If you’re a well-seasoned Net surfer, you’ve undoubtedly noticed that the number of “community” Web sites run by individuals, small companies, and other organizations has increased dramatically over the last few years. These sites serve as places for folks with common interests to meet, discuss ideas, share information, and collaborate in many interesting ways.
If you’re a well-seasoned Net surfer, you’ve undoubtedly noticed that the number of “community” Web sites run by individuals, small companies, and other organizations has increased dramatically over the last few years. These sites serve as places for folks with common interests to meet, discuss ideas, share information, and collaborate in many interesting ways.
This might seem to be a natural progression for online communities, but their evolution is filled with twists and turns. Let’s take a look back and examine how we got where we are now.
In the Beginning…
Before the Web, Internet communities were born and grew up in the various Usenet newsgroups. As they matured, they developed lists of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), codes of behavior (”netiquette”), and even their own local celebrities. As Usenet became more popular, better news clients were developed, making it easier to keep track of discussion threads in di-verse groups. Usenet flourished.
But this idyllic period didn’t last long. The situation quickly began to deteriorate as automated spammers flooded the newsgroups with sales pitches, pyramid schemes, adult advertisements, and so on. About the same time, the Internet boom began, and thousands of “newbies” arrived in Usenet with no clue about the culture they had wandered into. Longtime Usenet participants eventually gave up and formed mailing lists.
These lists were quieter and less susceptible to spam. However, mailing lists left something to be desired. For one thing, they are push-based — you get all the messages regardless…
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