You probably receive a message explaining why you got specced. Most common reason is lag. The message probably says something like "You were put in spectator mode due to high latency (C2S)" Or something like that. C2S means Client to Server, and S2C is server to client... But either way, there's not much you can do... Type ?ping and ?lag to get info on your current lag. Make sure no other programs that use the Internet connection are running at the same time. Try different zones, some might get you less lag. By the way, you don't have to close down the program to get back in a ship. Just press Esc, then a number from 1 to 8 to choose a ship. If you're too laggy, it will tell you that you can't get in the game. Which zone were you playing in? What kind of Internet connection do you use? Are you on wireless?