Barn Topic Procedure

[ericr]

a lot of us have noticed that often a topic is posted that has been discussed before, sometimes ad nauseum.

I don't know anything about computers but if a member goes to post a topic, could the site first give the member the option of going to an automatic search under his proposed questions?

I also understand that doing a search anywhere, on any site, can be complicated....when doing a search, I get lots of hits that are not really on point.

But if the site offered some kind of concurrent search option, it would be a source of quicker information for the questioner.....and less side arguments within the Forum.

[roccaas]

Or the ability to "sticky note" repeated topics to the top of page 1.

Best oil to use
Tilly vs Zenith
Floater brakes
600 wt
etc....

[newshirt]

A few random thoughts of questionable value...

1. It is unlikely that the forum software could produce any relevant search results based on the words in the initial thread post. It is just too hard for software to read people's minds.

2. Too many sticky's clutter the main window. Nobody wants to scroll past them every time they log in. On that note... I say it's time to drop the "political" sticky. But then put it back if things get out of hand.

3. Repeating the same questions is not a bad thing. People with legitimate questions get lots of answers! And after a while, the "which oil do I use" threads stop showing up.

4. Instead of replying with, "This topic has been discussed ad nauseam. Try the search function!" we could perform the search ourselves and add a few links for the poster to consider.

[hardtimes]

Originally Posted by newshirt

A few random thoughts of questionable value...

1. It is unlikely that the forum software could produce any relevant search results based on the words in the initial thread post. It is just too hard for software to read people's minds.

2. Too many sticky's clutter the main window. Nobody wants to scroll past them every time they log in. On that note... I say it's time to drop the "political" sticky. But then put it back if things get out of hand.

3. Repeating the same questions is not a bad thing. People with legitimate questions get lots of answers! And after a while, the "which oil do I use" threads stop showing up.

4. Instead of replying with, "This topic has been discussed ad nauseam. Try the search function!" we could perform the search ourselves and add a few links for the poster to consider.

Hey Ray,
Good thoughts all ! IMO, I haven't seen many, if any , political thread here is a long time. And, same for 'FIGHTS' ? Please point out an example of what poster considers a fight ! If one considers opposing view points and input of posters/participators ....as fight, well....everyone has an opinion,eh !

I'm not good with this new fangled tech, and do not know how to post links, but good idea, thanks !

[ford3]

in spite of what some think on here, they do not run this site, Ryan does,for those guys instead of getting shi**y, uptight,or snotty, it takes less time to answer the question than saying that subject has been beat to death, do a search, just answer the question or ignore the post, some guys are new on here and may not have seen the original post or answer, be nice and helpful, answer or ingiore the the post, thats my feelings on that

[Fred K-OR]

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Question I have on this subject, is what word or words does the search we have try to hit on? Does it use only the title of the tread or does it go through the text? I think it would be good to know this so that people could enter their data to make it easer to search for information and get a hit.

[zzlegend]

Originally Posted by ford3

in spite of what some think on here, they do not run this site, Ryan does,for those guys instead of getting shi**y, uptight,or snotty, it takes less time to answer the question than saying that subject has been beat to death, do a search, just answer the question or ignore the post, some guys are new on here and may not have seen the original post or answer, be nice and helpful, answer or ingiore the the post, thats my feelings on that

Ditto

[Tom Wesenberg]

Originally Posted by Fred K-OR

Question I have on this subject, is what word or words does the search we have try to hit on? Does it use only the title of the tread or does it go through the text? I think it would be good to know this so that people could enter their data to make it easer to search for information and get a hit.

You can do the advaced search and search just the title for key words, or you can search the entire thread for key words.

Sometimes I can't find what I'm looking for by using the search, but sometimes I find what I want after clicking on several of the different threads that turn up.

[bikejunk]

fo a WWI forum I belong to we have a page that answers most of the questions that get asked almost every day ( what were the causes of ww1) they still ask anyway

[QGolden]

One thing that really helps folks search, and receive good info down the road is to clearly state your question in the Title Block, and the part of the car your question is about. A post titled "Brake adjustment" comes up more relevant in a future search than "car can't stop" or some such. That makes it easier to search, the easier it is, the more folks will do it.

[tbirdtbird]

haha I thought ad nauseum was the whole point of this Barn! (Smiley)

QGolden is right on. Often the bolded thread titles bear little or no resemblance to the enclosed question; the questions are vague (asking an alternator question but not telling us voltage or polarity; one guy recently asked something so vague about babbit it was impossible to tell what he wanted, despite much prodding); some of the answers given are so far off base resulting in a lot of out-and-out wrong info popping up in a search, thus requiring wading thru a lot of posts to try to decipher the correct answer if the searcher even knows it is incorrect, etc.
My favorite reply, and it happens a LOT, is 'your problem is XYZ, I think, but I don't really know since this has never happened to me and I don't really know'. Really? then WHY did you post an answer at all????? Trying to get your post count up to 'lifetime expert'?

Thus the search function is overwhelmed. But I seriously doubt this is ever gonna change. Like Tom, I have done searches, and always end up wading thru a lot of chaff to get to the wheat. If Ryan is willing to maintain the bandwidth then so be it.

I will say that the quality of the questions and the quality of the answers has deteriorated since I joined 2 yrs ago. I am slowly straying away from this place. I mean, really, a guy says his motor runs great at low-medium speeds and coughs spits and pops when he tries to open the throttle any more and a response is a stuck valve?
So now the novices and people we want to help are gonna start pulling side covers or heads and banging on valves with a hammer as a first thought?

Our answers should be along the lines of a diagnostic approach to follow, such as Mike(FL) has with that electrical paradigm he has. Diagnostically oriented answers are sorely missing, instead ppl are just shooting from the hip based on little info.

Then again lack of others doing diagnostics is what keeps some of us in business!
A guy brought his late model Camaro with electrical trouble. He says the car starts fine in the AM, but then the battery 'uses up all its electricity' and runs dead and if he shuts it off it won't restart, and has had to have it towed home several times. Then mysteriously the car will magically restart in the AM. (OK the battery Goddess visits overnight and touches it with her magic wand). And 2 diff shops cannot figure out what the dickens is wrong with the car!! Really! We had it fixed for 15 min labor only no parts, after he had spent a ton of bucks on batteries, starters, etc etc.
And I am not going to give the answer because the pros here already know what was wrong.

[Marshall57]

In an effort to search before I ask, I have run across a problem of knowing how to do effective searches. When searching an issue if you use more than one word the search will break your search up into individual words and present each incident of these.

I myself, and I'm sure that I am not alone, could use a set of quick and basic lessons on the best way to get results while searching. Are the Bolin logic parameters active? If they are they might be explained, if not what can be used in an advanced search?

There is a sticky note about ford sites that really helps and is extremely useful, there might also be a sticky note that could give us who are challenged a fighting chance at finding an issue before asking for help.

I have read where people are referring to archive tomes of knowledge referred to as old archives from before the site was reorganized, how do you access these?

This may solve a few of the problems that keep repeating.
Just my two cents.

[Tom Wesenberg]

Marshall57, everything from Shelly's Fordbarn is lost forever the last I heard, so there is no searching any of that information.
Yesterday I tried to search for a picture I know I had posted to Fordbarn, and nothing turned up, so I can only guess I must have posted it during the time Shelly owned Fordbarn.

As mentioned, having the right words in the title line is very important. If the question happens to be about a particular part I will often also put the Ford part number in the title line. That way just doing a search with the part number should turn up the thread.

[QGolden]

Tom,
Isn't this the "old Ford Barn?"

https://fordbarn.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=28

[Mitch//pa]

Originally Posted by QGolden

Tom,
Isn't this the "old Ford Barn?"

https://fordbarn.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=28

yes it is but a minuscule of what was originally there... 99% was lost mainly due to the quality of the "old school" forum layout that was used much like ahooga.

[Tom Wesenberg]

Originally Posted by QGolden

Tom,
Isn't this the "old Ford Barn?"

https://fordbarn.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=28

Yes, I guess you're right, but as Mitch said, there is almost nothing of the old Fordbarn there. Only 6 pages, no names, no pictures, and almost no replies, so I found nothing of value.

[Rowdy]

While it contains some snippits of the first couple of months, the wealth of info over the years is lost and gone forever. A crying shame in my opinion. I will not comment farther. Rod

[Sparky]

Speaking as a relatively new Model A-er, I do try to run a search before I post a question I suspect has been answered before. The search function is not the greatest, as some of you know. Ryan has no control over this.

However I have learned a great deal by reading the answers to other member's questions (yes, even the "which oil" ones!) I've also been around this forum long enough to have seen many repeat topics, but I don't mind. No one's forcing me to read them.

So I suppose what I'm trying to say to the veterans is, sure, you may have known the answers for decades and are sick of seeing the same questions over and over, but for us newcomers it's a great way to get "up to speed" on our 85-year-old vehicles.

[hardtimes]

Originally Posted by Fred K-OR

Question I have on this subject, is what word or words does the search we have try to hit on? Does it use only the title of the tread or does it go through the text? I think it would be good to know this so that people could enter their data to make it easer to search for information and get a hit.

POST #3 thought #1 pretty much answers this question...I think

[dumb person]

So one poster who knows a lot about model As once posted how he said he did not like forum users "freeloading off his knowledge" or words to that effect. Sounds kind of elitist. Writing was invented for a reason & that reason was not to keep people in the dark.

Originally Posted by tbirdtbird

We had it fixed for 15 min labor only no parts, after he had spent a ton of bucks on batteries, starters, etc etc.
And I am not going to give the answer because the pros here already know what was wrong.

Would you explain that for people like me who do not know? Likely more than just a dirty battery post?