You’re not wrong - the current structure is partly the way it is because I originally set it up for Remake. It was only after discussions with @JaneOwens that I realised we had a better use for it. So, yes, I think you’re probably right.
However, I’m torn on the right structure. In forum lore, we often say “categories are like walls, 6 makes a nice house, 30 makes a maze”. If you have too many, people sometimes lose track of what to follow and where to post - not to mention that you have to pick, and if you have a repair that covers two categories, which do you use?
The alternative is to use tags, such as electrical or textiles - topics can have multiple tags, and you can follow a tag just like a category, so you can get notified of, say, new electrical repair topics. However, this isn’t risk free either, as it requires people to remember to add tags (mods can add them after the fact, but that’s not ideal either).
In addition, I’ll add a point you raised with me elsewhere, that we want a good spot to place repair guides, safety info, and so on. The two topics from @Robin fit well into this.
Bearing in mind that we can always elvolve this later, I’m leaning towards something like:
- Repairs (with tags)
- Safety guides
- Tools and equipment
- Brand info (good & bad)
Then we use the same tags for the sub categories, so you can reference, eg, all the woodworking repairs/guides/tools/brands together. How would that feel to folks?