Editing Virtual community (section)

==Types==

=== Internet-based ===
The explosive diffusion<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Porter|first=Constance Elise|date=1 November 2004|title=A Typology of Virtual Communities: a Multi-Disciplinary Foundation for Future Research|url=https://academic.oup.com/jcmc/article/10/1/JCMC1011/4614445|journal=Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication|language=en|volume=10|issue=1|pages=00|doi=10.1111/j.1083-6101.2004.tb00228.x|access-date=29 September 2019|archive-date=27 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191227145613/https://academic.oup.com/jcmc/article/10/1/JCMC1011/4614445|url-status=live|url-access=subscription}}</ref> of the Internet since the mid-1990s fostered the proliferation of virtual communities in the form of social networking services and online communities. Virtual communities may synthesize [[Web 2.0]] technologies with the community, and therefore have been described as Community 2.0, although strong community bonds have been forged online since the early 1970s on timeshare systems like [[PLATO (computer system)|PLATO]] and later on [[Usenet]]. Online communities depend upon social interaction and exchange between users online. This interaction emphasizes the [[reciprocity (social psychology)|reciprocity]] element of the unwritten [[social contract]] between community members.

===Internet message boards===
[[File:Phpbb 3.0 prosilver.png|thumb|An Internet forum powered by [[phpBB]]]]

An online [[Internet forum|message board]] is a forum where people can discuss thoughts or ideas on various topics or simply express an idea. Users may choose which thread, or board of discussion, they would like to read or contribute to. A user will start a discussion by making a post.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Marone|first=Vittorio|year=2015|title="Keep in mind that I will be improving": The opening post as a request for absolution|journal=Online Journal of Communication and Media Technologies|volume=5|issue=1|pages=136–158|doi=10.29333/ojcmt/2499|doi-access=free}}</ref> Other users who choose to respond can follow the discussion by adding their own posts to that thread at any time. Unlike in spoken [[conversation]]s, message boards do not usually have instantaneous responses; users actively go to the website to check for responses.

Anyone can register to participate in an online message board. People can choose to participate in the virtual community, even if or when they choose not to contribute their thoughts and ideas. Unlike chat rooms, at least in practice, message boards can accommodate an almost infinite number of users.

Internet users' urges to talk to and reach out to strangers online is unlike those in 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 when they are the only one in a situation. With Internet message boards, users at their computers are alone, which might contribute to their willingness to reach out. Another possible explanation is that people can withdraw from a situation much more easily online than off. 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 one chooses to keep it private, there is no associated label of gender, age, ethnicity or lifestyle.<ref>{{cite book|last=Wellman|first=B.|year=1999|title=Networks in the global village: life in contemporary communities|publisher=Avalon|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vhuOBRPS-pUC&q=impacts+of+virtual+communities&pg=PA331|isbn=9780813368214|access-date=4 November 2020|archive-date=12 May 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230512105935/https://books.google.com/books?id=vhuOBRPS-pUC&q=impacts+of+virtual+communities&pg=PA331|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Online chat rooms===
[[File:Xaric screen shot.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|An example of an IRC chat session on Xaric, a text-based client. Shown are two IRC channels and a private conversation.]]

{{Original research|section|date=January 2016}}

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 room]]s 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 [[CB Simulator|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!|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 "simulated 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.<ref>{{cite web|last=Phelps|first=Alan|title=How Chat Rooms Work|publisher=Smartcomputing.com|date=11 July 2010|url=http://www.smartcomputing.com/articles/archive/R0502/18R02/18R02.pdf|access-date=11 July 2010|archive-date=25 February 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120225044723/http://www.smartcomputing.com/articles/archive/R0502/18R02/18R02.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://computer.howstuffworks.com/internet/social-networking/information/chat-room.htm|title=HowStuffWorks: How Chat Rooms Work|author=Roos, Dave|date=11 July 2010|access-date=23 August 2010|archive-date=15 August 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100815072450/http://computer.howstuffworks.com/internet/social-networking/information/chat-room.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Virtual worlds===
{{Main|Virtual world}}
[[File:Party in Hyrule, Second Life, picture 2.png|thumb|A party scene from ''[[Second Life]]'' set in [[Hyrule]]]]

[[Virtual world]]s are the most interactive of all virtual community forms. In this type of virtual community, people are connected by living as an [[avatar (computing)|avatar]] in a computer-based world. Users create their own avatar character (from choosing the avatar's outfits to designing the avatar's house) and control their character's life and interactions with other characters in the 3D virtual world. It is similar to a computer game; however, there is no objective for the players. A virtual world simply gives users the opportunity to build and operate a fantasy life in the virtual realm. Characters within the world can talk to one another and have almost the same interactions people would have in reality. For example, characters can socialize with one another and hold intimate relationships online.

This type of virtual community allows for people to not only hold conversations with others in real time, but also to engage and interact with others. The avatars that users create are like humans. Users can choose to make avatars like themselves, or take on an entirely different personality than them. When characters interact with other characters, they can get to know one another through text-based talking and virtual experience (such as having avatars go on a date in the virtual world). A virtual community chat room may give real-time conversations, but people can only talk to one another. In a virtual world, characters can do activities together, just like friends could do in reality. Communities in virtual worlds are most similar to real-life communities because the characters are physically in the same place, even if the users who are operating the characters are not.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://hevra.haifa.ac.il/~soc/lecturers/talmud/files/547.htm|title=Virtuality and Its Discontents|last=Turkle |first=Sherry|date=11 July 2010|work=The American Prospect|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100726150252/http://hevra.haifa.ac.il/~soc/lecturers/talmud/files/547.htm|archive-date=26 July 2010|url-status=dead}}</ref> ''[[Second Life]]'' is one of the most popular virtual worlds on the Internet. [[Whyville]] offers an alternative for younger audiences where safety and privacy are a concern. In Whyville, players use the virtual world's simulation aspect to experiment and learn about various phenomena.

Another use for virtual worlds has been in business communications. Benefits from virtual world technology such as photo realistic avatars and positional sound create an atmosphere for participants that provides a less fatiguing sense of presence. Enterprise controls that allow the meeting host to dictate the permissions of the attendees such as who can speak, or who can move about allow the host to control the meeting environment. [[Zoom (software)|Zoom]], is a popular platform that has grown over the [[COVID-19 pandemic]]. Where those who host meetings on this platform, can dictate who can or cannot speak, by muting or unmuting them, along with who is able to join. Several companies are creating business based virtual worlds including ''Second Life''. These business based worlds have stricter controls and allow functionality such as muting individual participants, desktop sharing, or access lists to provide a highly interactive and controlled virtual world to a specific business or group. Business based virtual worlds also may provide various enterprise features such as Single Sign on with third party providers, or Content Encryption.{{Citation needed|date=February 2023}}

{{See also|Metaverse}}

===Social network services===
[[File:Ad-tech London 2010 (5).JPG|thumb|Facebook on the Ad-tech 2010]]

[[Social networking service]]s are the most prominent type of virtual community. They are either a website or software platform that focuses on creating and maintaining relationships. [[Facebook]], [[Twitter]], and [[Instagram]] are all virtual communities. With these sites, one often creates a profile or account, and adds friends or follow friends. This allows people to connect and look for support using the social networking service as a gathering place. These websites often allow for people to keep up to date with their friends and acquaintances' activities without making much of an effort.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Quan-Hasse|first1=A.|last2=Young|first2=A. L.|year=2010|title=Uses and Gratifications of Social Media: A Comparison of Facebook and Instant Messaging|journal=Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society|volume=30|issue=5|pages=350–361|doi=10.1177/0270467610380009}}</ref> On several of these sites you may be able to video chat, with several people at once, making the connections feel more like you are together. On Facebook, for example, one can upload photos and videos, chat, make friends, reconnect with old ones, and join groups or causes.<ref>{{cite conference|last=Waisanen|first=D.|year=2010|title=Facebook, Diasporic-Virtual Publics, and Networked Argumentation|publisher=Conference Proceedings – National Communication Association/American Forensic Association|conference=Alta Conference on Argumentation|pages=550–557}}</ref>

===Specialized information communities===
Participatory culture plays a large role in online and virtual communities. In participatory culture, users feel that their contributions are important and that by contributing, they are forming meaningful connections with other users. The differences between being a producer of content on the website and being a consumer on the website become blurred and overlap. According to [[Henry Jenkins]], "Members believe their contributions matter and feel some degree of social connection with one another "(Jenkins, et al. 2005). The exchange and consumption of information requires a degree of "[[digital literacy]]", such that users are able to "archive, annotate, appropriate, transform and recirculate media content" (Jenkins). Specialized information communities centralizes a specific group of users who are all interested in the same topic. For example, TasteofHome.com, the website of the magazine ''[[Taste of Home]]'', is a specialized information community that focuses on baking and cooking. The users contribute consumer information relating to their hobby and additionally participate in further specialized groups and forums. Specialized Information Communities are a place where people with similar interests can discuss and share their experiences and interests.