new forum

Diane via pbs pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net
Tue, 19 Apr 2022 10:05:44 PDT
There are several ways of discussing plants on the internet. Some are easier to use than others, but all have some disadvantages.

The newest are on social media sites, like Facebook.  I find these are mainly collections of photos, which are good, except many of them are not identified, and there is usually very little discussion.  I want information.

PBS is currently using what is called a Listserv.  Messages are sent to a central location which then forwards them to all members.  This requires little work - messages arrive automatically in your computer’s mail program.  The difficulties are:  sometimes the service provider refuses to send the message on to members.  This can be for several reasons - the service provider decides that the message is unacceptable (perhaps the plant being discussed is not included in the dictionary they use), or the user has filled his mailbox beyond what he has paid for.  Another  problem is the difficulty in sending photos.  I experience this - my computer automatically includes my photos within any message I send, and the PBS List won’t accept those messages.

The way I like to discuss plants and share photos online is on a web-based Forum, as Uli mentioned.  My favourite one is also that of the Scottish Rock Garden Club.  It is a bit more work as messages don’t automatically arrive in my mail, so I have to remember to log on.  Once online, I can choose to read messages in various categories, like Flowers and Foliage Now, Bulbs General, Pleione and Orchidaeae,  Amaryllidaceae, Grow from Seed,  Travel and Places to Visit, etc.
I usually go straight to Recent Unread Topics.  The Forum remembers what I have already read, and I can skim down the list of new messages and choose which I want to read.  I can also easily go back to the beginning of a discussion, perhaps begun several years ago, and then read all the relevant messages.

One needs to be a member to post messages, and it is very easy to post photographs.  One can even choose where one wants the photo placed within the message.

One does not need to be a member to read messages, though there is sometimes a private area just for members.

Take a look at the Scottish Forum to see what it looks like:

	https://srgc.org.uk/forum/index.php/… <https://srgc.org.uk/forum/index.php/…>

I look forward to PBS having a forum similar to that of the Scottish one.

Diane 



_______________________________________________
pbs mailing list
pbs@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net
http://lists.pacificbulbsociety.net/cgi-bin/…
Unsubscribe: <mailto:pbs-unsubscribe@lists.pacificbulbsociety.net>


More information about the pbs mailing list