# Start Here: Welcome to the GeoLab Community

**URL:** <https://earthscope.discourse.group/t/start-here-welcome-to-the-geolab-community/45>\
**Category:** GeoLab\
**Tags:** how-to, welcome\
**Created:** [May 28, 2026, 5:17pm UTC](https://earthscope.discourse.group/t/start-here-welcome-to-the-geolab-community/45 "2026-05-28T17:17:54Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![system](https://canada1.discourse-cdn.com/flex033/uploads/earthscope/original/1X/1f77fcb4a9bf661c331f9ad9661ccb00208463ea.png) [@system](https://earthscope.discourse.group/u/system)\
**Post date:** [May 28, 2026, 5:17pm UTC](https://earthscope.discourse.group/t/start-here-welcome-to-the-geolab-community/45/1 "2026-05-28T17:17:54Z")

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Welcome! This forum is the central place to get help, share knowledge, and learn how to use **GeoLab** , EarthScope’s cloud-based JupyterHub environment for working with NSF NGF data and compute resources.

Whether you’re just getting started, adapting an existing workflow, or exploring cloud-based scientific computing for the first time, you’re in the right place.

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## 🚀 New to GeoLab?

Start with the **[Getting Started](https://earthscope.discourse.group/c/geolab/getting-started/5)** category for guides on:

- Logging in to GeoLab
- Launching your first notebook
- Navigating the GeoLab environment

You can also use the search bar at the top of the page to quickly find answers to common questions.

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## 📂 Forum Categories

Here’s a quick overview of the main GeoLab categories:

### 🧭 Getting Started

Learn how to access GeoLab and get up and running.

### ❓ Help & Troubleshooting

Ask questions and get help with using GeoLab, from notebook troubleshooting to workflow questions.

### 🌎 Workflows & Use Cases

Explore and share research workflows, examples, and practical applications in GeoLab.

### 😎 Community & Cool Finds

Share interesting tools, articles, tutorials, datasets, and resources relevant to the GeoLab and geoscience computing community.

### 📣 Announcements

Stay informed about maintenance windows, outages, software updates, new features, and upcoming events.

### 💡 Feature Requests & Feedback

Suggest improvements, share ideas, and vote on feature requests that would improve GeoLab.

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## ❓ Where Should I Ask for Help?

### Use the Community Forum for:

- Workflow questions
- Notebook troubleshooting
- Dataset discussions
- Cloud computing best practices
- Questions that may help other GeoLab users
- Community discussion and knowledge sharing

### Contact the Help Desk for:

- Login or account issues
- Password problems
- Server launch failures
- Infrastructure outages requiring administrator intervention

👉 **[EarthScope Help Desk](https://earthscopeconsortium.atlassian.net/servicedesk/customer/portal/4/group/5)**

Please check **Announcements** before reporting outages or technical issues — there may already be an active notice or discussion.

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## 📝 Asking Good Questions

When posting in **Help & Troubleshooting** , try to include:

- What you’re trying to do
- What you’ve already tried
- Any error messages or screenshots
- Relevant environment details

Adding tags (like `python`, `error`, or `data-access`) also helps others find and answer your question.

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## 💬 Chat & Real-Time Discussions

This forum may occasionally use chat channels for:

- Workshops
- Live training events
- Real-time group discussions

For most support questions and discussions, please use forum topics so information remains searchable and useful to future users.

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## 🌱 GeoLab is Growing

GeoLab is an evolving platform, and community input helps shape future development, training resources, and support priorities.

We encourage you to:

- Share workflows and ideas
- Participate in discussions
- Vote on feature requests
- Provide feedback on your experience

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## 🔐 Access & Accounts

- The forum is publicly readable
- Posting and participation require an EarthScope account
- Click the **Log In** button (upper right corner) to sign in using EarthScope Single Sign-On (SSO)
- Don’t have an EarthScope account? No problem! You can create one from the login page

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## 🤝 Community Guidelines

Please help us maintain a welcoming, collaborative, and constructive environment:

- Be respectful
- Share knowledge generously
- Keep discussions on topic
- Assume good intent

This forum exists to support collaboration and learning across the geoscience community.

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We’re excited to have you here — welcome to GeoLab!

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**Author:** ![JustinS-earthscope](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex033/user_avatar/earthscope.discourse.group/justins-earthscope/32/29_2.png) [@JustinS-earthscope](https://earthscope.discourse.group/u/JustinS-earthscope)\
**Post date:** [May 28, 2026, 6:45pm UTC](https://earthscope.discourse.group/t/start-here-welcome-to-the-geolab-community/45/2 "2026-05-28T18:45:07Z")

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