Suggestion Splitting the BCD Forum

[Jarrett]

The BCD section has become consumed with discussion about BP/W's. It is to the point that you can't get advice on non BP/W questions there anymore. Any request for information about non-BP/W BCDs is met with 10 responses of "you should get a BP/W."

Most of the non-BP/W users have quit posting in that forum due to the beating that they take when they mention anything but a BP/W. While the BP/W may be a great option for some, the majority of divers out there are not in BP/W setups and still need advice there as well.

My suggestion is to split this forum.

How about subsections like:

Traditional BCDs (Jacket/Back-inflate)
Backplates & Wings

That way posters interested in each could inquire and receive non combative discussions on each type of platform. I believe this would also bring more traditional BCD owners back to the forum for discussions who may otherwise be reluctant to post these days due to the current bias.

 

[DiveMaven]

I have to agree that it gets old fast to feel talked down to by the BP/W crowd. There isn't any thought to the possibility that some people LIKE big pockets, an air cell that wraps around them (and sometimes makes them feel secure), integrated weight pockets, and very simple donning.

I have a good friend who wouldn't think of ever giving up her SeaQuest Diva LX with all it's bulkiness. She practically turned pale when she saw my Zeagle Zena and it's minimalist design. My husband also wouldn't give up his SeaQuest Pro QD Plus for 100 BP/W set-ups. He loves being able to stash his camera (and everything else on the boat) in his pockets, and doesn't find it hard to dive in.

Neither of these folks are wrong, they just want something different than a BP/W and there are a lot of folks out there like them.

 

[Doc Intrepid]

For the record, no one disputes that the problem is real. This is agreed.

At issue is the best way of solving not only this specific problem, but others exactly like it except that the topic might be pony bottles, PADI, use of spare airs, etc.

Splitting forums is one answer. More aggressive and focused moderation is another answer. Sticky Instructions regarding having OPs clearly indicate whether or not they ONLY desire input from one camp or the other (and self-policing) is yet a third option.

But the point is that whichever answer you implement may not only impact the BCD forum, but may potentially impact other similar forums on ScubaBoard.

Take this discussion off of "Jacket BC versus BP/Wing" specifically, and elevate it up to a level that looks at what is best for all similar forums on the board.

At a board-wide level I agree with Andy, Walter, Lamont, TSandM, and others that splitting this forum isn't the optimal answer. A combination of clearly stating the topic of a thread and aggressive moderation achieves the same objective without any restructuring of forums... IMHO.


YMMV...

 

[lamont]

we're talking about NOT talking about SOME BCD's in the BCD forum. you can talk about all these styles of BCD, but NOT bp/wings.

i don't think anyone has proposed that.

the discussion is revolving around splitting out jacket BCs and BP/Ws into their own subforums, or aggressively moderating posts that are identified as being non-BP/W posts. nobody has suggested banning BP/W discussion from the BC forum entirely, AFAIK.

EDIT: and the only reason that the moderation argument isn't symmetrically formed is that in BP/W-centric discussions you rarely find people poking their nose in suggesting jacket BCs...

 

[lamont]

i'm assuming that it is.

i'm saying separating the BCD forum into two isn't the solution

if it separates i'd separate it into three:

equipment / BCDs
equipment / BCDs / Jacket (or "Traditional" or whatever)
equipment / BCDs / BPW+BI

i may actually support that idea. it makes it easier for moderators to figure out the intent of the OP.

 

[Walter]

No, banning would be saying "no more discussion of BP/W's on any part of Scubaboard."

No, that would be banning it from Scubaboard. What's proposed is banning it from the forum in which it belongs.

Think of it like this, the BP/W discussion is so important that it needs its own section for it

It's not. The BP/wing is merely 1 of 4 different types of BC.

 

[Walter]

BTW, folks it's not the "BCD" forum, drop the "D," it's the Buoyancy Compensators (BC's) & Weight Systems forum. Why do folks want to toss in that useless "D" anyway?

 

[TNdiver6387]

Here is my idea. Make the three sections and for the non wing section let the people who want to participate in the process write a standardized post making the wing argument to put in every thread once, then leave the rest of the wing discussion out. In the wing section let the people who want to make a standardized post about the other options and arguements for/against and post that once in every post, then leave the rest of the non wing comments out. That way there is still a section for open discussion between the two, but no one is "cheated out" of hearing the other side, and the vest threads dont get turned into a collection of "get a wing" posts. Im not saying that is always the case, because i havent read many posts in that section, im just assuming thats the case. Just my 2 cents.

 

[jeffrey-c]

As one who has been in jacket BCs and recently switched to a BP/W but can still the benefits of both, I would hate to see the categories split up as is being debated here:

How would it fundamentally stop the problem? By banishing people for mentioning a BP/W on the jacket forum? I don't believe that splitting would do much for the root issue.

Does SB have to be split into subforums every time a debate comes up on passionate subjects? What's next, splitting the exposure protection into drysuit/wetsuit? It seems that people are frequently jumping in and saying "get a drysuit" whenever anyone asks about cold water wetsuit options - do we have to shuttle them into their own little subforum instead? How about non-split versus split fins? Same problem. Same in the regulator forums whenever someone inquires about an integrated alternate air source - should that be split into subforums as well?

I think the best suggestion made previously was to implore the BP/W advocates to be a bit more self-policing. I would rather see that tried as an answer first before carving up the forum further. If it works, great, if not then alternatives could be tried. But don't jump to a more extreme solution as the first defense.

 

[drew52]

Interestingly I posed a question about the BC two days ago and got no comment. So changing the question to compare to BP/W did illicit a lot of comments.

Taken from another current thread which shows exactly why the BCD Section needs a Sup-Section for BP/Wings.

As a result of the people who post regarding backplates there is hardly any discussion regarding the more common BCD's. Which is why the original poster made the suggestion of Splitting/Creating Sub-Sections.

Does SB have to be split into subforums every time a debate comes up on passionate subjects? What's next, splitting the exposure protection into drysuit/wetsuit? It seems that people are frequently jumping in and saying "get a drysuit" whenever anyone asks about cold water wetsuit options - do we have to shuttle them into their own little subforum instead? How about non-split versus split fins? Same problem. Same in the regulator forums whenever someone inquires about an integrated alternate air source - should that be split into subforums as well?

Perhaps the difference with the other forums is that there is still a lot of healthy discussion on the contentious issues.

 

[divad]

The original post was "can BP/W be better than this backinflate BC." Which sub-forum would this be in? DIR? Creation? Evolution? Crevolution? Pathetic nonsense?