Community:The problem with discussion list threads

From Odp

Revision as of 05:47, 4 March 2010

There is an enormous amount of valuable content sitting in discussion list archives. However:

1. the same issues get discussed over and over on many different lists;
2. the information you want is hard to find;
3. if you do find a relevant thread,
   1. the content is very raw and hard to digest;
   2. there are usually no summaries, and if there are, they are not easy to find;
4. there is no agreed place to go to find out about modeling issues;
5. it is often easier just to ask the question again, and the cycle continues.

We have created the ontology modeling issues section in the ODP Wiki To address these problems. It is a place:

• to put final results of lively discussions of ontology modeling issues,
• for the ideas to be further refined by the community.

In it you will find a number of modeling issues that have already been entered.

We envision the following steps in the evolution of a modeling issue:

1. Lively discussion happens on some mailing list.
2. Someone posts a summary to the list of the key points raised, ideally including the pros and cons of proposed solutions.
3. Post a modeling issue on the ODP Wiki (based on that summary).
4. Post a note to any relevant discussion lists inviting them to contribute to the Wiki.
5. Discuss and refine the issue further in the ODP Wiki
6. Post major updates to relevant discussion lists.

An alternative is to originate the discussion on the ODP Wiki, in which case the process above starts at step 3.