[WEB4LIB] Re: Web-based message boards vs. email discussion groups

[Walt_Crawford at notes.rlg.org]

I was puzzling over my reaction to the pros & cons for lists vs. boards,
and hadn't quite determined how I felt, when Roy Tennant posted this:

>I like email-based discussions because I always
>check my email, and therefore cannot ignore discussion messages.
>However, going to a particular web site repeatedly over the course of
>a day is not as natural to me, and therefore I would tend to fall
>behind in the discussion and perhaps "drop it" altogether. Therefore,
>for me, under "cons" for message boards would be something like
>"Requires the user to remember to check it on a periodic basis." It's
>like if something is put into my personal mail slot, I really can't
>ignore it, but if you expect me to get up out of my chair and walk
>over to a bulletin board on a regular basis, even just a few doors
>away, forget it. This is my personal opinion, others prefer to have
>the arrangement be just the opposite. Thanks,
>Roy

Here's my own take:

If it's something I care about and want to be involved in, and the group
are people I want to be involved with, mail lists have it all over boards,
for Roy's reasons (and also because mail lists are rarely quite as
anonymous as boards can be)

If it's something I don't much care about but might want to be amused by,
now and then, boards are preferable.

I've never managed to maintain any interest in a board-based discussion for
very long, partly because the crazies seem to gravitate toward them (at
least public ones), partly because of their nature. If I'm bored and long
on time, browsing through the ranting (or the serious discussion) can be
amusing, but that's a different activity.

[As for virus problems: as Web4Lib demonstrates, you can set up some list
software to strip off attachments automatically.]

As always, your mileage may vary.
-walt crawford-