If you’re like I am, spring is the season to clean your home from top to bottom. The annual task usually produces more than a clean house, however. I always rediscover treasures: a missing book, an old CD, or a long-lost item. You will find a treasure here at TechRepublic as well—without picking up a broom or dust cloth—by participating in our threaded discussions. And, you could be rewarded with a premium book or CD-ROM.

We are celebrating TechRepublic Discussion Days from May 12 through May 31. Our editors always actively peruse our Discussion Center and the postings at the bottom of our articles to monitor the pulse of what our members are saying. Through May 31, TechRepublic editors will be looking specifically for the most insightful discussion comments.

Do you agree or disagree with an author’s take on a topic? Post your comment to the article. Do you want to offer a workaround on an irritating feature of your favorite application? Post your solution in the Discussion Center. You may also post questions to receive informal career counseling from your peers.

The top 10 posts will be selected by our editing team, and those members will receive their choice of one of our top titles: PC Troubleshooter Resource Guide, Volume 3 or IT Manager’s Tool Kit, Volume 2.

Meet some of our most active members
Thousands of members participate in TechRepublic discussions. Some members are frequent contributors who are “heavy hitters” when it comes to dispensing IT pearls of wisdom.

Network engineer Joseph Moore enters discussions because he “…loves spreading the knowledge!” He leaves with a sense of accomplishment.

“I know what it is like having a server that constantly blue screens, and I have wished for help in solving this type of problem,” Moore said. “So when I see questions posted from others with these problems, I know I can help them out, to relieve their stress, to get them home to their families instead of standing in the server room, swearing at the malfunctioning machine.”

Moore is also an active participant in our Technical Q&A area.

Ken Hilving, an independent contractor in the telecom industry, was drawn to TechRepublic by the articles. “From the articles, I found my way to the postings and open discussions,” he said.

Hilving, who works from his home, considers TechRepublic’s threaded discussions to be “…a virtual break area where peers share their experiences and insights.”

He places stock in what TechRepublic members post. “Whether a particular perspective or approach is one you agree or disagree with, it is one that has survived real-life testing and contains some real value,” he said. “The responses are often the final test of a concept and consistently reinforce, rebuff, or start a new approach.”

Jim Huggy spends time in the discussion forums for advice on technical and management issues. “The ability to discuss issues with an open debate (sometimes) keeps my views open to see what others in other fields have experienced,” he said.

As an enterprise architect and solutions research analyst for a healthcare company, Huggy’s job requires that he investigate different alternatives to a business problem. “The ability to share information on subjects—I have sent a number of copies of my RFI/RFP template to other members and have received templates from other members—products they are using, the results of their tests, and the free information available in articles helps in my research,” he said.

Let your opinions be known: Jump into a discussion
The Discussion Center offers links to each threaded discussion on TechRepublic. You can search for discussions by topic or by Republic. Beginning a new conversation is easy as well.

Additionally, feel free to post your comment directly to the article by clicking the Discuss button.

You can keep up with responses to your posts by subscribing to the discussion. Click the Subscribe button, and we’ll send you e-mails when new comments are added.

Dig into the treasure chest of IT knowledge by participating in the community during TechRepublic Discussion Days through the end of May. You may be surprised what you find, and you could be selected as the winner of a free book or CD.