The List

Submitted by raster on Sun, 08/22/2010 - 4:59am

Back in 2006 we needed some way to organize the first BarCampMilwaukee, so I quickly set up a Yahoo! Group, and that worked (more or less) for the first few years... Then people complained about it, and it got spammers, and we gave up on it...

So this year we were going to run our own damn mailing list software, but that didn't happen in time, so Matt set up a Google Group call BarCamp Milwaukee Cabal (join it!) and we started using that. Of course some people still don't like it...(You just can't please everyone!)

James has suggested using Open Atrium which is more of a collaborative workspace than mailing list, but James has suggested that it could completely replace a mailing list, and do much more.

So while I sit here planning BarCampMilwaukee6, do we want  to consider using Open Atrium (which would sit on barcampmilwaukee.org) in place of the old fashioned mailing list that people love (and hate)?

8 comments

YASNA

Submitted by plural on Sun, 08/22/2010 - 10:40am
While i was initially excited about the launch of the barcamp milwaukee 5 list and site, i quickly noticed that it was YASNA (Yet Another Social Networking Application).  /me sighs.Another username, another password.   Another site to go check for discussions on.  Yay for google groups because i can use my primary communication tool ([eg]mail FTW!).  I realize that i have settled into a mode where i want sites for applications or content, but channels for discussion (email, twitter, even the dreaded facebook).   Anything that is done to erect a barrier to people participating (even if it is just a lowly username/password) will reduce participation.in short, its not about the tools, its about the communication.  Keep the communication open and easy and you at least won't be excluding folks for technical reasons.-jason

Open Atrium is Somebody else's problem.

Submitted by heygabe on Sun, 08/22/2010 - 7:58am

A few thoughts:

There is only one thing stopping anyone who wants to use the Open Atrium project suite from managing BarcampMilwaukee _right now._

And that thing is inertia. 

In my experience that best way to affect inertia is not to shout "Stop! " and then restart a new thing. The best way to affect inertia is to pour your own influence into the inertia pool so that eventually, you have enough momentum of your own  to swing the inertia of the thing you're trying to affect in a new direction. 

So, Open Atrium fans, use Open Atrium. Make it something I _want_ to particpate in, rather than something I _should_ participate in. Demonstrate the value of Open Atrium, instead of promising that it would be better. Get it up and going and have it interface with the current system in a way that would make that transition seemless. And it will happen.

It's set up now. but is it going? I don't see a lot of inertia there. (http://bucketb.com/schoolfactory.org/web414/).

Use it. Make it go if you want it to. Don't make me use it _for_ you. 

Inertia

Submitted by raster on Sun, 08/22/2010 - 9:30am

Huh? Did anyone know about that Web414 install? I didn't, and I'm usually faily involved in Web414... no one invited me to use it.

Also, I think we'd want to see any Open Atrium install for BCMKE right here, on barcampmilwaukee.org right?

Gabe mentioned making it all work together (Google Groups, Open Atrium) but unless there are APIs to do all that is needed (subscribe, post, unsubscribe, sync, etc) I don't know how smoothly that would go. (I've built data syncers, it can get messy.)

OK, someone make it all work now!

No access

Submitted by raster on Sun, 08/22/2010 - 9:40am
Obviously Open Atrium hates me: http://raster.posterous.com/open-atrium :(

*throws hat in Open Atrium bucket*

Submitted by Patrick Schley on Sun, 08/22/2010 - 7:15am
It's really great for collaboration and planning (I just helped some high school kids use it to plan an entire theatrical production) and still uses email for us old-fashioned folks.-p.

How about Google Apps?

Submitted by Scott Offord on Sun, 08/22/2010 - 5:15am
Google Apps has 'group' mailing list functionality with various levels of control.

And when it stops being broken

Submitted by mr on Sun, 08/22/2010 - 4:23pm
then I'll consider it. Until then, they take a working email address like marc+barcamp@ and return 'you are now subscribed marc@' If I want broken software I'd say lets do everything in sharepoint!

Evil

Submitted by raster on Sun, 08/22/2010 - 9:31am
I thought we established that Google is Evil. ;)
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