New Forum Needed - Member Collaboration & Projects..?

Hi,

I've noticed a growing, phenomenal trend in the Internet culture, world and community, involving collaboration and new project development, startups, crowdfund campaigning, virtual offices etc. etc. and here's my thought.

As a virtual community with well over 100,000 members, there's a lot of skill, talent, ideas, capabilities and general intellectual capital housed here at ATS.

So why not give us a forum within which we can discuss our ideas, dreams and visions, forge new relationships and even help generate the possibility for project collaboration, all of which would be done, ultimately, on a personal, member2member basis only ie: not asking ATS to change it's model or framework or "what it is" just a new space where we can get connected, and maybe even develop new entrepreneurial channels of possibility for ourselves..

The possibilities would be endless and some of the outcomes could have massively beneficial unintended consequences for members and even the site itself ie: when one or more among us comes up with the next big thing by accessing and deploying the otherwise untapped skills and abilities of fellow members.

I like the cultural acronym used by the CEO and staff of Indiegogo called F.A.C.E. which stands for

Fearless
Authentic
Collaborative
Empowering

We knows we've got the fearless and authentic, if not sometimes outright crazy (and often, Genius) already in the bag here at ATS, but what seems to be missing is the Collaborative and Empowering.

Please ATS owners/Mods/Admins - can we have a new space called Member Collaboration & Projects? Who knows, we might even change the world, at last..!

Best regards,

NAM

For example, this was a few years ago now, but I got connected via U2U with a fellow ATS member with the ability to create binaural beat brainwave entrainment tracks, and commissioned her to create a brainwave entrainment session to the music of Bach with ocean waves, which I called "Bach to the Future". I had production and directorial oversight, and she made it for me as to the specifications. The idea was to create a powerful one hour brainwave entrainment session and then make it available for free on the Internet. It quickly got 100k downloads from Zshare as a result posting it here, and now, over three years later, has received over 160,000 views on Youtube.

check it out..



And 100's of 1000's more on other file sharing sites where it's been uploaded compliments of another ATS member. All in all what we created, together, has been enjoyed by probably as many or more than 500,000 people all over the world, some of whom have reported that it's changed their life for the better. That's a lot of good karma from a little idea that could, eh?

I am all for anything that will counteract the ennui of the government" entrainment "
What were you thinking?
Drummer throw down a drum track and all the rythm players chuck in a rythm, with the lead players and song people joining in?
(figuratively as well as literally.....)
What realms of group effort would meet the approval of other members? or capture their muse?
Perhaps we already enjoy what you describe but dont recognise the opportunity fully....
Already threads exist which discuss the intimate variations of all the secrets of this and other universes beyond.....dont they?

reply to post by stirling

Just for the record, the thing I helped create increases awareness, and left/right brain whole-brain functioning, which counteracts the "dumbing down" process.

The possibilities in terms of what inspires someone's "muse" are endless.

I believe that the little guy needs to "come to power" but to do that we need to collaborate and work together and generate novel forms.

And it doesn't have to be the "next big thing" either or anything so bold, could be simply artistic creations and expressions, of any kind whatsoever.

I wish I didn't propose it, because I'm not looking for any personal glory, I just want to find like minded people to collaborate with from time to time, and since we're already a virtual community anyway, why not? People only enter into collaborative relationships of their own free will, and we do live in a free world, and we're all well aware of the "dangers" when dealing with a bunch of anonymous people and the various government shills and they surely lurk, but we're also capable of discerning very carefully the intentionality of others, and making our own choices

but as to the novel forms they could be anything at all, who knows what the ATS community could get up to if only given the opportunity, presently vacant for the most part, so the request is just for a forum as a new freedom of expression and personal choice and even new things with new possibility, anything's possible, when people of like mind work together towards a common pursuit and purpose.

It would be like ATS' version of what Napoleon Hill referred to as a "mastermind alliance" of any two or more people working together in a spirit of harmony towards a definite purpose, and in that regard the possibilities are endless once we start to use our imagination and then take creative action, employing the network of the internet and social networking as a massive collaborative potential, to find and seek out win/win/win scenarios that have positive socially creative and environmental impact. In the sentiment of the late Terrance McKenna it is OUR task to create the new culture, and we ARE that culture, and the NET is our tool. Let's use it. Why not?

reply to post by NewAgeMan


Some of us have already started collaboration projects with other members as well as social interaction. A forum would be useful so those interested in particular disciplines could identify each other and connect.

reply to post by olaru12

Exactly. It would be just a natural extension of what's already going on informally, but in a way that would allow us to articulate our visions/projects and get connected with those who wish to join us in our endeavors.

A forum intro could advise people not to give away too much personal info in their threads and posts.

It would add a whole new dimension to the ATS community and experience that's for sure.

I do hope the site owners/amins will seriously consider it, because when they do, they will recognize it's value.

Thanks for you imput.

Dear Springer/SO and all ATS "PTB",

It's already a virtual community. We are already free to interact, post threads, U2U, so why not give us the means through a simple forum addition, as a communications channel in a free open and democratic "word palace" and "place" of community, to unleash the greater power and potential inherent in such a "domain" of possibility where you have such a vast group of people with so much passion and awareness? Talk about powerful, and empowering. FACE Fearless, Authentic, Collaborative, Empowering. It's an awesome piece of culture. Does it fit with the ATS value? Why wouldn't it? A virtual community, as a community, a real community not just of opinions, but of practical ideas which can be implemented in the creation of any sort of novel form one could imagine, from a work of art to the performance of a play, music, invention, anything at all, anything we are FREE to create and generate, even in the face of and the midst of what might otherwise have appeared to be an intractable situation without hope or possibility of transformation.

Give us the opportunity to be the very change we want to see emerging in the world around us. Think of it as an anti-apathy antidote of sorts, along with the opportunity to co-creatively work and play together within a domain of new possibility where given time and the power of human ingenuity anything becomes possible.

It's already a whole new ballgame in case you haven't noticed.

It's the new internet culture, but not the mindless part of it, only the very best of the best and brightest of the bright, it's all here already at ATS. It just needs a forum as a communications channel nothing more in a free and democratic virtual community, but a truly community at last that's what this forum would represent and make possible.

I just hope you'll seriously consider it, and I know you will so thanks for your time.

NAM

I'll put my vote in for this as well.

reply to post by SilentKoala


The SilentKoala speaks, that's a sign for sure.

If the mods ultimately decide against this, I have some webspace that I would happily devote to such an endeavor. This is a wonderful idea, and if pushed a little further, could allow for some impressive works to result.

An addition to your "extra forum" idea would be a separate website in which project developers could admin a specific section of a website directly related to their own projects, allowing them to create account access for any other participants in the project. *mulls over the whole topic for a while* I'm pretty much describing kickstarter aren't I?

reply to post by Scaleru

Not kickstarter, but a collaborative space, just one product or outcome of which could be startup launches.

However, kickstarter shows that there's an ocean of support, including monetary support for such projects.

To get to a launch point one needs to elicit the help and assistance of others however, but the built-in rewards ought to be anticipated in a spirit of collaborative mutuality. People devote so much time and energy to helping out, so they deserve to get paid for it, and yet the blessed part of this kind of thing is that money isn't the number ONE motivating factor, but instead the opportunity to contribute to the creation of a novel form to be enjoyed by others ie: to be helpful.

There's a hundred million blogs with ideas being offered by individuals ie: Tumblr, and a number of startup crowdfunder sites, but I'm not aware of places for collaboration where the skills, abilities and genius of a community of like-minded people can be accessed and liberated.

It's time to rise up and move forth from mom's basement!

P.S. If you like this idea don't forget to flag it, which will show the site owners and admin that it's wanted. It would sure add a new and exciting dynamic to ATS and who knows what might emerge from it..

reply to post by Scaleru

For the website idea I would recopmmend a Joomla CMS for this kind of thing, or WordPress would work, but it doesn't have as much functionality.

Yes, each person on logging in or getting signed up would have their own webspace in the "hub".

You'd have to come up with some quirky name for it, and then there it is. Along those lines maybe there's some older concept from the old old days whereby this kind of thing was done and has a name for it... hmmmm..

I generally use Drupal for my web development, but have little PHP knowledge myself, so I am always limited by the functionality that the community provides. That being said, it is an impressive community, contributing quite freely. *ponders on the possibilities again* I'm a bit busy writing at the moment, but may have a quick look around later today to see if there is the support available for the features we're discussing.

reply to post by Scaleru

Whichever is better for a community website - Drupal or Joomla, either of those two, and surely you could learn a new CMS if need be. I'm a 'puter idiot and I believe I can do anything so anything must be possible! lol

So here's what's come to me - it's for the whole internetworked economy, from graphic design to tech writers, to artists, anything you need, both to hire and to trade skills or to work together collaboratively for the realization of a shared goal like a kickstarter startup, but it could be anything, a play, a movie, book, work of music, internet compaign, viral video, Google and Yahoo advertising ideas, anything, anything anyone can imagine, often even with money and financial rewards involved, maybe even more often than not, so that people's time and energy may be valued, and the unemployed or underemployed netheads given a way to make a living without having to work for "the man" or to acquiesce to being a have not, relative to the haves, when all the while set before us is a whole ocean of opportunity, largely untapped, as a social networking medium.

That in and of itself is an astounding IDEA! Glad you thought of it and that I'm running with it and letting my imagination go wild with it as a possibility, and as a new economic channel of mutual prosperity and empowerment.

I even have an idea for a name - checked it on Google and looks like it's available - will PM you. Later on, with the startup I have in mind, I could fund it (give me about a year, total).

It's piecework, where you just do your part for the project and then it's onto something else. And some people are so efficient that they could manage multiple projects simultaneously while delivering on promises (will have to come up with a name for the promise that isn't promise because that's the kind of word that invites the possibility of a promise made but broken).

I see it as a new type of grassroots economic movement AND co-creative endeavor in the very best spirit of the emerging Web culture.

F.A.C.E.

Fearless
Authentic
Collaborative
Empowering

P.S. That's just the cultural statement not the name idea I had in mind.

These people would like to have the opportunity to work together and collaborate and make money together and have fun generating novel forms of art and culture, together.

reply to post by Scaleru

I ran across this graphic, might have a place on the new site. (build it and they will come).

I am quite taken by this idea, and probably will evolve it into a full blown website. For now, I'm researching a few different modules that may be of use, and tossing ideas around in my head.

I am thinking of structuring it thus:
- A single, open forum for visitors. This includes project announcements, works in progress, showcases of completed projects, team member requests, help requests (direct issues with a project), and your standard forums.
- A groups system, in which registered users can be invited to existing groups or create their own groups. These would be to simplify how project managers interact with their "staff".
- A groups forum system. This would be a simple board in which each group can interact with each other privately, without the greater site having access to discussions.
- File storage systems. This will obviously have size limitations to begin with (I doubt anyone can afford to pay for 100gb of storage upfront) and file number limitations. No on site editors planned at this stage.

Pretty much, you're looking at a site that will allow for both public and private forum interaction as well as a transitional storage medium. Drupal should be able to handle this kind of thing without too much trouble. As for the name, I'm pretty keen on one at this point, but open to suggestions.

Give it a day or two and I'll see what I can come up with. Like I said, keen on the idea, though I am keen on many at the moment, and find myself running out of time quite easily.

Upon checking my idea on a name, it appears someone else has had this idea.

Collaborate

Still keen on the idea though. Collaborate seems like it's geared towards business anyway.

reply to post by Scaleru

How about The Netwerk with an e instead of an o. It's memerable, and hits the nail on the head.

Yes you've got the right idea. If you were using Joomla the extension/plugin would be Community Builder, so I'm sure you've found the equivalent for Drupal, which I understand is even more sophisticated than Joomla.

I was thinking that the Projects themselves would need a formatting funnel, to get them presented in the most beautiful manner possible for the front page.

Take a close look at kickstarter and indiegogo in this regard, because that's the draw, to see the project at conception, through the "build" to completion, some of which might be surprising as to their eventual impact in whatever form the final project takes as it's eventual realization - that would be quite popular and entertaining, better even than the reality TV shows!

Heck of a community it would be, and that's smart to have a front and a back area where all the minutia and finer detail takes place. There could even be an option for confidential spaces within which to interact, for the project team.

It also has a social networking component to it, when people join a project under the direction and inspiration of a project or team leader.

As a free exchange people must be free to "quit" a project too, or be released from a project if need be, so the whole framework and culture of the place would need to be more clearly defined. That would be an important part would be the setup and the framework within which the projects are undertaken. It has to have a light, fun, volunteerism entrepreneurial spirit to the place and the whole set up.

Quite the thing to take on I applaud you, and one day soon hope to join you.

Best regards,

NAM