Communities: Virtual vs. Real

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• ncompass individuals who are homebound because of illness, age, or handicap.

• whether online communities can be designed in ways that allow them to match the accomplishments of off-line communities

• cannot be as intimate, strong, and affect-laden as in social communities

• primordial feelings of fear, love, and anger cannot be transmitted online,

• let people bond without being in close proximity either spatially or temporally

• can evolve across national borders and time zones.

• afer—a major consideration in many cities.

• can accommodate many more individuals than off-line meeting rooms can accommodate.

• much stronger memories than off-line communities

• can explore new relationships or even new identities online—they are not constrained by their physical appearance or off-line identity

• in providing group feedback

• members have close in-person relations