Is it about to get busy on here? Blatchat to close...

Is it about to get busy on here? Blatchat to close...

Author
Discussion

buzzer

Original Poster:

3,533 posts

239 months

Sunday 28th September 2014
quotequote all
I was a member of the Lotus Seven club for many years... I even kept up my membership for a while after I sold the car as it was such a good forum... I gave up when I felt it became over moderated and many of the characters that made it good left.

Although I couldn't post any longer, it was always on my browsing list as I really liked the simple, quick, clean look of the forum. Sometimes interesting threads on there... Seems that is about to change and they are migrating to a new forum...

I had a brows today and it seems members are not happy! (I can see why!) Why the hell the management felt the need to change from what I thought was one of the best forum layouts I visit is beyond me...

maybe its about to get busy on here biggrin

PurpleMeanie

7,117 posts

248 months

Monday 29th September 2014
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buzzer said:
Why the hell the management felt the need to change from what I thought was one of the best forum layouts I visit is beyond me...
A forum (and all the other parts of the club's tech) is so much more than "layout" though, isn't it. It is about underlying architecture.

BC was hand crafted by one person, who did a great job. But it is probably entirely unsupportable by any one else now, and at risk of technology redundancy that could be very damaging.

Moving to a free and open platform, that has a huge user base, thousands of modules, and is largely tech neutral is a sensible decision. In fact the only decision, given "let's hope Barry never gets fed up or unable to support it" isn't very clever.

Yes, it looks a bit weird. But that is easily fixable.

A small number of people are arguing about the colour the front door whilst ignoring the fact the house is on the edge of a cliff.

Difficult decision, very difficult. But you could never do it by trying to please everyone. You had to make the change, then sort out the minor bits. And a certain type of person was going to complain, whatever happened.

The whole L7C tech was close to end of life. It needed changing before it HAD to be changed.

PH has had similar problems, the classified are still a bit of a pain, but given they wanted to make much more of that area (revenue generating!) the original architecture wouldn't support it.

To be honest though, this is 2014. Opinion in web technology stopped being relevant decades ago. Data will tell us whether it is used more or less. I am willing to bet there will be more daily traffic in 6-12 months time.



Edited by PurpleMeanie on Monday 29th September 08:47

buzzer

Original Poster:

3,533 posts

239 months

Monday 29th September 2014
quotequote all
PurpleMeanie said:
buzzer said:
Why the hell the management felt the need to change from what I thought was one of the best forum layouts I visit is beyond me...
A forum (and all the other parts of the club's tech) is so much more than "layout" though, isn't it. It is about underlying architecture.

BC was hand crafted by one person, who did a great job. But it is probably entirely unsupportable by any one else now, and at risk of technology redundancy that could be very damaging.

Moving to a free and open platform, that has a huge user base, thousands of modules, and is largely tech neutral is a sensible decision. In fact the only decision, given "let's hope Barry never gets fed up or unable to support it" isn't very clever.

Yes, it looks a bit weird. But that is easily fixable.

A small number of people are arguing about the colour the front door whilst ignoring the fact the house is on the edge of a cliff.

Difficult decision, very difficult. But you could never do it by trying to please everyone. You had to make the change, then sort out the minor bits. And a certain type of person was going to complain, whatever happened.

The whole L7C tech was close to end of life. It needed changing before it HAD to be changed.

PH has had similar problems, the classified are still a bit of a pain, but given they wanted to make much more of that area (revenue generating!) the original architecture wouldn't support it.

To be honest though, this is 2014. Opinion in web technology stopped being relevant decades ago. Data will tell us whether it is used more or less. I am willing to bet there will be more daily traffic in 6-12 months time.



Edited by PurpleMeanie on Monday 29th September 08:47
after reading that... I can see why it needs to change... its just that the replacement is so poor! lets hope they sort it quick!


CheesyChips

2 posts

114 months

Monday 29th September 2014
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At best the new 'BlatChat' is a stunningly poor implementation of a WebForum. Which ever company developed it should be truly ashamed of themselves (Even more so if it really cost what was said originally).

I hope they move quickly to sort it out . . . Its gone from a very quick, clean set up (which yes needed to move on) to one which for the user is like trying to wade through cold treacle . . .



CheesyC




framerateuk

2,730 posts

183 months

Monday 29th September 2014
quotequote all
CheesyChips said:
At best the new 'BlatChat' is a stunningly poor implementation of a WebForum. Which ever company developed it should be truly ashamed of themselves (Even more so if it really cost what was said originally).

I hope they move quickly to sort it out . . . Its gone from a very quick, clean set up (which yes needed to move on) to one which for the user is like trying to wade through cold treacle . . .
It looks like it's just a module for the CMS (Drupal) they're using. Seems like the website was built and then the forum added on, when really, the forum is the reason people visit the site, and should have been the focus.

It's not really the club management's fault though, seems to be a bit of a communication breakdown between them and the agency who built the site.

Anthony Micallef

1,122 posts

194 months

Monday 29th September 2014
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Is the new website a secret? I can't seem to find a link or a URL.

V7SLR

456 posts

185 months

Monday 29th September 2014
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Anthony Micallef

1,122 posts

194 months

Monday 29th September 2014
quotequote all
V7SLR said:
Thank you smile

CheesyChips

2 posts

114 months

Monday 29th September 2014
quotequote all
"It looks like it's just a module for the CMS (Drupal) they're using"

Amazed at that! Why ever not use one of the main board systems that are around rather than just some very basic add on . . .


CheesyC

Dave J

883 posts

265 months

Monday 29th September 2014
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I don't think the forum of blatchat has been popular with the management team for several years, the dropping of the name "blatchat" (which I see as a big indicator of the priorities and a gauge of what was required as an outcome) and the creation of a lesser "forum" in addition to a main site (and not the other way round) could possibly be seen as a driving force of the project.

I suspect the team wished for a smarter home page and a subscription payments section all linked to one log in with membership verification, and further closure of blatchat from public viewing and then downgrading of the "forum", so as to try and make it less of an attraction and perceived centrepiece of the club.

Trouble is its all a bit wonky and even the drupal providers state that drupal forums are a bit crap, so I guess the proper death of blatchat has been delivered and members will have to resort to writing into the editors letters page and reading low flying biggrin

Its a shame after all the hardwork and expense that has gone into it and I hope its all resolved with out further expense and the loss of members, but the club does have a new homepage smile.


delmatt

506 posts

190 months

Monday 29th September 2014
quotequote all
I don't think it will get much busier on here as most people were on PH as well as BC anyway...this section could do with some more action anyway.

Having had a go on the new forum, I don't see currently that there will be more traffic in 6-12 months unless it gets a load of improvements in both appearance and usability. I think the Club website looks more modern and actually better though.

Risky

167 posts

224 months

Monday 29th September 2014
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Dave
Are you looking at the same website? It still has Blatchat on the new website.

V7SLR

456 posts

185 months

Monday 29th September 2014
quotequote all
Paul, Dave's observation is correct, the L7C forum WAS Blatchat. Now the term is being used for only part of the new forum.

downsman

1,099 posts

155 months

Monday 29th September 2014
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The new forum is slow, and not as easy to use, but the fact that to start a thread you can add a title but no text below it and every reply has to have a bold title is hilariously inept frown

Risky

167 posts

224 months

Monday 29th September 2014
quotequote all
V7SLR said:
Now the term is being used for only part of the new forum.
So the name is still in use and hasn't been dropped.

downsman

1,099 posts

155 months

Monday 29th September 2014
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Don't go there........................

coppice

8,562 posts

143 months

Monday 29th September 2014
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Not actually quite so simple - but certainly a subject which as an old favourite always stimulates a little debate.

buzzer

Original Poster:

3,533 posts

239 months

Monday 29th September 2014
quotequote all
ash73 said:
So the Caterham owners club still calls itself the Lotus 7 club? Missed opportunity for a re-brand.
Ah... But many caterham owners like the lotus link and are keen to keep it... plus there are some (I wonder what the percentage is?) genuine Lotus 7's in the club.

I was at the local bikers café one day sitting in the sunshine with a few fellow bikers. A Caterham pulls onto the car park and a guy and his girlfriend get out, collect a coffee and sit at one of the tables outside...

Fellow biker says "nice car mate, did you build it yourself?"... Yes, says the Caterham owner proudly... another biker chips in... "I always fancied building myself a kit car" to which the Caterham driver replies "its not a kit car its Caterham, its the same as a Lotus 7"

the conversation degenerated from there...A fairly heated exchange followed, which I found strange as the bikers were genuinely impressed with the car, but the owner was emphatic it was not a kit car... and kept referencing Lotus, as if caterham had little kudos and Lotus did...

Caterham owner leaves his coffee and flounces off... rantingranting

I always found it a bit strange owning a Caterham and being in the Lotus 7 club, a car that stopped being produced in the early 70's

I never really understood why it never changed to reference both cars...

downsman

1,099 posts

155 months

Monday 29th September 2014
quotequote all
ash73 said:
I pulled into a petrol station in the Caterham once and a couple of bikers wandered over to have a look, and one asked "why has your bike got stabilisers?", it made me chuckle biggrin
I like that biggrin

I was having the kitcar debate with a local Caterham owner.
He said they are not kit cars. My reply was that his factory built Seven might not be, but mine which arrived in boxes definitely is a kit car.


BigCol

202 posts

282 months

Monday 29th September 2014
quotequote all
downsman said:
ash73 said:
I pulled into a petrol station in the Caterham once and a couple of bikers wandered over to have a look, and one asked "why has your bike got stabilisers?", it made me chuckle biggrin
I like that biggrin
Me too... would see such a comment as a great compliment.

re kit car... I (sort of) take umbrage at the car I built being so described as I associate such things with scrap donor cars rather than entirely new bits and designs not based on a car conjured up by one of the UK's greatest ever car designers... but hey, it was a kit and it is a car! smile