Re: do we need a forum

["Doug Cox" <uncledig@gmail.com>]

For what it's worth - I've found that Gmail is indispensable for groups like LD.  It's very simple to set up filters and labels, to search through history, and to follow a threaded conversation.  I have over a year of LD postings (and many other groups) in my Gmail inbox, and I'm only using 1% of my storage space.

One of the things that makes this list great is the relatively high signal to noise ratio.  Not a lot of off topic chatter going on.  My experience with online communities shows that without a doubt, forum-style communications encourage high noise ratios, and can have a *negative* impact on a group's ability to share, document and build on useful information.

Doug