For me, I think some people talk of “community” platforms in the sense of small talk, ephemeral conversations, chat back and forth. Whereas they may see Discourse as more discussion, at length, long-lasting conversations.
I started using Discourse much more over the last few months because chat could bring some of those elements. However, as I type this on my phone, I feel some hesitation over what to say and how long to say it, knowing that it may stay on Meta forever and be easily searchable and public. I also think of how I can struggle to do long-form on the phone and how while the mobile web view is one of the best I’ve seen, it still doesn’t have some of the UI interactions as a native app.
Conversely, some of the other communities seem to have lower barriers of entry and participation for me, especially from the phone.
So maybe it’s that some associate “community” with the chit chat that happens at a bar or at a family or friend gathering, nothing too in depth, conversations that end within a few minutes, a lot of “hi how are yous.” And that Discourse has catered to a different community, the ones who almost want to write letters back and forth or get into long discussions about potentially more serious topics.
As for me, I hope to use the topics as longer lasting, more formal discussions, and the chats as shorter, more informal interactions, maybe even using other platforms for different flavors of community interaction.
Just as not every venue or gathering is good for all types of conversations, maybe the same applies to digital venues and gatherings. And I think how a lot of people like to hang out at bars and clubs where conversation has its own constraints, but some of us also like to go to academic talks or conferences where we talk in depth about different topics.
Anyways, I hope that helps a bit!