Page 1 of 3

Forum restructuring

Posted: Mon Jul 17, 2017 10:37 am
by wermy
Hey guys!
As we're getting more traffic and a wider range of projects being shared/discussed here, I think we could use some restructuring of the forums/subforums.

A couple of things I specifically wanted to fix/improve:
  • The "sudomod projects" vs "other projects" areas. It seems to be a constant source of confusion for newer folks about where they should post things (which means it probably wasn't an intuitive structure to begin with). I was thinking of breaking it out into popular project areas (so Game Boy Zero, and mintyPi right now) along with an Other Projects area.
  • The Buy/Sell/Trade forum has grown significantly. It probably makes sense to make it its own section with some subcategories to clean it up.
Below is the new structure I'm thinking about implementing. I'd like to get some feedback from you guys before I start shuffling things around. Discuss! :)

Edit: Added a "General Chat" section to the GBZ/mintyPi/Other sections for people to discuss ideas and stuff that might not fit in with the other sections.
Edit2: Added "Part Sourcing" subforum to Hardware area.
Game Boy Zero
  • Show-off Corner
  • General Chat
  • Hardware Help
  • Software Help
mintyPi
  • Show-off Corner
  • General Chat
  • Hardware Help
  • Software Help
Other Projects
  • Show-off Corner
  • General Chat
  • Hardware Help
  • Software Help
Buy/Sell/Trade
  • For Sale/Trade
  • Looking to buy
  • Product Support
Software
  • Guides
  • RetroPie
  • Recalbox
  • Raspberry Pi
  • Arduino
Hardware
  • Guides
  • Part Sourcing
  • Raspberry Pi
  • Arduino
  • Other Hardware
  • Tools
  • 3D Printing
  • Orange Pi
Other
  • Off-topic Chat
  • Site/Forum Feedback

Re: Forum restructuring

Posted: Mon Jul 17, 2017 10:57 am
by dryja123
I like the proposed layout but you already know there are going to be a lot of new threads opened up and not placed in their correct forum / subforum. This should help clean things up a bit because things have been falling off the rails a little bit.

Re: Forum restructuring

Posted: Mon Jul 17, 2017 11:01 am
by YaYa
Yes, the proposed layout is much better than the actual ! It would be easier for newcomers to find the stuff they are looking for

Re: Forum restructuring

Posted: Mon Jul 17, 2017 12:15 pm
by RogerX
I approve of the proposed layout.

Image

Re: Forum restructuring

Posted: Mon Jul 17, 2017 1:39 pm
by Elmafioso90
I guess it looks ok. When you spend some time here you get to know where everything is located, but to be honest at the beginning is not that intuitive.

The new structure seems to be easier to understand. Way to go :)

Re: Forum restructuring

Posted: Mon Jul 17, 2017 6:22 pm
by Helder
Yes I like this new setup especially where there are to be product support. I also recommend a link to anything on the market place to go to the actual sale threads instead of having a buy link. I have had people complain that on the market place certain info I put in the sale thread was not there and this just leads to headaches for both parties.

Re: Forum restructuring

Posted: Mon Jul 17, 2017 7:33 pm
by exodus
A few ideas:

It might be helpful to have project specific material runs in the sub forum to their particular project. And/or link to the store site if applicable to reduce the "where to buy" single threads.

A newbie forum has proved useful on other sites with general guidelines, links to useful (pinned) topics and a general area to post questions when unclear where to post (than can be moved or archived).

Nice work thinking through site optimizations.

Re: Forum restructuring

Posted: Mon Jul 17, 2017 7:36 pm
by tinkerBOY
I like it! Much simpler and organized.

Re: Forum restructuring

Posted: Mon Jul 17, 2017 7:44 pm
by RetroRocket
I never had a problem with the current structure, but I welcome any way to further segregate categories so users can easily get to the information they need.

My only humble suggestion would maybe be to add an area for part sourcing. I've seen and been involved in a number of the "where's the best place to buy the best (blank)" and I think individual topics for experiences with the parts could be useful. It seems to me this could fit in "hardware help" but might be easier for troubleshooting to be separate from shopping.

Cheers!

Re: Forum restructuring

Posted: Mon Jul 17, 2017 7:53 pm
by wermy
RetroRocket wrote:
Mon Jul 17, 2017 7:44 pm
I never had a problem with the current structure, but I welcome any way to further segregate categories so users can easily get to the information they need.

My only humble suggestion would maybe be to add an area for part sourcing. I've seen and been involved in a number of the "where's the best place to buy the best (blank)" and I think individual topics for experiences with the parts could be useful. It seems to me this could fit in "hardware help" but might be easier for troubleshooting to be separate from shopping.

Cheers!
Thanks, I like that. I'll add a "Part Sourcing" section to the Hardware area.