[GSBN] GSBN's future structure

Mon Mar 3 03:30:07 UTC 2014

I throw my vote in with Derek, and agree with all in this thread.  I 
like the fact that it's quiet at times, and active at times, and at 
other times, totally focussed on in-depth discussion when there's Work 
to be Done.
Yet I'm not afraid when no one posts anything for a while.

The comparison of the amount of traffic on Facebook compared to the 
traffic on this GSBN list, is for me comfortably similar to comparing 
the amount of traffic in a majour metropolis, to the silence of living 
in a quiet rural outskirt.
In a small setting, when someone speaks, I have the sense that they are 
talking directly to me.  In a crowded room, I don't always know how to 
respond to all the varied input, and when I'm trying to follow and speak 
to a conversation, my responses are so slow that I'm often way late 
anyways. I use Facebook at times; and especially to stay in contact with 
my offspring and  my grand children.  Facebook feels a bit, to me, like 
a crowded room.

A lot can happen on Facebook in a day, but so much happens that I run 
from the room, turn off the 'puter, and go read a good book.

"And speaking of books, Chris Magwood's book looks like a fine gem. I 
think he's gonna be rich now, 'cause he sold many copies at the Ontario 
Natural Building Conference",

  ... he said, speaking off topic again, prompted by Catherine's comment 
and warm wishes, below.
(My apologies, for speaking off topic, but I'm sort of in a 
Post-Straw-Conference warm and fuzzy state of mind.)
It was a stellar and exhausting past 96 hours of work, and bliss: 
hob-nobbing with the likes of David Eisenberg, Chris Magwood, Dawn 
Smith, Jacob Racusin and Tina Therrien, naming just the presenters.
Attendance was over 80, the BaleHeart Bar was open for bizness Saturday 
evening, and fun was had by all.

Thanking you, the stellar presenters, with my deepest appreciation for 
making a good event turn stellar,
as well as deep gratitude for working with the events committee of 
board, on this event for the Ontario Natural Building Coalition.

Frank Tettemer
Living Sol ~ Building and Design
www.livingsol.com
613 756 3884
......................................................................................................................................

Catherine W. wrote:  I agree with Derek.... I don't see fixing what 
ain't broken.

The original purpose of the GSBN is still being served, which was to 
keep the level of discussion at the cutting edge, (not repeating the 
basics), to share important breakthroughs or get feedback on problems, 
and to be an international networking tool among the most committed 
individuals and, through them, regional organizations.  To boldly go 
where no bale has gone before... you get the picture.  ;-)

BTW, I recently got the latest issue of TLS in the mail, and it is 
wonderful to hold in my hands this beautiful full-color magazine with a 
stunning Korean natural home on the cover, and a great article on SB & 
Building Science by Chris Magwood inside (and many more).

Please, everyone, support Jeff Ruppert and the evolution of The Last 
Straw Journal, and order up a copy if you haven't already. And those of 
you outside the USA can download it via pdf from http://thelaststraw.org

And to all of you enjoying the Natural Building Gathering in Ontario 
this weekend....Cheers!

Sincerely,
Catherine Wanek
Co-director
Builders Without Borders
www.builderswithoutborders.org <http://www.builderswithoutborders.org/>

/Ecological builders working together for a sustainable future./

On Fri, Feb 28, 2014 at 9:46 AM, Derek Stearns Roff <derek at unm.edu 
<mailto:derek at unm.edu>> wrote:

    I've changed the subject line, to focus on the specific question of
    GSBNs future structure.  I'm finding it challenging to follow this
    topic mixed in with other questions.

    I favor continuing GSBN as it is.  I think it serves a valuable and
    unique niche. Our members have differing needs, and GSBN serves some
    of those needs well.  In my view, we have created an important
    community on GSBN, that I want to maintain.  The fact that the list
    is quiet for weeks at a time is a virtue.  It allows important
    mutual support and high-level discussion on topics when needed, and
    isn't a burden during the rest of the time.

    Facebook serves other needs and other forms of use.  The Strawbale
    list on Facebook has existed for I don't know how long- more than a
    year.  It has more than 1,100 members.  Some members of GSBN are on
    the Facebook SB list, and everyone could be, if they wanted to be.
      But closing GSBN would not enhance the Facebook group, it would
    just eliminate the unique community that we have here.  You can't
    have this kind of community and interaction on a list with
    Facebook's level of traffic, member quantity, and mix of topics and
    postings.  Facebook is great for reaching a lot of people in a
    fairly superficial way.  That is important, but it isn't the only
    thing that is important.  GSBN is important too.

    Derek

    On Feb 27, 2014, at 7:51 PM, Bill Christensen wrote:

>     On 2/27/14 8:10 PM, Frank Tettemer wrote:
>>     Tony, that was a wake up for me.  I hadn't even considered Liz
>>     might not be on the list. And so I began to consider who else
>>     might not be on the list.
>>
>>     In an effort to leave no stones unturned, I would like to
>>     nominate the following:
>>
>>     Dawn Marie Smith
>>     Anna Wolfson
>>     Michael Henry
>>     Emily Rydell Niehaus
>>
>>     I'd also like to apologize to any of the people, nominated above,
>>     who are reading this right now,
>>     because, they are already on this list!
>>     I just didn't know.
>>
>     Dawn and Emily are already here.
>
>     Anna, Michael, and Liz Johndrow are not yet (or they're
>     unidentified non-contributors at the moment).
>
>     I'll need their email addresses or better still they can sign up
>     by following the link at the bottom of
>     http://sustainablesources.com/GSBN/, and then let me now and I can
>     make them contributing members.
>
>     Regarding the idea of combining lists:   I definitely support
>     putting the bioenergy and SBRUs lists together.  It seems they've
>     been redundant since shortly after the REPP list cratered for a
>     while, SBRUs was created, and then REPP was reconstituted.
>
>     The original reason for GSBN's existence was that those lists were
>     bale-hammered on a regular basis by well meaning newbies.  Us old
>     codgers (experience-wise, not necessarily chronologically) got
>     tired of repeating the same answers again and again, and a bunch
>     of the really knowledgeable old codgers got too busy working on
>     codes and other big-picture stuff to wade into the fray often, if
>     at all. GSBN became the place for 'higher level' discussions
>     regarding the strawbale movement, techniques, etc.  And it has
>     proven to work very well for that over the many years (since 1998
>     at least).
>
>     If y'all are of a mind to open GSBN to everyone (and I know some
>     of you have been for a fair while), or to combine it with some new
>     SB überlist I'm cool with that too.  Opening to all just involves
>     a couple clicks of my all-powerful mouse.  Combining lists can be
>     a little more difficult (archive transfers and all that) but is
>     not impossible.
>
>     But I'd want to hear a decisive decision one way or the other from
>     the majority of you.
>
>
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    Derek Roff
    derek at unm.edu <mailto:derek at unm.edu>

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