Was glancing through the library stacks in my hometown (which I think at the time was Spokane). I was a big fan of the “Imponderables” series and was looking for similar books. I picked up “Return of the Straight Dope” and found out it answered questions nobody else would even think of and did so with a wildly distinctive style. I ended up buying and enjoying all the early books. When doing a Yahoo search for “Straight Dope”, I found out about the website and thus the message board.
This would almost be funny, if it wasn’t so stupid. Hint - try subtracting 2000 from 2007 and add the result to 17, and see what you get.
498?
I don’t get it.
I have plenty of spare time ( I am my own boss) in my office and hence surf the net. I had taken two online IQ Tests, and wanted to search for Marylin Vos Savant . The wikipedia article on her had reference to " Monty Hall " problem, where unca Cecil had goofed initially.
Since then I am hooked.
But I signed up only now, though I have been visiting for 3 years or so…
This post has been indigoed, by the indian.
:DI was bored and was googling “humor” I think. That lead me to the column, which led me to the boards.
It’s very basic math, how in the world did you wind up with 498?
Anyways, the whole point was that his inane rambling, aside from being nearly nonsensical and almost insulting in nature, was also wholly ignorant.
Started with the books in the early nineties. Found it on AOL in the late nineties. Chatted on AOL occasionally. Then when it left AOL I lurked for a few months before joining. I’ve gone through phases where I lurk alot.
It was linked to the JokeaDay.com site a while ago.
I joined a looong while ago, but my username got eaten by hamsters, and I re-joined in 2001.
Read it regularly in the local alternative in the '80-'90’s, looked up Cecil Adams while playing one day in the mid-late '90’s (maybe '97?), lurked, read columns, stopped reading, started again, then eventually gave in and signed up. Still don’t have much to add other than hey man, love the column.
I absolutely can not remember. I had never heard of Cecil Adams or The Straight Dope. I guess I just found it by accident.
I remember where I was when I signed up though. I had been loaned out to our sister company to do a proposal (engineering stuff.) I was in a trailer freezing my ass off in the winter of whatever year - 2000? I’ll have to look after I post this.
Heh. It was the summer. So much for my freakin’ memory. 
I found it in the humour category of Yahoo!, started reading the columns, found the messageboards, and here I am.
I looked up the word “colitas” from The Eagles’ “Hotel California”, and the first link in Google was to Cecil’s article on it. Then I read the rest of the archives, and then I discovered the message board. I’d never seen a message board before. I might have passed it over, but Auntie Em had a thread going about her missing co-worker. That’s what got me hooked.
Back in the day I watched *The Straight Dope * TV show and decided to check out its website once.
A 1 year subscription bought and paid for by MsWhatsIt
Same here.
I lurked for a while, read the archives, used it as reference, but only recently joined. I’ve been a member at another ‘literate’ board for about 5 years now, and SD is becoming my go-to when that one’s slow.
Started a really awful job and while surfing for information on werewolves and mummies (don’t ask - it kept me sane) I found one of the columns. Spent a few months reading the rest and then ventured onto the boards in (I think) early 2000 and have been lurking ever since, eventually registering somewhere along the way.
I came here via a cross-post on the snopes.com board (during the whole Wally thing).