Forums, Blogs and Tweets. Oh my!

[The Black Raven]

About as lighthearted of a title about a subject of some importance. Let's get to the point.

What is the purpose of an online forum/community? What is the purpose of a blog/livejournal/whatever, and how is that different from a forum? What is free game in a online community. Or any community for that matter. Furthermore, how is it different in a blog.

How are these rules different? how do people interact in these different settings?

 

[The Black Raven]

I'm separating my questions from my response to said questions. Let's get this one started.

The purpose of online communities are for people with similar interests to come together and have fun. Whether it be by having engaging conversations on the complex issues of the world, playing an online chess match, or just talking about something interesting in a hobby.

The purpose of a blog, Is to have a personal podium to vent your opinions, or day to day problems to any passerby who cares to listen. You are the subject. The point of importance. The ruler of the kingdom. In blogs, people gather to read what you say, and can respond accordingly.

Here is where things get kinky: A forum is about a common interest, and gathering like minded individuals to talk about that subject and any other subjects that it feels to engage. A blog is the person's venting box, to launch out his/her opinions out to the world. The community is the vortex of a forum, not the individual. In respect, a blog is not a community. Well, it's a community of like minded friends, but it is centered around you.

What is free game in an online forum is up to whatever the founders, or people who have been appointed as leaders of the community decide it is, and not every single individual within the group. What is free game in a blog, is whatever the blogger/live journalist decides it is. The individual is king in his own blog. (Save the contract agreed upon when creating said blog).

However, i created this thread to note that i've been observing more and more users who seem to be using forums, as a blog, to vent about irrelevant personal issues. Asking for advice is fine, and i'm never against that, but there seems to be this growing narcissism across the web, where every single opinion and personal angst is a precious diamond (which are overpriced to begin with), and it can't be counter-argued, in a community.

...Do you think the various internet mediums are bleeding into each other? Can there be enough structure in online communities, to prevent internet anarchy within the community?

 

[Anling]

Interesting topic. I don't know if I visit a large enough variety of places to have a good view of what is going on, but I have some observations.

There is a great deal overlap developing between blogs and forums. Some blogs are structured around a community with several core members posting about certain topics and everyone commenting and discussing. Since some forums can be close knit communities it makes sense that those who feel close to the other forum members would come and share their frustrations and what not. But I do agree that, baring a support group type forum, a forum should not become a place where people just rant and don't want to hear what other people have to say about anything. That would be what a personal blog is for.

 

[walfin]

Cross a forum and a blog, and you get a frog

 

[Adamastor]

Cross a forum and a blog, and you get a frog

O.O

(...)i've been observing more and more users who seem to be using forums, as a blog, to vent about irrelevant personal issues. Asking for advice is fine, and i'm never against that, but there seems to be this growing narcissism across the web, where every single opinion and personal angst is a precious diamond (which are overpriced to begin with), and it can't be counter-argued, in a community.

I know what you mean.
Personally, I believe that forums are interesting to discuss because, differently from a formal debate, discussion, well, there is less formality, and you can spill a lot of rubbish, which may be productive, that is a good thing.

Unfortunately, I got the impression that the new generation (us) or the new new generation (after us) are getting more ignorant, meaning that they are lacking substance to hold some opinion.

Things are so "tightly" connected across the web, that it is not surprising how many users share the exact same "opinion" and thus what is common sense might not need to be said... So you got the urge to say something + you know what you are saying no news to the listeners + a bit of your good sense (at the best situation) = what you are writing , the problem is this "a bit of your good sense" is exactly what its quality is getting worser everyday, since it is fruit of thought, reflection and this (IMHO) is getting rarer in our society.

About the need to say something (why else people would search these communication means?), I suppose that since Virtual and Real are getting so close to each other (the time spend on the computer gets bigger everyday, I think), many things that happens IRL are being extended to the web and so many things like pointless talk is naturally spreading across these areas... If perhaps, shitty conversations happened only on MSN, for instance, why not could they spread to forums? Not only they could, they actually do it, even if it not as bluntly, consciounsly as in MSN, but they do it in a way or another.

Yeah, this may not be the purpose for these type of things, but it is not like people care about purpose of things, or not?