[LINK] RFI: How should virtual group members interact with one another?

[Roger Clarke]

A virtual organisation (e.g. The Link Institute, or a professional,
occupational, advocacy or common interest group) needs a channel for
communications among members.

In 2020, what would the Link Institute recommend as that channel?


A quick list of requirements is below (off-the-top-of-the-head).

Can anyone point to a more careful requirements statement than mine is?


Some categories and names that come to mind are:
-   Email-Lists
    -   Listman
-   Old-Style BBS / Message Boards / Internet/Discussion Fora / Groups
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Internet_forums
    -   Yahoo! Groups (now reverted to email-list operations?)
    -   Google Groups
    -   Whirlpool
-   Social Media
    -   LinkedIn
    -   Reddit
-   New-Style
    -   Slack
-   Commercial
    -   Trello
    -   GroupSpaces
        http://groupspaces.com/pricing

Is anyone aware of a feature-comparison of alternative channels, from
the viewpoint of virtual associations?

________

Quick List of Requirements (off-the-top-of-the-head):

-   channel membership management, flexible, enabling any of:
    -   open for any email-address to subscribe to
    -   limited to email-addresses of people who join the organisation
    -   subject to channel-manager add, amend, suspend, delete, ban
    -   scope for selective moderation, selected by poster or content,
        including amendment and forwarding
    -   scope for selective deletion of sub-channels, individual posts

-   sub-channels:
    -   primary (with channel-subscribers default-subscribed to it)
    -   secondary sub-channels (requiring opt-in)
    -   easy spawning of a sub-channel from a thread,
        duplicating the thread-archive across to the channel-archive

-   member access options
    -   postings forwarded to the subscriber's email-address
    -   digests forwarded to the subscriber's email-address
    -   web-based interface with login required, and
        displays by channel, sub-channel and thread

-   member posting options
    -   new post on existing thread
    -   create new thread and post to it
    -   reply-to poster-only (default)
    -   reply-all, within thread or sub-channel (needs to be selected)

-   post-content options:
    -   unformatted text, with links
    -   lightly formatted text, with links
    -   image-thumbnail, auto-linked to document / image / sound / video

-   notification settings available with one click (default off) for:
    -   all posts
    -   all posts on the main channel
    -   all posts on a specific sub-channel
    -   all posts on a nominated thread
    -   all posts by nominated posters

-   thread unsubscribe with one click

-   agnostic to device-type, OS and browser / application,
    i.e. designed for use on all handhelds, desktops, etc.

-   archival, with search facility, global, by sub-channel, by thread,
    with unlimited or at least very long retention

-   minimal lock-in, especially to rapacious 'social media' juggernauts
    Google, Microsoft, Apple, etc.

-   no or minimal rights for a service-provider to access and to use
    or disclose content of, or metadata relating to, channel traffic

-   scope for interoperability with other channels (open protocols)

-   scope for portability of archives to other channels (open standards)

-   integrated access to this and other channels:
    -   by means of a single application
    -   by means of a single-service

________

Roger Clarke                            mailto:Roger.Clarke at xamax.com.au
T: +61 2 6288 6916   http://www.xamax.com.au  http://www.rogerclarke.com

Xamax Consultancy Pty Ltd      78 Sidaway St, Chapman ACT 2611 AUSTRALIA

Visiting Professor in the Faculty of Law            University of N.S.W.
Visiting Professor in Computer Science    Australian National University