Dearest David, unless something major has changed, a new member must financially support this site in order to get PM privileges. Since Pamela just joined last night, it may take Robo a day or two before he gets around to taking care of such matters. I am not sure how often he is on any more, but a while back it was about once a week... though that may have been a one time thing. Although having said that, anyone with messaging abilities can start a conversation with Pamela. Generally it is considered better to get to know people a little before jumping in to PMs with them, though...