Just a Thought For New T Keepers

[Julia]

Not much to add that hasn't been said here already, but... Personally, I use this site much more than I refer to my tarantula books. I love the range of situations that people post about that I would NEVER find in a book. I guess I'm speaking from an advanced-keeper point of view though. I know the basics, now I want to know the really interesting stuff!

Not sure if I agree that a book is the best first step for a noob. ANY kind of research (even observing a t-keeping friend for a while!) would be a great first step though.

 

[Ether Imp]

Moving right along here:

Why buy a book when most of the information that you would find in a book can be found on these very boards or elsewhere on the internet?

That said, I STRONGLY encourage people to use the following resources before posting questions:

1. The search option.
2. Google.
3. Wikipedia.

I've been guilty of asking a question that has probably already been asked before, but before doing so I usually make an attempt to at least understand the basics so that I am asking the RIGHT questions and that I'm providing enough information (obtained through previous research) that the readers of the post can give specific and educated answers, rather than generic ones, and I encourage others to do the same.

Tarantula keeping really isn't that difficult, or complicated... But on the flip side of the coin, there's very rarely one right answer for every problem. A lot of problems may come down to a variety of contributing factors.

 

[Ether Imp]

I figure if every T owner read this forum at least once a day... even if they just picked maybe 1 thread at random and read it from start to finish, they would pick up a LOT of valuable information. That's pretty close to what I do, and whether I engage in the threads or not I learn a lot from the interaction between the users.

In some ways, these forums are better than reading a book or a manual. They're interactive and they have constantly updated information, and you get to see the opinions of dozens (if not hundreds) of different people who are ALL interested/active in the same hobby as you are.

 

[Xian]

I still think that a book is a good place to start.
I also said that the internet has alot of information as well.
I wouldn't solely use any source of information exclusively though.
Someone said that the information on the internet is free, I wish you would tell my internet provider that, as well as the store I got my computer at. For less than the price of one month of internet you can buy a good book.
Welcome back to my Thread!
I think I'm good here as well.

 

[Exo]

ARRRRGGGG!!! What's wrong with books?!?! Come on people, JUST READ A FREAKIN' BOOK!!!!!!! :wall:

By the way, the two books I mentioned earlier are great, can't go wrong with either of them.

 

[Ms.X]

I must agree that educating yourself with written materials that have been quite useful to many in the hobby would be an ideal situation. However, in this day of instant gratification, this will likely never be the first choice of someone new. Why take the time to read an entire book when you can ask question after question here? It's frustrating, but I don't see this changing in the near future.

 

[MrDeranged]

You know what I like to do when I go to a new forum?

The first thing I do is read EVERYTHING in The Rules section of the forum and digest whatever might be posted in there.

Then I take a look at the Announcements Forum for any other pertinent information about the forums. For example their stance on Free Speech.

Arachnoboards is a Tyranny, NOT a Democracy and I am the Tyrant.

This is a privately owned public site, all we ask is that you follow our rules. Most of the time, contrary to the belief of some, we're very lax with enforcement. DON'T think that this gives you any unalienable rights to post here. EVERYTHING that goes on this site is at MY sufferance.

If you can follow our, very simple to follow, rules, then welcome, we're very glad to have you no matter what questions you ask or how many times they've been asked before. Please note, informed questions are much more likely to get a response.

If you can't follow our rules, don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way to another site.

If I see this kind of crap again, there will be multiple suspensions, if not outright bans, given out.

Don't ever keep me from playing WoW again ;P

Scott