Rating the opinions

[diphthong]

I was thinking...

I put myself into the shoe's of someone who is a beginner home mechanic, or maybe even a enthusiastic hobbyist.  They come to the web site and in the best way they can, they give a description of their problem.

And then their dilemma starts, they are usually confronted with a number of responses, which can vary greatly. Now, Imagine your that person you doesn't know the difference between a flare nut wrench and a brake line bending tool. (Intended hyperbole)

They have five different opinions from maybe six different people, How in the world would they know where to start? I could see many just throwing their hands in the air.


 But if the users could somehow rate the Individuals giving the advice, That I think would be extremely helpful.

[Irish_Alley]

i dont see this as a competition, i see it as a site with helpful suggestions. lets say someone has a no start but it will turn over problem, i say one thing that i know could cause it and you say something else that you know could cause it. this aint saying that either one of these things could be it, its saying to check these problems before you do anything else it may fix it or it may suggest other problems. but if you where to list all the possible problems it could be all at once and i only listed the one problem it could be who would get credit, this would lead to more confusion. cause then you would have everyone listing the same thing. had this problem on a impala form, problem was a vibration under acceleration around 60mph most said tires, i suggested cv shaft i was the only one to. then a page later someone else said it, turns out it was the problem. he said thanks to that guy but not to me, i wasnt hurt to bad about it. but i said your welcome anyway. the other guy who said cv shaft then ims me and rubs his ase cert in my face and said because of his ase cert his response was taken with more credibility this is why he got the thanks. my reply was glad you got the cert but you got the same answer someone who barely graduated high school got, along with some other stuff. now if there was some type of rating system he would of got credit for it not me. then next time we would answer a question and had two totally different responses they would take him over me because he has more answers right but the truth is we both have the same. it really help if the op replys back and say what it was this time, may not be the same next time but it gives us somewhere to start.

[solve4x]

I'm a new member, new mechanic, with a rusty old truck literally under the shade tree in the back yard.  I've been able to get all the information I have needed, quickly!

Like Irish_Alley was saying, I appreciate the "conference call" approach to problem solving, where everyone shares what they know, and everyone learns in the process.  Each message board has its own personality...this one is helpful, friendly, and knowledgable. 
Keep up the good work!!!

[diphthong]

You know that thing people do when their ask to define a word and they use the word in the definition, that is effectively what I see in this respond.  The CV story is a perfect example. Vibrations from tires and wheels usually start coming earlier, it turns out our speed limits 60-70 MPH is the oscillation harmonic sweet spot for (the system) a tire and wheel. Which a certain percent of the responders understood at some level.

In my hypothetical I suggested two people would have the same opinion, which is what happened here, but the user had to wade through the chaff to get to the real problem.  A CV ended up being the problem, but a vibration from tires and wheels is totally a different animal, almost assuredly requiring this dude to spend money to tick that box.


 If I buy something on eBay I check the seller's rating, it's natural It's not about competition, I want to know this person's history, It just so happens in the case history would equate to end user inference of accuracy.  I don't recall the exact post that got me thinking this (rating) way, but this poor guy on the other end, he was in for a long couple of days, for what was relatively a simple issue.

A while back a had a question about pouring a cement bridge, so I went to that tech engineering website. Including that website and this, are the only two forms I've only ever used, and neither has a rating system.  So I guess I can understand but I'm starting to lose empathy for that idea.


I once had a shop owner tell me "it's possible to have just one plug wire crossed"   :-)

[zieg85]

Here is my $.02... I get what you are saying.  For me, I've had close to 400 cars/trucks in my 34 odd years of legal driving.  I quit turning wrenches for a paycheck 28.5 years ago but these trucks I know inside and out up until the throttle body 1987's.  I put together dozens of these square bodies over the years but I am no expert by any means.  There are several master mechanics and others that just have some experience and most are willing to share.  Summer time you may not get the answers as quickly as when the weather turns and hobbies are halted due to being to cold to continue.  I read every single post and chime in if I know the answer or can offer additional "things to check" that others may not have mentioned or something similar happened to me.  I have parted out several trucks and have squirreled away parts for future projects and have fixed many other vehicles with the help of others who may have had the same problem as I was experiencing.  I belong to several forums and this one is by far one of the friendliest and most helpful of them all.  It is moderated well and the owner is a top notch guy.

[diphthong]

I'm probably the odd man out here.   My thinking changed a few days back after I decided for the next week to ten days I'll be helping people here, I would approach the posts I assisted as if they were one of my driver's, it's something maybe only fleet mechanics would get. 



I once had a shop owner tell me "it's possible to have just one plug wire crossed"   :-)

[Irish_Alley]

dip i do see what your saying but the problem even with ebay the seller might have a 99.9% and be good in cell phones, but when it comes down to car parts not so good. but his 99% rating makes you think he knows what he has and its good information. same deal here, i dont think im a expert or even good in one area of the truck. but i may know more than someone who just does body work. but lets say i take a guess at something electrical in the engine bay, now i may have a "good" rating on here or in the eletrical. but this guy who knows very little about electrical had the same problem but he has a "poor/no" rating in electrical. he says he knows the answer and im say i know but im guessing the wrong answer. who would you choose? i think thats why usually from the start someone suggest testing parts first before any guess work

[square81]

I agree with irish alley. Its not a competition. A rating system would make it sound like only top rated can answer questions and no one else would be right. Who's to say the person with the "top" rating has the right answer every time. The whole reason people join a forum is to get info and share it as well.
I'm a licenced mechanic myself, I don't know everything. Most people on here maybe aren't mechanics or seasoned gear heads. Maybe there just tinkers having fun with there old truck and learning along the way. That's why you ask questions, because not asking is not knowing.
So that's why I think this forum is awesome. Everyone is here to help, even if its a small problem right up to a major one. 

[diphthong]

Competition was the first word used to describe this idea, but almost in the sense of it being a verb vs. a noun.  Why does it have to be thought about in these terms? As a bad thing.

I talked with the owner of this forum once, it was concerning a suspension. I had used someone's name and their words against them to make a point, in two Lengthy posts.

I'm only bring this up because I don't see this forum (particularly with this gatekeeper ) being allowed to turn into competing influences.  That boat has sailed.

The Individuals seeking help certainly wouldn't see it as a competition, I'm only hearing that from the point of view of the opinion givers.


I once had a shop owner tell me "it's possible to have just one plug wire crossed"   :-)

[Irish_Alley]

if there was a rating system then you would have everyone trying to be first to answer a post. instead of sitting back at the problem and thinking about it. that way they would say i said it first i should get the answer, even if it was a total guess.

[454Man]

Id like to say it's hard to diagnose something over the net. Like so... John comes here saying he had a bad vibration over 55mph Tim ask where is the vibration coming from. John says...from the rear of the vehicle.
Well there is a multitude of things I'd can be. So Tim says start with the wheels first. John gets them balanced still to no resolution. Later John takes the vehicle do a shop where they find it's the U joints. Dude who's fault is it that John couldn't determine that the vibration was not coming from the wheels. It's tuff... But no rating system is needed. Just a systematic check list for trouble shooting  :-)

What's under the hood??? If you have to ask maybe we shouldn't race...

[Powerdriver1958]

When it comes to ratings systems , They seems to always turn into a popularity contest ( Not sure why , Just human nature I guess) . More time is spent trying to make points and no one is dead on accurate 100% of the time .

With everything the staff does , They really don't need something else to track .

 This group seems to be well informed . So I don't see it as problem

[Captkaos]

We are all here to help.  I get what you are saying but we won't be rating anyone.