One huge benefit of working in a group is that problem solving can be done collectively. One person can’t possibly know everything and have read every article or retain every detail of every knowledge base. Some solutions lie in different fields of interest. Having a group of technical people is quite beneficial because one solution can draw on several minds.
In the small companies I’ve worked for and with, there has always been a one-man IT department that must rely on his/her own resources. While this gives one tremendous room to grow, it also slows one’s education because, of course, you always learn better in a group.
It’s one reason I created this blog. I need other people’s insights on things like alternative backup systems and how not to hurt my boss. It would be nice if there were more roundtables to assist with some of the bigger problems, as well as some of the more mundane. At the very least there must be some good tech forums (non-profit or otherwise) out there. Any suggestions?
Have you looked at Experts Exchange (www.experts-exchange.com)? Its not free, from memory the annual subscription is $99 but its well worth it.
How about the grandaddy of them all, the Information Systems Forum Yahoogroup?
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Information_Systems_Forum/
There’s also tek-tips.com if you need information on a particular technology that’s being discussed there.
There’s also the 501 tech club groups sponsored by NTen, if you’re not already aware of them.
Regards, NHR