Just a quick note to say that I have been kicked off of Trainorders for a second time. In my personal opinion, nobody should pay ONE PENNY towards that website. The guy who runs it is, in my personal opinion, a complete jerk. Again, in my opinion, he is a power-hungry, emotionally disturbed, wanna-be cop without a badge, and dealing with him is no treat. I have complied an incredibly long list of good people who have been kicked off, and their "crime"?? Daring to tell the "webmaster" that he is either factually wrong in something he says, or that he is dangerous in his railfanning actions, both endangering himself, bystanders, and his family. This is all in my personal opinion, and is all alleged (to protect myself from that alleged prick filing some type of silly lawsuit, which is what he likes to do).
He recently did something to a friend of mine that was beyond the pale. He said that he set up a "trap" and "caught him" hacking the computer system. He told my friend that they could either "work things out" (what the hell does THAT mean??), or that he would file FELONY charges against him for "computer hacking". Well, the alleged idiot webmaster once again displayed his total arrogance, snobbery, ignorance, and selfishness. There isn't a DA in the country that would accept "computer hacking" charges against what actually took place. I know, because I am privy to what exactly took place, and what was said between the parties. I told my friend to tell him, "Go ahead and file the charges. In the meantime, I'm filing a civil suit against YOU".
I just want people to know that the man behind Trainorders is a very mean, nasty person in my opinion. In the opinions of MANY others, they also say the same thing. If you never have any encounters with this man, then you have no idea what I'm talking about and may believe that I'm just an angry ex-customer. Well, I am an angry ex-customer.....however, that does not change the fact that I want people to know what is REALLY going on over at that website. I have email correspondence from this character calling people names, demeaning them, and jerking people around just because it makes him feel good to yell at people. Again, in my opinion.
So buyer beware! I highly suggest that you do not support Trainorders AT ALL. The man behind the curtain HATES you, in my opinion. I know that there are others on here who have been kicked off of Trainorders, but I'll leave it up to them if they'd care to comment.
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
Well, Mr. Smith, welcome to the fraternity.
Dec 2007; Assessed discipline of Dismissal for "telling him off"
Posted by smitty195 (Member # 5102) on :
Thank you! Posted by smitty195 (Member # 5102) on :
For those interested, I just created a "Yelp" entry for Trainorders. I wrote the review, and everything has been accepted, but the message said that it takes 48 hours for new businesses to be added. People MUST know what is going on over there. It ain't right.
Posted by Southwest Chief (Member # 1227) on :
When you have to pay to use a forum, there are usually problems like what you've reported.
Save the money and talk for free at this site. And click on the ads every once and a while here...assuming this site gets a payment for such things.
Posted by smitty195 (Member # 5102) on :
The ads that I see on this site are very interesting. Whatever I do a Google search for, I usually see an ad for the exact company I was Googling. Like right now, the ad at the top is for Efax....and I *just* Googled them. I don't understand how that works.
Posted by palmland (Member # 4344) on :
Smitty, I can't understand how Trainorders manages to get people to pay. Much the same info is available for free on other sites. I do scan the posts but not enough to notice a heavy handed administrator. I much prefer the freedom to let the mind/imagination wander as we do on this site. Our moderator is helpful but not intrusive.
Posted by train lady (Member # 3920) on :
thanks Smity. I had been thinking about "joining" but no more!!!!
Posted by HopefulRailUser (Member # 4513) on :
Sorry to hear that you had trouble there Smitty. You are always welcome here although Train Lady will get on your case for being negative about our beloved Amtrak. I do find that site useful for up to date info about problems on the various local and LD lines. But most of the content is beyond a casual rail fan like myself.
Oddly the ad at the top of my page is for a match making service. Wonder if that means Art was surfing for same in my absence.
Posted by Ocala Mike (Member # 4657) on :
smitty, thanks for the "heads up." I stick to free sites like this one myself; hope everything works out for you vis a vis your dealings with that "runaway freight" over there.
Posted by train lady (Member # 3920) on :
You are absolutely right Vicki. I have been with Amtrak since the beginning and take a propriatory interest. Sort of like with kods. They may be a royal pain but don't say anything against them to me(at least unless they are doing illegal things)Smitty and I don't always agree but that is our right on this forum.
Posted by smitty195 (Member # 5102) on :
But don't forget, I really like the Capitols, San Jackos, Surfliners, and Acela! (I've only ridden Acela once, from Philly to DC and return, but I loved it). Now about those LD trains....... Posted by sojourner (Member # 3134) on :
I have never used train orders--too cheap to pay, and no time!
Good to see you hear, Smitty--where we can go on tangents about TV shows etc etc.
Posted by smitty195 (Member # 5102) on :
Thank you very much for the kind comments, everyone.
Posted by sbalax (Member # 2801) on :
Vicki--
I'd keep an eye on Art, that old devil!
Frank in gloriously sunny and warm SBA
"My" ads all have to do with identity checks and such. Some of my recent Google searches have had to do with such after having a credit card "compromised".
Posted by Geoff Mayo (Member # 153) on :
I did sign up for a year of TrainOrders several years ago. Frankly it wasn't worth the money I paid. Yes, there is a broad base of technical people there, which was what attracted me in the first place, but not enough to warrant a fee. I also don't like the lack of upfront costs - you have to enter some personal information before they admit to the rates ($32 for a year, $11 for 3 months, $18 for 6 months). Fortunately those details don't seem to be verified before getting to the rates.
Posted by TwinStarRocket (Member # 2142) on :
I have lurked on Trainorders for years but never paid, mostly because of their reputation.
Posted by smitty195 (Member # 5102) on :
Geoff---That's an interesting observation. I guess I never realized that you can't find out their pricing until you've gotten halfway through signing up. I suppose it doesn't surprise me though....
One thing that I told the webmaster several months ago is that I think the website itself is very nice and easy to navigate, but the main problem with it, frankly, was him. He seems intent on running it into the ground without realizing that's what he's doing. It's strange.
Posted by train lady (Member # 3920) on :
Smitty, when we were kids my cousin used to say"if I can't be the headest I am not going to play" Sounds to me like the monarch of trainorders is suffering from the same syndrome
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
We should think twice before saying too much about this fellow?
Would you put it past him, Mr. Smith?
Posted by smitty195 (Member # 5102) on :
I would not put it past him at all. I actually expect it, which is why I made sure that everything was my "opinion" or was "alleged". Free speech is still a right in this country, and as long as I'm giving my opinion, it's covered. Whether I give my opinion via internet postings or a Yelp page, it's still my opinion. Now if I said something like, "Todd Clark is gay", then I'm posting that as fact, and as far as I understand things, I can be sued for that. But if I were to say, "It is my opinion that Todd Clark is allegedly gay", that changes the picture because I'm just rambling on about my opinion---not stating anything factual. (And I have no idea if he is or is not, nor do I care....just using something for example purposes).
But I did make sure that everything I wrote was clearly my opinion and/or was something alleged. I did that with the intent of knowing that he is allegedly lawsuit happy, in my opinion, and I wanted to cover myself. Besides, he is a business owner on the internet, and you've got to expect some unhappy customers to walk away and complain every now and then. It's part of the cost of doing business.
Posted by train lady (Member # 3920) on :
I still do not understand how people can not have an opinion about someone or something that is uncomplimentary. where is freedom of speech? Can you be sued for expressing your opinion?
Posted by PullmanCo (Member # 1138) on :
I have never been on trainorders.
I've been active here for over a decade.
I've been on railroad.net for a few days now.
I am active on the PassengerCarList group at yahoo, which is a technical group discussing passenger equipment and operations.
Posted by smitty195 (Member # 5102) on :
I have found that between this board, and one other that I frequent (which is also free), I get all of the answers and information that I could ever need or use. That "pay" website sometimes will have info that the other two don't have, but that is a rarity.
Additionally, we can speak freely here and disagree---but still be friends in the end. On the other one, you actually pay to get yelled at. It's bizarre.
Posted by smitty195 (Member # 5102) on :
quote:Originally posted by train lady: You are absolutely right Vicki. I have been with Amtrak since the beginning and take a propriatory interest.
Have you seen this month's issue of "Trains" magazine? There is a good article written by one of Amtrak's original on-board train managers. He talks about the behind-the-scenes shenanigans that went on when Amtrak first became Amtrak. Besides the neat pictures of Amtrak trains that don't run any more, it's a VERY interesting read. Next month's issue will have a "Part 2" to his story. Since you've been with Amtrak since Day One, you might want to read his stories. Some of them are pretty funny (like when he chased an electrician through the Chicago yards, trying to get him to fix an a/c unit on a train before departure, but he never caught up with him!).
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