Why the disdain?

[snipershot]

Well there you have it. Bill, I believe you have most of that wrong.

When I first got here, I would also PM certain cue makers questions.
I have had invitations to call and offers to help out from many well known
cue makers.

Why? Maybe I was polite and showed a bit of initiative first.
Lets take Rick G. Geez, you ask a question on here, he'll pretty much tell you exactly how to build a cue, or how he builds his.

Another cue maker, I don't want to mention his name but his cues are named after a tree. He will come within inches of telling you exactly what took him years of experimentation to find out.
I guess he feels that he has nothing to hide and isn't afraid of someone making a cue just like his.

These are just two, another is Leon, KJ, Dick. Leon and I have had many a midnight BS sessions.
There is lots more, in fact just about any maker that does hang out here and answers questions. All of them are very approachable.
And theres also Chris H. He will answer the phone just about any time of the working day, and or, answer an email.

Sorry Bill, I think you have these guys pegged totally wrong.

Tap, tap, tap. Well said Terry. I couldn't agree with you more man.

Joe

 

[bbb]

And reading all you can, then ask something in more detail than has been discussed before. You will learn more, and during the search you will find answers to issues you had not even thought of to ask ! Then maybe we all learn and share.

i only skimmed the responces...
i have asked many questions here so i can give my perspective
if i am asking a questio that i think is general enough that it could have been answered before
i do an advanced search
why waste the time of busy cuemakers to answer something that has been answered before
if your question is so generic a google seach might answer it
why waste the time of the cuemakers
GOOGLE IT
get some basic knowledge
AND THEN ASK YOUR QUESTION
the cuemakers that answers questions here should be congratulated for the time they spend away from making cues which is how they earn thier income
i salute you all
:wink:........:thumbup:....
just my 4 cents

 

[Bill Newhouse]

@ Blue Hog Rider: Thank-you for your courteous response, and the opportunity for me to clarify my comments. Obviously some clarification is needed. Please understand that I do not think all, or even most, of the responders to this question are jerks. I agree that a lot of cuemakers are good, generous folks. My comments about the ill-mannered ones pertain only to the ill-mannered ones and focused on puncturing their self-excusing rationalizations for why it is okay in their mind to treat beginners like dirt. That was what the original inquiry was about ("Why the disdain...?). When I respond to a question, face-to-face or in an online forum, I make it a point to specifically address the question that was actually asked. As I pointed out in my opening paragraph, there were very good responses, too. The one from Owensview (hope I got his name right) was excellent, as were several others. They described the most appropriate approach, and WHY it is a better approach. Help doesn't get any better than that. And in my closing paragraph I emphasized my advice to focus on the helpful people on the forum and not let the negative folks deter the fellow who asked the original question. I stand by my response. However, if it seemed to be a blanket condemnation of cuemakers, then I did not state my message clearly enough. For that I apologize and will try harder in the future to convey the correct impression right out of the gate.
Best regards,
Bill

 

[Bill Newhouse]

Note: If the Chris H. you mentioned is Chris Hightower, I absolutely agree with your characterization of him. He is one sparking spark plug but still manages to be very generous and patient with his time and helpful advice. And unfailingly courteous.

 

[macguy]

No doubt you noticed in many of the responses quite a bit of that disdain you were asking about. A casual review of the responses shows a few genuinely helpful, professional, courteous responses, and way too many that were just condescending garbage. Such is the reality of internet forums. You just have to take the good that you find and ignore the junk (and don't let it ruin your own attitude).

Some of the respondents seem to think you aren't entitled to a courteous answer to your question unless you have spent as much time as they did stumbling around in beginner's ignorance ruining wood and tools and possibly hurting yourself in the process. It seems to me that it hasn't occurred to them that continuing that mode of learning doesn't improve anything for anybody in our craft. Either that, or they want you to stay ignorant and inept so you won't become a serious competitor to them before they reach retirement age. The fact that you recognize your limitations and aren't too insecure to risk asking the 'dumb' question tells me you are already well on your way to eclipsing them. Keep having the courage to ask. And simply ignore those guys.

Others seem to think this forum is actually the 'self-declared-world-class-expert-who-is-too-important-and-busy-to-talk-to-mere-beginners-who-are-so-beneath-them' forum. Well, it isn't. Nothing in the forum title or posting rules declares it to be that. Apparently they have forgotten that they did not single-handedly invent all aspects of cue building by themselves in secret. A lot of what they know was taught to them by others back when they themselves were too-unimportant-for-accomplished-cuemakers-to-bother-with-talking-to-them beginners. But the established guys took the time to advise and instruct them anyway. These guys were perfectly willing to take all of that, but aren't willing to give anything back. That makes me wonder why they even bother to respond to beginners' questions on the forum.

Then there is the totally BS argument that the 'experts' are tired of answering the same question over and over and you are just being too lazy to look up the answer in the FAQs. Maybe you did try that but aren't particularly proficient at using the FAQ feature and couldn't find the answer you were looking for. Or maybe you just didn't realize that you should have tried the FAQs first crack out of the bag. That's the way it is when you are new to something. The self-appointed too-busy-to-bother-with-your-question experts don't seem to understand they are under absolutely NO obligation to respond to your question at all. If they don't have time to give you a real answer, then where did they come up with the time to give you a ration of snotty BS? They are simply attempting to justify their own crappy attitude and excuse their very bad manners. A simple little courteous response to the effect that your question has been thoroughly dealt with in the FAQs and you should check there first under subject XXXX takes little or no time, gets you a truly helpful answer, and points you toward developing the positive habit of using the FAQ goldmine. It also projects a positive image of the forum as a good place to interact and encourages you to stay with us over the long haul so you eventually become a valuable resource to future cuebuilders.

When someone displays a bad attitude toward you and your inquiry, try to brush it off and keep going forward. It is very doubtful that person knows anything worth knowing that you can't find out from someone with better manners and a larger vision of our craft. If they actually DO know such a secret technique, remind yourself that everybody else in the business is getting along without knowing that particular trick and doing just fine, so you can, too. Focus on the folks that give you a decent response, learn from them, and try to help raise the average quality of the forum discussions by following their positive approach.

Best regards,
Bill

I guess that is load of everybody's minds. There is now someone here who will answer all questions posed to the forum. There are quite a few on here right now, so get to work, or are you too busy?