This discussion is about younger members on the board.
Before we get going, one thing should be made crystal-clear: we have plenty of clever, helpful, respectful, and cool younger members on the board. They are a great asset to our community, and we are stronger and smarter because of their presence. One day, this place will be theirs.
This discussion isn't about those members. This discussion is about younger members in general. We all know what this means, because we were all young once -- maybe even twice .
Part of the problem has been the need to establish a formal disciplinary system, which we're discussing in this thread: http://www.hotrodders.com/t23260.html. It looks like a 3-strike system will be implemented.
The other part of the problem is this: a lot of these younger members are not familiar with the basics of hotrodding. Before the net, many hotrodders had parents who were hotrodders, or a circle of friends who were also hotrodders. Now, we have kids coming in from all over the world, with no previous knowledge or experience whatsoever, who just want to get involved in hotrodding.
Previously, younger hotrodders with no guiding influences were assimilated into the hot rod magazine culture. Now, they land on our doorstep.
We want a place to have in-depth technical discussions with knowledgeable hotrodders, but we're not giving up this opportunity to spread hotrodding to the younger generation like wildfire.
However, a rise in uneducated younger members results in a decline in knowledgeable older members. This is bread-and-butter stuff, and we've seen how it works.
We either need to say that beginner hotrodders aren't welcome here until they learn the basics, or we need to educate them ourselves, and welcome them into our community. Currently, we invite ANYONE interested in hotrodding to the board. We have our Knowledge Base, but it is lacking in beginner information. So, when they ask elementary questions on the board, they get blasted. It's unfair. More importantly, it's inefficient.
My leading idea right now is this: We establish an "introduction to hotrodding" page; with links to basic tech articles, maybe some stuff from HowStuffWorks.com, some words of wisdom from our members, etc. Then, we REQUIRE knowledge of this information BEFORE posting on the board.
Ideas, criticism, input -- let's hear it. Everyone's opinion is welcome.
Before we get going, one thing should be made crystal-clear: we have plenty of clever, helpful, respectful, and cool younger members on the board. They are a great asset to our community, and we are stronger and smarter because of their presence. One day, this place will be theirs.
This discussion isn't about those members. This discussion is about younger members in general. We all know what this means, because we were all young once -- maybe even twice .
Part of the problem has been the need to establish a formal disciplinary system, which we're discussing in this thread: http://www.hotrodders.com/t23260.html. It looks like a 3-strike system will be implemented.
The other part of the problem is this: a lot of these younger members are not familiar with the basics of hotrodding. Before the net, many hotrodders had parents who were hotrodders, or a circle of friends who were also hotrodders. Now, we have kids coming in from all over the world, with no previous knowledge or experience whatsoever, who just want to get involved in hotrodding.
Previously, younger hotrodders with no guiding influences were assimilated into the hot rod magazine culture. Now, they land on our doorstep.
We want a place to have in-depth technical discussions with knowledgeable hotrodders, but we're not giving up this opportunity to spread hotrodding to the younger generation like wildfire.
However, a rise in uneducated younger members results in a decline in knowledgeable older members. This is bread-and-butter stuff, and we've seen how it works.
We either need to say that beginner hotrodders aren't welcome here until they learn the basics, or we need to educate them ourselves, and welcome them into our community. Currently, we invite ANYONE interested in hotrodding to the board. We have our Knowledge Base, but it is lacking in beginner information. So, when they ask elementary questions on the board, they get blasted. It's unfair. More importantly, it's inefficient.
My leading idea right now is this: We establish an "introduction to hotrodding" page; with links to basic tech articles, maybe some stuff from HowStuffWorks.com, some words of wisdom from our members, etc. Then, we REQUIRE knowledge of this information BEFORE posting on the board.
Ideas, criticism, input -- let's hear it. Everyone's opinion is welcome.