The Forge as Reference

[David Berg]

In my time spent learning Big Model concepts and terms at the Forge, many folks have been very helpful in giving me links to older threads where some term was coined or some concept was explained particularly well.

I've clicked the links, read the posts, developed some level of understanding, and moved on.

Then, later, I realize I might have missed something; in light of new discussions, I wanna look at that other explanation again!  So, I try to remember where I was originally directed to some thread with some point, and I do searches, and the searches take my poor computer friggin' forever...

And also, someone asks about a term or concept, and I want to point them to an explanation, but then I'd have to do searches, and wait...

I'm an organization-minded guy.  I like labeling things and putting them in folders and putting the folders in boxes and trying to develop the optimal system for reference.  I would be more than happy to do this for the Forge.  I would be more than happy to update the Glossary, for example -- at the bare minimum, to fill it with links to all those threads I keep hunting down.

Ron and Vincent, please let me know if you're interested.  Ron has my gmail address.

If you are not interested in my help, but are interested in addressing this issue, I'd love to hear what's in the works.

If you're not interested in addressing this issue, I'd appreciate an explanation of why not.

Thanks,
-David

[Eero Tuovinen]

This is a perennial topic and the party line has always been that anybody who's interested in putting in the work is more than welcome to do it. I for one would consider editorializing Forge content useful, fun and profitable if I weren't taken by creative endeavours constantly. If you'll check the archived subforums, you'll also find out that Ron started an initiative for doing exactly this some time back - I understand that most of us haven't done much for it yet, but perhaps somebody will have the spare time at some point.

(Such a blast from the past: I seem to remember that my first contact with Ron was in 2002 or 2003, asking him about his plans for condensing and editorializing the Forge, which I was reading avidly at the time; I seem to remember that my plan was something along the lines of an annual editorial digest, unless I'm remembering somebody else's plan from later on.)

That is to say, if your initiative doesn't meet with much enthusiasm it's not because we aren't all excited about editorial projects, but because such projects have been proposed so many times by so many participants, with relatively little to show for it. So my enthusiastic suggestion is that if you really feel like you'd be able to do substantial work on categorizing and priorizing Forge discussions, you should just go ahead and show your stuff! Good work in this regard will prove a lasting benefit for everybody, and even if you can't do it all yourself (I don't think anybody could), then somebody else will perhaps find your work an useful place to start when the craving for order comes upon them with the next full moon / solstice / Hanuka.

[David Berg]

I would have "shown my stuff" a long time ago if I had rights to edit the Glossary.  But I don't.  Where else could I place something on the Forge that would actually be useful?

[Ron Edwards]

Hi David,

Well, the easiest thing would be to post your work as an article of its own. There are a couple of other possibilities as well, but that's the most immediate.

Best, Ron

[David Berg]

Ron,
I am looking for a way to post an article and not finding it.  Help?

[Ron Edwards]

Email Vincent, who is da man.

Best, Ron

[David Berg]

Done.