A number of us have begun using a group messaging app called Slack to talk about birds in Santa Barbara County. We've been having a lot of fun, and at this point we'd like to invite the broader community to join in. It is free to join and open to all; anyone who is interested can check it out using the invitation link below. This link will work only for a limited time; if you try to join but it doesn't work please contact me for an updated link:

 

https://join.slack.com/t/santabarbaralisters/shared_invite/zt-1f0oja0fq-TFkCTrIo9XygcTYw4olpcQ

 

You can access Slack either via desktop or mobile app.

 

Some have expressed the concern that having one more forum for local bird info might fragment discussion, reducing participation in the sbcobirding mailing list or creating the burden of another resource that must be checked. We want to assure you that we don't intend to replace the mailing list. The sbcobirding list remains the best way to share important Santa Barbara County bird information. Our Slack implementation only stores comments for 90 days, so anything shared there is ephemeral.

 

On the plus side, Slack is great for less-formal, more wide-ranging discussion than is possible here. Among the things we've talked about recently are where we plan to bird the next day, how best to carry both a camera and binoculars, and ways eBird data can be analyzed programmatically. Because Slack discussions are organized into topic-specific channels it is easy to have in-depth discussions without bothering people who aren't interested.

 

At the request of the mailing list moderator, I ask that you NOT reply to the group on this topic. You can reply to me directly, or can head over to Slack where such discussion is both appropriate and encouraged.

 

Thanks! I hope to see some of you there soon.

 

John Callender

Carpinteria