Hi All,I gave Vatsim a try about 5 years ago. Right at the time they were shut down for a week or two due to a threatened lawsuit. At that time I found there was a general atmosphere of it being

Well,I

You speak of Satco... not Vatsim ;)The vatsim we have today is a new and wonderfull beast entirely!

Hi Tom,Like you I've been an avid FS enthusiast since the mid-80s. Two years ago I joined Vatsim and have been online with them almost daily ever since. The controllers are very kind and helpful, and, overall, this online flying community is a great experience. I'm sure you won't regret resigning for a moment.Regards,Hans

Tom,VATSIM members - both Controllers and Pilots are just people. None of us have any control over how one person treats another. As an organization, VATSIM tries to focus on SHARING THE ENJOYMENT of flying in simulated controlled airspace.I think it's pretty rare for people to become outwardly hostile towards one another, and a Code of Conduct and Code of Regulations are at the heart of the organization now - defining how we all are expected to treat one another. I doubt you will find that the environment on VATSIM today is the way you described it.Give it a whirl and see for yourself.

Thanks Everyone,I look forward to participating.Regards,Tom

Hi TomI'm relatively new to VATSIM, but the one thing I've discovered is that you gets what you pays for.I don't mean this in financial terms. I mean that if you put in the effort to learn the basics (eg, how to converse with ATC, how to fly DP's/STARS etc, the controllers on VATSIM will help you all the way. On the other hand there are pilots who don't make that effort (and I have to say it is immediately obvious from the communications I overhear), and they get very short shrift (sorry...UK expression there :-) ) from controllers.The 3 main values of the present VATSIM, as I, a relative newbie, perceive them are courtesy, professionalism, and respect for other pilots/controllers. That is my experience over a short period of time. I have to say that it sounds a world away from the situation you have described!It was the assurances of others (they will know who they are ;-) )which tempted me into VATSIM, and in the same spirit I urge to to rejoin.Bruce.

Tom,You see from the responses that VATSIM is actually a friendly place where new members are very welcome. One of the reasons that this organization works is that people like Bruce are able to join the network, learn the ropes, and soon thereafter are here welcoming new members to become part of the community. Bruce certainly captured the key elements of flying on VATSIM, courtesy, professionalism, and respect for others. He had to go about learning on-line flying by asking questions and searching multiple sources for answers. You, on the other hand, will very soon find an excellent resource for our new members which spells out nearly everything you need to know about on-line flying with VATSIM. Look for an important announcement about this within the next week.I am glad you look forward to joining. Hopefully you will be back here along side the others encouraging new people to share the enjoyment (to copy a line from Ian).Welcome to VATSIM,

Hi Mike,I see from all of the replys that VATSIM IS a great place too be.As I write this I am getting the ball rolling, learning SB(again)and working out the wrinkles of my connection so I can participate.Thanks Mike and All, for the sincere and genorous replys. I look forward to getting into the action.Sincerely,Tom

Well, VATSIM was not around 5 years ago as you have learned by now. I was with SATCO when they had the 2 week shutdown...and the VATSIM organization, while built on the old, is fundamentally different. It has more people and more diverse people involved in making it run; better and faster servers; better software; and comes from a different vision.We recently opened up our Pilot Resource Center. We have Divisions all over the world. We have a management structure which, to me at least, is a whole lot more receptive to the current pilots and controllers than the organization VATSIM replaced. Plus, there are new and exciting things coming up just around the corner.I would certainly encourage you to join VATSIM and give it a try.