Thread for Ideas for New Topics/Categories

[Foxer]

Since I've been here there's only been ONE category I ever look at ... View New Content

Since I love everything with wheels, this does it and I never miss a thing.

[Aaronw]

I would really like to not see this turn into 47 different sub forums as I have seen done on a number of sites. A few carefully selected broad categories should work.

General - stuff that doesn't belong elsewhere, including marginally off topic but potentially of interest stuff.

Off topic (no politics, no religion, nothing likely to be offensive) stuff that really doesn't belong anywhere else (it's going to get posted might as well give it a place so it keeps it out of other forums)

Cars - 4 to 6 divisions with clearly defined broad applications (I don't build most of these so adjust as appropriate)

Race cars - non-street legal cars built for racing

Performance cars - street legal cars that go fast, includes daily drivers that race weekends (SCCA etc)

Modified cars - generally fast, street legal (mostly), cars with major modifications, hot rods, gassers, etc Not sure if tuners would belong here or under performance.

Custom cars - cars built for style more than performance, low riders, and similar (sorry I really don't know the classes of these cars)

Factory stock - Cars as they looked in the show room (minus those built for speed).

Trucks

Light commercial - working vehicles under class 6 (not neccessarily truck based vehicles), pickup trucks, delivery vans, ambulances, police cars, taxis etc

Light trucks - non-commercial stock to lightly modified light duty trucks, pickups, El Caminos, SUVs etc. Includes street legal performance trucks like the Ford Lightning, Chevy SS454 and GMC Syclone.

Heavy trucks - Class 6-8 big rigs and medium duty trucks. Includes vehicles like fire engines, large utility company trucks, and off highway trucks (Payhauler).

Wild things - Truck specific craziness, Pullers, monster trucks etc. Includes car based vehicles used in these kinds of events.

I don't really see the need to duplicate many of the car sections for light trucks, to me a "low rider" truck belongs with other low riders, a NASCAR truck belongs with race cars. Just because they are built on a light truck instead of a car doesn't mean they need their own section, they should be apprciated by the same people.

I also don't see the point to a xyz forum, wip for xyz forum and underglass for xyz forum. A Cars under glass and a Trucks under glass section seems more than adequate, and wip should be in the appropriate sub category.

Tips and tricks, I'd like to see this split into a question / request section and a posted tutorials section.

I'm not really in favor of a read only feature to the tutorials, some of the questions and comments that come up add to the tutorial.

Group builds - just a place to find the group builds. I don't see any reason it needs to be divided into further sub categories.

Those are the big ones for me. A few I could do with or without.

Kits - questions, comments about a kit.

Reviews - new or old, post a review of a kit you have.

Make sure to keep the wanted, swap, diorama and resin sections

[Aaronw]

Just thought I'd add I'd also be fine with

Cars

Light trucks

Heavy trucks

[Railfreak78]

Where does this go? Just wanted to get everyone to laugh

[Alyn]

Aarons on the right track, less is more.

Competition

Rods & Customs

Stock & Street

Big Rig & Commercial

Miscellaneous

Underglass

In otherwords, K.I.S.S.

I'm guessing most post their builds to show others what their up to. We build in our dark basements and like to show others our progress and our ideas. We like to shoot the bull and bench race with other modelers. MCM is a great place to do this.

Too many categories, and some of them will suffer for a lack of eyeballs. This will cause guys to cross over to the popular categories and post unrelated builds in the wrong place in order to get the eyeballs and comments. This happens to some extent now.

Underglass is the one category that can include all. The threads are generally shorter to balance out the post count. Combining all categories in the Under Glass section will allow just enough exposure to categories that we don't normally build in to entice us to take an occasional look. That is, if a brief glance in the Under Glass section gets your interest, you can follow up for more detail in the build category.

I already voted for this format yesterday. Where were you guys???

These are just the builders categories. I have no problem with the general, contest, tips, etc. as-is.

[AzTom]

ok, my final offer...

General (as it is now)

Model Cars

Showcase

Stock/Street/Show/Custom

Competition-Straight Line

Competition-NASCAR/Circle Track/Road Course, etc.

1:1 Reference Photos

Model Trucks

Showcase

Pickups/Street Trucks

Competition-Drag/Track/Monster Truck, etc.

Commercial/Fire/Emergency

1:1 Reference Photos

Other Models (no category breakdown, just a catch-all for everything else)

The Hobby Room

Tips, Tricks and Tutorials

News and Reviews

Real or Model/Auto ID Quiz

Resin

Swap/Trade/Free/Wanted

Auto Art

Rants 'n' Raves

Large Scale

Dioramas

Community

Clubs

Contests/Shows/Events

Links/Advertisers/Web sites

Model Car Racing

That looks nice to me, but I'll go with whatever. I like the fewer categories. Additional ones would only be needed if a section gets so much action that threads only last a few days before they roll off the page. I only mentioned the Modified diecast because a lot of Plastic guys don't agree that they are models.

You say "General" as it is now, but now it's actually in the "Cars".

Tom

[mikemodeler]

Harry,

I think you have it thought out and it should cover it.

I would like to see a category for drama, seems like that is the only one missing!

[Gregg]

Whoa.....this is way too much for me. I am a simple man with simple needs. I like "almost done" and "done" after that I am lost. But what ever you do, I will be fine with it.

Peter, I saw your builds at NNL East.

Simple?

NO WAY JOSE!!!

Incredible is more like it.

sorry,off topic, ban the hater......

[Gregg]

How about a drama category?

I second that!

[Harry P.]

could be too "broad-stroke" but how bout 'customs'?

and this could be "too picky" but for the old fat fender fords and chevy's (circa 32) 'with fenders' and 'without fenders'? Like I said this ones probably too picky but I really aint a fan of "highboys"

Also how bouts a "curbside" cat?

Customs go in the Stock/Street/Show/Custom category.

Separating fendered and non-fendered cars goes into the "way too many categories" category.

[Peter Lombardo]

Peter, I saw your builds at NNL East.

Simple?

NO WAY JOSE!!!

Incredible is more like it.

sorry,off topic, ban the hater......

Thank You Gregg, I really do appreciate your kind words. It means a lot to me. P.S. It was very nice to see you again.

[Casey]

What is the thinking behind having a Large Scale section (and why not call it Large Scale or Big Scale instead of "Big Boyz"?) but no small scale section? A model is a model, regardless of scale, so if it falls into one of the three sections (Cars/Trucks/Other), why have redundancy with a Large Scale section?

Ask Model Cars should be eliminated and a Question & Answer section added, IMHO.

I think the New Kit Reviews should be changed to "Kit Reviews, News, and Notes", which would allow for anything specifically kit-related to be posted there. If you have a specific question about a part in a kit, General Discussion is not the place for it, just like you wouldn't post a question about XYZ Resin's '00 Thnigmobile resin trans-kit in General Discussion- you'd post it in the resin section.

I think more categories are better than fewer, even if there are only a few posts in one or a few categories. Not only does having more well-defined categories cut down on the overlap/redundancy, but it also keeps more posts visible on the first page for a longer period of time. I'd rather see more categories and eventually have some of them eliminated for lack of posts than see fewer categories where things get lumped together and posts bumped to page two in a few hours.

I'd also like to see the "Name Required" requirement enforced. If it's not an existing rule, make it one. If it's a case of "it wasn't a requirement when I signed up", make it a requirement to continue using the forum. All forums make changes to their user agreements and rules, and I know Gregg wants to keep the feeling here laid back and easy, but I don't think it's too much to ask that every user be required to list their first name.

Ditto for the cussing. It's getting old seeing "######" from the same members every few posts they make and it reflects poorly upon the MCM Forum IMHO. If you can't get your point across without cussing, you probably shouldn't be typing it. It's a sign of disrespect when a member chooses not to follow the rules they agree to when they are a member here, and Gregg has been more than patient on this issue, posting multiple warnings about using foul language.

[MikeMc]

What is the thinking behind having a Large Scale section (and why not call it Large Scale or Big Scale instead of "Big Boyz"?) but no small scale section? A model is a model, regardless of scale, so if it falls into one of the three sections (Cars/Trucks/Other), why have redundancy with a Large Scale section?

Ask Model Cars should be eliminated and a Question & Answer section added, IMHO.

I think the New Kit Reviews should be changed to "Kit Reviews, News, and Notes", which would allow for anything specifically kit-related to be posted there. If you have a specific question about a part in a kit, General Discussion is not the place for it, just like you wouldn't post a question about XYZ Resin's '00 Thnigmobile resin trans-kit in General Discussion- you'd post it in the resin section.

I think more categories are better than fewer, even if there are only a few posts in one or a few categories. Not only does having more well-defined categories cut down on the overlap/redundancy, but it also keeps more posts visible on the first page for a longer period of time. I'd rather see more categories and eventually have some of them eliminated for lack of posts than see fewer categories where things get lumped together and posts bumped to page two in a few hours.

I'd also like to see the "Name Required" requirement enforced. If it's not an existing rule, make it one. If it's a case of "it wasn't a requirement when I signed up", make it a requirement to continue using the forum. All forums make changes to their user agreements and rules, and I know Gregg wants to keep the feeling here laid back and easy, but I don't think it's too much to ask that every user be required to list their first name.

Ditto for the cussing. It's getting old seeing "######" from the same members every few posts they make and it reflects poorly upon the MCM Forum IMHO. If you can't get your point across without cussing, you probably shouldn't be typing it. It's a sign of disrespect when a member chooses not to follow the rules they agree to when they are a member here, and Gregg has been more than patient on this issue, posting multiple warnings about using foul language.

BRAVO

Edited May 3, 2010 by MikeMc

[Harry P.]

What is the thinking behind having a Large Scale section (and why not call it Large Scale or Big Scale instead of "Big Boyz"?) but no small scale section? A model is a model, regardless of scale, so if it falls into one of the three sections (Cars/Trucks/Other), why have redundancy with a Large Scale section?

Ask Model Cars should be eliminated and a Question & Answer section added, IMHO.

I think the New Kit Reviews should be changed to "Kit Reviews, News, and Notes", which would allow for anything specifically kit-related to be posted there. If you have a specific question about a part in a kit, General Discussion is not the place for it, just like you wouldn't post a question about XYZ Resin's '00 Thnigmobile resin trans-kit in General Discussion- you'd post it in the resin section.

I think more categories are better than fewer, even if there are only a few posts in one or a few categories. Not only does having more well-defined categories cut down on the overlap/redundancy, but it also keeps more posts visible on the first page for a longer period of time. I'd rather see more categories and eventually have some of them eliminated for lack of posts than see fewer categories where things get lumped together and posts bumped to page two in a few hours.

I'd also like to see the "Name Required" requirement enforced. If it's not an existing rule, make it one. If it's a case of "it wasn't a requirement when I signed up", make it a requirement to continue using the forum. All forums make changes to their user agreements and rules, and I know Gregg wants to keep the feeling here laid back and easy, but I don't think it's too much to ask that every user be required to list their first name.

Ditto for the cussing. It's getting old seeing "######" from the same members every few posts they make and it reflects poorly upon the MCM Forum IMHO. If you can't get your point across without cussing, you probably shouldn't be typing it. It's a sign of disrespect when a member chooses not to follow the rules they agree to when they are a member here, and Gregg has been more than patient on this issue, posting multiple warnings about using foul language.

Large scale is unique because of several factors, including the ongoing work of TDR Innovations.

Ask Model Cars would be eliminated as a standalone category, and all questions would go in the General section.

Kit reviews would go into the News and Reviews category.

The goal is to have only as many categories as needed so that EVERY post topic has a logical place, but no more categories than necessary.

[highway]

The goal is to have only as many categories as needed so that EVERY post topic has a logical place, but no more categories than necessary.

That is why I have been asking about a "Community Build" category, most I have found due to recent posts are in the "On The Workbench" section. If they were in their own category, they would be much easier to find instead of being buried in hundreds of posts and there would maybe be more community participation.

[Casey]

Large scale is unique because of several factors, including the ongoing work of TDR Innovations.

What other factors? What makes TDR more important than all of the other aftermarket companies? I'm not the conspiracy theorist type and I'm not about to play the favoritism card, but I'm curious as to why you'd cite them as a reason a category exists.

Maybe the Resin section could be expanded to include RP work, too?

[Harry P.]

That is why I have been asking about a "Community Build" category, most I have found due to recent posts are in the "On The Workbench" section. If they were in their own category, they would be much easier to find instead of being buried in hundreds of posts and there would maybe be more community participation.

Maybe the most logical place for a "Community Build" category would be in the "Community" section.

Community

Clubs

Contests/Shows/Events

Links/Advertisers/Websites

Community Builds

[Casey]

Can you add sub-forums on this board? If so you could add a Community Build sub-forum to the "On the Workbench"-type category.

[highway]

Maybe the most logical place for a "Community Build" category would be in the "Community" section.

Community

Clubs

Contests/Shows/Events

Links/Advertisers/Websites

Community Builds

That would be good, it would make them much easier to find. If you or Gregg need help finding them, PM me, I would be more than happy to help locate them for moving. I'm participating in one now that I seen when it started recently, it is for Fox Chassis Fords, I believe it is in the "On The Workbench" section as of now.

[Harry P.]

What other factors? What makes TDR more important than all of the other aftermarket companies? I'm not the conspiracy theorist type and I'm not about to play the favoritism card, but I'm curious as to why you'd cite them as a reason a category exists.

I never said they're the reason the category exists, but since they specialize in unique one-of-a-kind 1/8 scale parts, they are a big part of the Large Scale forum.

Look, if you don't like big scale, just don't go there. Problem solved.

We're trying to make the site simpler, more logical and more inclusive, but we can't please everyone.

[Harry P.]

Can you add sub-forums on this board? If so you could add a Community Build sub-forum to the "On the Workbench"-type category.

No more "On the Workbench" category. Any WIP would go into whatever category othe subject belongs in. No real reason to have a separate "in progress" category when there already would be a category for every automotive subject.

Community Builds would be in the "Community" section.

[Casey]

I never said they're the reason the category exists, but since they specialize in unique one-of-a-kind 1/8 scale parts, they are a big part of the Large Scale forum.

Look, if you don't like big scale, just don't go there. Problem solved.

We're trying to make the site simpler, more logical and more inclusive, but we can't please everyone.

That's whay I asked. If it's logical to have a separate category for big scale, is it not logical to have one for small scale, too?

I have nothing against the Big Scale section-- I post there myself. I'm just trying to understand why it exists as a category when it's the only one segregated by scale.

Edited May 3, 2010 by Casey

[Harry P.]

Ok, after all the back and forth... how about it:

General (includes questions, comments, "What did you get today" type posts and any other topics that don't fit anywhere else)

Model Cars

Showcase

Stock/Street/Show/Custom

Competition: Straight Line (meaning drag)

Competition: NASCAR/Circle Track/Road Course, etc. (basically ANY competition car other than drag)

1:1 Reference Photos

Model Trucks

Showcase

Pickups/Street Trucks

Competition: Drag/Track/Monster Truck, etc.

Commercial/Fire/Emergency

1:1 Reference Photos

Other Models (no category breakdown, just one catch-all for everything else)

The Hobby Room

Tips, Tricks and Tutorials

News and Reviews

Real or Model/Auto ID Quiz

Resin

Swap/Trade/Free/Wanted

Auto Art

Rants 'n' Raves

Large Scale

Dioramas

Community

Clubs

Contests/Shows/Events

Links/Advertisers/Web sites

Community Builds

Model Car Racing

A place for everything... and everything in its place, without going crazy and breaking down into too many categories. I think this breakdown is logical and workable.

[highway]

Ok, after all the back and forth... how about it:

General (includes questions, comments, "What did you get today" type posts and any other topics that don't fit anywhere else)

Model Cars

Showcase

Stock/Street/Show/Custom

Competition: Straight Line (meaning drag)

Competition: NASCAR/Circle Track/Road Course, etc. (basically ANY competition car other than drag)

1:1 Reference Photos

Model Trucks

Showcase

Pickups/Street Trucks

Competition: Drag/Track/Monster Truck, etc.

Commercial/Fire/Emergency

1:1 Reference Photos

Other Models (no category breakdown, just one catch-all for everything else)

The Hobby Room

Tips, Tricks and Tutorials

News and Reviews

Real or Model/Auto ID Quiz

Resin

Swap/Trade/Free/Wanted

Auto Art

Rants 'n' Raves

Large Scale

Dioramas

Community

Clubs

Contests/Shows/Events

Links/Advertisers/Web sites

Community Builds

Model Car Racing

A place for everything... and everything in its place, without going crazy and breaking down into too many categories. I think this breakdown is logical and workable.

Three thumbs up!!! I put one thumb up twice!!!

[Harry P.]

Three thumbs up!!! I put one thumb up twice!!!

Hey! Only those of us from Chicago can vote more than once...