1. We are not growing. That is the problem. I personally don't know the answer. - Probably because there is no money to it. That is, those who actually makes money using Linux are few and advanced. Not for ordinary guys. - Probably because nothing interesting to do with Linux. Yes, you can talk about embedded boards (Odroid, BeagleBone, Raspberry), but how many people actually do soldering nowdays. Even "robotic", you don't need Linux background, though it's easier, not because of Linux, but because of DIY experience. - in-person meeting is missing or difficult. So, you can't really get anything started and going. I live in Mississauga, and I'm not going to waste 4 hours round-trip to crime infested downtown Toronto. Not in the evening. Maybe during weekend daytime. 2. Some projects we can think about: - building drones -- I think we have DIY skills, collectively. Just need focus and money. Maybe, some government grants? - robotic education -- this is something I'm interested. But, no Linux here, really. Visual Studio and Visual Basic are all you need. But, Linux will be involved in "robotic integration", because you need scripting for the integration side. - ... - as last resort, make "porn" using open source software, and advertise what we used. No expertise whatsoever. But, I will hold the light. Who knows, we may fight over money... On 2025-08-27 01:29, Steve Litt via Talk wrote:
William Park via Talk said on Tue, 26 Aug 2025 16:26:56 -0400
Problems with email are - it gets buried very quickly Not if the mailing list has its own folder - you can only read/see one email at a time Not if you open the email as its own window - difficult to scan through and ignore irrelevant emails Not if the mailing list has its own folder - once it's in your Inbox, it's difficult to ignore. It never hits your Inbox if the mailing list has its own folder
The preceding list starts with: "Problems with email are"
We're not talking about interactions between lots of users for the benefit of everyone. Email's only role is a handy way of getting everyone together.
Since we already have website, maybe web-based forum, using Drupal or something, could be the answer for "modern" user base.
Forums have been around for 40 years, and somehow never got a majority of attention from technical groups. Perhaps that's because you have to go hunting instead of having posts come to you.
As a last subtopic, here's a quote from Barry Fishman while discussing a mailing list:
"My biggest problems with some large projects like Gnome, is they spend so much effort on meeting the perceived needs of users that they don't have, they seem to forget the needs of users they already have."
To his quote I'd add that it isn't only large projects. Sometimes it seems like *every* group contains some people so invested in attracting the mythical "non technical user", or "granny", or "GenZ user", none of whom is likely to migrate to Linux no matter what hoops we jump through, that those invested people advocate moves that alienate existing group members.
Want to replace email based mailing lists? Fine. But do it with something that's an improvement, not a "forum" or a walled garden or something with a 10 page fine print TOS.
SteveT
Steve Litt
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