Brainstorming about Information Transfer

[jaredyates]

One of the biggest challenges in the Bearhawk community is getting information from the people who know it to the people who don't. Many thanks to the folks who come here for that purpose, but how can it be better?

What ideas do you have to facilitate this transfer?

What would make you want to share what you know, and in what ways would you take effort to receive what others know?

[Utah-Jay]

I have a fellow BH builder flying to visit in a couple of weeks to check out my Companion.

I would say the forum search function is not great as it takes you out of the forum to a web search page. Just seems a bit clunky.

The current forum has model breakdowns for both plans and kit, but a more stage specific sub-forums would be great…

eg. Covering, rigging, interior, panel, wing lighting, and then there is the engine… plumbing/cooling etc.

I think the sub-forums would be a great addition, but maybe too difficult or costly

[Bcone1381]

Google's profits and stock price is down. I see an effort to raise profits by them when I do a search. I get more and more ads. Chances are the focus for google changed from helping us find information to lift stock price up though my search.

[BravoGolf]

I agree with Jay on the stage specific forums. While the models are different so many tasks are the same, covering, welding, painting, avionics etc.

[jaredyates]

Unfortunately I don't foresee being able to change Google's place in the world, but if there is a better search option, I'm all ears. Even if it isn't free or ad-supported.

[Frank]

If people shared their builders logs, that would be great.

[Utah-Jay]

Good point, I just tagged my builders log in my signature. But that would be a laborious way to find info you needed at that moment

[jaredyates]

Thank you Frank, I really like this point. I've created a new channel for build logs, that mirrors the channel for completed airplanes.

[Nev]

Jared, this forum has been a huge source of help for me, along with your Bearhawk tips. I've found that people are very willing to help and share information on building and flying as the Bearhawk "fleet" grows and as we all learn.

One area that I would like to see a lot more information shared is failures and incidents that lead to Airworthiness Directives or Service Bulletins. All aircraft types have issues that become apparent over time. This is essential for the longevity of, and trust in the brand.

Vans for instance have an entire section of their website dedicated to Service Bulletins - they've taken something that could be viewed as detrimental to the brand, and turned it into a brand highlight - the way they handle defects and failures. It's out there for everyone to see. Here's an example for "cracking of wing aft spar web". They not only tell you about this potential issue, but they also tell how to inspect for it, and how to fix it. Same with Zlin aircraft and many others. In the certified world it is mandatory. But in the Amateur built world it's up to us, the builder.

For those that have shared this type of information, a huge thanks to you. It's not an easy thing to do, and is sometimes the consequence of a serious or embarrassing incident. But do know that it has been instrumental in helping others avoid similar pitfalls and we appreciate your sharing of knowledge and experience.

So I think the creation of a database to begin logging these issues as they affect our Bearhawk Aircraft is essential. Ideally a small group of owners might assess each item and it would be free from brand influence.

I've begun logging a few items that I felt would benefit owners in an attempt to share what I've learned on my own website under the term Safety Notes. As far as I'm aware there's currently no other other database logging of potentially serious issues so it's simply one way of getting the information out there.

[jaredyates]

This is a big part of it, let's break out this idea into a separate thread if that is ok: https://bearhawkforums.com/forum/bea...porting-system

[AKKen07]

The safety reporting system is a great idea, and while I don’t have all the answers I have a few opinions.
If we are defining the intent as creating a place to discuss safety issues, a forum makes sense. If it’s just a way to pass along safety info after the discussion has been had on our existing forum - perhaps just expanding the safety website is a better option. We can keep having the conversations on the existing forum with only a small bit of reorganizing.
On the assumption that we want to create a whole new safety conversation and data hub, I think the simplest and most straight forward location is right in a primary forum section. I am not sure how much freedom the forum has for customized organization and would consider a 2nd sister forum with identical login an option to give more flexibility in organizing. My reason for keeping it in the forum or sister forum is simplicity for the user - which is quite important for participation - and we really don’t seem to get a lot of random unwanted or particularly ignorant visitors (unless you do a lot more filtering than I have noticed - and thank you for letting my ignorant self slip through those cracks) so I don’t see a large threat of misinformation hurting the Bearhawk brand or similar issues. The ability to receive an email when a new safety topic is posted would be a boon as well.
Likewise, I think a post disclaimer at the top of each thread (or if we do the sister forum, a sticky thing on top of the opening page) would, if you feel it is necessary, give context to those who don’t understand aviation safety.
As for tiered access, I don’t see a lot of advantage there - at most just a tier for those who have started a project, own plans, or a flying BH. That way anybody who has a vested interest can get the information and will have at least some minimal context.

Organizing for my brain would be something like this:
First division is by aircraft type -
I wouldn’t bother with separating plans-built a from kits since plans-built specifics are not that different. There really won’t be that much kit only stuff to weed out and what pertains to the kits will mostly pertain to the plans.

Each Bob or Mark published item that pertains to multiple types would have to be duplicated
The 4/5/C could be one group with the title structure defining which are included, ie “4,5 Baggage door latch problem” or “4,C Mouse Door change.”
If you want to include info from the safety.com site then Within the aircraft types I would have divisions for Bob’s engineering changes, Any other safety notice from Bob or Mark, Construction-related, flying related, maintenance, etc as you see fit. But the sections for Official Bob/Mark Bearhawk publications like on bearhawksafety.com should only have official threads so there is no trouble finding them.


And for the tips site…
I struggle mightily finding what I’m looking for here. User error perhaps. I’ll point out my issues then talk about my preferred changes to address them. I don’t know if these changes are feasible. It could all be fantasy for all I know.

The Table of Contents links are a bit lacking and the search engine fails to find relevant content. I don’t know how to improve search results except maybe to increase the number of tags on each article? The results then have to be sortable. Weeding through 10 pages of fully displayed content after every search is a nightmare. Results need to be a list of article titles, preferably divided by Beartracks, Old letters to Bob, 4/5/Companion Kits, Patrol Kits, etc. so there is some hope of determining if there is relevant info and getting to it and avoiding all the dross.
The TOC Problem Example:Table of contents link Landing gear (92) implies there are 92 articles, right? Click on that and you see subgroups which have a cumulative 50-something articles. How do I get the rest? Try finding anything on the gear fairings for example.
I would flesh out more subcategories (Fairings!) and add an “other” in order to include all of the articles. And like search results, once I click on a sub-category like “Brakes” please don’t drop 15 pages of letters to Bob in my lap! A list by titles grouped by type would make information searches far more efficient.
It is pretty normal for a website with a table of contents to use the arrow by “Landing Gear” for example to deploy the subcategory list whereas clicking on the word “Landing Gear” simply takes one to the total set of information for that category. And I mean lists of articles, not 92 straight pages of letters to Bob…
Lastly, relevance. Organizing by title/groups will help, but at the beginning of each title could we add a little identifier for which planes it pertains to? Ie “4/5/C/P/L Article that Pertains to All Models.” I could scan through those quickly. This may not help with the Beartracks since those have such varied content but if the Beartracks Titles that appeared with the Landing Gear search or TOC click were simply present in their own group I could look there after failing to find an article specific to my quest.

Now, this may be more for Mark, but I don’t know that he has the spare time to even consider it (Man, That guy is BUSY). It would be very valuable to create a timeline list of changes to the Bearhawk - especially for the kits by serial number. And definitely notes for how the kits deviate from the plans - and they DO! At least a couple of times I stopped banging my head against a wall to call Mark and find out that whatever puzzle I was solving had been changed to a different puzzle with no way for me to have known. What version of kit do I have?? It’s fuselage serial number 16B but is that a B Model 1.6 or 2.4 version? What changed?? What am I even working with here? I still don’t know.

Ok, enough of that. I am 99% done building and am quite happy I built a Bearhawk, BUT, getting to the point where I knew what I was supposed to do before doing it was a very frustrating thing throughout. I really appreciate the improvements in that process that you keep making.

[jaredyates]

I like what you are thinking about here, especially with the bearhawk.tips search results. Let me investigate what is possible. One snag has been that the plugin that is running the expanding menu on the right side of the page has been orphaned and I haven't found a replacement. It may be that we need to make the leap from shoehorning off-the-shelf options to instead hiring a programmer who can make what we really want.

[Bissetg]

Firstly, thanks for the effort and work you put in to benefit all of us Jared, it is much appreciated. This brainstorming session is another example of quest for improvement.

I agree with the sentiment already expressed, information is often available but finding it difficult for dinosaurs who are not IT savvy like me.

Secondly, history has shown that good reporting, recording, and dissemination of information is critical to safety management. We need a culture of open, honest and transparent reporting in order to identify issues, resolve them, and prevent reoccurrence.

I think Nev’s point about having a specific section of the website for ADs and Service Bulletins etc is a good one.

For example, Fuel Caps. Turns out Kiwis weren’t the only ones with fuel cap problems and the fix was really simple and effective. A platform that enables that sort of reporting, analysis and rectification would be a real step forward for Bearhawk in my opinion.

I also think that good data from builders on performance figures achieved real world would be helpful for new builders determining configurations of engine, prop, wheels etc.

Everyone wants their aircraft to be the best on the block. Any tips or tricks of configuration or rigging we can share to optimise performance, margin and safety has to improve the overall Bearhawk brand in my view.

In summary, I’d like to see a one stop site/platform where I could review plan revisions/amendments, safety notices, ADs, service bulletins, engineering notices, tips and tricks, and new issues encountered by others. I think this resource should be a members only resource to encourage honest reporting without fear of being taken out of context or misinterpreted by the wider world.

[jaredyates]

This is a big part of it, let's break out this idea into a separate thread if that is ok: https://bearhawkforums.com/forum/bea...porting-system

[sherrre]

This might be a little outside the scope of your question but I’ll give you two ideas from a potential builder.

First would be something like an advanced FAQ section where if you and the other monitors see a similar question being asked repeatedly then a write up (or even better a video) is produced and shared. If we could only transfer 5% of Collin’s builder knowledge to the community we would all have better Bearhawks.

Second would be to establish Bearhawk counselors (similar to EAA Tech counselors) we are willing to meet with perspective or active builders. I would feel better about building if I could meet with someone for a few hours every couple months and go over the next build steps and any potential tips, tricks, or gotchas. I know that we can call Mark but this would be more in depth assistance that what Mark provides.

[jaredyates]

Totally not outside of the scope, thank you for your input. To your first point, this has been part of the Beartracks strategy at least in the time that I've been helping with it. Also, I like your second point. Though I wonder, can we just use the EAA program that is already in place, and just get more people involved or do better to get the word out about who that person might be? Personally I'm not qualified to be a Tech Counselor through the EAA but perhaps if you think of someone who would be good for this, we should help encourage more participation.

[sherrre]

I’m glad to know that detail about the Beartracks articles.

[jaredyates]

The current forum has model breakdowns for both plans and kit, but a more stage specific sub-forums would be great…
eg. Covering, rigging, interior, panel, wing lighting, and then there is the engine… plumbing/cooling etc.
I think the sub-forums would be a great addition, but maybe too difficult or costly

Addressing this point from Jay and BravoGolf above...
I agree, I prefer a single channel for nearly all discussion, and more topic-driven organization for the rest. But, here we are several years into the forum, and that's not what we have. I'm not sure how we can unwind the current structure and still preserve what we have, do you have any thoughts about that? The forum software does support a feature called tagging, where the poster can add tags which can then be later used in searching. For example, in your posts about covering, you could add a tag for oratex (or covering) and then subsequent searchers can look for posts with that tag. Most folks aren't using this feature but here is more info about it:

https://www.vbulletin.com/docs/html/main/acp_topicsandreplies_tags

[BravoGolf]

I certainly don’t want to unwind the work you have done. This forum has saved me a lot of time and money. Would it be possible for a group of moderators to tag posts to help in the search effort? Not everyone may remember to tag a post. I certain would be willing to help.

Scott

[Utah-Jay]

OK, I will chime in a bit. My biggest “bone” with the forum are the comments that go unseen. The originator of a post (not thread) is notified of a comment on his/her post, but a comment does not show up as a new post when you click on “Todays Posts”. So any “comments” made go unnoticed. I think this is poor as important info can go unnoticed.

I would much prefer the elimination of “comments” and change it to either a post or a post with a quote.

This would be a huge help and improvement.

[jaredyates]

(realizing the irony of that I'm commenting here) Let me see if there is a way within the system to have it consider comments to be like replies for considerations with the "today's posts" etc. Do you get email notifications when someone comments on your posts at least?

[jaredyates]

I heard back from the forum developers: "There is no option to turn this on. I consider this oversight to be a bug. Others think the opposite. There is an open improvement request to resolve this. I don't know when it will be resolved though." So that means thankfully it is in the queue, but might be months or years before we see it. If it ever becomes an option, we'll certainly turn it on.

[Utah-Jay]

Commenting here on a comment….

I don’t get emails, but rather a notification at the top of the forum page

[BravoGolf]

I agree with Jay. The elimination of the comments would make each post more visible and easier to find. Plus I believe that some users don't see comments if they use TapTalk. Unless that has been changed.

[jaredyates]

We had to disable tapatalk a while back. See the comment above, it is currently not a feature to treat comments like replies for bumping, but the developers are aware of the need for it.

[Archer39J]

I think enabling tags would be cool, but then is it a free for all on the tag names? Idk. I use Google to search various forums for keywords but being able to click on say "fuel system" and see threads/replies related to that would be awesome. Pretty dependant on posters filling that out though.

[way_up_north]

Comprehensive video build series…. That takes a factory kit to completion

Step by step

I remember paying good money to watch a husband and wife build an RV-6 on a VHS tape

why someone has not done this for the Bearhawk

Maybe someday

[jaredyates]

I can't speak for anyone else, but I haven't done it because it is an impossibly big job to undertake, and it would really need to be undertaken on a second build. There are only a few repeat builders and they haven't been the type of folks who spend time making videos. Ken in Alaska made a couple of great videos about particilar tasks, and we have added them to the KBM in the appropriate context. The framework certainly makes this easy, and we wouldn't need to have one builder make all of the videos. If enough people took Ken's approach or if we divided up the build map, we could end up with a video for each step on the map in a year's time. Maybe we should instigate something like this.

[Utah-Jay]

I loved watching Rob’s, currently Colby’s and I watched some of Ken’s.

They were great and I highly recommend watching. Colby’s videos convinced me to go down this silly path. Yep it’s all Colby’s fault.

I was going to do youtube videos as well, but on the very first recording (did not even get to serious editing) I realized I did not want to spend the time producing youtube videos when I needed to be building a plane. I have taken the build process super seriously, I literally physically work on the plane every day I am home (think not traveling for work). I started on October 1st, 2021, and I plan on flying prior to March 1st 2023. I think that is pretty efficient being I am traveling 5 1/2 - 6 months a year. I too think a comprehensive how to video would be amazing. I totally agree it would need to be a 2nd time builder as you learn so much the first time to be better and more efficient were you to do it again.

Nope, it won’t be me doing the (2nd build) video, I will be flying my learning process build. No way it would fly (pun intended) in my marriage as I have dedicated just over a year to my build now, and my wife is looking forward to the build being done for 1) getting her husband back 2) using the plane to go places. She is a golf nut, and wants to hit up southern Utah and northern Nevada in the winter for Saturday golf trips.

I will add, as a first time builder your skills improve so much through the process it is amazing. I am contemplating redoing some of my boot cowl now as it is not up to my current standards, I did think I did an amazing job at the time, but that was back in March I think. I am trying to get over this urge as the imperfections will not be visible when it is finished, only my stupid OCD self will ever be aware.