Previously, the only option for a forum-like experience was to interact with our mailing lists via Google Groups, but we understand all too well that the privacy implications and user experience were unacceptable for many members of our community, especially with the recent addition of a sign-in requirement to view threads. Many of you value the lower barrier to entry, organization, ease-of-use, and modern social features that today’s forums support. Moreover, Discourse features email integration for those who still prefer the traditional mailing list format.
So I guess mailing list for googlegroups is now deprecated and Forum is the correct way for communication and support? (Good call). If so, then it should be mentioned on the website too.
To be clear, this is not a replacement for our mailing lists (such as qubes-users and qubes-devel), which will continue on as they are. This new forum is simply an additional place for discussion. Certain types of discussions naturally lend themselves more to mailing lists or to forums, and different types of users prefer different venues. We’ve heard from some users who find the mailing lists to be a bit intimidating or who may feel that their message isn’t important enough to merit creating a new email that lands in thousands of inboxes. Others want more selective control over topic notifications. Some users simply appreciate the ability to add a “reaction” to a message instead of having to add an entirely new reply. Whatever your reasons, it’s up to you to decide where and how you want to join the conversation.