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Yes, being ther with all senses is a KEY WORD. Somehow the senses are even greater in this online world :-)

Interetsing, Bill. I too feel that the degree of anonymity by not giving a photo or access to voice can remove all sorts of "..isms". However, Who are we fearing? Ourselves by being misinterpreted or others by imposing our own prejudices?

Nancy,
First, thanks for giving us the opportunity to comment on this, this is a great tool that I'm sure that I'll use more.

One comment is that I also wonder about other types of interactions that people have outside that particular genre. Have you ever spoken to them on the phone or been in a live chat with them or had a private conversation? Do you have information about the person that is not public that will effect your contributions to the conversations?

Susan Earley

Mary, great idea to walk around a bit to think before answering. I can't walk around a block (I have a 58 acre forest in which I built my house, but I do the same thing walking among the trees.), but the idea of thinking about the response for a time is important. Especially consider reactions to your response. How will others react? Could they misinterpret what you mean? Are stereotypes creeping in? How would you feel if you got this response?

Excellent points. Right now the article is part of my very loosey-goosey collection of article on online interaction at http://www.fullcirc.com/community/communitymanual.htm

Primarily I think I'll be using it as a resource tho, for ongoing interaction groups when some members start to feel fragmented. Or as a way to surface some of these ideas for people who are learning about online faciltiation.

The more I ask myself your question, the more I can see I'm not clear. That is worth tons. Thank you! More work to do!

Who is your intended audience? From your use of terminology (e.g., content-cnetric context," "multi-sensory context") it appears that you are aiming for a fairly sophisticated audience already familiar with online communiciation issues.

If this is so, I wonder if the advice that follows is helpful. Could experienced online communicators be expected to already know these things? Conversely, if your intended audience is the inexperienced online communicator, then I think your introductory paragraphs should be more simple and explanatory.

Hi Nancy

You got the jump on me. I am currently in the processes of starting a real online community with Dianne Renton, the woman from our Voluntary Sector Initiative. So far as we see it, I may be writing articles to provoke an open membership into posting their comments on diverse issues of concern, and completing related surveys and polls.

QuickTopic's appearance is timely inspiration. Wish I knew about it when I initiated the C4C Initiative. Anyways, expect my appearance here in QuickTopic soon, as well as a more formal announcement at onelinefacilitation soon (I hope ;)

As a writer with a thousand points to be made, that is a constant challenge to me.

Have I made my point? Does it flow with what has already been said, or about to be said? Is the point better made else where in the essay? Does it leave room for my readers to formulate their own thoughts, or provoke them into thinking?

Reflection on the wonderful gift of everyone's comments.

Wow, this is amazing to me. I am not a "writer." I write to share an idea or pass along something. Having your collective help to both clarify, amplify and edit is an amazing and GENEROUS thing. THANK YOU!

(and keep em coming!)

Mary, great suggestions (both content and editing. Dang, I need an editor!) Thank you.

Good clarification. I've had people tell me everything from "a picture was the difference that made the difference" to "NO PICTURES." Good catch to qualify that.

Another idea... sometimes I read threads I need to more fully attend to aloud in an attempt to capture the auditory learning bit of my brain. It does help me pick up on nuances that otherwise might escape me.

... and yet another, although this adds yet more time and space and may not be appropriate for this piece... I also take a walk around the block while considering a thread and my response to it. It seems to help, especially if the participants are getting heated with one another (not sure why).

"Roll-your-own" here looks like an adjective, but I think you mean it as a verb. It's clever, at any rate. How 'bout "Roll your own" without the hyphens...???