Author Topic: suggestion: "basic", and "advanced" tech boards? (Read 4782 times)

paulages · « **on:** February 20, 2007, 03:27:35 PM »

seems like the site is getting enough traffic that some refinement of the tech section could be helpful. anyone agree? not complaining, glenn. the site's great as-is...just a thought.

mlinder · « **Reply #1 on:** February 20, 2007, 03:39:36 PM »

Would help categorizing issues, but at the end of the day, what is basic for one person might be advanced for another, which could lead to some confusion as to where to post.
Maybe different sections such as "general engine maint", "electrical", "performance", "carb setup", whatever, though there are both advanced and basic questions in all of those, as well.
Hell, I dunno, never mind me.

MrFry · « **Reply #2 on:** February 20, 2007, 04:10:24 PM »

Quote from: mlinder on February 20, 2007, 03:39:36 PM

Would help categorizing issues, but at the end of the day, what is basic for one person might be advanced for another, which could lead to some confusion as to where to post.
Maybe different sections such as "general engine maint", "electrical", "performance", "carb setup", whatever, though there are both advanced and basic questions in all of those, as well.
Hell, I dunno, never mind me.

i'd have to agree -
being new to the site it is a bit general, looks like anything maintenece/performance/technical is all under the same thread
one of my favorite forums is: http://www.ducatimonster.org/
and if you look they have it catagorized under seperate headings: Tech - accessories/mods - general forum (for anything mosnter related), etc.
might be worth considering - but this is just a suggestion
i like the board either way

paulages · « **Reply #3 on:** February 20, 2007, 04:52:10 PM »

good point mark, and i thought about that. it would be hard to classify what's advanced, and what's not. could be a whole section just for hondaman, Mreick, two tired, etc.

i guess when it comes down to it, i just think it might be helpful to have a "i just bought an SOHC--can you tell me where the battery is, etc." type section. no condescention intended there at all, either. i think this board can be a very helpful educational source for a lot of people--myself included--but sometimes it seems like the tech board has enough of both that some interesting stuff gets lost in the shuffle. not to mention that making an obvious place for noobie questions could be helpful to the proud new SOHC owner.

Geeto67 · « **Reply #4 on:** February 20, 2007, 04:56:40 PM »

how about we do it like some of the car sites do, break it up into engine, suspension, bodywork and upolstry.

That way those "what tanks fit" questions don't keep poping up when you are trying to figure out how to install a timing chain or something.

besides you need the advanced people reading the basic people's posts to tell the basic people how stupid they are.

mlinder · « **Reply #5 on:** February 20, 2007, 04:57:44 PM »

Quote from: paulages on February 20, 2007, 04:52:10 PM

good point mark, and i thought about that. it would be hard to classify what's advanced, and what's not. could be a whole section just for hondaman, Mreick, two tired, etc. i guess when it comes down to it, i just think it might be helpful to have a "i just bought an SOHC--can you tell me where the battery is, etc." type section. no condescention intended there at all, either. i think this board can be a very helpful educational source for a lot of people--myself included--but sometimes it seems like the tech board has enough of both that some interesting stuff gets lost in the shuffle. not to mention that making an obvious place for noobie questions could be helpful to the proud new SOHC owner.

Yuh, all true.
I think problem specific sub categories might do it.

HITMAN · « **Reply #6 on:** February 20, 2007, 05:01:38 PM »

I agreed with the thought at first, but after thinking about it. What if a wiring issue turned out to really be a carb issue, or a simple/newbie problem that was really a deep technical problem over looked because it was in a place the advanced techies dont look.

One of the best this I like about this board is separation by bike only, ones answer may be different, better or faster than anothers. But most of all it's a forum answer most likely NOT over looked by the largest SOHC 'think tank' of knowledge.

paulages · « **Reply #7 on:** February 20, 2007, 05:14:51 PM »

Quote from: HITMAN on February 20, 2007, 05:01:38 PM

I agreed with the thought at first, but after thinking about it. What if a wiring issue turned out to really be a carb issue, or a simple/newbie problem that was really a deep technical problem over looked because it was in a place the advanced techies dont look.

i agree, but threads are commonly moved by the admins if they are in the wrong place.

HITMAN · « **Reply #8 on:** February 20, 2007, 05:22:11 PM »

I would agree with adding 'variety' to the list, so far there is SOHC and Others. Most of my experience in others ranges from Harley, Yammy, Hodaka, etc. But ask me about a Zuki... forget it. Most of us come together with a common interest, but we all own one or a few of 'others'.

Just don't want to completely be the devils advocate

.

WJL75 · « **Reply #9 on:** February 20, 2007, 05:27:23 PM »

Most of the Newbie questions have been answered in previous posts. Searching for the the answer would resolve most repeats. That being too much to ask, sub sections on engine, carbs, body work, suspension, etc is not a bad idea, but issues can cross into many catagories. What about rebuild threads? Most would fit into all catagories?
I enjoy reading all of the posts, even when I don't have any issues that need attention on my bike. I can always learn something new, and it is part of the charm of this wonderful little forum.

heffay · « **Reply #10 on:** February 20, 2007, 05:34:52 PM »

variety is good and i do agree some distinction might be nice.

one thing to keep in mind though is that most people use the "show unread posts since last visit" link exclusively... actually, i even have my bookmark set to take me to unread since last visit window. with that in mind... many of us don't even look at the board a post resides in but rather click on a topic that looks interesting.

in the same breath... a tech forum just about sums it up, if you have a tech question it goes in the tech forum. a subject heading works wonders for explaining the basic problem or issue.

as for the basic vs. advanced... not specific enough for our broad base of users

the issue that hitman brought up is interesting too... refer to medic09's recent thread
http://www.sohc4.us/forums/index.php?topic=18547.0;topicseen
where would you suggest he post that when things are so segregated? that question is not meant to be answered... just imagine all of the different answers we would see and that is the point.

my78k · « **Reply #11 on:** February 20, 2007, 05:41:46 PM »

I agree that the biggest problem with the cluttering of the tech board is guys being lazy or claiming that the question they are going to ask just didn't seem to match up to what was already posted (the clanking sound they have doesn't match the clunking sound that someone else had).

I have to admit though that I have made similar mistakes but generally I spend FAR more time reading than I do posting (ofcourse that's also because in most instances I don't have the right answer to post!)

Biggest issue I could see with trying to separate would be stuff like "My bike won't idle"...could fit into carb related, electrical or any other of the categories (other than upholstery

)

I think we just need to get better at utilizing the posts that are already out there...TT, Mrieck etc have already answered damn near every scenario I can think of...

Dennis

techy5025 · « **Reply #12 on:** February 20, 2007, 05:54:10 PM »

My personal thought is ... the fewer the forum "folders" the better. Many topics would not
fit in defined slots and be missed. Generally speaking, what happens on sites with many forums
is that they all wind up being posted in one or two and the moderators spend a lot of time
moving posts to what they think is the "correct" forum which then results in arguments.

I would be happy with only two forums here...tech and "other".

Jim

HITMAN · « **Reply #13 on:** February 20, 2007, 06:20:19 PM »

Quote

one thing to keep in mind though is that most people use the "show unread posts since last visit" link exclusively... actually, i even have my bookmark set to take me to unread since last visit window. with that in mind... many of us don't even look at the board a post resides in but rather click on a topic that looks interesting.

I can do that??? Cool.

I have to admit that I am a reader more than I am a poster, unless I have something contributing to post. Just shy of 30 years working on bikes I can offer help when helpis needed, but when some of us started you had to learn from books, experienced people or worse off by trial and error. With the internet and available information out here the you'uns are the ones to learn from (be it good or bad).

It sounds like my day job maintaining computer system/network for a major hospital chain, what was needed was an 'Information Library' where the information was compiled and categorized for reference. Yes, I am guilty of asking the question 'already asked' but the search feature can be quite tasking at times, or I just need to be more patient in my searches

.

Bob Wessner · « **Reply #14 on:** February 20, 2007, 06:25:17 PM »

One other thing to keep in mind. It's not unusual for a thread to wander across multiple topics once it starts. It may start out about carbs, then someone, a half dozen replies later steers it towards electrical issues. How would/should that one be classified? I would hate to have to get into splitting threads to properly classify them into more finite categories.

I guess I have a vested interest, eh?

mrbreeze · « **Reply #15 on:** February 20, 2007, 06:47:22 PM »

I like it just fine the way it is now although Paul has a good point of having an advanced tech section. The topic could be started in the general tech section and then as long as it doesn't steer into other topics,bump it to the advanced zone. Like Heffey,I always start with my unread topics...then on to unread topics. If there is something that isn't rehashed and I know I had seen it before,I do a search.

mick750F · « **Reply #16 on:** February 20, 2007, 07:32:51 PM »

When this current forum was started from the ashes of the old Greenspun boards it was decided by Glenn, and others I believe, to keep the tech forum more generalized. It used to be divided by bike size with each getting it's own forum. Because so many things apply across the sohc spectrum it was decided to use just a single tech forum.

One thing that I think is missing from the Greenspun boards is non-tech sohc forum. It kind of fell between the tech forum we have here and the open forum. A place to talk about paint, accessories, seats, mirrors, cosmetic things...etc. that apply to sohc bikes. It would take a lot of the clutter out of the tech forum which could be more dedicated to true technical topics.

To get into basic and advanced for the tech forum sounds like a moderators nightmare to me...more so than a tech/non-tech set-up.

Mike

paulages · « **Reply #17 on:** February 21, 2007, 12:24:21 AM »

ok, i gotta be honest. i just want some newcomers to research more before posting, when it comes down to it. the sticky at the top sometimes seems to be ignored. i agree that the tech board is kept interesting by its diversity--hell, i don't even look at the other sections usually. it's great that there are continually people on here who will answer those questions with no attitude (but good will), but i do wish sometimes that the really simple questions would be researched first. it doesn't take long to figure out that owning a 30+ year old bike means learning how to turn some wrenches, which in turn means asking elementary questions...but if you don't know where the battery is on a motorcycle, you shouldn't be riding it.

SteveD CB500F · « **Reply #18 on:** February 21, 2007, 01:40:44 AM »

I don't like the search functionality on this board at all...

I can never get it to find what I'm looking for - even if I'm looking for a specific post.

We'll have to petition Glenn to put some Google technology in there. It may not be technically superior, but most of us know how to use it. Wait a minute! Google can search specific sites anyway (can't it?)

Web-guru help needed please.

Bob Wessner · « **Reply #19 on:** February 21, 2007, 02:54:51 AM »

Quote

Wait a minute! Google can search specific sites anyway (can't it?)

Steve,

I agree on your assessment of the forum's built-in search. I use Google and select limit it to the current site. I works much better.

zoomer · « **Reply #20 on:** February 21, 2007, 03:11:05 AM »

Google huh, nice!

I have asked a few noobie questions myself as I am looking to buy one. Where's the buyers guide? But I have spent a long time reading too. I would like posters to be a bit more specific with their title as a lot of so called tech threads turn out to be fluff after I have waited for them to download ( slow internet here )

Lumbee · « **Reply #21 on:** February 21, 2007, 07:27:29 AM »

...the google search with a particular domain is very powerful...go to:

http://www.google.com/advanced_search?hl=en

...then in the "Domain'Only' return results from the site or domain" section put "http://www.sohc4.us/forums"

...as far as a new folder the only thing I think could possibly be valuble is a "Other than stock" or "High Perfomance" section for things like Big Bore kits, porting ect...

gregimotis · « **Reply #22 on:** February 21, 2007, 07:57:50 AM »

I found this site a couple years ago when I first got my bike F1. At the time the bike had any number of things wrong with it - mostly just thirty years of accumulated quirks - I imagine that is the case with most older bikes that haven't been meticulously cared for.

The best thing for me was too simply go from thread to thread reading all the possible problems and solutions. Eventually I found my immediate problem and at the same time learned about the other three things I needed to do next. 'How to time the bike' led me to 'how to clean the carbs', for instance, and that led to' how to clean the tank' - which was my real problem.

Had the board been better organized, I might have missed that experience.

On another note;
although I try to use the search feature and agree everyone should, but if the search worked perfectly, and everybody used it all the time, we could pretty much close the forum and go home - between the new forum and the old one, it's all been covered. That's something to keep in the back of your mind the next time someone posts the 45th thread "How do I get these hard-arsed plastic boots back on my carbs.

On a third note:
I help mod another forum on a different subject and find it's a funny thing - deciding whether to change things, close threads, move threads etc is one big balancing act. Make too many changes and stifle the free-ranging discussion, make too few and get a non-sense jumble and a troll-fest.

Jv550 · « **Reply #23 on:** February 21, 2007, 11:44:14 AM »

This board ain't broken so let's not try to fix it OK? I know I've asked my share of dumb questions and have been grateful for the help. If we had avanced tech and basic tech forums, all the guys who could give a concise and accurate answer to idiots like me would be partitioned off on the advanced board discussing cylinder metallurgy or some other esoteric junk and all the hacks and blowhards would be on the basic board giving questionable advice to hopelessly inept jerks who can't even figure out how to adjust their timing. (That would be me

)

Sometimes when a noob asks a dumb question, it's because they either don't know the terminology in order to search for their problem or they just can't find an answer that makes sense to them. Sometimes they just need a little "you can do it" from someone trustworthy, which is worth a lot, let me tell you. I've learned more from this site about MCs in just a couple months than I did in almost a decade of owning bikes, so somebody's doing something right around here.

UnCrash · « **Reply #24 on:** February 21, 2007, 12:03:05 PM »

I use Google to search this site as well. Use the trick below and you will rule the archives!

I just type in my query like this ----->

wiring diagram 750 site:www.sohc4.us
bonehead site:www.sohc4.us
float site:www.sohc4.us
carpy site:www.sohc4.us
tires for my cb750f site:www.sohc4.us

News:

Author Topic: suggestion: "basic", and "advanced" tech boards? (Read 4782 times)

zoomer