OK I went back over the last 20 or so days of part requests and rated them, which may help setting up an example posting that can be linked to. I have had years of experience in searching for information for parts so I am probably not a good example of how to do it as it is pretty much instinctive for me by now. I’ll try and demonstrate why some of the posts are not useful as that too may help. Here is a list of the latest posts (with their forum link) with good and bad points listed
The post for the LCD display that you unlisted. Being able to do that automatically if there isn’t enough information would be good but I expect may turn out to be difficult!
Good
The image linked in the post. A google image search turned up a web site which has everything needed to make the part (better would have been for him to provide this web site!) I have a part mostly made now and will wait to see if we get a further request.
Bad
The web site claims in one of the images that the board is 5cm x 3.4cm (i.e. 50mm x 34mm) but the mechanical drawing further down the site says (and is correct) that the size is actually 56mm x 34mm (which matches the scaled down top image perfectly where 50mm is too narrow in x.) Sloppiness in the web sites makes this fairly common. We want to give examples like this site of the information required I expect.
Good:
Flat image of the desired part. Although no dimensions shown, they could be found by scaling the image to match the 0.1in connectors and using that to imply the size of the board.Unfortunately if the headers are not 0.1in (i.e 2mm or 1mm headers) that won’t work
Bad
The data sheet supplied is for the drv8833 chip not the board itself. It is indeed the manufacturer’s data sheet but in context of the board not useful. The part turns out to be a clone of the Polulu part listed in the reply post, but it took me quite a while (although I remembered making it and knew it likely existed, I didn’t remember what it was called and it took me a while to find it.) A web site that sells the board itself (probably the website they bought the board from) would be the useful data there. That is likely to have the connections and the size of the board, and if not at least enough information to search for other sites that do have the necessary information.
This is a good example. It includes images of the board (although they are redundant given there is a link to the manufacture’s site which has the images as well as all the necessary data.) The ideal solution would be to get the link to the manufacturer’s web site as it contains all the necessary information. Unfortunately that isn’t always the case (which may only become obvious when you try and make the part.
Good:
A clear part name where I could find the manufacturer’s web site (although them supplying said web site would have been better)
Bad:
A very complex board that will be hard to make and large and likely doesn’t have a large interest (illustrated by the first request coming 2 years later.) We will see if there is any reply to @RAPTOR7762’s request, hasn’t been one so far and I am still of the impression this is likely too much work for too little gain.
Good:
Link to manufacture’s web site which contains all the information needed to make the part.
Bad:
Pretty much nothing there was sufficient information there to make the part.
Good:
Link to the manufacturer’s web site with most (but not all!) data needed to make the part.
Bad:
The part is really two parts, the relay and a socket. The relay is documented, the socket is not (no pin out diagram that matches the relay data sheet.) It looks like how I guessed the socket connects is in fact correct, but there isn’t much anyone can do about it when the data just isn’t available.
Good:
Link to manufacture’s github site with all the connection information required. However a google search for the part name turned up an existing part so nothing needed to be done other than provide the link. A google search would have cleared the need for the post.
Bad:
Pretty much nothing.
Good:
Link to manufacturer’s web site with the data needed to make a part.
Bad:
Not much bad about it, although the part is of little practical use I expect, it wasn’t all that difficult to make.
Good:
Not much. Little indication of part number (although they are there in the images) no data sheet and a search for the specified model number on the JST site doesn’t come up with an SMD connector as pictured but rather a different connector. I had missed answering this post so have replied requesting correct data.
Good:
Nothing I can see.
Bad:
Tilted picture of the part with no data as to connections (other then a 3 pin phone jack.) A google search for “Fritzing part current transformer” turned up several hits and there has been no further posts so that may or may not have helped.
Good:
Link to site where you can buy the part plus data sheets and pcb layout information
Bad
Data sheet confusing enough that I initially screwed up the part, but not the poster’s fault.
Good
manufacture’s name and part number (but no reference to their web site)
Bad:
No link to the product web site although that didn’t really matter here.
Bad:
tilted image of the requested part, no web site or physical dimensions supplied.
Good:
supplied the necessary information to make a part after prompting to fill in the template.
Good:
manufacture’s data sheet supplied which resulted in a created part.
Bad:
Nothing in particular.
Good:
Not much of anything.
Bad
Image of the part, no connection information, no physical dimensions. A request for more info got connections but no physical dimensions. A request for a web site (as I recall a google image search does not find the device) has gone unanswered so I expect this is a dead issue.
Good:
Nothing in particular.
Bad:
Several pictures of a power supply of some kind but no connector or dimension information. Supplied the link to the lab power supply in core parts and no further information forthcoming.
Good:
Link to manufacture’s data sheet supplied which meant a google search found an existing part (the google search being done would have eliminated the post before hand though.)
Bad:
Nothing in particular.
I can probably dig up more examples if needed.
Peter