Addition of "Mod" to Fuel Log
 

Hello, all!

I noticed my fuel log is getting a decent size. I also noticed, MANY other users have MUCH bigger logs.

(Sometimes I am scattered in my thoughts, so stick with me!)

Now I also modify my cars, as do most of the users on here. I post when I do my mods on my main page, so I can remember, and I sometimes try to put them into my fuel log. Looking at the log, it is hard to tell when I put one into play by just the chart.

My idea is this: Like a "Fill Up" goes into the log/chart, can we make an entry for a mod?

In my mind it works out like this. Instead of being a fill up, we click a bubble or button that is for "Modification." This lets us write in what it is. Maybe in blue, a bar (maybe skinnier than a normal green bar) goes from top to bottom. In vertical writing, it says the mod title, for example "Grille Block" or "Underbody 2.0." In a dream world more data could be calculated, or information between/after mods. I am not expecting all of that, but I would like it a lot if we could have the mods dropped in. I think it would also help other people understand our journeys. None of us just woke up and started getting much higher FE, time (driving technique) and modifications got us there/here.

Seeing that jump from a mod, or how it shaped our current FE, would be nice. Just an idea, any and all feedback is welcome.

Another thought is to be able to expand the fuel log in size. Some hardcore people here have unreadable charts from their dedication to the fuel log- it would be cool if we could expand it to a larger size, say by pop up or something more so clever I don't know about.

I came back to write "Seriously, no one wants this?" but I see there are a couple Thanks. Does anyone have anything to interject? I often think of ideas for the site, but as I think about it, it seems very complicated. This doesn't seem too troublesome...but moderators/admins are welcome to chime in and express it, if so.

One example I think of is when I switched to Premium, and now switching to E0, it would be nice to see the (or if) changes that occurred (or did occur). Well, there are tons examples...one for each mod, actually lol

I want this i thought i typed a post for it on this thread, but my laptop likes to screw with me on posts, then i just forget to retype it :p

If you keep getting ideas you should just list em in notepad and post a bunch at once, not all things are as complicated as 1 thinks anymore

Very true. My creativity for "art" is painting it black, or gray lol.
My creativity for advertising is to display facts lol.

Creativity for innovation? A hair better. (I often do the same, writing a long, detailed, fact & source filled post for me to switch tabs and accidentally delete it, hit refresh, or hit back. Frustration trumps reposting ;) )

If I'm understanding what you're saying, I think I might like that. I try to put notes about my changes in the fuel log, but if there was an option to click something to draw a blue line or something - that could relate to a note as to what it represents - - - yeah, I think I'd use that.

Also, I can see a time in the not-so-distant future where my fuel log graph will be so big the lines (bars) are tiny, too. So a way to expand it to a larger view would also be something I'd welcome as well.

Yeah. +1
Maybe the idea is to get everybody to fill up as little as possible ;)


I like the idea of having a "mod" indication on the fuel graph - even if I don't use it anymore.

Maybe if the graph worked like a line of text- having a finite amount of space, then beginning another "line" of the graph below. One year's entries might be a good default for a line of the graph.

Maybe the entries could show as flags; a vertical line down into the graph as the pole, and a small text field as the flag itself waving well above the graph.
Next flag could be at a different height so they don't overlap.

Maybe have flags in different colors for different purposes.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1...aph+Before.jpg

This is kind of what I was thinking for the Mod. At the bottom of each bar, it has our MPG for the tank. Would it work for that to be the name? Since I had to do it line by line and couldn't get the TEXT to work, I just wrote MOD with lines and two circles lol.

But it would also be nice if it could be expanded. I imagine the more experienced people have an even harder time using the graph.

I was hoping there would be some admin/mod chime in on this topic. Do you guys have any input? I hate to bump this thread up, but I also don't want to forget about it or let it go if there is potential.

There hasn't seemed to be any comments about this on the thread or forum by moderators...is this a possibility or a wanted feature that may come to fruition?

I would really like to be able to add other functions to total cost of vehicle/mile, as my Insight claims $.05 per mile, but factoring in insurance, and cost, it is closer to $.70 per mile! That doesn't even have my tires, oil change, or modifications included yet...but I digress from my point.

Modification flags on the fuel chart?
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1...aph+Before.jpg

Bump for a good idea! Where are you Darrin? :)

This.

My fuel log is getting close to being scaled down again, at which point it will likely become unreadable. Having it stay at this "size" and displaying the most recent fuel ups would be a great feature, and a "click to expand" to show the full log would be icing on the cake.

How 'bout it?

I've had similar thoughts. I'm not as far along yet as Blue Angel, but in a few more fill ups, it'll be getting there.

I've also thought about just starting a new fuel log as "white gnat 2" or something, but is this even Kosher? Of course, it would also make it more difficult to compare the "early days" to the more advanced days, as well as remove the handy reference for "lifetime mpg average", which I like to look at & watch improve.........

(I probably wouldn't mind getting rid of that horrible 24 mpg all time low back on the first tank with the original, sick engine, though....)

This is why I also keep a running fuel log on Fuelly.com, all the way back to the day I bought the Black Widow two years ago
The fuel log here isn't as user friendly or customizable as Fuelly's, which seems strange since this entire site is basically centered around the affects of mods on mpg.

That being said, I was on Fuelly for a year and a half just tracking my mileage. Then I stumbled across ecomodders, and in the six months since I have increased my average gas mileage by over 15 mpg, or about 35%

The exact same thought was crossing my mind. After one more fill I will be at 60 fills and my graph will be at its limit. You would just need to add a new vehicle to your garage and carry on from there. Your 90 day would be inacurate for 90 days and your lifetime would be off for good, but like cowmeat says you could always use Fuelly for keeping the lifetime average going.

Ecomodder attracted me with their far superior (IMO) fuel banner for adding to your signature block. I'm on Cruzetalk and everyone uses Fuelly banners which only state your lifetime average. The EM banner displays your 90-day average, which is a much more motivational target the way I see it.

Come to think of it, if EM got really serious with their graphs and signature options they could attract TONS of people away from Fuelly based on that alone!

I think there could be gain from it, but I don't think we would be taking market share unless there was a lot more added to it, and it was a more prominent portion of the site. It's kind of difficult to find for a beginner.

I think a cool tool would be buttons that showed what a modification could do. For example, check boxes when setting up (or editing) your vehicle, to show what modifications are done. Then, click on a button to see an estimate of a good modification.

Example: I have the "Upper Grille Block" checked on my build page, so on my tank page I can click "Underbody" to give me an estimate of what my MPG would be with the modification, and how much I would save over certain periods. Like how fuelly says "If you got 2 MPG better, this would happen..."

On Ecomodder, if you had a boat tail you could go 40-100 miles further on your tank/save $80 per year/whatever.

Bump for the New Year!

A new year and a new thought as to how we can make the fuel log better; we could just start a new log image below the first one that starts with fill-up #61 and ends at #120, then another that starts at #121 etc.

We would end up with exactly the same image as before, just more than one of them.

How 'bout it team?

Do we need to flag a post as inappropriate? Here goes!

Politics are stupid! Religion is religious! Report me if you dare! :D

OK... I'll fix this next week. :o

Don't let them bully you MetroMPG.

C'mon Metro, every bodies doing it!

You used to be cool, Metro. What happened to you?

You've changed...

Seriously, I still want this feature. Bad. No other site has any rational for it, and it only seems fitting as we specifically focus on MODIFICATIONS and their influence. No hate, I'm sure you're busy, but I still want it.

Good Idea.

One year and five days for a response... Does that mean this is on its way?

Hey, we are the ones asking. We can only hope Darin wants to build it, not demand it.
I hope Darin still sees it as a hobby he enjoys doing.
I'm a professional software developer and all my work has a budget. I don't program anymore in my spare time. Lost the urge so to say.

Maybe we can organize a fund raising? :cool:
Specify which feature you want with your PayPal donation and trust Darin to start building it once it becomes worhwhile ;)

January 21st 2016, we'll find out! :p

RD, I hope you know we aren't trying to force or command him to do it. That would be ignorant of us to think we are so important or vital to this site that he NEEDS to do it.

With that said, I see value in it. I think a lot of others do, too. It supports the core function of this site and makes us unique to other fuel loggers in the way our forum is unique to other car/MPG forums. If we don't talk about it, we may forget about it. So I won't be leaving if we don't get.. I will just be reminding people about it every so often until we do :)

He'll get on it a week after he picks up his Elio! ;)

Even if the blue line had no writing, but the text box for the fillup notes on the right side had some sort of blue key so anyone could scroll down & find it to read more, that would help, too.

I also like the idea of stacking the second set of 60 below the first, etc. Think I'd prefer keeping it on one line & being able to expand it, but if a second (and third) one is way easier to do, I'd be fine with that, too. - - - still way better than having a single one get more and more compressed with no way to "zoom in"...

I like the idea of a mod mark but an easy way around the compressed graph problem is to make a new fuel log every year. Someone on here already does that but I can't remember his screen name right now. Yes, it's a little harder to see trends over the very long term but at the same time, it's easier to read and shows your improvement year to year so you can say "wow this year I averaged way better then last year".

Also, there is a button at the bottom of the fuel log sheet that says "export to spreadsheet" (or something like that) where you can make your own graph and add all the doo-dads you could ever want to the graph. Yes, it is a bit of a pain to do but it's probably a bigger pain to program into the website. Darin does all this in his spare time so you have to understand that things will take a LONG time accomplish considering the time commitment to write the code on top of the rest of his responsibilities he has in his life. If you know how to code it, try PM'img him to ask how you can help move it forward. Maybe he'll give you the "master password" and let you go crazy; maybe he'll tell you to pound sand; won't know until you try...

I hope range selecting is not that hard to implement.
Something like 'Show all' (current graph) - 'last 50' - 'previous 50' - 'next 50' - 'first 50'?
You could do with just buttons/links and some internal variables, no date entry boxes needed.

Then I'd appreciate it if the entrys in the list below get filtered too, so that it you look at one segment of your 6000+ fuel logs it shows only the list items that corespond with the bars in the graph.