Are Online Communities Real Communities?

[Sunstone]

Are online communities real communities? If so, why? If not, why not?

Have online communities come to replace social interaction with offline folks for many people?

 

[CaptainXeroid]

Lemme take the easy one first.

Have online communities come to replace social interaction with offline folks for many people?

Sadly, I think the answer is 'yes' for some people.:cover: They are big and bold behind the keyboard, but in real life they are afraid of real human interaction.

Are online communities real communities?

Yes, if, and this is only my opinion, the people give of themselves instead of hiding behind a cloak of anonymity. There are some folks who make up this online persona that is nothing like who they are in real life. In their case, it becomes make believe and not a real community.

I've actually met a lot of 'online' people in real life, and many are pretty much the same as they are online. A few others are real tigers on the web. They know everything, and will rip your head off in a heartbeat if you disagree with 'em, but meet 'em in person and you can't get the time of day.

BTW...this evening at Jock's n Jill's at CNN Center, we are meeting a chap from Australia that we've known online for several years. A few months ago, he posted that he was going to be stateside for business in a few cities. Some other people we've actually met raved about what a great guy he is, so we're looking forward to sharing a pint as well.

 

[retrorich]

Are Online Communities Real Communities?

Sure they are! I met CaptainXeroid in one, and then I enticed him to join this one.

By the way, I think I am pretty much the same online and in person. Do you agree, Glen?

 

[angellous_evangellous]

Yes! Online communities are communities. Hopefully it's not the only place that we interact with people, but the human touch comes through.

 

[Scarlett Wampus]

I think of online communities as the cyperspace addition to the collective community. I don't think of them as real or unreal, perhaps hyper-real.

I don't know if online communities have replaced real world social interaction so much as given an alternative where real world social interaction is either a) unfulfilling or b) inaccessible.

What I find exciting is that the dynamic web, consisting of things such as forums like this one, chat rooms & instant messengers, blogs, video-clip communities, MMORPGs, social & business networking tools, VoIP, etc. have come about and been accepted as part of life so quickly. It seems that every month I discover some great new semi-social thing to use the net for and barriers to communication are falling while communication technologies are expanding all the time. Impossible to know for sure how this is changing us all but I intuitively feel something very good is happening.

 

[pdoel]

Yes, I believe online communities are real communities. I've met Retrorich and CaptainXeroid as a result of our interactions from an online community.

We've been chatting together for years in our New Beetle chat. You can really learn a lot about people, and grow to really appreciate them.

 

[ladyhawke]

i'm real..your real we are all real (i think)just because we communicate online doesn't make our interaction any less valid.

I have friends who live close by and friends who live on the other side of the UK from me,and i have met people online, community can be where ever you make it as long as the people involved support each other you have a community.

 

[Scuba Pete]

When I think of all the GOOD that ScubaBoard has done for the diving community I KNOW that it's real. People have met and married, kids have been born, we take trips together. Wow... it's such a blessing to be a part of a place like that.

 

[kateyes]

I am with Ladyhawke on this one--a community isn't just born it is created. I came to this forum because someone from another forum recommended it. I know people on this forum because I met them on another forum. I don't know about this particular forum--but I know people who live in rural areas who view forums as thier human interaction bcause the closest physical interation is miles away. I don't necessarily think it is a substitute for face to face interation--but an broadening of your horizons so to speak. The community of the forum gives us interaction with people of different countries and cultures that we might not other wise experience.

 

[Ðanisty]

Are online communities real communities? If so, why? If not, why not?

Of course they are!

Have online communities come to replace social interaction with offline folks for many people?

Well, to be honest, I have more friends online than offline. However, if any of them lived even sort of close to me, I'd spend time with them offline. Unfortunately, everyone I've ever made friends with online lives on the other side of the country. I would make friends offline if there was anyone around here worth being friends with. I don't have anything in common with most people in Savannah.

 

[Booko]

Are online communities real communities? If so, why? If not, why not?

I've had more interaction with people in some online communities than I've had in so-called "real" communities. (God save me from suburban bedroom communities!)

Have online communities come to replace social interaction with offline folks for many people?

In my case, it more augments social interaction. And on a bad day, it's the only social interaction possible outside of my immediate family and maybe a couple of friends.

More social interaction was possible in ancient online times, when bbses were local. There were several I was on that had regular get togethers, be they pool parties, meeting at local restaurants or bars, and the like. The bbs I ran had regular meetings as well.

Later on, with the advent of NMH and QWK packets and so forth, it expanded the scope of online interaction, but decreased the chances of meeting so many of my fellow participants. We did have some cool road trips, though. One friend flew in from NYC, and we made a road trip from Atlanta to Lubbock, picking up folks on the way. That was a blast.

I have friends who met online, then offline, then married, and have stayed so for years.

I've also seen some people try to have these long distance relationships, I think because they were somehow "safer" than real in-the-flesh ones. I expect they had their reasons.


But I digress...replacing other social interaction? Hm...I'm not at all interested in sports, or hearing the latest gossip about what the neighbors are up to, I don't give a rat's ear what was on teevee last night, will likely never watch American Idol or Lost, and while I enjoy swapping baby tales with parents, a steady diet is a bit much.

Which leaves me with gardening discussions and the occasional time when my neighbor has enough time for coffee, in which case we hang out and talk about anything from what Rambam would do )) to international affairs.