What makes a community 'real?' Aren't they all?

I belong to a couple of online communities that include: Facebook, LSBN Toronto, and Brock Pride.

Facebook, as everyone knows, is one of the largest online social communities (for now) and I use for a variety of different things. Obviously the main reason is to socialize with my friends and family - but what might be different for me than everyone else who uses it is that 90% of my family lives overseas and we only ever get to see each other on Christmas. Because of this, it's nice to have a common place where we can talk to each other free of cost, we can check out each other's pictures and see what's been going on for the past year or so, we can wish each other happy birthday and thanksgiving - or send our wishes on any other holiday throughout the year - and we can make plans to when we can see each other next over a period of time (ie. facebook inbox).

LSBN Toronto is a social community created by the group 'Lesbians of Toronto' who wanted to create a safe space for women. Because I fall into this category, it's nice to have a place where I can talk to others like me, meet new people, or learn about resources in the community. Not only is it a place to chat, the website is dedicated to posting information about workshops, events, and any other opportunity that is offered for lesbians in the area.

For me, virtual communities are 'real' communities because it is a place where I can socialize with others and learn about new things - and for me, that is what a community is. It's a place where I can feel safe to be myself without hesitation. A community is different for everybody and I can understand why others might not think that online communities are 'real' but for me - they are nothing but.

The benefits for players or participants belonging to communities - whether physical or virtual - are that they provide them with a sense of belonging, a place where they can be themselves, somewhere that they can meet new people and make new friends, a place where they can escape from reality and the stressors of everyday life, as well as a place where they can just have fun and build new skills or abilities. They also offer the opportunity to socialize with others who share the same commonalities and interests as you.

As for my game or virtual world for my paper - I think I am leaning towards Zelda. I have been really busy these last couple of weeks and haven't had much time to really play - but from what I have experienced so far - I enjoy it a lot. I haven't had the chance to really get in depth about the community elements or potential for interaction between players yet - but I plan on being able to do this in the next couple of weeks (once midterms are out of the way). Once I experience this - I will be back to blog about it!!