ADRC Community Forum

A moderated community forum is an online discussion space that enables a group of people to have meaningful conversations and collaborate anytime, anywhere. It’s a place to asynchronously share information, get support, and learn more about tools and services. Unlike email, a moderated forum is a communication tool that provides threaded discussions and 24/7 access to the latest information, including a rich, ever-changing set of FAQs.

Discourse is NACC’s moderated forum tool. You may hear the terms “Forum” and “Discourse” used interchangeably.

No, but we highly recommend it. It’s easy to use and you can interact directly with colleagues across the ADRC Program. If you have a question, it’s likely that someone else has the same question, so participating in the Forum helps us share information and learn together more effectively.

Yes, members of the NACC Technical Team and the NACC Research Team answer questions posted to the Forum within 2-5 business days.

No, NACC continues to use listservs in conjunction with the Forum. Here is the current policy for NACC's Listservs and their integration with the Forum:

1. Purpose: NACC listservs are used for broadcast messaging to ADRC Leadership and Cores. This includes important announcements, conference and event notifications, webinars, and other critical information.
2. Forum Integration: All emails sent to NACC's listservs will be automatically posted to the corresponding ADRC Core or relevant Forum category (discussion group) in the Forum.

3. Discussion Facilitation: The Forum will serve as the primary platform for:

   • Replying to listserv messages
   • Engaging in discussions about the listserv email content
   • Collaborative conversations related to Listserv email posts

   The Forum provides a centralized location where members can view all listserv messages and participate in follow-up discussions.

If you have a special interest group that wants its own Category and/or Group created in the Forum, so you can have breakout conversations with colleagues around a particular topic, contact Forum Online Help. Please provide the Category name and, if you are creating a Group, note the members you’d like added and who should “own” the Category/Group.

If you have an area of expertise and want to moderate topics in a particular Category in the Forum, NACC can make you a moderator for that category. Please contact Community Forum Online Help.

Here are some of the reasons why a moderated forum is better than Slack:

1. Structured Discussions
   • Moderated Forum: Provides a structured and organized format for discussions, with threads and categories that make it easier to follow specific topics.
   • Slack: Conversations are more fluid and less structured, making it difficult to track and retrieve specific information over time.
2. Long-Term Knowledge Preservation
   • Moderated Forum: Facilitates long-term storage and easy retrieval of information, making it suitable for building a knowledge base.
   • Slack: Messages get buried over time, and important information can be hard to find without using advanced search functions.
3. Moderation and Content Quality
   • Moderated Forum: Allows for controlled moderation of posts and threads, ensuring that the content remains high-quality, relevant, and free of spam.
   • Slack: Moderation is more challenging due to the real-time nature of conversations, which can lead to lower quality and more off-topic discussions.
4. Asynchronous Communication
   • Moderated Forum: Ideal for asynchronous communication, where users can participate in discussions at their own pace without feeling pressured to respond immediately.
   • Slack: Encourages real-time communication, which can create a sense of urgency and distraction, potentially reducing productivity.
5. Accessibility and Inclusivity
   • Moderated Forum: More useful for users in different time zones and with varying schedules, as discussions remain accessible and active for longer periods.
   • Slack: Real-time nature can disadvantage users who are not online at the same time, leading to missed conversations.
6. Search and Discoverability
   • Moderated Forum: Often includes robust search and tagging functionalities, making it easier to find specific discussions or topics.
   • Slack: Search functions are available but can be less effective due to the volume and fluidity of messages.
7. Community Building
   • Moderated Forum: Supports community building through persistent user profiles, reputation systems, and more permanent interaction records.
   • Slack: Focuses more on immediate communication rather than building a long-term community feel.
8. Focused Discussions
   • Moderated Forum: Encourages focused and in-depth discussions on specific topics without the distraction of simultaneous multiple conversations.
   • Slack: Multiple conversations often occur simultaneously, which can lead to fragmented discussions and loss of focus.

You are not required to join the Forum. NACC will send you an invitation to join the Forum twice. If you know you do not want to use the Forum, you can disregard the invitations and ask your Administrator to mark “No Discourse Account” on your record in the NACC Directory so you do not receive any future invitations. If you change your mind, ask your Administrator to update your record in the NACC Directory and we will send you a new invitation.

Submit a support request for assistance - a Forum Admin will answer your question within 2-5 business days.

We welcome your feedback on the Forum. Post a topic in the Site Feedback category in the Forum or email us your feedback.