What concepts did you first encounter here?

[fire_diver]

I first learned about:

BP/W's
HOG configurations
Streamlining
Rock Bottom gas calcs
Diving in trim

I'm sure there is more (like MOF is OK!) that I learned here, but those are the main things that pushed me from being a diving C.F. to being to being an OK diver.

 

[Sas]

-DIR
-trim
-proper weighting
-gas management
-monkey diving
-p-valves
-solo diving
-all sorts of info about diving in foreign lands

Probably lots more, but those are the first that jump to mind.

 

[Mike Boswell]

I hope this is not TOO far off-topic, but there are two other internet forums I used to read: One was tightly controlled by the owner, and the other was not controlled at all and was gradually taken over by cyberthugs.

SB has taught me that, with the right guidance, internet forums can actually work pretty well. Adults can have interesting, productive, and polite conversations, without stifling censorship on the one hand, or ill-mannered, abusive chaos on the other. If people can learn to talk respectfully to each other, anything is possible.

 

[vladimir]

The Obama conspiracy to destroy America

If this is the only conspiracy you've encountered here you haven't been spending much time in the Pub. PM Catherine, she'll get you caught up.

 

[Captain12Pk]

I learned that "Hitler is not AOW", among other things.

 

[Dr Neil]

I learned that there are a heck of a lot of people around that are "students of the game." I have yet to query a scuba related topic that has not been discussed on SB. It's also fun to lurk and learn.

I just listened to Daniel Pink talk about the every growing number of people who work at something outside their day job and do it for free. Odds are that the majority of SB users contribute because scuba is their passion and not a chore.

 

[ScubaSam]

so what did you stumble across for the first time here?

Backplate and wings
DIR
Other agencies aside from PADI
Local dive buddies

 

[merxlin]

I learned that I wanted to not just be a competent diver, but a good diver, and a number of things I could do to make that happen.
I learned to question my training, but also to be comfortable with it if it suits me.
I learned that most divers will share their knowledge freely if you ask, and sometimes even if you don't.
I learned that just as in the rest of life, some people's opinions are the only truth they know.
I learned that there are way too many gear choices, but if your timing is right you can try most of them for less than retail when someone here decides it's not for them.
I learned that the diving community is much greater than I thought, and is made up of some very unique individuals.

 

[ScubaSteve]

the warhammer manouver

You knew it had to happen .

It sounds a lot like many people here learned everything they know from the internet . Actually, a number of concepts that I am sure I would have come accross anyways were first stumbled on on SB such as: Trim, BP/W, Tech diving and even just the differences in gear configuration (plus so much that I could not begin to think about listing them all).

 

[rollerboi]

I encountered so many concepts on here that it would be impossible to list them all. I then was able to make contacts with some excellent dive buddies and I don't think I would have come across my favorite shop (DiveAddicts in Draper, UT) if it weren't for others on this board.

I want to emphasize that while I've learned about some fantastic concepts like DIR theory and gear, I have sought out competent dive buddies and mentors to bounce things off of. I stick to my training, for the most part, because I have not been officially DIR/UTD trained and am not prepared to be just an "internet diver".

I say for the most part, because I have already started buying my gear in a DIR-compliant configuration, which just makes *sense* to me. Other than my backplate, which is a Freedom Plate that I would never had heard of if I hadn't been here. I am in the process of buying some regulators, which I will have set up in a long hose configuration, and will then be seeking training/mentoring on deployment and so forth from local friends who have been cave trained.

It's not wise to apply *everything* one learns here without some type of mentor to tell you if you're doing it wrong.