expert" on electrical. Not a good path to go down if you want others to participate.

Cheer up Brad....I'm not trying to disrespect anybody and I encourage everybody to offer their own opinions in helping others.

With my limited knowledge....I don't know for sure what Guy did as an electrical engineer but I do know that his contributions on this forum have been useful for me and I hope others. From his posts, I'd be willing to admit that his knowledge on electrical issues far surpasses mine. I've wired a few houses and they all passed the inspectors keen eyes but I'm not anywhere close to being and electrical engineer.

When I have questions in regards to electrical, I hope there's 6 people giving opinions and they'll all be considered. But with that said I'm going to also make sure I get Guy's opinion to consider as well.

[lwg]

Originally Posted by JerryL

This is an Rv community, trying to help each other, not a group intending to take over the world.

Wait, what? When did our goals change? I didn't get that memo...

[Fredtp]

OMG People!!!!!

[rob_fla]

I do most of our repairs and upgrades.

When getting information from the web on something different or new that I am not familiar with, I like to get several viewpoints / opinions before taking action.

In the end, I decide what action to take based on my experience, knowledge and just plain ole common sense.

I have done many different jobs / projects over the years in Manufacturing, Industrial Automation, Construction, Electrical, Hydraulic and Pneumatic engineering, design, installation and startup but by no means do I know it all, so I listen to others all the time.

[spindrift]

I grew up working on a dairy farm. I'm your man if you need someone to bottle feed a calf. Interestingly, long time friends come to me with pet care questions. On a more serious note, I'm in the commercial/industrial power generation industry.

And to Brad's point, the Forum that takes most of my free time, as far as forums go, has a specific thread entitled "What do you do for a living?". It's always been one of the more interesting discussions. IMHO, it's due to the fact that, in many cases, your only interaction with a forum member is what you see them post. For most folks, you never see the face behind the post. Then you learn that the guy is, of all things, a dental student. Or you meet someone at a Rally for the first time and you say to yourself, "That's not what I was expecting." Sharing this kind of information simply satisfies our natural curiosity for more information, nothing more.

[atom ant]

I've said my peace.

[lwg]

I'll play. I'm a jack of all trades, master of none! For my dayjob I'm in Technology, so if the computer on your Redwood ever gives you fits I'm your man!

However, previously I've been trained as an aircraft mechanic (Have my A&P) and that just about taught me everything I'd ever need to know to do most things mechanical, electrical and hydraulic. I don't pretend to be a plumber but otherwise feel I can do just about anything I put my mind to.