Feed Discussions from outside Groupsite

Hi Matthias,

Hmmm, we're not sure if this can currently be done as we have never tested this scenario.  I say give it a try and let us know how you make out.  It sounds like it could work if you are attempting to do this from a Groupsite that has our new Incoming Email Functionality enabled.

The forum email can be placed in the To:  area for the word press blog.  For example, the forum email for this Feature Request Forum is (forums+21917@champions.groupsite.com). Theoretically, if the Blog Post is somehow being sent via an email address that is already added on the senders Groupsite.com account (so that we can verify you are a member of the Groupsite), then it sounds like it could work.  This would be similar to posting to one of your discussion forums via your email instead of posting directly on the site. 

I am noting this as a feature request in case it does not work.  Let us know how you make out.

Sincerely,

Celeste Wooten

Groupsite.com

Director, Client Services/Support

Hi Celeste,

i tried to share by e-mail from wordpress and from my e-mail account, but both ways didn´t work. I have an old Midsize Pro Plan (bcm-news.groupsite.com). Is it possible to use the e-mail feature with this plan?

Sincerely,

Matthias

Hi Matthias,

Please look for my response to you in your email inbox.  I sent a response directly to the email addresses that we have on file for you.

Sincerely,

Celeste Wooten

Groupsite.com

Director, Client Services/Support

Matthias,

I have been trying to do similar to what you want to do.  In my case, I want to be able to email content onto my GroupSite blog even though Groupsite doesn't have a feature for it.  So, what I did is to set up email posting into a Wordpress blog and then tried to access the Wordpress blog from GroupSite.   I haven't been completely successful, but have been able to achieve some of it.

1. I tried bringing in an outside discussion via the RSS feed widget.  This works fine, but GroupSite doesn't give me any options for formatting the RSS feed.

2. I tried showing my WordPress blog via an iFrame.  This worked, but I didn't complete the work I would need to do to format correctly at the far end.   GroupSite does do a nice job of permitting iFrame content onto the pages.  So if you take the trouble to format your external (Wordpress in this case) content to fit nicely into the frame, this should work well.

I hadn't realized there is a new email in feature.  I will have to try that now.

Hi Danny,

Here is a link to our Group Blog that explains the Incoming Email Feature:

http://www.champions.groupsite.com/post/new-feature-released-on-december-14-2011

Celeste

Thank you.  This is great and I've already started using it.

Is there a reason why, when this feature was developed, that it was not developed for the Blog as well?   Most of my posts, a curator of the site, are to the Blog--and being able to post in by email would be a big win there for me.

Hi Danny,

Yes, there are reasons why when the "Reply to Email From Your Inbox" functionality was implemented it did not include the Group Blog.  Currently, the Discussion functionality and the Group Blog functionality are designed in a very different way on our Platform and with specific intended uses.  For example,

A blog is (primarily) a publishing tool. It gives
your group a powerful "voice" inside your Groupsite as well as to the
rest of the world (if you choose to make it public)

Use your blog to:

• teach or provide others with the means to learn

• publish important information about your organization's mission or values

• impart "expert" advice, facts or opinions

• show off good work (that would be of value to your audience), or

A discussion forum is a conversation tool.

Start a discussion topic when you:

• Have particularly sensitive or controversial topics to discuss

• Primarily want to stimulate productive online conversation, two-or-more-way, or

• Have a question - are seeking to learn more than to teach

Both tools are a means to document ideas or information that may otherwise be inaccessible or lost. However, the Discussion functionality on our Platform is specifically designed as a conversation tool.

I will note your request for this feature enhancement to the Group Blog functionality.

Celeste

Thanks for your response.  I am using the blog and the discussion exactly as you describe them above.   I am interested in the email feature for the blog for the purpose of publishing group content.

Along with my GroupSite, I am also curating a LinkedIn group, a Facebook Page, and a blog (that I just moved from Wordpress to Joomla).  In all of those other environments I publish into the blog/discussion using external tools.  It fits my method of publishing as my behavior pattern is to read news from RSS feeds and riff off of current news to create blog content.   Usually this means I am cutting and pasting from the feed, adding links, and adding my own narrative for context.

In all of the other environments this works fairly well.  The one environment where I can't do this is GroupSite.  Now, I can use this method to post into the discussion areas (so I find I've started publishing content there--which is great!), but I really want to be publishing into my blog.

If the email feature is created for the blog, I will create a non-intuitive address and hold that address private so it is only me who is writing blog posts with it.

Hi Danny,

Thank you for your use case clarification! I have noted your request for this feature enhancement.

Celeste