GroupServer currently provides two interfaces for users: email and a website. With more and more people using Facebook for public discussions, its tempting to figure out how to bridge the conversations that are happening on GroupServer sites (including E-Democracy) and on Facebook.

Facebook Application

In order to build this bridge, a Facebook application will need to be built. Ideally, this application can be installed on groups/pages. With a page for each E-Democracy group that has this application installed, the following interactions could happen:

• Topics created on E-Democracy would lead to new discussions started on the wall of the corresponding Facebook page, with a link to the discussion on E-Democracy.
• Posts made to topics on E-Democracy would lead to comments created on the corresponding discussion on a Facebook page.
• Discussions started on a Facebook page for an E-Democracy group would lead to a new topic created on E-Democracy, with a link created in the Facebook discussion to the newly created E-Democracy topic.
• Comments to existing discussions on a Facebook page would lead to a new post in the corresponding topic on E-Democracy.

Road Blocks

If the following don't work out, this idea can't be implemented.

Facebook ToS

First, we need to verify that this idea is permitted by the Facebook user and developer terms of service documents. We also need to make sure we don't do anything that provides Facebook with licenses to user content.

GroupServer API

It doesn't exist. And this application can't exist without an API for the application to interact with.

Other Questions

Not show stoppers, but tough questions to figure out.

What about Facebook Page followers who are not E-Democracy users?

Conceivably there will be Facebook users who want to interact with an E-Democracy Facebook Page. If these users post, and they do not have an E-Democracy account, what do we do? Create an account for them?

How does moderation work?

Facebook has virtually no moderation system, while E-Democracy has a fairly sophisticated one that can vary across groups. Can the Facebook application be designed to work well with E-Democracy's moderation?