GCP – Announcing the new Google Developer Program forums

Building applications is sometimes messy, it’s always iterative, and it often works best when it’s collaborative. As a developer, you regularly experience the frustration of a cryptic error message and the quiet triumph of finding a clever workaround. Either way, finding help or sharing success is best facilitated by a community of builders.

That’s why we are excited to launch the Google Developer Program forums at at discuss.google.dev. The new forums are designed to help people build with Google technology.  You will find discussion groups to engage with other developers and Google experts; how-to articles, reference architectures and use cases; and a community of users looking to help.    

We’re also migrating the existing Google Cloud, Workspace Developer, AppSheet, and Looker communities, channels and content from googlecloudcommunity.com over to discuss.google.dev. So, existing knowledge isn’t lost – it’s just moving to a new home.  And by migrating the community we’re able to focus on two core principles in the new design: high trust and high utility.

Signal over noise

Your Google Developer Program profile is how you will access the forums. By unifying our sign-in, and connecting forum profiles directly to Google Developer Program profiles, we can programmatically display your earned credentials and reputation which you’ve earned through learning, events, and meetups that happen across the Google ecosystem.

We’re starting with the Google Developer Expert flair icon next to a user’s name and we plan to extend this to other programs in the near future. Additionally, if you are part of a private product beta or Early Access Program (EAP), your forum account is automatically granted access to the corresponding private discussion groups. No more filling out forms or waiting for permissions. Your Developer Program profile is your passport.

Why we chose Discourse for our new forums

While we were  tempted to build a custom solution from scratch we chose Discourse for a few key reasons:

• Built by and for developers: Discourse is an open-source platform that prioritizes function over flash with markdown, code formatting, keyboard navigation, and structured conversations.

• Extensibility: Its robust API and plugin architecture allow us to integrate our own Google technologies—like Gemini-powered spam filtering and the Google Developer Program—without reinventing the wheel.

This is your invitation!

This new community is a space for all of us. Come say hello! Ask a question, or answer one. Share what you’re working on, or get help with what you’re stuck on. This is where the real work happens, and we want to be a part of it with you.

In the coming months, you’ll see more of our engineers, product managers, and developer advocates join the conversation to not only help answer questions, but also ask them, share their own ideas, and engage with the same passion as you do. They won’t always have a perfect solution to a tricky question, but they’re committed to listen, engage, and work with the community to find the best path forward.

How to Get Started

• Explore Now: Visit https://discuss.google.dev. Browse the categories, read ongoing discussions, and find your community.

• Join the Conversation: If you’re a Google Developer Program member, sign in and dive in! Ask those tough questions, share your solutions, and contribute your expertise. Not a member yet? Visit developers.google.com/program to learn more and join at no-cost.

• For googlecloudcommunity.com users: We’re working to make the transition as smooth as possible. You’ll find familiar topics and a wealth of historical discussions here. We encourage you to explore and continue your conversations on this new, unified platform.