it applications theory slideshows by mark kelly [email protected] vceit.com online community &...
TRANSCRIPT
People who work together or socialise because they share an interest.
They use ICT* tools to assist with:• collaboration• knowledge sharing• collective identity
What is an Online community?
*Information and Communication Technologies
Community Types• Social• Work-based• Project/interest-based
• Open – anyone can access material on the site• Closed – registration or membership is
required to enter the site• (Most sites have some open content and
some closed content)
Online Community Characteristics
• Shared interest• Desire to share information, ideas on that
interest• Cooperative• Members may be widely-separated
geographically• Can be broad cultural differences between
members
Characteristics• Members often speak different languages, and
come from different cultures– May lead to misunderstandings or difficulties with
understanding accents or local slang
Translation is not always easy or
accurate …
Needs of online communities• Security – to keep out vandals, enemies• Public access – to spread their interests• Privacy - e.g. using avatars, nicknames• Sharing information & resources• Ego – a way to earn recognition for skill• Socialising• A way to be heard• Making community decisions• Participating in projects
These needs affect their sites
• Some sites are heavily secured, closed sites• Some are open to all visitors• More or fewer info sharing tools (e.g. Wikis,
forums) depending on what their aims are.
Tool categories:
- Synchronous (in real time, e.g. live chat, phone call, videoconference)- Asynchronous (not in real time, e.g. email, web forum)
Common online tools
Synchronous good!
• Immediate, good for emergencies• Issues sorted quickly
Synchronous bad!
• Has to be attended to immediately. Disrupts other tasks.
• Hard to coordinate a good time for both parties to talk (especially if in different time zones)
• Instant responses or decisions may be required: it can result in poorly-thought out or badly-worded or impulsive and regrettable comments.
Asynchronous good!
• Can spend time contemplating a response and carefully crafting a reply.
• Can collect and deal with a message when it's convenient for you.
Asynchronous bad
• May be a considerable time lag between sending a message and getting a reply.
• Unable to do quick follow-up questions as you can with real-time communications.
• Discussions may take a lot of slow back-and-forth correspondence
• Lacks a ‘human touch’ – not good for team solidarity or seeing colleagues as real people.
Common Toolsemail mailing lists
web forums Social networking
Live chat instant messaging
web sites blogs
networked databases shared calendars
project management tools Wikis
Content-management systems What do these do?
The right tool• No one tool is perfect for everything- need a
selection.• Synchronous tools need people to be available
at the same time, regardless of time zone• Visual tools allow extra non-verbal
information e.g. facial expressions, body language
• Email allows attachments and time to reflect and compose a thoughtful reply, but lacks subtle non-verbal cues
Security
• Encrypted documents• SSL (secure websites)• Virtual Private Networks (VPN - secure
internet channels)• Virus / malware / trojan / spam filters
Online communities may need
• 1. Shared Access to Data / Files• A secure place for storing data, documents,
discussion threads etc so members can access the shared data, and add to it or edit it.
• Different privileges for different members, depending on their status or data needs.
• Building Social Engagement• Blogs and Instant Messaging Systems display
the real-time presence of others• Enable real time discussions • Help build community solidarity via
spontaneous face-to-face teamwork.
By Mark [email protected]
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IT APPLICATIONS SLIDESHOWS