[Jeroen]

Originally Posted by Samarth 619

My opinion is, for an automotive forum, a discussion on Depression or depression (the clinical vs the manageable) need not to be worthy of a place in a doctorate thesis.
No need to take it so seriously, that we flame members on something that's scientifically wrong.

For me part of the attraction of TeamBHP is the diversity of non automotive topics. There is no reason as I see it, so suggest TeamBHP are more knowledgeable about cars than any other topic under the sun.

To the best of my knowledge, based on 12 years of TeamBHP membership, we only have about a handful of members working in the auto industry. So that means, no disrespect, that all opinions and advise offered on TemaBHPmon cars are done by amateurs. Maybe knowledge amateurs, but very few professionals are present in our car related threads. I see no difference for any of the other non automotive threads. Mostly, if not all, not necessarily hard core specialist and or experts. But people who have an (informed) opinion or some personal experience. That is as good as it gets.

So responses on both auto and non automotive subjects will always be across the whole spectrum ranging from mere opinions, silly notions, expert insights and anything in between. Part of being an open public forum.

I find it extremely interesting and enlightening to read about these non automotive topics too. Irrespective of whether it is very scientific. For me a forum is about exchanging information and experience. There are no qualifications as to how you came about your information and or experience. Your answers or subsequent follow up questions from members will tell.

This thread on depression offers quite some insights in experiences and thoughts about experiences with depression. And we do have the odd expert (doctor) chipping in as well! What more do you want?

Whether you take a members post serious, be it about depression or a car related topic, is up to you. I don’t think the topic as such warrants up front taking it seriously or not.

I have seen some really interesting posts and personal stories on this very thread. I thoroughly enjoyed it. If you don’t want to share your personal stories that is fine to. No need to do so.

On this forum all kinds of advise gets dished out when it comes to cars. Some of it, my opinion, is highly questionable and sometimes, my opinion, plainly wrong. The same is probably true for any non automotive topic on this forum. It’s the nature of a public forum. Everybody needs to make their own judgement call as to who and what you believe. The same is true for just about anything in life.

We are all adults. That means we are supposed to make our own decisions. To what extend you let yourself influenced by “racinglubeboy” on the oil for your engine or “isufferfromdementis” in a thread about depression is up to you.

Suggesting anything other than this is members own responsible is, my opinion, arrogant and over the top. As Ron White told us, you can’t cure stupid!

Jeroen

[SithDefender]

Originally Posted by Jeroen

For me part of the attraction of TeamBHP is the diversity of non automotive topics.

Indeed, and that is the beauty of this forum. The other day, someone was discussing sunglasses and that was really informative. Lots of new things for me who had no idea about these.

Take the watches discussion, for example. You can see both Carl F Bucherer and Casio watches in the same thread, and both are awesome in their own right. It's fascinating to see real-life examples on the thread, especially the Grand Seikos.

Or the movies/online streaming thread. I found some which I had no idea about, and gems like Shogun which are - arguably- not related strictly to automobiles. And yet, it is just a fun thread.

Opening the pets thread was like going down a rabbit hole all by itself. That's a 20 (!) year old thread, with the first post in 2004! Most of these pets have such strong personalities too.

The photography thread - dSLRs, mirrorless, even mobile phones. There are some masters here as well as amateurs. Every photo tells a story, and everything is enjoyable in it's own right.

Of course, the "new car", "what car" and "travelogue" sections are all thrilling. But it's fun to see the passion TBHP folks have in both auto & non-auto interests. I hope this forum always stays democratic!

[Aditya]

Love the non-automotive stuff on Team-BHP too! - Posts moved to a new thread.

[amol4184]

Totally. I participate more on non-automotive threads.

[It's Magic]

I completely agree!

Although most people start visiting Team BHP due to their love for automobiles, they soon discover a vast number of interesting threads that have nothing to do with cars. Many people visit the forum to catch up on newly uploaded travelogues. The Travelogue section has many followers. You can find quite a few good and interesting regional movies, along with Hindi or English ones. I myself have found a few gems in those forums.

Have a big question like moving to a new place? Or need advice on which watch to purchase? Regardless of what you're looking for, just name it and you'll most likely find a separate thread on Team BHP.

No wonder, once you visit this forum, you keep coming back.

[Samurai]

Came for the food, stayed for the company

This is what happens in any well-run internet community. I have been posting on internet forum for more than 30 years, starting when text art was the only kind of image one could share. I have seen this happen multiple times.

We are all interested in cars, but we can't discuss only cars every waking hour, year after year. We also have the need to discuss other matters of interest. If there is already a community you trust and feel comfortable with, why not discuss other things with them?

That is how Shifting-Gear became one of the most interesting sections on Team-BHP.

[ABHI_1512]

If not for the non automotive discussions, I probably wouldn’t have moved beyond the travelogues section. I can safely say that I am a noob when it comes to hardcore automotive knowledge that many of the members here possess. That the original post of this thread is coming from Jeroen makes the topic at hand even more impactful.

I have learnt many a things and continue to learn new things from a very wide spectrum of topics being discussed under the non automotive sections. In fact, the Shifting Gears section is the most interesting section as rightly mentioned by Samurai. So yes, let the topics and discussions thrive.

[Satkaj]

Automotive is our passion and Non Automotive is our living.

Let me confess. For many solutions, I log in to Team Bhp even before I check Google for non bias answers.

Travelogue. One of my most favourite section I often visit . The details which fellow members provide is unmatched.

TV streaming/ Regional movies/ Non English movies are like a ready reference at all point of time.

Emigrating to foreign country has helped me to think in right direction for my daughter’s future and been able to guide her.

And so many other threads contribution by fellow members has made this forum an encyclopaedia of things around us.

[ZenMaster]

Just because some is not an expert, things don't become "Scientifically wrong".

I'm quite amazed at people's obsession with those who have "degrees". Just because someone has a degree or is "qualified" doesn't mean he/she should always be right. In the same sense, just because someone is not a doctor, it doesn't mean that what he knows or have learnt through his life experience is wrong either.

There are people with life experiences that would have taught them 10 times what the experts would have learnt in their university or their limited area of expertise. If that was the case, all our engineering graduates should be pumping out inventions after inventions and engineering India out of its issues.

Sure, there is no denying that for a proper diagnosis or certification, we should go to a genuine certified & experienced professional (medical or otherwise). That is because its an assurance that 99% of the time, you can consider their opinion to be true.

And as a forum, I think we have enough members with a great mix of Life experience, Qualifications and common sense, that the the reader ultimately comes out more knowledgeable than he/she was before reading it.

[Rajeevraj]

Team Bhp is my go to place for anything non automotive also. The main reason is the sense of familiarity that builds up with a lot of the members if you are a regular reader of the forum. So when you are looking for something and you see recommendations/feedback from people whom you have been following/reading posts for long, there is a confidence that you feel in going for that product/service and it is not some fake feedback. This actually becomes more important in the non automotive space as your need for recommendations on new stuff is much more frequent. If you go deeper, there will also be people whom you feel are similar to you in various aspects- recommendations from such folks for something you need is an added validation that you are making the right choice.

Simple example is the Regional Movies thread. There are few of us who post regularly on it and I know that if Bhpians A, B, C give a positive review, I will also like it.

[GTO]

As I type this, there are 1587 viewers in the Indian Car Scene forum, and 1357 in Shifting Gears! Says a lot, no?

Little known facts. Yes, Team-BHP is the best car forum in India. Team-BHP is the best travel forum in India. Team-BHP is the best motorcycle forum in India.

But Team-BHP is also the best forum of any type in India, if you consider its quality, depth & size. Non-Automotive discussions in Shifting Gears are a big part of that. I love Shifting Gears threads and spend a lot of time in them. What movies to watch, TV shows, computer or gadget advice, the right air-conditioner settings, I wrote a detailed hair transplant review there and practically anything related to life in India. Shifting Gears helped me quit smoking, lose 20 kilos weight and lots more. If I'm in doubt over anything in India, I create a thread / post there.

Car owners & enthusiasts are a privileged lot in India & we bring a unique perspective to the "Shifting Gears" forum. As much as I love Reddit (cars, business, technology), I hate the Indian subs there. They are full of trolls, trash & low quality comments.

[Ays7]

I must admit, when researching new potential cars to purchase, I do not look beyond reviews on T-Bhp. It is simply my go-to for unbiased reviews. However, it has been since a long time been useful in Non-Automative topics as well. The movies recommendations thread, what to watch thread for instance. I also have been struggling with diabetes for a long time, and threads on Diabetes here as well as on Intermittent Fasting was something that I read and follow with great interest.

So I do love this forum, not just for the Auto aspects, but also for its insights on non automative threads and topics.

[ms001]

Absolutely agree, I refer Team-BHP for absolutely anything and everything.
I use this search string in google instead of the regular google search - "teambhp.com: "search keyword"". Refer the example image.



I just casually looked at my subscribed threads page 1, there are 7 automotive and 15 non automotive threads

[ValarMorghulis]

Well, I joined this forum in 2019 when I was buying a car.

I then stayed back because of numerous other threads, and I love the vastness of information and knowledge available.

Be it about books, coffee, travel, routes, stocks, real estate, electronics, iPhones, vacuum cleaners, etcetera etcetera.

I like cars, but I love many other threads not related to cars.

[Night Raven]

The other day I was telling my wife team bhp is one of the reasons I quit using all other social media. I can find almost everything here. Anything under the sun we have a thread for it. Be it cooking, gardening, hair transplant, credit cards, gadgets, watches, weight loss, financial advice etc etc. The list is truly endless. And all this huge information and first hand experiences available without the toxic spam and political bias that fills every other platform. Just the way I like it