Mike
Well-Known Member
OK, boys and girls, in my never-ending quest to make this place just that much better than the other forums, I've come across an add-on that I think could bring a lot more activity to this site.
Let's face it, as long as the lurkers continue to lurk, rather than joining the site and becoming active members of our community, we're treading water. We're bringing in visitors by the trainload, but it seems for every new member that registers, one or two formerly-active members slip away.
I am watching a new articles management system being coded, and I have all but pulled the trigger on that one. It will do a really good job of replacing our old GARS (Geek Article & Review System) that we had, waaayyy back in the days when we still ran vBulletin forum software (prior to November 2009).
But I am also looking at an add-on the same coder has created, called Showcase. Here are some screenshots, to give you an idea of what it is like.
There is a quick explanation of some of the features this add-on would provide. Yes, that is a $60 price tag, with an annual $15 license renewal fee.
The Showcase would add a photo gallery-like strip of images to the top of the forum stack, on the forum index page. Obviously, this photo strip would appear under our Premium Advertiser's ad spots.
The Showcase would also have its own pages. A photo strip would be displayed here, as well, with slightly larger images displayed on the lower part of the page. And the lower images can be shown by category, such as Most Recent, Top Rated, Most Reviewed, Most Popular, Most Liked, etc.
Click on an image and you would be taken to that particular items specific page. On this tab, you would find general information.
On this tab, you would be able to get technical information about the item.
On this tab, an image gallery, where uploaded images of the item would be displayed.
This tab would be a Frequently Asked Questions tab, which we likely would not have much use for.
This tab would show reviews about the item.
And each item would have its own thread, in a Showcase discussion forum.
I am thinking this would give guys a chance to show off their rides, as well as providing a bit of information about the car, all in one, central location.
The Showcase can be used for selling cars, but I would want to give that one some thought, before we got too carried away with that angle.
Seriously, it is time to kick some life into this place. A discussion forum can be a really wild and wooly place, when there are hundreds of members, posting hundreds of threads each day. When a discussion forum has the same 23 people, submitting a post every third or fourth day, things tend to get a little b-o-r-i-n-g. Anyone can run a forum like that (just ask dickofficer). This place is better than that, so when watching the freezer defrost is more fun than checking out the new activity here, then something is in need of a tune-up.
But I do not want to spend money on something that is going to go unused. When we moved to this XenForo forum software, some members were grumbling that we had no photo gallery. As soon as a well-coded photo gallery became available, I spent $60 or $65 to buy it and three or four people bothered to use it.
Let me know what you think about adding this Showcase. If there is enough interest in it, then I'll see about getting a license and getting it installed. If you don't think it would be a good idea, tell me that, as well. But also give me some ideas on features you would like to see around here, features that would cause you to become more involved and more active in the community.
If you're reading this and do not have an account, go register. It's quick, it's painless and it costs exactly nothing. If you're reading this and you are not logged into your account, then log in and say something. A discussion forum only works when there is discussion, so have at it.
Let's face it, as long as the lurkers continue to lurk, rather than joining the site and becoming active members of our community, we're treading water. We're bringing in visitors by the trainload, but it seems for every new member that registers, one or two formerly-active members slip away.
I am watching a new articles management system being coded, and I have all but pulled the trigger on that one. It will do a really good job of replacing our old GARS (Geek Article & Review System) that we had, waaayyy back in the days when we still ran vBulletin forum software (prior to November 2009).
But I am also looking at an add-on the same coder has created, called Showcase. Here are some screenshots, to give you an idea of what it is like.

There is a quick explanation of some of the features this add-on would provide. Yes, that is a $60 price tag, with an annual $15 license renewal fee.

The Showcase would add a photo gallery-like strip of images to the top of the forum stack, on the forum index page. Obviously, this photo strip would appear under our Premium Advertiser's ad spots.

The Showcase would also have its own pages. A photo strip would be displayed here, as well, with slightly larger images displayed on the lower part of the page. And the lower images can be shown by category, such as Most Recent, Top Rated, Most Reviewed, Most Popular, Most Liked, etc.

Click on an image and you would be taken to that particular items specific page. On this tab, you would find general information.

On this tab, you would be able to get technical information about the item.

On this tab, an image gallery, where uploaded images of the item would be displayed.

This tab would be a Frequently Asked Questions tab, which we likely would not have much use for.

This tab would show reviews about the item.

And each item would have its own thread, in a Showcase discussion forum.
I am thinking this would give guys a chance to show off their rides, as well as providing a bit of information about the car, all in one, central location.
The Showcase can be used for selling cars, but I would want to give that one some thought, before we got too carried away with that angle.
Seriously, it is time to kick some life into this place. A discussion forum can be a really wild and wooly place, when there are hundreds of members, posting hundreds of threads each day. When a discussion forum has the same 23 people, submitting a post every third or fourth day, things tend to get a little b-o-r-i-n-g. Anyone can run a forum like that (just ask dickofficer). This place is better than that, so when watching the freezer defrost is more fun than checking out the new activity here, then something is in need of a tune-up.
But I do not want to spend money on something that is going to go unused. When we moved to this XenForo forum software, some members were grumbling that we had no photo gallery. As soon as a well-coded photo gallery became available, I spent $60 or $65 to buy it and three or four people bothered to use it.
Let me know what you think about adding this Showcase. If there is enough interest in it, then I'll see about getting a license and getting it installed. If you don't think it would be a good idea, tell me that, as well. But also give me some ideas on features you would like to see around here, features that would cause you to become more involved and more active in the community.
If you're reading this and do not have an account, go register. It's quick, it's painless and it costs exactly nothing. If you're reading this and you are not logged into your account, then log in and say something. A discussion forum only works when there is discussion, so have at it.