I joined the forum because I saw a topic in the little forum box on the iNat website that I found interesting. I wanted to reply to it, so I made the account. For the first few weeks/months I only really entered the forum if I saw an interesting topic on iNat, but then it just sort of grew on me, and now I am using it way too much. Haha
I was already an active iNat user, but I also find forums to be preferable to most other forms of social media nowadays, so I’m getting more into them. I feel like moderation, the smaller website population, the slower speed, and having a shared topic/hobby does a lot to make the community feel more chill compared to using most popular social media platforms. Plus this forum is a bit more educational.
I find this an odd, somewhat offputting way to frame the forums.
iNaturalist is not a stranger to those of us who actually actively use it, so seeing an interesting topic or article or any link is not at all akin to the oft-warned of “stranger offering candy”. It is an additional area of interest and information in an already familiar website/app.
The forum provides good info on how the iNat site functions. That’s info I’d likely not pick up on my own with the way I use iNat. Also, many of the topics can be interesting for biology nerds even when unrelated to iNat itself.
Behold, my first post on the forum. Apparently I joined to ask for sporophyte/gametophyte annotations for seedless plants. From there, I progressed via bug report for Flickr imports to asking “how do I” questions about place creation. So in summary it appears I joined to make feature requests, bug reports, and ask questions how things work on the website.
You are certainly one of the people whose answers I look for. And the one I thank for Kingdom Disagreements link.
Identifying is clear your plate for lunch. I come to the Forum to choose dessert - here I don’t have to clear my plate. Or for a starter (iNat’s own updates)
5 years later - still hoping to annotate - that’s a pine cone …
I joined because I love iNaturalist and wanted more of it. I keep visiting, reading, and sometimes posting because I enjoy learning from this community, learning about fellow iNatters, and finding we relate on so many things. I also really enjoy reading the many different perspectives here, they give me a new way to see or think of things (or in many cases just an awe-struck appreciation for the amazing way other brains work!!!).
I care a lot about iNaturalist; I think it’s an incredibly important program for its immense potential to a) get laypeople interested in learning about local ecology and b) connect together passionate amateur naturalists, professional researchers, and anyone else interested in studying biodiversity.
I really appreciate the extent to which the leaders of iNaturalist consult with the iNat community for development and progress. As someone who uses iNat regularly I naturally have opinions about how it works. If there’s the potential that sharing ideas and discussing back and forth with others here will improve the program, then that seems like a win for everyone. Big thanks to everyone who’s bounced opinions around here, even in the occasional situation where it’s gotten tense or frustrating!
I joined iNat forum a few days ago because a friend recommended it to me. It also sounded good since you can talk a lot more here then on observations.