whats up with the ubuntuforums? (screenshot added)

[Chan Chung Hang Christopher]

arshad wrote:
> im sicked by the negative attitude toward ubuntu forum by the members
> here. as a matter of fact had ubuntu forum not existed i still be a 
> windows user.
>   

Go complain against Mihamina. I have nothing against the forums. I was 
even going to post when the thing went down and I ended up editing a 
wiki entry on Citrix XenApp Linux client instead.

> honestly i don't know how to participate in IRC chat though i tried
> several times.
> im sure that the majority of the ubuntu users migrated from windows
> learnt ubuntu from the forum.
> and most of them even doesnt know that the mailing list and IRC chat
> exists or how to subscribe.
>   

Thank you, you just underscored my point about the importance of the forums.

> plz don't bash the forum and spoil the spirit of the 'community' since
> we all (i.e mailing list, irc and the forum) are bound by the same
> purpose of helping each other.
>   

If my pointing out the obvious with this particular incident is bashing 
the forums, you have not seen me get started on bashing yet.

Since we are going to be serious about this, let me say it loud and 
clear. The forums must be highly available. They are the face of Ubuntu 
community support as far as the uninitiated are concerned. If you are 
going to make it look professional, please do not leave such a thing as 
the mailto: contact, for  when the forums go down, empty.

> thanks
> On Thu, 2009-12-10 at 22:50 +0800, Chan Chung Hang Christopher wrote:
>   
>> Mihamina Rakotomandimby wrote:
>>     
>>>>> One way to kill Ubuntu -- destroy the forums. We need a backup!!!!
>>>>>       
>>>>>           
>>>> Oh yeah, definitely not good for Ubuntu's image. These guys cannot
>>>> even keep something up 24/7 yada yada...
>>>>     
>>>>         
>>> Are you kidding?
>>>  
>>>   
>>>       
>> Half kidding. How would you feel if you were a business and you see the 
>> official ubuntu forum going down for a business day? How would you feel 
>> if you were a potential new user or someone trialing ubuntu for home and 
>> you find the official ubuntu forum down? Especially when you find out 
>> that the mailto: is also empty. Does it look professional to you any 
>> more? Do you want to install a hobby operating system on your box if you 
>> have no clue how computers work and just want something that works? What 
>> do you think people might be thinking? Remember, we do not have the 
>> advantage of being able to point to others as providers of support. You 
>> cannot point to Dell, yada yada as sources of help with Ubuntu beyond 
>> proprietary drivers. Microsoft can.
>>
>> If you were a Windows user and this sort of thing happened to Apple and 
>> they did not have shops all over the place and a support line, would you 
>> get a Mac if your sources of support were a forum that went down and 
>> mailing lists that you have never participated in?
>>
>>     
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