Tweet
WOW! Where did all that come from? A rather ambiguous thread seems to have opened up a whole can of worms ranging from constructive ideas like a Marlin is born to negative ones that can only be described as a rather rude slanging match.
When I was struggling to sort out my rich running saga (Hunter / Land Rover V8 Disco) I was indebted to such forums as the Range Rover Owners Club, The 4x4 club, The Morgan V8 to name but a few. Also when I was researching the Hot Running sequel I gleaned much useful info from the Westfield and Caterham type forums. None of these required me to register or join their clubs but as a non member they did prevent me from posting threads (i.e. specific questions). In other words I had to do my own research, the results of which were very rewarding.
For my two pennyworth on a positive note I would like to add the following suggestions for the MOC website:
• The forum should only allow posting of threads by members.
• The forum should only allow posting classifieds by members.
• Non members should be allowed to access the site for technical information and do their own research. There is already a search facility to assist this.
• The above would make the controversial member Yes / No feature redundant.
• Any non members with sufficient interest to join the club can already access the “Contact us” or “Membership” links. Maybe a further “first time” discount could be offered to new members joining this way?
• Yes the website is a bit creaky but could easily be tidied up a bit. I would suggest that if it’s primary function is to serve existing members well then potential new members will want to be part of this scene.
• A new category “Monthly Meets” should be added to the forum to increase visibility of these. Maybe a photo of the venue could be added with the post to add interest?
• A new category “Database” could be added to the forum. This would probably be preferred as a “Members Only” link to a new tabulated Database section, with info listed by model type, where members could voluntarily add parts details for their cars to assist others. e.g. Cabrio / Front suspension Bushes / Supplier / Part No. With so many variants of the same models this could be a first point of reference for those with queries about their own cars. Once solved they could then add their own info so the database could expand rapidly. It would also help to reduce the tendency for repeats of the same questions.
Peter.
When I was struggling to sort out my rich running saga (Hunter / Land Rover V8 Disco) I was indebted to such forums as the Range Rover Owners Club, The 4x4 club, The Morgan V8 to name but a few. Also when I was researching the Hot Running sequel I gleaned much useful info from the Westfield and Caterham type forums. None of these required me to register or join their clubs but as a non member they did prevent me from posting threads (i.e. specific questions). In other words I had to do my own research, the results of which were very rewarding.
For my two pennyworth on a positive note I would like to add the following suggestions for the MOC website:
• The forum should only allow posting of threads by members.
• The forum should only allow posting classifieds by members.
• Non members should be allowed to access the site for technical information and do their own research. There is already a search facility to assist this.
• The above would make the controversial member Yes / No feature redundant.
• Any non members with sufficient interest to join the club can already access the “Contact us” or “Membership” links. Maybe a further “first time” discount could be offered to new members joining this way?
• Yes the website is a bit creaky but could easily be tidied up a bit. I would suggest that if it’s primary function is to serve existing members well then potential new members will want to be part of this scene.
• A new category “Monthly Meets” should be added to the forum to increase visibility of these. Maybe a photo of the venue could be added with the post to add interest?
• A new category “Database” could be added to the forum. This would probably be preferred as a “Members Only” link to a new tabulated Database section, with info listed by model type, where members could voluntarily add parts details for their cars to assist others. e.g. Cabrio / Front suspension Bushes / Supplier / Part No. With so many variants of the same models this could be a first point of reference for those with queries about their own cars. Once solved they could then add their own info so the database could expand rapidly. It would also help to reduce the tendency for repeats of the same questions.
Peter.
Comment