Should GT Tech lounge be separate from 156/147 lounge?

Im a bit torn on this. Maybe the 3.2 V6 versions should be in with the GTA's? But where do you stop

Originally Posted by OperationAlfa

I'm glad I made this into a poll. But my word how close are the results..

Yeah, I know a can of worms when I see one, and I always carry my trusty can of worms opener

jamieboy made a good suggestion, that you could have model specific induvidual subforums under the main technical general discussion. I use another forum with this layout (cameras not cars) and it works well.


At the moment though, the poll is not going to help the mod's decided as its dead 50%/50% tie!

I think it's too early to call yet. All changes regardless of format tend to be questioned initially because in general people are happy and content in their "comfort zone".

In addition the whole AO site site seems a bit on the quiet side at the momemt - hols etc so it's very difficult to tell whather the changes are having a beneficial effect.

I think we should allow the thing to settle down over a couple of months and revisit it then.


Will

Originally Posted by Breidan Mulk

I think it's too early to call yet. All changes regardless of format tend to be questioned initially because in general people are happy and content in their "comfort zone".

In addition the whole AO site site seems a bit on the quiet side at the momemt - hols etc so it's very difficult to tell whather the changes are having a beneficial effect.

I think we should allow the thing to settle down over a couple of months and revisit it then.


Will

So we'll have a poll and then forget about the result until those who disagree have left the forum.

Incidentally the Dutch have a separate club for the GT with a very detailed and active forum with about 15 well populated sub-forums. I cant imagine that there are more GT owners in Holland than in the UK and they can support a full blown dedicated web site!

See here: Alfa Romeo GT Club :: Index

Come on all GT owners - Vote for a separate forum.

Wonder if the moderaters will heed the outcome of the poll?

Originally Posted by professorib

Come on all GT owners - Vote for a separate forum.

Wonder if the moderaters will heed the outcome of the poll?

So let's get this straight, you join a forum and
then within three months are calling for a split
due to changes that have been debated/asked
about for a good few years?




A lot of work has been put into the reorg.
Sometime people forget how much work
it does take to shuffle things around

Not something that should be done
every other month?

Originally Posted by Nev

So let's get this straight, you join a forum and
then within three months are calling for a split
due to changes that have been debated/asked
about for a good few years?




?

Nev

I do not underestimate the amount of work involved in forum reorganisation & maintenance and if you check my other posts in relation to this change I have made the workload related point previously:
http://www.alfaowner.com/Forum/annou...ml#post1640878 (BUGS Found with site)

I also have to say it is a bit much to criticise me for only having joined 3 months ago and having the audacity to have a view on this issue. Hardly in the spirit of free speech. I think I should aso point out that I could not have known about any longer term discussions on this issue because as you rightly point out I have only recently joined. Your post is the only indication that this has been hotly debated over a number of years.

Anyway my point is that the GT is a relatively new model and as such many more new owners are likely to come on stream over the next few years and will frankly be discouraged if they can find little devoted to their model. If that makes me small minded and single model focused then maybe yours is fair criticism but can I suggest that when you buy a car you like to see a reliable source of good information, about your model, logically laid out that you can refer to.

When I joined, just 3 short months ago, the GT/GTA forum was just that - now the 147/156 info predominates so this forum becomes less novice friendly and they [new GT owners] must rely on the search function to find their information. Nothing wrong with that I hear you say but remember this is a forum - a community of like minded alfa enthusiasts - unfortunately the search function does not foster and build that community spirit. The forum becomes like an encyclopedia - something to be referred to when absolutely necessary. I appreciate you are a long term member with over 10,000 posts but if others don't do as you have and foster the community it will slowly degrade and loose its usefulness.

I honestly believe that fewer lurking GT owners who currently "use" the forum will take the plunge and convert/join this excellent forum and resource if their model is not given a defined home forum. I would also say that this applies to each and every model not just GT's


IB

Originally Posted by Nev

So let's get this straight, you join a forum and
then within three months are calling for a split
due to changes that have been debated/asked
about for a good few years?

Ned, where have these changes been debated prior to being made?



(link to thread please?)

Originally Posted by TallPaul

Ned, where have these changes been debated prior to being made?



(link to thread please?)

I must have dreamt it because
thread searching reveals nothing.





I was sure that over the last few years
there were calls for a consolidation of
lounges based on platform and also
calls for an ICE and/ or BandM lounge

As I can't find any such threads I must
have been mistaken.

Sorry.







Edit:

Here:
http://www.alfaowner.com/Forum/annou...efore-but.html
http://www.alfaowner.com/Forum/annou...59-topics.html (Possiblity of merging Brera and 159 topics ?)
http://www.alfaowner.com/Forum/annou...l-lounges.html (Model lounges)

Originally Posted by professorib

Wonder if the moderaters will heed the outcome of the poll?

We will certainly take it into consideration


Fact is, moving threads takes a lot of time and since we all do this in our spare time (sort of ), we plan changes to the forum only after we strongly believe the changes will benefit the vast majority of users. So, we hope not to change things around too often but when we do, we hope it's good

Originally Posted by BigFoot

We will certainly take it into consideration


Fact is, moving threads takes a lot of time and since we all do this in our spare time (sort of ), we plan changes to the forum only after we strongly believe the changes will benefit the vast majority of users. So, we hope not to change things around too often but when we do, we hope it's good

Please take this in a constructive way (as I am writing it as a constructive comment not any kind of critisim), but if its a big job to move threads, on a big change like merging forums, would it not be worth debating the change with members before it happens in future rather than make a change that is later changed again? (which may not be a reversal, but an additional change for example).

Not my forum and the owners are free to run it as they feel fit, but if you don't get the division right, then you loose members, and if you keep changing things you end up with a lit of broken links and things don't show up in search engines for example as they used to etc.

For an example of a high-volume forum thats divided by technical topic then by model check out www.avforums.co.uk they have common forums such as high definition players, then sub-forums for Blueray and HD-DVD as an example. This sort of layout would make the most sense, with a 147/156/GT forum with 147, 156 and GT sub-forums for model specific discussions.

I'll shut up now

Although I note today more people think it should be a separate forum than in with 156/147, and all of the mod's must have voted no by now

Originally Posted by TallPaul

...... and all of the mod's must have voted no by now

I agree with TallPaul but then I think you might have guessed that from from my previous posts!

Platform "mother" forum and "model" sub-forums may be a fair compromise - offering the best of both worlds to both sides of this discussion? Not sure what this does to the moderation load - as a complete noob in that area??

Originally Posted by BigFoot

...... So, we hope not to change things around too often but when we do, we hope it's good

and I congratulate you on most of these changes - the ICE forum and engine forum are very welcome developments - I really do appreciate that this is the product of a lot of volunteered hard work and am in no way criticising anyone in suggesting these changes.

I really hope the AO forum develops and attracts more [even more!] owner driver members and thus thrives. It is just too valuable a resource and some reorganisation may promote that.

IB

Originally Posted by professorib

I also have to say it is a bit much to criticise me for only having joined 3 months ago and having the audacity to have a view on this issue. Hardly in the spirit of free speech.

Previous discussion links that I
could find are posted above.

If my criticism comes across "as a bit much"
maybe you should also consider that calling
for an separate GT lounge and even hinting
toward a separate forum (a la Hollandaise)
may seem a bit elitist to me. Especially when other
posts have kinda been hinting that GT owners
are in a different "class" of owner

Originally Posted by professorib

Anyway my point is that the GT is a relatively new model and as such many more new owners are likely to come on stream over the next few years and will frankly be discouraged if they can find little devoted to their model.~but can I suggest that when you buy a car you like to see a reliable source of good information, about your model, logically laid out that you can refer to.

The GT is hardly a new model, it was launch
5 years ago. The facelifted 147 would actually
be "newer".


I just find it strange that you GT guys want to
restrict yourselves to a separate lounge when so
much info is common between the 147/156 and
GT.

From experience it was a pain to have Brera stuff
in a different lounge than the 159 and a lot of
question just kept getting repeated in both lounges.
Hopefully the re-org will stop a lot of these multiple
threads for the exact same issue.



Didn't see GTV/Spider posts pushing
Brera threads off the front page as an issue
either.


I really doubt any Brera member would be asking
to go back to how it was before, or even for a separate
Brera lounge. (Yes I did joke about
this in one of the above linked threads.)


And I can't really say that forum coverage
enters into the choice of car I buy.

Originally Posted by professorib

When I joined, just 3 short months ago, the GT/GTA forum was just that - now the 147/156 info predominates so this forum becomes less novice friendly and they [new GT owners] must rely on the search function to find their information.

There is also a lot of posting concerning
certain common issues that the current
setup should help.

I don't know how many threads about
keys have been started in the old lounges
over the years......