The talk around our communities changed, too, in all kinds of settings -- backyards, council chambers, business meetings and forums like The News & Observer's letters to the editor.

People wanted information, they wanted answers from elected leaders and bureaucrats, and they wanted to talk about how to save water.

We saw ways for The N&O and its Web sites to go beyond traditional coverage with additional information and a space for community conversation.

• We built and posted an online Fact Finder page on the drought with links to all kinds of information, including each town's water policies and a wealth of scientific data. Find it at http://share.triangle.com/node/9625.
• We started an online forum for people to share their water conservation tips. Dozens have poured into this open discussion; you can join in at http://share.triangle.com/savewater.
• Richard Stradling, an assistant metro editor, also began collecting conservation tips through e-mail at richard.stradling@newsobserver.com. He also received dozens of suggestions.
• We launched a feature suggested by a reader called "Water Wise," which will track drought numbers and share conservation tips several times a week in the print edition.

These elements supplement our news reporting and deeper stories looking at trends and impact.

One of our stories, by Jim Nesbitt on the Sept. 28 front page, traced a century of weather patterns that showed the drought might follow a pattern of dry stretches that lasted years.

Shortly after that story appeared, we launched our quest for tips on saving water. Here are a few that have come in:

• Catch water in a bucket in the shower, and use that water to "flush" a toilet.
• Wash exercise clothes by taking them into the shower with you.
• Catch condensation dripping from an air conditioning unit, and use the water on plants.
• Use a trash barrel to catch rainwater pouring off a roof.

We'll pick the best of the tips that come to our forum and to Stradling. (The winner gets a rain barrel.)

A drought isn't like a hurricane or tornado. It doesn't roar in, wreak havoc and move on.

Yet a drought, like most disasters, demands that a region behave as a community -- the problems are collective, and the possible solutions should be considered publicly.

There's not universal agreement on whether Triangle cities face long-term water worries, but there's no longer any debate about whether the current situation is serious.

Leaders and Triangle residents will face decisions on how we use water in the short term and in coming decades.

We'll be here, offering information and connections, and hoping for rain.