Internet message boards
An online message
board is
a forum where people can discuss thoughts or ideas on various topics. Online
message centers allow users to choose which thread, or board of discussion,
users would like to read or contribute to. A user will start a discussion by
making a post on a thread. Other users who choose to respond can follow the
discussion by adding their own post to that thread. Message boards are not
conversation based because user responses do not have to take place right away.
Whenever the user revisits the message board, he/she can make a response.
Unlike a conversation, message boards do not have an instantaneous response and
require that users actively go to the site to check for responses.
Anyone can register
to participate in an online message board. A message board is unique because
people can choose to participate and be a part of the virtual community, even
if they choose not to contribute their thoughts and ideas. Registered users can
simply view the various threads or contribute if they choose to. Message boards
can also accommodate an almost infinite number of users, while the number of
users who can be accommodated by a single chat room is limited at least in
practice.
Internet users' urges
to talk to and reach out to strangers online opposes real-life encounters where
people are hesitant and often unwilling to step in to help strangers. Studies
have shown that people are more likely to intervene if they are the only one in
the situation. With Internet message boards, a user sitting at his or her
computer is the only one present in their online experience, which might have
to do with why they are more willing to reach out. Another possible reason for
this is that people can withdraw from a situation much easier online. They can
simply click exit or log off, whereas they would have to find a physical exit
and deal with the repercussions of trying to leave a situation in real life.
The lack of status that is presented with an online identity also might
encourage people because if you choose to keep it private, there is no label of
gender, age, ethnicity or lifestyle associated with yourself.
Online chat rooms
Shortly after the
rise of interest in message boards and forums, people started to want a way of
communicating with their "communities" in real time. The downside to
message boards was that people would have to wait until another user replied to
their posting, which, with people all around the world in different time
frames, could take a while. The development of online chat rooms allowed people to
talk to whoever was online at the same time they were. This way, messages were
sent and online users could immediately respond.
The original
development by CompuServe
CB hosted
forty channels in which users could talk to one another in real time. The idea
of forty different channels led to the idea of chat rooms that were specific to
different topics. Users could choose to join an already existent chat room they
found interesting, or start a new "room" if they found nothing to
their liking. Real-time chatting was also brought into virtual games, where
people could play against one another and also talk to one another through
text. Now, chat rooms can be found on all sorts of topics, so that people can
talk with others who share similar interests. Chat rooms are now provided by Internet Relay Chat (IRC) and other
individual websites such as Yahoo, MSN, and AOL.
Chat room users
communicate through text-based messaging. Most chat room providers are similar
and include an input box, a message window, and a participant list. The input
box is where users can type their text-based message to be sent to the
providing server. The server will then transmit the message to the computers of
anyone in the chat room so that it can be displayed in the message window. The
message window allows the conversation to be tracked and usually places a time
stamp once the message is posted. There is usually a list of the users who are
currently in the room, so that people can see who is in their virtual
community.
Users can communicate
as if they are speaking to one another in real life. This "like
reality" attribute makes it easy for users to form a virtual community,
because chat rooms allow users to get to know one another as if they were
meeting in real life. The individual "room" feature also makes it
more likely that the people within a chat room share a similar interest; an
interest that allows them to bond with one another and be willing to form a
friendship.
BY PROTAS LEVINA BAPRM 42657
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