Re: The Gramps Discourse forum needs members.

On 5/5/25 23:14, Emyoulation--- via Gramps-users wrote:
> One of the measures of a software application is the number of registered users in its official forum.
> 
> Right now, the number is far too low for https://gramps.discourse.orgAnd the activity in this mailing list has fallen to almost nothing.
> 
> Part of that may be because people can browse the Discourse without joining. It is harder to "lurk" as a non-member to a mailing list.
> 
> The Discourse community support forum for Gramps is where the first announcements appear of new versions. (You can set preferences  to notify you of new postings to Announcements.)
> 
> Despite the years of existence and the number of downloads, the member count makes Gramps look insignificant. But you can help.
> 
> The Finnish community has been very active in building tools for Gramps. But, with the exception of the Isotammi team, they have been very quiet. There is a native language section but it does not see much use.
> 
> Create a free user account today. Make the core Developers aware of when there are features needed to support your community.
> 
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The usual significant measure of a software application, used to be the 
number of downloads of the application, as I believe was used by the 
Distrowatch, for comparing the numbers of downloads of different Linux 
distributions; also used, was, I believe, the numbers of registered users.

It is like, on the MyHeritage web site; the web page about DNA testing 
(myheritage.com/dna), is the number or people in the DNA test samples 
database, that is periodically updated (the only genealogical DNA 
testing company to so provide this information).

The lack of activity on this list, has, I believe, been due to two 
significant factors; the first being the push for subscribers to abandon 
the mailing list and switch to the forum, and, the second, has been an 
international decrease in participation in many things, including 
mailing lists of various interests.

I have been a member and list administrator of many mailing lists, 
including genealogical mailing lists, and, at one time, before 
ancestry.com took it over and killed the mailing lists, Rootsweb had 
about 53,000 genealogical mailing lists operating at different activity 
rates, with some, being quite active. Over the last twenty years, 
participation has decreased, and, many are pretty dormant, especially 
after ancestry.com killed the Rootsweb mailing lists.

When the coronavirus epidemic occurred, participation in many things, 
diminished.

And, with ICT mailing lists, a number of things have occurred, including 
the diminishing support by software developers of open source software, 
for mailing lists.

Some UNIX (BSD) versions, and, some Linux distributions, deliberately 
avoid mailing lists, and gnome shutdown its mailing lists, trying to 
force interested people to use fora, which are unwieldy for many people, 
further decreasing interest in the applicable software, by people who 
may otherwise be interested, by the software developers not supporting 
their products through mailing lists. The mate desktop environment, like 
Linux Mint, does not have support mailing lists, and, therefore, does 
not provide support to most users. They are only a  couple of examples.

It is like the retailers with the rubbish with which they have 
supplanted usable products, like the reject quality clothing that is now 
sold, instead of decent clothing that customers want, but are prohibited 
from buying, and, the junk battery electric vehicles that are sold 
incomplete (very few, are sold with spare wheels), and, with 
inconsistent specifications.

Some manufacturers of goods, such as household rooftop photovoltaic 
systems, do not provide support or dissemination of information, through 
mailing lists, but, only through anti-social media, such as f***book, 
which is malignant.

The bottom line, in terms of the ICT developers, the automobile 
manufacturers, and retailers in general, and members of legislatures, is 
the prevailing policy; "We are not here to provide what people want, or 
to serve the public - we are here for our own interests, and, the public 
exist only to serve our pleasure".

LegacyFamilyTree refuses to port its software to Linux, and, GRAMPS 
makes including source citations, too complicated, to be usable. We, the 
people, are pressured to use facilities like fora, that are unwieldy, 
and, mailing lists are increasingly abandoned by software developers who 
are not as interested in users or prospective users, as they could be, 
that would otherwise increase usage of the products.

A song existed, in, I believe, the 1980's, with the line "What about 
me?". Unfortunately, we, the people, are met with the attitude "Get 
stuffed - you are only a pleb - you do not matter - you are here to 
serve us - we are not here to serve you".

That is the problem.

..
Bret Busby
Armadale
West Australia
(UTC+0800)
..............



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