POLL - Thermal Imaging subforum

[frenky]

I hope Dave don't mind a poll on this topic but I'm curious what people think?

There is a lot of interest in thermal cameras and new models are coming out every few months.
And some of us would really like to have a forum where useful info would not get lost...



EDIT:
Poll in on top left of the page, above this message.  (It's easy to miss it).

[EEVblog]

Why should thermal images get their own sub forum and not other gear?

[frenky]

So that there won't be to many subforums? 

Ok serious with thermal imagers there is:
- more hacking
- more custom software development
- diy hardware development (lens, modifications...)
- broader range of use (drones, medical, pcb inspection, house inspection...)
- it appeals to much broader population than DSOs,  DMMs...

[tmbinc]

The issue is fragmentation. For most test gear, there are many different devices with only a few owners each. An exception may be Rigol (and similar) gear, but - and that's the awesomeness of this forum! - most topics are for expensive and obscure things (and yet you'll likely find 1 or 2 other people having looked at the same thing before).

For thermal cameras, we have these monster threads that aren't doing anyone a favor anymore. Pretty much all information between page 10 and 480 is effectively lost because there's no good way of indexing it, referring to it, reading it etc.

In my opinion, a good rule of thumb is: If there's an active thread that a.) consistently active for more than a year, and b.) has more than 200 pages,then it deserves a sub-forum. Looking at the forum, that seems to be true mostly for the FLIR thread.

[all_repair]

So another for $20 transistor tester? Another for minipro programmer? And another for jim william pulse generator?  Why, because I only interested in those, and my time is much more valuable than all of you all.  I do not want to dig too deep, and and I do not want to loose my tracking. And if Dave don't submit, I can run poll.  I shall update you again Dave when I have another topic for sub forum.  Soon if this thread go long enough, may I ask for a subforum on "subforum issues".

[frenky]

Relax... It was just a suggestion and a poll to see if there is any interest.
But in the end It's Daves forum and he can do with it what ever he wants.

P.S.
I hope that you can understand that comparing $20 transistor tester with entire thermal imaging market is just stupid...

[encryptededdy]

IMHO thermal imaging isn't strictly test equipment, like multimeters, DSOs, etc.

Thermal Imagers have much broader uses than just Electronics test & measurement, which is what I think the test equipment subforum is for.

With threads like the E4 hacking for Seek thermal teardown we attract a much broader audience than just those interested in electronics testing, wheras that cannot be said for the vast majority of other topics here.

So it's not "thermal imaging is a special type of electronics test equipment and so deserves it's own subforum because it's some kind of special snowflake", it's more that Thermal Imaging spans uses and interest way beyond electronics test & measurement.

[EEVblog]

- it appeals to much broader population than DSOs,  DMMs...

Are you serious?
This is an electronics forum!

[EEVblog]

With threads like the E4 hacking for Seek thermal teardown we attract a much broader audience than just those interested in electronics testing, wheras that cannot be said for the vast majority of other topics here.

So it's not "thermal imaging is a special type of electronics test equipment and so deserves it's own subforum because it's some kind of special snowflake", it's more that Thermal Imaging spans uses and interest way beyond electronics test & measurement.

That would be an argument for a sub forum, if it attracts a different audience to electronics people.
If there are no other major forum devoted to thermal imagers then you could make a case this forum should become that place with it's own sub forum.

[nbritton]

Why should thermal images get their own sub forum and not other gear?

Maybe it's worth considering sub-forums for each type of test gear, this would presumably help with organization... the search function is kinda ineffective.

[nbritton]

The search function isn't the best but that could also be an argument against fragmentation. Scanning posts (avoiding searching) in a tightly partitioned special interest place is not a viable long term solution. The implication being that a new child board is created because it is popular and therefore likely to grow quickly. If the search argument can find a post in one board it will be equally effective in the larger board.

I can't think of a way, but it would be nice if we could find a better way to manage 200 page threads. Also it would be nice if you could limit the search results to a particular forum, sub-forum, or thread.

[tautech]

The search function isn't the best but that could also be an argument against fragmentation. Scanning posts (avoiding searching) in a tightly partitioned special interest place is not a viable long term solution. The implication being that a new child board is created because it is popular and therefore likely to grow quickly. If the search argument can find a post in one board it will be equally effective in the larger board.

I can't think of a way, but it would be nice if we could find a better way to manage 200 page threads. Also it would be nice if you could limit the search results to a particular forum, sub-forum, or thread.

You can.

[nidlaX]

Why don't we do this XDA style and have a separate forum for each and every device? 

[nbritton]

I can't think of a way, but it would be nice if we could find a better way to manage 200 page threads. Also it would be nice if you could limit the search results to a particular forum, sub-forum, or thread.

You can.

Ah. I didn't notice that little hidden gem, thanks for pointing that out.

[frenky]

@Dave:
If you can't give us a separate thermal camera forum, how about a sub-sub forum inside "Test Equipment"?

Top 3 thermal camera topics have more pageviews and replies than four existing Sub-sub forums combined:

Thermal camera topics:
-Flir E4 Thermal imaging camera teardown
-Yet another cheap thermal imager incoming.. Seek Thermal
-Flir E4 Thermal imaging camera review
-------------------------------
9,889 Replies
1,344,736 Views

Sub-sub forums:
-DesignSpark
-DIPtrace
-Open Source KiCad / gEDA
-Eagle
-----------------------------
3,313   Replies
983,138   Views

There is increasingly more and more development on thermal cameras & modules. And all the info is just getting lost in a few huge threads.

And now with a new Lepton 3 core and i3 ThermalExpert, even more users will come looking for quality information.

Please, please, please... You wouldn't say no to a kitty? 

[Fungus]

There is increasingly more and more development on thermal cameras & modules. And all the info is just getting lost in a few huge threads.

a) You haven't explained how a subforum actually solves that

b) The "It's obvious!!!" thought that appeared when you read point (a) is exactly equivalent making new threads for sub-topics on the main forum. You could always try that instead

[frenky]

In subforum threads could be split into many meaningful smaller threads. So wanted info would be easier to find.
If we did that inside this forum all thermal threads would get lost in one day in the wast amount of other non thermal threads.

The point of sub-forum is just that, to contain just the information that is relevant to that topic.

If that is not the point of the subforums, then we could just merge all of the forums in a one huge forum...