Model S subforums

[favo]

User Interface could be "Controls and Apps" or "Dashboard." I think "In the Press" and "Pics and Videos" could be combined into "News and Reviews" or just not have subforums. Instead of "Reservation, Production, Delivery," how about "Ordering/Production/Delivery." Maybe add safety to "Driving Dynamics." Could be changed to "Driving Experience." "Customer Feedback" could probably be nixed if there are stickies (sticky wikis?) for Wishlist, Troubleshooting, and Bugs.

 

[bonnie]

I'm partial to 'User Interface' (vs. 'Controls and Apps') - it's more broad, encompassing how you interact with the car. And I also vote to keep 'Driving Dynamics' - it's the term Tesla Motors uses for the same items & 'Driving Experience' loses the focus on the technical aspects of drivetrain, brakes, performance and sounds more like the experience of the driver.

 

[mnx]

First off I'll start with that I'm not a fan of subforums at all. I think it makes reading all the threads more difficult. I don't seem them in use very often at other car forums.

I like the layout of forums.maxima.org. They have forums for each separate range of model years. (eg. Roadster 1.5, 2.0 and 2.5).

I think adding a new forum for "maintenance, tech and care" may make sense along with "track and tune".

I guess what I'm trying to say is, I don't like the idea of sub forums, but adding new forums (from the main forum page) makes more sense to me. At some point (when the Model S is wildly popular) it may make sense to give them their own separate forum... ie. ModelSowners.com or something like that.

 

[Brian H]

First off I'll start with that I'm not a fan of subforums at all. I think it makes reading all the threads more difficult. I don't seem them in use very often at other car forums.
...

+1
In practice 'specific precise subtopics' creates artificialities, and pressures on both commenters and mods. The site is not a manual or textbook wiki, after all.

 

[GSP]

I like the suggestion to add a "Maintence and Care" category. Maybe "Maintence, Care, and Accessories."

GSP

 

[jeffhre]

User Interface could be "Controls and Apps" or "Dashboard." I think "In the Press" and "Pics and Videos" could be combined into "News and Reviews" or just not have subforums. Instead of "Reservation, Production, Delivery," how about "Ordering/Production/Delivery." Maybe add safety to "Driving Dynamics." Could be changed to "Driving Experience." "Customer Feedback" could probably be nixed if there are stickies (sticky wikis?) for Wishlist, Troubleshooting, and Bugs.

Good point especially on Customer Feedback. Customer feedback could even be a sub part of each of the other sub categories and even better, as you said, handled by stickies.

 

[mikevbf]

+1
In practice 'specific precise subtopics' creates artificialities, and pressures on both commenters and mods. The site is not a manual or textbook wiki, after all.

This forum is loaded with knowledge and information no matter how you want to label it. As such everyone has to navigate through it somehow to what interests them. Having everything under Model S creates a long scroll of information where sometimes the most insistent commenters can dominate the top of the stack. I would prefer a more branched Model S forum where the topics I am most interested in at any time have a better chance to be at the top. I also agree with Doug's suggestion to at first try and stick to only 3 or 4 branches.

 

[jerry33]

I would prefer a more branched Model S forum where the topics I am most interested in at any time have a better chance to be at the top. I also agree with Doug's suggestion to at first try and stick to only 3 or 4 branches.

That would be fine if there was a way to keep threads you weren't interested in as permanently marked as read. Otherwise, each level just means a lot more clicking to navigate.

 

[Iz]

It may be good to have a section on breakdowns under Customer Feedback. Tracking breakdowns and subsequent repairs that coorect the breakdown would be beneficial to Model S/X owners. Finding a root cause for breakdowns might enable Tesla to correct the issue.

There could be various levels of breakdowns. During the "Get Amped" tour there were reports of rear seat belt issues, which I also experienced. Some may consider this a moderate breakdown or major if passengers cannot be belted.

Breakdowns which occur while driving are even more important, particularly those that leave us stranded or require extensive repairs. It would be great to know what parts are prone to failure and what fixes some of the DIYrs can do.

 

[mikevbf]

That would be fine if there was a way to keep threads you weren't interested in as permanently marked as read. Otherwise, each level just means a lot more clicking to navigate.

It would be nice to be able to at least keep threads one was not interested in off page 1 of threads.

Sometimes one wants to not see or to see whole categories of threads not just individual threads. See Doug's comment:

Less is more. But some basic sensible structure can help people filter and find what they want. For example, I'm not particularly interested in reading about cosmetic stuff and cup holders, but I am interested in the drivetrain, the touchscreen, stuff like that. But for someone else the cup holders are very important.

I was hoping for about four sub-categories. Certainly no more than six.

And now I notice he suggested 4 and no more than 6. Since there is resistance to any sub forums, I still think a trial period of 3 or 4 is the right number. Sometimes one just has to experience something to fully understand whether they like it.

 

[favo]

I wish there were a way to mark a thread or a whole forum as read without going into that thread or forum. Something like a red X icon next to the title might do the trick. This would allow you to quickly dismiss the topics you aren't that interested in.

 

[digitaltim]

I miss the days of rn/trn...

 

[doug]

Ok, I've set up a first pass at this. It's going to take time for me and the other mods to get the existing threads sorted. So please be patient on that.

I put in the "Subscribed Forums" feature (probably needs a better name) so that you could subscribe to the forums you're interested and just see the new posts in those forums. Btw, you'll only see the Subscribed Forums tab if you're actually subscribed to some forums. Please also tag threads so that you'll have an easier time finding the one you want in the future.

 

[contaygious]

I like the sub forums, but it shows them as new when I am the only new post.

 

[ChrisC]

The subforums should have their parent names in the forum name.

So, for example, the "Ordering, Production, Delivery" subforum of the "Model S" forum should call itself "Model S: Ordering, Production, Delivery". It should at least do this in the title bar of the pages that are delivered. That way it gets better identified in my browser history so I can go straight to it.

In Firefox I can just start typing "Model S" in my URL window and it'll start to show me every page I've been to that contains that string in either the URL or page title. And over time it learns which pages I actually end up going to after typing the first few characters. So, by now, as soon as I type M-O-D it offers up the Model S subforum right away at the top of the list

 

[contaygious]

Can we please have place for pics and reviews? Now that people are taking delivery it would be nice to have the reviews in one place instead if having to check various long threads.

 

[bbmertz]

First off I'll start with that I'm not a fan of subforums at all. I think it makes reading all the threads more difficult. I don't seem them in use very often at other car forums.

+2 The subforums require many more clicks to read all of the latest posts, since I am interested in most everything related to the Model S. As a compromise, could you create a section which simply provides links to the top 25 threads with the most recent posts?

 

[doug]

The subforums should have their parent names in the forum name.

So, for example, the "Ordering, Production, Delivery" subforum of the "Model S" forum should call itself "Model S: Ordering, Production, Delivery".

This is something we had been considering before and upon your request decided to go ahead an implement. Hope it helps.

Can we please have place for pics and reviews? Now that people are taking delivery it would be nice to have the reviews in one place instead if having to check various long threads.

Completely agree. We have something in to works, stay tuned.

The subforums require many more clicks to read all of the latest posts, since I am interested in most everything related to the Model S. As a compromise, could you create a section which simply provides links to the top 25 threads with the most recent posts?

Why don't you try using the tools we already have in place?

Simply subscribe to all the Model S subforums, either by clicking on the green check circles or entering the forum, selecting the Forum Tools drop down menu and clicking subscribe. After this minimal bit of setup all you have to do is click the Subscribed Forums tab to see all threads with unread posts in the Model S forums and whatever other forums you care to subscribe to.

The Subscribed Forums tab doesn't appear until you're actually subscribed to some forums. This is in contrast to the What's New tab which returns all threads with unread posts, regardless of forum subscription.

 

[bbmertz]

Simply subscribe to all the Model S subforums, either by clicking on the green check circles or entering the forum, selecting the Forum Tools drop down menu and clicking subscribe. After this minimal bit of setup all you have to do is click the Subscribed Forums tab to see all threads with unread posts in the Model S forums and whatever other forums you care to subscribe to.

Thanks for the advice, Doug. Keep up the great work, since these forums are extremely informative!