[Poll] What would you like to see more of at ST.N?

[UFO]

Assuming ST.N had the ability in the future to provide one (or more of the following), please click through to the poll and choose your top 4.

Furthermore, if you're so inclined to assist further, please post and rank all of the above from 1 (highly desired) to 9 (not desired/don't care).

In addition, if further inclined, please post any ideas you'd like to see that I may have forgotten.

Thanks.

[USA MEDIC]

STN has abilities? Wow! and to think I just thought it was a cool place to hang out. And UFO, he does exist, I even road through two states with him once

[Lawn Dart]

Damn Skip!  I was gonna vote for dedicated Toe and Bewbie forums!  

Seriously, tough call on any of those.  Given that STN is pretty much the only sport-touring site on the web, it makes sense to focus mostly on ST activities.  On the other hand, would it be that hard to get an RSS feed from MotoGP or something like that?

IMO, the need for fresh ideas is critical to keep viewers coming back.  It's gotta be a "tag" that people want to keep coming back to.  Ride reports for one makes a lot of sense - it's always fresh with new rides.  A static database of projects (while cool and useful), not so good for keeping people coming back.  Once a bike is "complete" there's not much reason to keep looking at different articles.  I ride a BMW...why would I want to see how to change a Honda clutch (for instance)?  

On the other hand, your topics are tough, tough to choose from.  I'd be lying if I didn't say I'd like to see them all.  All are worthy of a place on STN.

[MK96xj]

WOW. I would have voted for everything given the opportunity BUT!!!

I voted for Ride Reports but don't know how this is going to be controled as it is member provided. I do think however that they have been improving over the years.

Round the world rider news would be interesting as well.

[Rincewind]

1. Motorcycle news from around the globe - maybe a separate News forum again
2. Gear/gadget reviews (with member ratings) - good idea
3. (Long term) bike reviews - these should be encouraged, but we aren't the press
4. Rider registry/assistance registry - this has been started, but could be more integrated
5. A more organized ST.N "association" and yearly rallies -  yeah, but no patches
6. More high quality ride reports
7. More "how to" articles
8. A store catering specifically to sport-touring needs - it may be easier to associate with an exisitng store
9. Racing news

Other ideas
1. Member Galleries and/or member pages
2. Social media integration - Digg/Twitter/Facebook buttons
3. Upgrade to SMF 2.0
4. New SMF 2.0 mobile themes
5. Reputation/Karma system to be returned

[Rabidsnipe]

I like the idea of long term bike reviews.  What would prevent us from allowing for member ratings of motorcycles (similar to what you mentioned for gear/gadgets).

After thinking about it, I partially retract my vote for "how-to" articles.  Much of the how-to out there is bike specific.  That makes me think it might be a good idea to...

Have some sort of association with model specific forums.  At the least, maybe the manufacturer forums could include links to the model specific forums.

[atypical1]

I thought we have all of those things now  

It doesn't seem that long term bike reviews get that much attention around here. That is to say how many VFR or FJR reviews can we support?

I'd like to see more first hand accounts being written. There's a tendency to cut and paste stuff from other sources and I'd sure like to see more first hand accounts.

I'd also like to see a bit more consistency when people do review gear or gadgets. There's a wide range of writing styles and skills here and some authors are better than others at making a good review. Maybe some sort of general guideline for writing these?

I like this site and its strength for me lies in the fact that we meet up from time to time. I wouldn't mind seeing a section for those of us who do meet up on a regular basis to just chat without the "noise" of those who will never go to events.

james

[Orson]

STN has abilities? Wow! and to think I just thought it was a cool place to hang out.

Yah, I'm pretty happy with the way it is   an online moto-community.  

I wouldn't want it to morph into sumthin like motorcycle-USA.com

too many places to click, and I start gettin' disorientated  

I voted for Rider Registry & Ride Reports  

[Rabidsnipe]

I'd also like to see a bit more consistency when people do review gear or gadgets. There's a wide range of writing styles and skills here and some authors are better than others at making a good review. Maybe some sort of general guideline for writing these?

Maybe we could develop a gear/bike review template. Could it be a forum supported form similar to a poll?

[garry]

Although it's not an option, I would like to see the annual regional meets to have their own sub-forums, like the National does. ESTN, CSTN and WRCM should have their own places for planning and discussion. This especially helps ESTN because it spans multiple regions and there is no well-known spot for next years planning thread.

[bubba zanetti]

A bit of a template could be developed to help posters with their ride reports and posting pics. Or a 'how to' tutorial.

An IQ test at the point of sign up to let in the riff but keep out the raff.  


Anything that helps promote the ST.n community and keeps the commercialism to an absolute minimum.

[UFO]

I would really like to make ST.N bigger, more informative, and useful...in addition to the current community aspect which I would like to keep integrated and unchanged with any potential updates.  This will require work and $$, but I think the opportunities are there.

Good ideas and feedback.  Keep it coming so I can gather info.

[Doug Just Doug]

I only voted for 3: Gear/gadget reviews, Long term bike reviews, and more "how to" articles.  Frankly, I've already got more than enough organizations/associations/registries, stores and news sources, and ride reports just make me jealous    but there's never too many sources of non-commercial reviews or good "how to" articles.

[twotrackhero]

Even though I haven't posted any gadget reports yet, they really are worth there weight in gold and save alot of time and money.

Regional events and local happenings are the great for meeting other riders and giving out a destinations to ride to that are motorcycle related that normally I wouldn't have heard about. (a national / regional calander would be cool)

I like the ride reports also, they are great for planing future trips and getting to vist places I may never get to.
 

I really do appreicate the communal efforts made by the Skip for making the best decisions with the site, even though he's the boss man. Sport touring.net is a cool place with lots of different folks with different veiws and opinions which gives it it's own flavor while maintaining a soild core to sport touring in general. So thanks for letting the masses speak

[squeezer]

My rankings (I voted for the top 3):
1. Gear/gadget reviews (with member ratings)
 I'm always searching for user reviews when thinking about a new piece of gear. And they're almost always, "I've been wearing these gloves for two weeks now and..."     It's usually just cognitive dissonance raising its head, justifications for why the owner plopped down the cash. I really trust the opinions of people around here because they actually ride. I think member ratings would be a very valuable service.

2. More "how to" articles
  What's better than knowledge? I mean, besides the hot buns thread. There's tons of good tips and info here, but a dedicated, indexed section would be dreamy.  

3. Rider registry/assistance registry
  What's not to like? I idly wondered if it would raise a liability issue for you, skip, but I don't think so and it's common enough elsewhere.

4. Motorcycle news from around the globe
5. Racing news
 Readily available elsewhere, but a one stop shopping place for news would be nice.

6. More high quality ride reports    
 That one's on us, not you.

7. (Long term) bike reviews
 Okay.

8. A more organized ST.N "association" and yearly rallies
 Actually, the laissez faire approach you've taken seems to be working remarkably well. In fact, I agree with others that it already provides most of what's on this list in one way or another. And no one has to keep membership rolls.

9. A store catering specifically to sport-touring needs
 Could you really compete with newenough? Maybe links in the gear review section and/or a list of preferred vendors would be enough?
   

You're taking good care of us already, skip. But thanks for considering more.

[Rincewind]

This will require work and $$, but I think the opportunities are there.

Holiday donation sent!  Thanks UFO.  

[JReazor]

Most of the list would be nice to have but probably wouldn't change the way I interact with ST.N. An ST oriented store front would be awesome but getting in to retail is a huge undertaking.

The one thing on the list that makes me a little nervous is "A more organized ST.N "association" and yearly rallies". I like the loose, community driven nature of the events we have now. I would not be opposed to, as Garry suggested, a better way to organize what we already have but that's very different from a more organized association. I interpert that as involving rules and officers and that sounds like bad news to me.

I would like to see some kind of aggregator for content produced by members of the community. Maybe something that would let a user enter the RSS feed for his/her blog. It could then display the titles and links in a single thread.

[nevinfs327]

Ride reports are the reason I joined this site and the first thing I check out every time I log in.  Would like to see more and would LOVE to contribute more - can you talk to my employer about getting me more time off?  

Maybe a contest where other members voted for ride reports on a periodic basis and provided some financial incentive (cash, New Enough gift certificate, etc) would provide incentive to those who pass on writing them or draw in new members?

My ranking, for whatever it's worth:

1. Ride Reports (can I vote for this more than once?!)
2. How-to (though there are typically model-specific forums elsewhere to find this kind of stuff)
3. Long-term reviews (great to get impressions after the honeymoon)
4. Registry for assistance
5-10...no preference but certainly no opposition to any of those items

Since I proposed a financial outlay I will send some cash momentarily.

[Flyer]

I rate 'em:
1- (Long term) bike reviews. We all need to know how well our shiny new rides will wear their mileage. Everybody else's reviews are just a quick tankful through the canyons.  
2- A "store" specifically for STers. I don't suppose you propose a physical STN sales operation, more of a collection of updated links to the suppliers to STNers. Products we use, and dealers and services we approve of. This would entail much work.  
3- A rider registry is a noble idea. STNers are virtual Boy/Girl Scouts with tools and good intentions, (all that I've been fortunate enough to meet).
4- Gear and Gadget Reviews. STN already does a spankin' job here, so it can be #4.  

And UFO, he does exist...

I always just assumed he was a late model "Max Headroom" kind of entity...
 

[Ramming Speed]

A best places to eat while traveling section.  Sort of like Alton Brown did.  General food review, and most specially for really good pie.

[garry]

A best places to eat while traveling section.  Sort of like Alton Brown did.  General food review, and most specially for really good pie.

I thought we had a series of "Greasy Spoon" threads (one per region). Maybe that was STN v1.0.

[scottzilla]

A product store would be nice.  Probably have to deal with spammers though.  I think you could make some quiet $$ too.

[maddjack]

Although it's not an option, I would like to see the annual regional meets to have their own sub-forums, like the National does. ESTN, CSTN and WRCM should have their own places for planning and discussion. This especially helps ESTN because it spans multiple regions and there is no well-known spot for next years planning thread.

I second that!

[maddjack]

A STN store with Sport-touring accessories? Could be costly,better a deal with say new-enough or several vendors with a "member link" discount thing.I would like to see better organization of STN branded LOGO gear ect so we make sure the site benefits from the use of the LOGO.I am not saying get a patent type approach just make sure anyone making stuff with it has at least asked to use it before selling stuff with it on( and I hope everyone who does contributes to the server fund) More ride reports, I would think a member reviewed,gadget,accessory,gear area would be intresting and helpful.I would like there to be more meets and perhaps an association ,BUT,I fear the formalization of the site required to do this,we would need to keep personal agendas and politics out of here(I have seen many informal organizations ruined by people "taking over" too much).More news from the Globe,we don't always get all the tasty stuff .

[sprint_st]

I would really like to make ST.N bigger, more informative, and useful...in addition to the current community aspect which I would like to keep integrated and unchanged with any potential updates.  This will require work and $$, but I think the opportunities are there.

Good ideas and feedback.  Keep it coming so I can gather info.

I fully understand the "bigger is better" way of thinking; but I would submit, the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" mode should be at least dialed in to some degree too.  I'm sure you get bored with the same old stuff and would like some changes just to keep your interest level high.  That is great!!!  All I'm saying is don't make too many changes too fast because this is a great site and kinda sorta organization.

[chornbe]

Gear/gadget reviews (with member ratings)  
(Long term) bike reviews
Rider registry/assistance registry
A store catering specifically to sport-touring needs <-- this one especially because so many members here chide the industry for not taking "us" into account as much. Surely there are products out there, right?

I would be very willing to help out with product/gear reviews and with working with the registry.


Oh, and less Harley bashing from pussies who can't ride anything but an SS bike in a straight line, or who can't think for themselves.    

[Rabidsnipe]

I'm kind of surprised that no one has mentioned a mobile device optimzed website. I have zero idea how much time/effort/money would be required for such an endeavor. But I figure if I'm posting this via iPhone right now, surely I'm not the only one.

[Rabidsnipe]

Cool.  

[Mrs. DantesDame]

Although it's not an option, I would like to see the annual regional meets to have their own sub-forums, like the National does. ESTN, CSTN and WRCM should have their own places for planning and discussion. This especially helps ESTN because it spans multiple regions and there is no well-known spot for next years planning thread.

I'll 3rd this one  

[garry]

I would like to see an STN online magazine. The best of the ride reports, gear/gadget reviews, worthy editorial, etc.

[desert_rider]

  On the other hand, would it be that hard to get an RSS feed from MotoGP or something like that?

+1  

[Papa Lazarou]

More beauty contests that don't involve beauty.

[HipGnosis]

Dear Santa;

As your elves can surely tell you, I've been especially good this year.  I don't carry BBs, and no speeding or wreckless driving tickets, honest!
But I have all that I need.  So please, Mr Santa, if it's ok w/ you... please give the following to ST.N for me;

A place to upload/download GPS files.  With member ratings, on multiple criteria.  ST roads and criteria are different from cruisers and squids.
A place to review vendors of ST.N gear.  Both brick and on-line.  It'd be awfully sweet if it could search and filter, like tires, chain, gloves...  and allow members to rate each on multiple criteria like price, stock, service, turn-around, etc.
A place to log and review travel accomodations;  Resaurants, motels, camp grounds, road-side attractions, etc.  Extra sweet if they could be shown on a map and candy-cane sweet if they could have GPS POI files.

[sprint_st]

A place to upload/download GPS files.  

[/quote
 

[Papa Lazarou]

More Velosolexes.

[falcofred]

I enjoy it just the  way it is, but more Harley Bashing wouldn't hurt  

[Papa Lazarou]

Conpilot home again. I did pm him...