Alex Chekholko wrote: > On Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:05:49 +0100 > Sven-Hendrik Haase <s...@lutzhaase.com> wrote: > > >> Other advantages I see compared to using mailing lists only: >> 1) Improved overview since it is visually more pleasing and more >> sub-categories can be used. >> 2) It's easier to track complex topics. >> >> I'm not suggesting the removal of mailing lists in favor of forums, I'm >> merely suggesting the forums should be added to the main site, mainly in >> order to get support. >> > > One could also view them as the same thing just with a different interface. > > Curtis Preston's site already translates this list into forum form: > http://www.backupcentral.com/phpBB2/two-way-mirrors-of-external-mailing-lists-3/bacula-25/ > Admitted, it's quite browseable as an archive. But posting from it? How many more accounts do I have to create all over the place, and how many more passwords to track? No thanks. One signup per product for a mailing list or forum is acceptable. TWO for the same product? That's much.
That is why any forum or the like should be ONE single message one that's easily searchable (and I agree with other posters that the SF browsing is frustrating, to term it politely). Preferably, there should be a mechanism to prevent republishing on other sites (Currently, many sites are republishing mailing lists for advertising $$$, and it makes Googling a real chore). That said, I do think that a forum format for posting would be good. Right now, I accidentally deleted one of the emails in this thread, and suddenly it is impossible for me to respond to it. Also, there are times when I don't have email (such as when I stop my mail server for a full backup - yes, I know, I can use LVM snapshots) but still have Web access. There is another problem with the email mailing list: please keep in mind that the majority of people on this mailing list are ordinary users. Not people who live and breath bacula 24 hours a day the way developers do, but people who have another job to complete, and bacula may be just 1% of that job. For such people, like me, an email list means that my mailbox gets filled up every day with posts from people who have questions completely unrelated to how I use bacula. As a matter of fact, I get more emails from the bacula mailing list every day than pass my spam filter! Once I have bacula running, hopefully I will not need this mailing list for weeks on end. With all that said, I think there already is an excellent solution available that solved all these problems: Yahoo Groups. OK, Open-Source purists probably don't like it because it's proprietary. Quite frankly, though, I have to say: "so what?" - It works both as a forum and as a mailing list, and is nicely integrated between the two. - Single sign on for many groups. VERY important. - You can post by email or on the Web. - Spam doesn't seem to be a major problem; Yahoo solved it (except for their Grouply problem). - It preserves threading properly (unless somebody using email breaks it - that's even more of a problem with mailing lists). - Nearly everybody already has a Yahoo account anyway - and tied to an email address. - You can turn off email delivery, and still participate in the group. Maybe of SF improves their email list, it would be the ideal solution. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ SF.Net email is Sponsored by MIX09, March 18-20, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The future of the web can't happen without you. Join us at MIX09 to help pave the way to the Next Web now. Learn more and register at http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;208669438;13503038;i?http://2009.visitmix.com/ _______________________________________________ Bacula-users mailing list Bacula-users@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/bacula-users
