Hi all, this is a free wiki/forum with useful functionality (discussions, personal pages, video/photo posting capabilities etc.). Are there plans to move the Exchange/Interchange to something like this? I have seen some conversations about it here. We set up a test page and site for a possible FVee Club, but regardless I think this could be useful for the type of activity that goes on here plus much more:
http://formulavee.ning.com/profile/RayQualls
The rate to upgrade to more functionality isn't much. See link here: http://about.ning.com/product.php
Best, Anna
http://www.formulaveeracing.org
http://formulavee.ning.com/
Re: http://formulavee.ning.com/
Hi Anna,
I did not know there was plans to change/move this site.......I hate change!
I did not know there was plans to change/move this site.......I hate change!
eugene Team2Stool deviant
Re: http://formulavee.ning.com/
Eugene, I read somewhere that there would be improvements to what is here. I would assume that if (and only if) such an event were to occur (and I have no inside knowledge about this other than reading some notes on this site on occasion), the URL can be kept. I checked into it on Ning and you can pay a little extra to keep a URL. So, in short, I know nothing other than offering a suggestion that might help add features to an existing online community.
In my humble view, it would be nice to be able to post video content, photos and attachments on this site as well as network, blog or do anything else that can replicate the type of dynamic environments that are out there now. (I am not a member, nor do I want to be, of Facebook or MySpace...however, for an organization or network, I would be willing.)
Particularly for new drivers (and young drivers), this would be great. They can meet other (experienced) drivers, and be mentored. In addition, current drivers could post video content on how to do an alignment, for example.
Best,
Anna
In my humble view, it would be nice to be able to post video content, photos and attachments on this site as well as network, blog or do anything else that can replicate the type of dynamic environments that are out there now. (I am not a member, nor do I want to be, of Facebook or MySpace...however, for an organization or network, I would be willing.)
Particularly for new drivers (and young drivers), this would be great. They can meet other (experienced) drivers, and be mentored. In addition, current drivers could post video content on how to do an alignment, for example.
Best,
Anna
Re: http://formulavee.ning.com/
Anna,
I think this is a neat idea and thank you for taking this on. This forum is good but maybe a little updating may assist in helping to attract more people to the class.
Here is why I think it would be helpful.
You have to imagine someone that wants to go racing. They are going to surf the web until they find the information they want to hear. It's just the way it is today. Also, many folks won't join a forum to ask questions because they don't know enough about it to even ask a question. So they surf until they find the answer they want to hear.
Unfortunately, in our case, things like "40hp" or "1963 technology" or "drum brakes" are buzz words that aren't flattering. This is hard to overcome....but I think with a more cohesive community internet presence we can turn these buzz words into "Lap times similar or faster to Spec Miata" or "simple maintenance" or "least expensive open wheel class". We need to be able to convey the fact that sitting 6" off the ground at 100 mph with the engine wailing away 12" behind you offers so much more excitement than they could ever get out of a tin-top.
Before the internet, you could easily get yourself involved with something like racing FVs and naively think you knew enough to complete a race. There was a natural learning curve that cost a lot of time and money but you learned none the less. Today, people want to know all the details before they even join the SCCA and they think they can get the info from the darn internet. Spec Miata has a good, informative, cohesive presence on the internet and I bet part of the success of the class comes from this one website. http://www.specmiata.com/
So, Stevan Davis has done a great job of explaining much of the details pertaining to FV at http://www.formulavee.us/ . It's a great site with lots of fun pictures, great info and stories and history. I think it's a nice introduction to the world of FV.
Is there a way to merge/collaborate the more modern features you are thinking about, with a forum and the great website that Stevan has developed? A one stop shop for the prospective Vee driver. At this point we need to catch those people that are looking for the least expensive road racing experience and sell them on FV before being sucked into the Spec Miata world and we can't do that if they have to sift through 100 pages of bickering about spec tires and .......... intake manifolds.
-Andy Pastore
I think this is a neat idea and thank you for taking this on. This forum is good but maybe a little updating may assist in helping to attract more people to the class.
Here is why I think it would be helpful.
You have to imagine someone that wants to go racing. They are going to surf the web until they find the information they want to hear. It's just the way it is today. Also, many folks won't join a forum to ask questions because they don't know enough about it to even ask a question. So they surf until they find the answer they want to hear.
Unfortunately, in our case, things like "40hp" or "1963 technology" or "drum brakes" are buzz words that aren't flattering. This is hard to overcome....but I think with a more cohesive community internet presence we can turn these buzz words into "Lap times similar or faster to Spec Miata" or "simple maintenance" or "least expensive open wheel class". We need to be able to convey the fact that sitting 6" off the ground at 100 mph with the engine wailing away 12" behind you offers so much more excitement than they could ever get out of a tin-top.
Before the internet, you could easily get yourself involved with something like racing FVs and naively think you knew enough to complete a race. There was a natural learning curve that cost a lot of time and money but you learned none the less. Today, people want to know all the details before they even join the SCCA and they think they can get the info from the darn internet. Spec Miata has a good, informative, cohesive presence on the internet and I bet part of the success of the class comes from this one website. http://www.specmiata.com/
So, Stevan Davis has done a great job of explaining much of the details pertaining to FV at http://www.formulavee.us/ . It's a great site with lots of fun pictures, great info and stories and history. I think it's a nice introduction to the world of FV.
Is there a way to merge/collaborate the more modern features you are thinking about, with a forum and the great website that Stevan has developed? A one stop shop for the prospective Vee driver. At this point we need to catch those people that are looking for the least expensive road racing experience and sell them on FV before being sucked into the Spec Miata world and we can't do that if they have to sift through 100 pages of bickering about spec tires and .......... intake manifolds.
-Andy Pastore
Re: http://formulavee.ning.com/
Andy, I think you hit the nail on the head. For us, the forum is where we start. We really never go to http://www.formulavee.org/ before heading off to the forum - we go directly to the forum (I do at least). That's fine. We'll always go to the main forum page.
People searching will go to the home page. Our home page would not entice anyone to go much further. At other sites, you start off on the home page which is much fancier and has enticing pictures, often a car of the month, and many pictures and links. More like what http://www.formulavee.us/ hints of.
The spec miata site that Andy had the link to does this. Some other examples are http://www.chevelles.com & http://www.sccoa.com. Some of these sites even have voluntary payments, like $20/year, and that is used to help support the site and I think gets you things like web site space to put stuff up at, whatever. But, you don't have to pay to be a member to dig through the pictures, stories & links and read the forum. The forum needs to have a how to get started discussion at the top.
The best forum formats in my opinion are the ones like ours. The links I mentioned above are like ours in look and feel, but a bit more powerful. Ours is a low level version, it seems. But, this type is very simple to use, fast, fast to move around, it's clear when you've read something, easy on the eyes (very important), etc. I haven't seen a better forum engine. The rest of the site can be more jazzy, but the forum should be simple, clean and easy to get through fast. (Ours is a bit in disrepair - avatars don't work right, we don't get e-mails sent when someone respond to a thread, the advertisements don't show up right.)
I didn't really like the web site suggested earlier for a forum format - too busy and the contrast was hard to deal with for me. But, for a home page and the links, it's a nice concept. Very modern looking.
Back to the spec miata site, it's great to see some action on the home page. Like Andy said, this is where we need to sell the class. Let's no try to oversell. Just show it exactly for what it is - there's nothing to hide - show and tell the positives. When interested parties dig far enough into the pages they will find the like "40hp" or "1963 technology" or "drum brakes", but they hopefully will have their interest piqued by then by seeing a viable and active racing class presented, with a spiffy format for the home pages, etc. When they dig into the forum they'll see the bickering, and that's what they'll see on any forum site. It's just the way people are.
People searching will go to the home page. Our home page would not entice anyone to go much further. At other sites, you start off on the home page which is much fancier and has enticing pictures, often a car of the month, and many pictures and links. More like what http://www.formulavee.us/ hints of.
The spec miata site that Andy had the link to does this. Some other examples are http://www.chevelles.com & http://www.sccoa.com. Some of these sites even have voluntary payments, like $20/year, and that is used to help support the site and I think gets you things like web site space to put stuff up at, whatever. But, you don't have to pay to be a member to dig through the pictures, stories & links and read the forum. The forum needs to have a how to get started discussion at the top.
The best forum formats in my opinion are the ones like ours. The links I mentioned above are like ours in look and feel, but a bit more powerful. Ours is a low level version, it seems. But, this type is very simple to use, fast, fast to move around, it's clear when you've read something, easy on the eyes (very important), etc. I haven't seen a better forum engine. The rest of the site can be more jazzy, but the forum should be simple, clean and easy to get through fast. (Ours is a bit in disrepair - avatars don't work right, we don't get e-mails sent when someone respond to a thread, the advertisements don't show up right.)
I didn't really like the web site suggested earlier for a forum format - too busy and the contrast was hard to deal with for me. But, for a home page and the links, it's a nice concept. Very modern looking.
Back to the spec miata site, it's great to see some action on the home page. Like Andy said, this is where we need to sell the class. Let's no try to oversell. Just show it exactly for what it is - there's nothing to hide - show and tell the positives. When interested parties dig far enough into the pages they will find the like "40hp" or "1963 technology" or "drum brakes", but they hopefully will have their interest piqued by then by seeing a viable and active racing class presented, with a spiffy format for the home pages, etc. When they dig into the forum they'll see the bickering, and that's what they'll see on any forum site. It's just the way people are.