The Internet is pretty wild and woolly, and some remarkably interesting things are happening. Building online communities had predictably attracted corporate interest and some people are trying to make it a paying proposition. I know this isn't Blue Skies' interest but we should be aware of whether or not it works. Who knows, we might learn something. One of the oldest players in this business is Delphi, which began in the early 1980s as an online provider like Compuserve. Check out Delphi Forums at http://www.delphi.com/dir-html/about.html.

Check out a pretty useful survey of how others are going at this on publishing giant Ziff Davis' zdnet web site at http://www.zdnet.com/anchordesk/story/story_2598.html.

If the only compromise is that I have to give over the bottom strip of my message for some advertising banner, then some people may think that is a pretty good deal, especially if the ads are for products and services that people think are useful. Check out http://netscan.sscnet.ucla.edu/csoc/cinc/.

More to the point, a lot of energy had been spent on virtual communities by people who just liked the energy and intimacy they could achieve online (sounds like a perversion, doesn't it?). Really, check it out with a look at a book written by Howard Rheingold at http://www.rheingold.com/vc/book/. Howard is first rate. He was involved in the Well community in San Franciso in the early years.

Lots to look at and think about, folks. I don't think we should turn our back on this. As time goes by and people become more familiar and comfortable with this technology, they may find it a convenient way to keep discussion going and provide an easily accessible record of what has been said.

-- Anonymous, April 16, 1999