[razark]

I know I've read about skippers sitting or lying on the deck to look through the scope.

Edit:
Most of the incidents of using the scope this way involved very shallow water, where extending the scope all the way would have left it very exposed. I also seem to recall one mention where the crew modified the scope so it could be partially extended and used in the Control Room, rather than the Conning Tower. I'm not sure exactly how that was accomplished.