[vitaflo]

I'm a ham and I agree with you but you're missing the fact that the people you may hear locally aren't indicative of the broader hobby. Yes there are a lot of grumpy old elitists chatting up the airwaves every day, but there are also people who rarely if ever talk but still do things with the hobby (like myself). There are so many sub-genres in the hobby that someone can always find something they enjoy.

If anything we need more people like you to get involved so we can have more diversity of thought.

[masukomi]

Yes. That ^^^

I rarely talk on mine, and the folks who are really into it aren't generally the type i'd want to hang with, but i want to be of service to my community in an emergency, and i want to be able to communicate with others in an emergency for purely selfish reasons.

also, it's kinda cool to be in a strange area, start talking, and find locals who can point you to a good place to eat, or spend the night, or whatever. ;)

[chrissnell]

Indeed. If you're athletic or want to get there, I highly recommend checking out Summits On The Air (SOTA). It's all about climbing mountains with backpack- or goat-portable ham gear and building clever but lightweight antennas on the summit for hasty conversations. It's a blast and the people are almost universally interesting and nice. The total opposite of the guy with the fake police car and yellow flashing light bar on the roof.

[Tunecrew]

I like it for the electronics and hacking - like I said I've got an Amateur Extra class license and a 2x1 call sign, and I have literally NEVER keyed up - not even once.

[dpeck]

Can you share some of the things you do in the hobby? It seems so much of it revolves around voice due to restrictions on traffic (encryption)

[Tunecrew]

so far building electronic stuff - Arduino based CW gear, small antennas, just got some BITX stuff, etc.