COMMUNITY(lecture)

So, its week four. this week's lecture was on community,
the theories and concepts of a virtual community. Guy gave an
example of 'the well', the most famous online community in terms
of history of the cyber space, founded in 1985. From my understanding,
i think one of the main issues for debate is are 'virtual community'
different from 'real community'?. Despite the positives of an online
community, i think it is definately different from a real community
and should in no way be compared to real life. I think people who
indulge in online communities do so as a form of escapism from reality.
I agree with John Perry's question 'is online community truly diverse?'
his answer was 'NO' because we can choose who we engage with. I think
this sums up the realism and not reality of an online community.
Take for example communities /shared sites such as myspace and face book,
you 'add' to your list of friends those you wish to. So, what is the point if you
can sift through whom you wish to talk to or not.
Furthermore, the lecture also covered computer mediated communication
(CMC). Steve Jones in discussing this said with relation to the forms of comm-
unication said "the notion of community depends on cmc and the ability to
share information simultaneously across vast distances". This of course
highlights the positive aspects of a community as it transends beyond space,
time and has almost no limitations.
The exciting thing about cmc is that people can form a new world which they
like and wish to participate in (Neo-centric culture). Whether or not this new
world is beneficial to their growth, communication and social skills remains the
basis for discussion.
As argued in the online seminar, i think an online community aid no social and
communicative skills whatsoever. I disagree that it builds individuals' social skills.
I however think that the strength of online communities is in their ability to give
people a voice, a place to air their views and create changes in their own ways.
I also think accademic communities help people build and improve their
thought processes which is reflected through better and improved writing skills.
Anyway, im finding this quite interesting, contrary to my prior opinion, this
blogging and online seminar definately makes on think. More interesting comments
are on the mchome seminar space, ther i gave my views on music downloads and its
effects on popular music.
Until we meet again mi ever attentive readers, tis' Ta dah! from me,
off to scuff some well deserved chocolate mm!