Slim Pickens

I'm quite certain I've insulted no one. I have offered tangible alternatives, already visible in plain sight. I find the site perfectly usable and navigable as is. And in my experience, the search function, while not perfect, is better than most other places.

Re-read this thread and you will find less than 10 members asking for major changes. 10 members among 30,000 does not make a revolution. But it makes for a long thread if the same members continue to make their point, over and over and over...

If you feel that by offering other suggestions that counter yours that you are insulted, then I can't help you. This thread is open to all input, not just the naysayers who feel the place "sucks."

JDM

Thats what my wife calls it.."frivelous" spending, I'm still trying to convince her that it's "maintenence".

SeaCoupe

No, this is not such a good idea. We would miss that good stuff that other chasis come up with.

Slim Pickens

Be careful, emr. You don't want your opinion construed to be an insult...

jedcred

Ummm... on the subject of making searches better (and it may have been suggested somewhere in between insults; I may have missed it), would it be possible to make vBulletin search the forum category you are currently viewing instead of the entire forum? I believe part of the problem is people trying out the search, seeing far too many irrelevant posts in other forums, and getting frustrated, instead of trying out the advanced search and searching just the w203 forums. In general, whenever I search, I always use advanced search to target this forum, and I usually only get about 3-5 pages on most subjects. It's an extra two clicks, but I'm thinking some people just aren't bothering with it in the beginning.

Anyway...you mother wears army boots!

drexappeal

LOL...that's a good one. I'll keep that in mind when I do get married.

I guess it's easy for me to say "frivelous", cuz I don't have a wifey to answer to (yet)...hahaha...but I like that style of "communication", bro.

JDM

There are advantages to a woman's vehicular illiteracy..

C230SportsCoupe

This wasn't meant as an insult? perhaps you have to explain the meaning of "warts" unless its a typo.

Slim Pickens

OMG... By "warts and all," I meant the website should be appreciated for what it is, including an appreciation for "all its warts" (referring to a less than perfect search capability). WOW.

BTW, referring us off site to MBKlass and the UK site for comparisons is fine, but doesn't support a need for change. I see they both use v-Bulletin software, and precisely the exact same search function (both basic and advanced search).

IMO, the only difference in any performance between there and here is that MBWorld has 10 times the quantity of posts and threads to sort through. Speaks volumes toward minimizing the number of duplicate threads.
.

Air Marshall Eldritch

If sub categories are too much to manage, perhaps one single sticky here that contains a merge of all quality DIY posts, with comments deleted. Maybe this is more workable. And yes, I know you'd still have to scroll through it to find the project you are researching, but how many different topics could there be?
But maybe I'm not understanding what is meant by DIY. I'm thinking part replacement mainly.

Air Marshall Eldritch

Hmm, this already exists here:

https://mbworld.org/forums/c-class-w203/108681-aftermarket-oem-modifications-diy-faq-s.html

ScottW911

I'd have to say that the 10 members might represent a silent majority.

Getting back to the earlier point, making the forum more hospitable to newbies, by answering their questions or directing them to answers, would be a welcome change. The accruacy and/or the ease of the search functionality would also be great.

I have to believe that most of the 30,000 members would agree.

C230SportsCoupe

LOL, slang, gotta love interpretation, sorry about that, never heard "warts", heard it with "idiosyncracies" (sp?)

Same software, easier to find info, why - organization. MBWorld has volumes of posts, so a search often reveals 5 pages. For instance I wanted to remove the B-pillar and had a hard time, so searched for "pillar" and got 4 pages of results, only about 1/4 related to the pillar, all others from "general discussion" type threads. Those 1/4 have topics that would probbaly put them in a "DIY" or "Technical Info" type sub-forum and reducing my search to those forums would reduce the sub-set returned and provide a more meaningful result.

Nothing should be apprecaited for what it is when it has room to improve, sorry we fundamentally disagree: if you're not going forward you're going backwards.


I think the biggest fix would be to make the basic search function search just the forum you are in. This would eliminate a lot of NOOB posts, since on other sites this is how the basic search works and reduces the number of results returned.

MB-BOB

The sticky thread on how to search the forum...

https://mbworld.org/forums/c-class-w203/40222-how-search-other-mbworld-forums.html

has long ago specified that users can do both basic and advanced searches. When you select "Search this forum," you are always defaulted to the forum you are in, whether using either advanced search (top) or basic (bottom)... As pointed out by others, it works the same at all the v-bulletin sites mentioned...

The reason there are 20 pages of tint threads is not because there is any problem with the search function. It is because members have have seen fit to post a grand total of 20 pages of tint threads over 5 years. That's all.
.

C230SportsCoupe

Try it before you tell me I am wrong, cause I am not.

Click "Search" and enter anything and press "Go", you will get results for the entire site, not just the W203 section.

Maybe I have something different enabled on my account, yet a basic search for "pillar" included all sections of the MBWorld site.

MB-BOB

Excuse me. See above. I have done NOTHING to change the default search pattern (mine has been set for years), but you can in fact save such as your default, if for some reason C-Class is not already selected.

Per the STICKY instructions, open "Search this Forum", (not general search), select advanced search, and in the "Search in Forum(s)" box lower right, check whether "Search All Open Forums" is selected. If so, this is the problem. Scroll down and select "C-Class W203 forum" then click "GO" next to "Save Search Preferences" at the bottom. Future searches will then default to your favorite forum.

C230SportsCoupe

LOL sorry, I see it, and I think I understand the problem.

The "search this forum" button is different from the "search" button in the toolbar above. I'm willing to bet there's a few others that have made this mistake since on other forums the "search" button defaults to the forum you are in and there isn't a seperate "search this forum" button.

To those of us that surf many sites we won't read the "how to search sticky" since we're used to other VB type sites, guess we should

MB-BOB

Yes, "Search this Forum" is your friend, if you mostly read the C-Class forum. You find it on the Forum Index page (where it belongs). The general "Search" button, available on most all pages, default sorts through all open forums... as it should. Although this is customizable, too.

BTW, there is also a "Search this Thread" function as well. You have to be reading the subject thread before this becomes available.

There's a lot to learn, for all who want to do some homework.

Rick

So now they're being told to STFT AND STFF?

We've created a MONSTER!!!!

SeaCoupe

You know, I have followed this and I'm bored by this. I completely agree. We should introduce and conduct ourselves as if we were at a meet and greet showing our cars. I have tried hard to do that. Even if things have sometimes rubbed me the wrong way.

I notice that AMDeutcsh is gone. Too bad, I enjoyed his humor. If your skin is so slight that you are bothered by an "old hand" try going to a parts shop. I suspect this whole thread is coming from the, "how do I open my hood?" group than an enthusiast who actually loves cars.

E

ScottW911

Hmmmmmmm....maybe?

ctC230K

wow, way to go mbbob with the red arrow step by step!!! now if only someone could make a post like this showing how to remove the door panels

C230SportsCoupe

I'm almost 100% certain instructions are posted on MBKlasse, try searching for speaker replacement, since the door panel has to be pulled for that.

C230SportsCoupe

Its a Mercedes forum, most people can't or won't service their vehicles themsleves, thus why our cars have electronic sensors for oil level.

I don't find there's many MB enthusiasts, if you use the purist definition for enthusiast, MB owners are mainly daily drivers, not club racers, garage mechanics, ...

Brunelleschi

holy poop! is this thread still alive?!