[libreoffice-users] LO help communities

This is a meta-question about help for LibreOffice questions.

(1) LibreOffice has a comprehensive array of mailing lists <https://bn.libreoffice.org/get-help/mailing-lists/> 
@global.libreoffice.org, each of which seems to be reflected and archived in Nabble 
<http://document-foundation-mail-archive.969070.n3.nabble.com/LibreOffice-f1639495.html>. (This list 
<users@global.libreoffice.org> is one of those lists.) That combination is a wonderful resource.

        In addition to global lists @global.libreoffice.org (all in English), there are dozens of 
local/regional/national lists @<xx>.libreoffice.org, which vary in scope and quality and lack the 
Nabble archive.

        Finally, there are global lists @documentfoundation.org, and a set of development and QA 
lists at freedesktop.org. These are all beyond the scope of my question here.

(2) There is another great resource, the AskLibO system <https://ask.libreoffice.org/en/>. It is less 
comprehensive in scope than the mailing list system @global.libreoffice.org, essentially covering the scope of 
this users list. It does so in 15 languages, but English has by far the most traffic, so is roughly equivalent 
to this list <users@global.libreoffice.org>.


(a) With that context, here is my question, essentially comparing the communities in the mailing list 
<users@global.libreoffice.org> and the AskLibO forum <https://ask.libreoffice.org/en/>: There are 
some really thoughtful people in both communities, but [with notable exceptions] most do not seem to mix from 
one to the other, though both communities cover the same scope of questions. It makes sense that people are not 
active in both places: there are limited hours in the day. But I'm never sure where is the best place to ask a 
use question, and at the same time would like to pay back something in the form of information to whichever 
community I use. How do others handle that issue?

(b) Having asked that question, I offer my own (incomplete) take on it: Because time is limited, a 
mailing list (or newsgroup) has an inherent push advantage over a web forum; you don't have to 
check into the forum to see questions. That's why AskLibO pushes a daily list of questions by mail, 
and you then follow the links in the mail. OTOH, the web forum is its own archive, which has 
advantages. Am I missing anything in the advantages of each?

(c) Having said that AskLibO pushes a daily list of questions/links, there is one additional 
fillip: When you contribute an answer to a question, you become part of a mailing list group for 
that question. When there is an update due to one or more new contributions, you get mail with a 
digest of the issue and a link to return to the question page -- which seems fair enough, except 
that the digest can contain comments that never make it onto the question page! So you can have 
someone answer a follow-up question or comment in the mailed digest, but only the answer, and not 
the question, is recorded on the question page! The result can be disorienting (hard to follow the 
thread), and of course gives an incomplete record of the discussion. Unfortunately, I don't even 
know who or how to ask about that (including how user comments or questions even get into the 
digest if they are not on the page!) in AskLibO. If anyone knows how that works, I would love some 
direction.

John

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