How valuable are internet opinions?

Actually my example was not actually specific to guns or this forum. In the case I would site, the focus was about liquid or water cooling computer components. Most people know that heat is an enemy of computers and at some computer enthusiast sites back several years ago it was believed that using larger diameter tubing, which would increase the volume of water being circulated, would greatly increase the effectiveness of the cooling system. What we discovered over time was that this was not the case and that although you could achieve small and barely measurable gains, the real gains came from increasing the flow rate, or how fast you circulated the water. In the end, you only gained one or two degrees by increasing the tubing diameter from 1/4" to as much as 1/2" but the tubing became much harder to manage as you increased the diameter and it was much more likely to "kink" and put more strain on the water block mountings.

Anyway, this would be an example of the "common" belief being incorrect yet perpetuated as people not only accept the incorrect information but repeat it to others as heard. Group think.
 
I'd be interested in an example of this, as I cannot think of one.

Taurus Bashing. Tanfoglio Bashing, Hi-Point hate, etc. Lots of people commenting on Taurus or Tanfoglio have never owned one - just going on what they've read or heard elsewhere
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Ah, ok, in my day, we called it repeating gossip.....

some computer enthusiast sites back several years ago it was believed that using larger diameter tubing, which would increase the volume of water being circulated, would greatly increase the effectiveness of the cooling system. What we discovered over time was that this was not the case and that although you could achieve small and barely measurable gains, the real gains came from increasing the flow rate, or how fast you circulated the water.
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Which is something almost everyone in the refrigeration or the nuclear power industry could have told them upfront, had they been consulted. Flow rate of the coolant is a critical part of heat transfer efficiency.

Group think? I guess that's as good a name as any. What you had in that example, was people who were expert in one field (computers) not being as expert in a different field, and not having (or getting and using) the experience to know that some things that look good as theory do not work that way in the real world.

Happens all the time. Sadly it also happens all the time in politics, too.
 
I find internet opinions useful, insofar in that I take the time to research a firearm myself. there are quite a few members here whose opinions hold a lot of weight for me and these are general folks who know about a particular style of guns because they've used them for years. but, I also think if you have enough people saying bad things about a specific gun then it's most likely going to hold true that it's a piece of junk. for example, I can't think of many people that would actually recommend a Remington 770 because it's common knowledge that this is their budget gun that seems to have had a number of QC issues. if one person said it was junk then I wouldn't pay attention, but if 20 people say it then I'll listen.
 
If you listen to the internet opinions and they help you make a good choice, or prevent a mistake, etc., the I would say they are valuable to you. Most are probably okay, but there are some, especially on some topics, where they will help you get off the road and off into the weeds.
 
They tend to be better than gunshop or campfire advice and opinions. The good thing about the internet is that if someone gives out bad advice there are usually folks who come along shortly with the correct answer. It is also quite easy to provide links with PROOF of the validity of ones comments.
 
The internet is great. I hated the time when Gun Magazines and Gun Writers controlled the discussion. They shaped and molded the public mind and disseminated opinions that came direct from corporate advertizing bureaus.
It took time, and the internet, but now I understand that Gun Magazines are not unbiased, or even objective outlets of information. Because of the internet, firearm problems with quality, quality control, surface quickly and cannot now be stamped out by Gun Magazine editors. Gunwriters commonly write pieces belittling gun forums, because, they are upset that they no longer control the discussion, because they are increasingly becoming irrelevant.

There are people here who opinions I really respect. No one person knows everything, is really an authority in everything, but some really are expert in something and they are worth listening to. And whether or not someone is an "expert", they can at least have an experience to share. They can add value to the world by simply saying "This happened to me....."

We all have opinions, the diversity of humanity makes it all a noisy mess: unpredictable, contradictory , opinionated. Until such time we are assimilated into the collective, we will not be of one mind. Enjoy the diversity of humanity, enjoy the noise. It is us, it is life.
 
I'm not sure I find the "opinions" to be terribly informative but I find this forum to be invaluable.

Without it, I would not be a reloader, would have never built my own custom Savage rifle and would have probably never followed through with getting my handgun permit.

Besides that, the knowledge I have gained on every conceivable firearms topic from hardware to training to legal issues. Immeasurable.
 
OP opinions online are just that an opinion and if that comes from someone in this country I think less of those.
Remember in our country people will buy almost anything and everything made in some other country. The number one thing I have learned in my travels is what other country around the world think of American's and none of us like it. But we did this to us. WE are.
The English think we are the dumbest people on the planet and I believe we are. We will buy imports over goods made here because they are cheap and then we bitch when it brakes. Many gun manufacturers quality is so bad in there home country's the only way to stay in business is to sell in the USA.
I have shots some pistols right out of the box that never should have made it in the box.
If you want an honest opinion do some real research.
 
you can find internet sites that will tell you to clean your brake pads with white lithium grease and to leave it on. you can find websites all over the place that if you did half the things on them, youd either be dead or in federal prison.

Any opinion is that, opinion. You never know how it came about or how smart that person is. for example look at caliber wars.

im told 357 is either too much or too little for a 50 yard shot on a deer. But a compound bow generating 32 sw short muzzle energy is enough for buffalo
 
I think opinion has been well covered, so I'm going to switch gears a bit while staying true to the 'value' conversation.

At this point, I rarely learn new facts through gun boards. To get truly in depth and new information, I'm having to seek subject matter experts through other avenues. What keeps me coming here is perspective. I will occasionally pop into a thread about a dead horse topic, and find a reply that makes me view old data in a useful way. I place a lot of value in this type of find, because it challenges my views, and reminds me that there is always room to grow.

This board and others offer a lot of knowledge, but I come here seeking wisdom.
 
I like a lot of others here visit lots of different boards for info. With that said I still take it with a grain of salt. The internet makes everyone a pro. Do the research on any purchase and you will be better off.
 
I'm not sure that internet opinions are worth what I pay for them since it cost me some money to get this screen stting in front of me and I spend precious time to read those opinions.

I tend to think they are often worth their weight in gold. And since pixels weigh exactly nothing...

The true value of internet opinions is that they give you someplace to start your investigation of the truth. You can quickly get about a half dozen specific things to investigate about any gun, ammunition, or other item and weigh the evidence for yourself.

I don't know a lot of people under the age of 40 so I cannot say what their view would be but for people who came of age before the internet we had to figure most stuff out on our own without a lot of information - picking the wheat from the chaff. That hasn't really changed except that you get a lot more of both - wheat and chaff - really fast now.
 
According to the bulk of opinions on "internet opinions", the gun owning community was far better off, and we all had much better gun knowledge, pre-internet. :rolleyes: I.e. when we had to rely on expert gun writers and gun-shop gurus to tell us which guns were "best".

Ehhhhh, no thanks. If I had to pay 1 ounce of pure gold to have access to all of the gun information on the internet today to avoid going back to the pre-90's and having to rely on tidbits of information I could scrap together from Shotgun News and Gun show venders, I'd gladly pay 1oz of gold for access to "internet opinions".

So, to answer the OP's question, access to internet opinions is worth at least 1oz of solid gold to me....maybe more. :)
 
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