The Consortium has a "discussion" area that can be used as an online forum. To create a new discussion:
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Point your mouse at the Community menu near the top of the page
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When the menu drops down, click on "Discussions" (halfway down the menu)
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Click on "Add a new discussion"
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On the "Create Discussion" page, enter the following:
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Title
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Body: This will be used to set the agenda for the discussion. Note the formatting ribbon which is similar to Microsoft Word; this lets you enter "rich text," including links to other web pages.
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Groups: At the bottom of the page, click on the tab titled "Groups." Decide which groups should be able to view this discussion, or leave it open to the general public.
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Optionally, add the following from the tabs at the bottom of the page:
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Promote Content: Add this discussion to the "Featured" box on the front page
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Flags: You can bookmark this discussion for your own reference
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URL Path Settings: The website will automatically generate a "plain English" web address for this discussion. If you want, you can create a custom address.
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File attachments: This might be useful to upload a poster or powerpoint presentation. For more information, see how to add attachments.
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Click "Save" at the bottom of the page
Once the page has been created, anyone with permission can view the discussion and add comments. (This can be limited to one or several groups, or opened to the general public - see above.) If the discussion is open to the general public, it will be protected by industrial-strength spam protection.
