openstack team mailing list archive

[Thierry Carrez <thierry@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Jordan Rinke wrote:
> I think a purely QnA site misses the mark a little, that style is great for
> a very specific question (And the OSQnA stuff Everett linked looks great)
> but I think a lot of users are lacking the knowledge to ask a very specific
> question just yet. So maybe it is that we need a place for random
> discussion, but that can also specifically answer a question as well.

If you take Ubuntu (arguably one of the largest software-related forums
in the world), the forums are completely ignored by developers, so it
relies on a completely separate user community. It is a source for wrong
(or outdated) technical answers and user frustration.

They recently set up a stackexchange site at ask.ubuntu.com, and it is a
huge success. Developers and users contribute to it, and it's a valuable
and continuously-updated source of information.

I don't want us to run into the same failure before realizing there is a
better and more targeted tool available... Personally I would ignore
forums (since they are a waste of time), but contribute to the
stackexchange site (since they are an easy way to contribute reference
information).

> 77.8% voting for a forum at this point (out of 18 responses)

I would wait on Anne's answer before taking any hasty decision based on
a binary poll.

-- 
Thierry Carrez (ttx)
Release Manager, OpenStack