Site Navigation

Contact Peter Kaminski

Edit on GitHub


Community Discussion Platforms

Table of Contents

Personal Advice

(I posted this "personal advice" section to help a small community think through platform options. I've started fleshing out additional details in the subsequent sections. Please share this elsewhere if you think someone will find it useful, along with credit to me and a link back to the canonical URL: https://peterkaminski.wiki/community_discussion_platforms. Comments and questions are welcome: kaminski@istori.com. By Peter Kaminski. Claude and ChatGPT were used as writing assistants, but I'm responsible for the content. Last updated 2024-11-10.)

I thought I'd share some platform observations, while noting that a community is not just a tech platform, it's also the people who participate.

Choosing a tech platform goes hand in hand with helping people move to and use the platform. Helping the members use the platform is your primary job. Choosing and operating the tech platform, while very important, must be secondary to humans using the platform.

I currently run both Mattermost and Discourse servers for a couple of communities, and server-wise, they are both easy to set up and maintain. (I could even say "fun", if you're a devops person.)

Server cost for either one runs ~$10 a month on AWS servers; it might be possible to make that a little less on a cheaper VPS provider.

Mattermost is an open source Slack-alike, and it's really nice to use. The IRC / Slack / Mattermost / Discord model, with channels and chat, works great for an active community (daily or near-daily traffic), but it's not great for a low-volume community (traffic once in a while).

With an active chat-based community, you also sort of need a wiki or other knowledgebase to supplement the chat, otherwise good stuff just scrolls away. In a low-volume community, a chat platform feels like a ghost town.

Matrix (primary client is Element, but there are others) is sort of a next-gen IRC, rather than an Slack- or IRC-alike. A small community would kinda fit in there, and even though Matrix is a chat system, it doesn't feel like a ghost town if there's low volume, because you can always join other Matrix channels.

It would be a big change to move the community over to a specialized client, and not everybody would transition over.

Discourse is arguably the best self-hostable forum software. I mean arguably literally, there are a few top contenders, and someone could argue that another one is "best" and not be wrong, based on the community's and maintainer's needs. I have an unsorted list here: Open Source Forum Software. Not all of those are contenders, but maybe half are.

Discourse is really nice, I like it a lot. However, the default configuration is set up more for a big online community, with probably thousands of people and new people joining every month. Those configuration features actually get in the way of low-volume, small community use.

You can go through and change the configuration of course, but there's a fair bit of that to do, it's a job for a couple people for a week or so part-time.

I highly recommend Discourse for the right-sized community, which is probably north of a dozen participants, with at least a few active every week or so, at least. Unlike chat, the threads (called "topics" in Discourse) don't scroll away as much, and so you can get away using just Discourse for an okay knowledgebase, you don't need a separate wiki or whatever.

Google Groups and Groups.io are also options. Google Groups is free, but it's not my favorite. Last time I needed a mailing list, I opted for Groups.io to avoid being "in the belly of the beast" that is Google. Both can work fine, though, especially if you're looking for a more traditional mailing list-style experience.

Finally, if you're interested in self-hosting a mailing list, GNU Mailman is worth considering. I haven't hosted it personally, but I'm on some Mailman lists, and it seems solid. I can't speak to how much of a lift it is to host, but if anyone's interested, I'm happy to help figure it out—including talking about commercial SMTP providers, if that's of interest.

Community is People

Communities use tools and processes to interact. In this article, let's talk about community discussion platforms, which are online tools that host people's messages as the people interact with each other.

Your community might be spread across different places, but you still want everyone to feel like they're part of something real.

Maybe your online platform is where everyone hangs out most of the time, or maybe it's just one part of how you connect—alongside video calls or even in-person meetups.

Whatever the case, finding the right platform is about more than just tools; it's about making a place where people feel comfortable to share, support each other, and stay engaged, no matter where they are.

Choosing a tech platform goes hand in hand with helping people move to the platform and to use it. Helping the members use the platform is your primary job. Choosing and operating the tech platform, while very important, must be secondary to humans using the platform.

Platform Types: Forum, Chat, Email List

Community platforms can be categorized into a couple of types, including 'forum', 'chat', and 'email lists'.

Each approach has its strengths and suits different kinds of community dynamics.

Forum Platforms

Forum platforms like Discourse, Flarum, or NodeBB excel at organized, threaded discussions that maintain value over time.

Key Benefits

Best Use Cases

Forums particularly shine when:

Chat Platforms

Chat platforms like Mattermost, Discord, or Matrix focus on real-time communication.

Core Features

Optimal Scenarios

Chat works best when:

Limitations

However, chat platforms can face certain challenges:

Email Lists

Email lists (like GNU Mailman, Google Groups, or Groups.io) provide a traditional, email-centric approach to community discussion.

Main Features

Ideal Applications

Email lists are particularly effective when:

Advantages and Challenges

The email list model has stood the test of time because it leverages a universal communication tool (email) and requires minimal adaptation from users.

However, it lacks some modern community features like rich profiles, real-time interaction, or sophisticated content organization.

Also, email lists can get noisy fast. It can be hard to modulate participation, to keep a balance between productive participation from many members vs. having a few people bloviating.

Community Platform Features and Functionality

Here are some key features to consider when selecting a community platform, particularly a forum, sorted by user and administrative priorities.

The "Importance" column indicates how critical this feature typically is for most communities.

Remember that feature importance will vary significantly based on your specific community needs and goals. While evaluating platforms, consider both your current requirements and potential future growth—features that seem unnecessary now might become critical as your community evolves.

Be aware that some desired functionality may require additional plugins, custom development, or third-party integrations, which can impact both initial and ongoing costs.

Factor in not just the direct platform costs, but also maintenance, hosting, and potential development expenses.

Finally, don't underestimate the importance of user adoption; the most feature-rich platform won't succeed if it presents too steep a learning curve for your community members.

User-Focused Features

Feature Description Importance Common Pain Points
Mobile Experience Responsive design, easy mobile posting/reading High Poor mobile editors, tiny tap targets
Content Discovery Finding relevant posts, search functionality High Bad search, overwhelming home feeds
Notification Control Customizable notifications for topics/messages High Too many notifications, missing important updates
Feed Customization Ability to follow/unfollow topics or categories High Seeing unwanted content, information overload
Direct Messaging Private 1:1 and group messaging High Limited DM features, clunky interfaces
Post Editor Rich text editing, image uploads, drafts High Lost drafts, formatting issues, editor bugs
User Profiles Customizable profiles, activity history Medium Limited profile fields, privacy controls
Reading Experience Clean layout, dark mode, text sizing Medium Cluttered design, poor readability
Events System Calendar, RSVPs, recurring events Medium Complex event creation, timezone issues

Admin-Focused Features

Feature Description Importance Common Pain Points
Moderation Tools Post/user management, content flags High Limited bulk actions, poor audit trails
User Management Roles, permissions, tier management High Inflexible permission systems
Analytics User engagement, content performance High Limited metrics, poor export options
Content Organization Categories, tags, pinned posts High Difficult reorganization, inflexible structure
API Access Integration capabilities, webhooks Medium Poor documentation, limited endpoints
Customization Theming, branding, layout control Medium Complex customization, breaking changes
Onboarding Flow Welcome process, required fields Medium Rigid workflows, high drop-off
Backup/Recovery Data export, disaster recovery Medium Complex backup processes
Anti-Spam Automated protection, captchas Medium False positives, aggressive filters

Technical Considerations

Feature Description Importance Common Pain Points
Performance Page load times, server resources High Slow searches, heavy pages
Security Authentication, data protection High Complex SSO setup
Self-Hosting Server requirements, maintenance Medium Resource intensive, update management
Data Privacy GDPR compliance, data control Medium Limited privacy controls
Integration Third-party services, SSO Medium Limited integration options

Open Source Community Platforms

Open source community platforms offer a compelling middle ground between fully commercial services and social media platforms. They provide control and flexibility while respecting user privacy and data ownership.

Let's explore both self-hosted and commercially hosted options:

Self-Hosted Solutions

Self-hosting open source platforms like Discourse, Flarum, or NodeBB gives you maximum control over your community's infrastructure. You maintain complete data ownership, can customize every aspect of the platform, and aren't subject to unexpected pricing changes or feature removals.

Advantages

Challenges

Costs and Considerations

Typical costs run $5-20/month for hosting on platforms like AWS, DigitalOcean, or Linode, though this can increase with community size and activity.

Commercially Hosted Open Source

Many open source platforms offer commercial hosting options (like Discourse.org for Discourse). This approach provides many benefits of open source software while eliminating most technical maintenance burden.

Advantages

Challenges

Making the Choice

Consider these factors when deciding between self-hosted and commercially hosted options:

Technical Resources

Budget Considerations

Control Requirements

Growth Plans

The beauty of open source solutions is that you can often start with commercial hosting and move to self-hosting later (or vice versa), giving you flexibility as your community's needs evolve.

Many communities begin with commercial hosting to validate their concept, then transition to self-hosting as they grow and develop technical resources.

Either way, choosing an open source platform—whether self-hosted or commercially hosted—means you're investing in a solution that respects your community's independence and privacy while providing the flexibility to adapt as needs change.

Table of Platforms

Platform Type OSS? Pete Notes
Discourse Forum open source 👍 Open source, self-hostable ideal for communities with regular activity and at least a dozen participants.
Flarum Forum open source Need more information.
NodeBB Forum open source Need more information.
MyBB Forum open source Need more information.
phpBB Forum open source Need more information.
Simple Machines Forum Forum open source Need more information.
Lemmy Forum open source Need more information.
Mattermost Chat open source 👍 Open source, self-hostable Slack alternative, best for active communities with frequent interactions.
Matrix Chat open source 🙃 Next-gen IRC platform, Element is the primary client; works for active and low-volume use.
Groups.io Email List paid service Similar to Google Groups, offering a traditional mailing list experience.
GNU Mailman Email List open source 👍 Open source, self-hostable option known for reliable mailing list functionality.
Google Groups Email List 😕 Free, provides traditional mailing list experience.

A Note on Facebook and LinkedIn Groups

While Facebook and LinkedIn groups offer convenient, ready-made platforms for community building, they come with significant trade-offs worth considering.

These platforms provide built-in audiences, familiar interfaces, and zero hosting costs, which can make them attractive options for some communities. Many people already have accounts and know how to use them, eliminating onboarding friction.

However, using these platforms means accepting their fundamental business model: they monetize user attention and data through advertising. Your community's discussions, member information, and engagement patterns become part of their data collection ecosystem.

They can (and do) change features, algorithms, and access rules without warning, potentially disrupting your community's dynamics overnight.

Key Limitations

Considerations for Use

For some communities—particularly those focused on professional networking or casual interest groups—these trade-offs might be acceptable.

However, for communities that value data privacy, content ownership, or long-term stability, self-hosted or independent platforms often prove to be better choices.

The initial investment in setting up your own platform can pay dividends in terms of control, customization, and community independence.

Remember: when you build on someone else's platform, you're subject to their rules, their timeline, and ultimately, their business interests. While this might align with your community's needs, it's important to make this choice consciously rather than defaulting to it out of convenience.