<Insert obligatory "old man shouting at cloud" meme here>
Quick definition: fora is the plural of forum, as in a web based forum to discuss a topic or technology, like https://discussion.fedoraproject.org/.
Having said that...
I love mailing lists. I have filters set up they silently go to the correct mail folder, I can read through them at my leisure, and I only have to deal with one client - my mail client. My mail client defaults to sane viewing rules, threaded, in the order I prefer. It's the same experience across every mailing list I'm a member of. I love that. It's very accessibility-friendly.
I hate using fora. I generally have to open a separate tab for each forum I'm on, and I'm on a LOT. And I have to go out of my way to even remember all the fora I am a member of. For those of us who are members of a bunch, it's kind of a beating - especially if you're an ADHD person, like me. I get that I can (sometimes) set up email notifications when there are responses to my posts or comments, but... if we're already emailing forum members, why the heck don't we just use email lists?
I also love that I see interesting problems on mailing lists that I'd never thought of or dealt with, and it's right there, in the list's mail folder. I learn a LOT perusing those messages. It's there, I can easily read through the threads when I get a minute. And I don't have to remember to fire up a new browser tab to parse them.
The whole "fora are an archive" argument is kinda nonsensical, since mailing lists are generally archived on the web, as well. In my experience, mailing list archives are easier to search than a forum.
I get the sense that moving from email lists to fora was a move to force folks to go to a web site to drive advertising. I kinda hate that. When Red Hat moved from email lists to fora (log in required), I got the sense that it was really to gather information about who was interacting with their web site. Ditto pretty much every other vendor who moved from email lists to web based fora - this isn't a Red Hat or Fedora specific thing.
Am I the only one who feels this way? Has the day finally come where I'm just old and set in my ways? Are there others who prefer mailing lists to fora?
To be clear, I am not bashing fora, per se - I'm just saying that for me, they're not NEARLY as easy to deal with as email lists. If you like fora, that's awesome. I'm not attacking you. Let's nip that in the bud. I'm not looking for a flame war, just trying to see if other feel the same way. Let's keep it civil.
Thanks, Thomas