I think someone else mentioned it recently, but I want to bring it up again. This site is definitely not what it used to be!

At first I thought that the site was becoming less interesting as a natural function of people finally getting their cars and thus having less to speculate about.

But tonight I put up a simple request for pics of the dealer-installed "factory leather" in the general section (where I thought it should go). Instead, it was whisked away to one of the non-general forums (modifications) where it seems most all threads go to die.

IMO, the site would be much better if it were simplified and centralized. I don't know about anyone else, but I'm sick of browsing from forum to forum to find the good threads on the Z.

I haven't given this a ton of thought, but I think the site would be just fine with 4 or 5 forums such as:

(1) General -- Everything Z related, from mods to detailing to technical

(2) Classified

(3) Off topic

(4) Member Photos


The advantages of having a truly "general" section is that the number of views are maximized thus increasing the likelihood that others who have pertinent information can respond. Second, the good threads rise to the top quite literally, making threads easy to negotiate w/o having an excess number of forums.

I'm sure that the intent of the new forums was to simplify people's search to exactly what they are seeking. However, I think it has had the opposite effect because few people seem to bother to browse the other forums.

I just think the site is overly sub-divided. God help us if there is ever a "350z Floormats" forum.

 

Okay. I don't know how to put this, but here I go. The site is subdivided so everyone can find exactly what they're looking for easily. If you're looking for some technical advice, head to the technical forum. If you're looking for some mods, head to the modifications forum. If we were to have one general section, we would have to "whisk" through 6 pages of new info every hour. Is that what we want? Probably not. Things are more organized this way. Things are easier to find - the site is easier to navigate. IMO of course.

 

Zgirl---I understand what your saying, but I don't agree. You're assuming that everyone who comes on knows what they want to talk or learn about. Someone may come to talk about the latest mag. test, but that person would be equally interested to enter a disucssion about wheels if he/she were aware of it.

With a more expansive general section, you can see the best threads about each topic. This is ensured by the fact that the threads with the newest posts move to the top.

Personally, I'm interested in everything about the Z (as I think many others on here are). To me, its much easier and more enjoyable to see good threads about detailing, someone turbo-charging his engine and the latest mag. article one after another in the same forum.

Plus, people have been complaining about the speed of browsing through the new site. I think having many forums is contributing to the slowdown in browsing.

 

I have to agree with Mikey on this one. I typically visit the General forum every day just to see what discussions are happening. Occasionally I will check out the others, but maybe more like once a week or once every couple of weeks.

Very rarely, if ever, do I come here to look specifically for modifications, etc. I think people who do look for something specific try to search for it, so having the separate categories seems a redundant. I think Mikey's suggestions are good ones, but at the very least, I would combine the technical section with the general section since it seems those two cross often.

Just one man's opinion...

Overall, though, I totally dig the site, and it is pretty much the one place I go to learn or talk about the Z.

-D'oh!

 

I don't remember there being so many forums, but others would know better than me. But even if there has always technically been many forums, in practice, everything Z related used to be found in "general."

The only things I remember from the old site getting moved were either off topic or classified. Even then, the posts would still get some play in general w/ a "MOVED" tag on them.

I still remember when some Z4 news came out a couple months ago and someone posted a "350z v. Z4" thread. It was hot in the general forum until it was moved to off topic. I remember at least one person posting their displeasure with the move, probably because they knew it would die (as it soon did).

 

I've been running message boards for a few years, and here's my 2 cents.

They serve two purposes, much like a human brain: (1) stream of thought/entertainment/short term, and (2) archival/research/long term.

Most of the time you just come on to pick up a thread, shoot the breeze or whatever. For that, organization *detracts,* because you just want to pick up the latest threads and run with it. You're not looking for anything in particular, so you're happy with whatever you get.

Then there's the other aspect, where people want to find a certain bit of info. Categories can greatly help out there, but ONLY if they're well organized and maintained. If they are full of silly posts and "me too" posts, with all kinds of odd titles, forget it. The search feature is already a better alternative.

The best way I have found to deal with it is to break it into two parts: the huge unorganized message board, and a short concise knowledge base. Anything goes on the message board. It's just a place to hang out and share volitile information. There's no reason to try and categorize or maintain any of it. Then the knowledge base is different. Members of the site have to understand how to use it. Whenever they get some info on the message board that they think is important, whenever a good point is made, a really good high-quality post, or whenever some NEW fact is known, it can be added to the knowledge base in a distilled form, with a meaningful title, and some personal responsibility by the poster.

That way you get the best of both worlds.

 

This is one of those things that sounds like a good idea, but is a total disaster in practice. Nobody is going to go visit all those separate areas, and there is no way of knowing where a certain message will be. I visit the General forum, period; I don't have time or the desire to go poking into every area. Using the board is not a logical process of "I want to find this message on this topic", it's a place to hang out and discuss the Z. I agree there should be a forum for classifieds, maybe one for local meetings, and a General forum for everything else. An example of why this doesn't work is "technical"; how do you decide how technical something is before it has to go there? What if I have a question about a problem with the windshield wipers -- is that "Technical"?

I have to agree 100% with mikeyDNY and nbdyfcnsqnc. (An FAQ is a good idea too.)

 

Heh, I just posted similar sentiments in another thread before reading this. I think fewer simple forums are better. I especially don't see the need for a technical and a mod section.

I could even understand maybe an audio sectoin, but then combine the mods and technical sections together.

Too much fragmentation makes the site too much work. Just because different sections are easy to create doesn't make the forums easier to use. It often seems the opposite to me.

As for knowledge bases, isn't that what search if for?

Just MHO

 

doesn't anyone just click on "view new posts" each time they visit? I never even go into the specific forums, just to the new posts and it shows everything.

 

I disagree with the topic poster. The separation of forums means that if I do not wish to peruse threads about off topic, modifications or technology I do not have to. If I am interested in them then I do not have to wade through the general section finding them. To those who feel this is difficult: hey, it is not rocket science. It’s just clicking a mouse. To those who feel no one will read your threads when moved, realize this is the category where that post should go; the place where those interested will find it. It is not a punishment but organization for the rest of us.

Keep the ten sections. I am sure with a little effort everyone can learn to enjoy the separation of topics.

 

I think we are "wading" to find posts with the site as is. Before, you could cover most new/interesting threads in just 2 or 3 pages of the general section. Now you have to go through 1-3 pages of each forum.

Over-dividing the forums is redundant anyway. We know what the threads are about from the titles. I.E.: "I got my car"; "Zaino"; "350z v. Buick LeSabre"--OK, maybe that one hasn't come up---yet

There aren't nearly enough members/new threads to justify so many forums.

 

Honestly, my number of posts is dwindling... why? I'm an owner now and to be honest (maybe a bit selfish here) I don't care too much about people just getting their for the first time. The sad part of it is that this is the logical manner of things... it's a community, people post what they want to post. As it grows it becomes increasingly difficult to manage. Voices get swallowed in the hord of commentary.

 

I have to agree with the poster and supporters. If you don't want an answer to your question, the best way to post it is in one of the forums other than general. Hardly anyone goes to these other forums on a regular basis. Sure, I understand that archiving old posts in these other forums is a good idea for someone to just peruse if they want information about mods, but it is death to have a live post taken out of general. That is a fact. Maybe the moderators should require a week of inactivity on a post before moving it to one of the other forums. Then, we could assure that everyone has the opportunity to see it before it is put in the basement. JMHO.

 

exactly. This works great for me, so I can see new posts regardless of the category. I would like to be able to limit which forums it displays, but that isn't a big deal. The separation is nice because it makes it easier for me to find something specific if I want to go back to look later on. I would like more sections, with more strict organization, personally. I would like to see forums for "I just got my Z", audio/video, regional forums, problems/defects, etc. The more the better, but of course this makes a lot more work for the mods, because they would have to be even more strict about what posts go where.