Weblogs, or Blogs, have facilitated people to express their thoughts, voice their opinions, and share their experiences and ideas. Individuals experience a sense of community, a feeling of belonging, a bonding that members matter to one another and their niche needs will be met through online interactions. Its open standards and low barrier to publication have transformed information consumers to producers. This has created a plethora of open-source intelligence, or “collective wisdom ” that acts as the storehouse of overwhelming amounts of knowledge about the members, their environment and the symbiosis between them. Nonetheless, vast amounts of this knowledge still remain to be discovered and exploited in its suitable way. In this paper, we introduce various state-of-the-art research issues, review some key elements of research such as tools and methodologies in Blogosphere, and present a case study of identifying the influential bloggers in a community to exemplify the integration of some major aspects discussed in this paper. Towards the end, we also compare and contrast the blogosphere and social networks and the research therein. 1. INTRODUCTION TO

Web pages can be modeled as nodes in a social network, and hyperlinks between pages form links (relationships) between the nodes. Links may take the form of comments, for example on blogs, creating explicit connections between authors and readers. In this paper, we describe a novel methodology and framework for identifying subcommunities as cohesive subgroups of n-cliques and k-plexes within social hypertext. We apply our methodology to a group of computer technologists in Toronto called TorCamp who communicate using a Google group. K-plex analysis is then used to identify a group of people that forms a subcommunity within the larger community. The results are then validated against the experienced sense of community of people inside and outside the subcommunity. Statistically significant differences in experienced sense of community are found, with people within the subcommunity showing higher levels of perceived influence and emotional connection.

Online communities are increasingly important for both the businesses and the general public that uses them. However, current IS research on online communities has a limited view of these groups, treating them primarily as information repositories, where people participate by seeking or contributing knowledge. This paper argues that online communities are also social systems with which people form relationships and repeatedly interact over time. This paper proposes a relational model of online communities that emphasizes the social, bi-directional, and dynamic nature of the interactions in online communities and the way that these interactions build and maintain the relationship between individuals and the community. Hypotheses derived from the relational model are tested by examining the 22-month history of 28,869 newcomers who initially posted to 98 Usenet groups between May 15, 2003, and February 23, 2005. First, taking the newcomers ’ point of view, we examine how the community’s response to their posts influences their subsequent participation in the community. Then, taking the community’s point of view, we examine how the nature of individual members ’ participation in the community influences the community’s willingness to interact with them. Consistent with the relational model, the results show that the social nature of interactions, including the social status of the repliers and the use of welcoming, inclusive

Communities of Practice have become a key instrument in organizational knowledge management. Understanding characteristics of successful CoP can help in avoiding failed communities. Facilitator can contribute in helping communities to thrive. Facilitators ’ experience dealing with communities and its members can help in understanding more about surrounding issue of successful community. In this study, we tried to answer the research question: what are the common characteristics of successful virtual communities of practice? We asked experience communities of practice facilitators regarding their experience in facilitating successful communities. Several common characteristics of successful communities of practice are identified and discussed.

Homesteading on the Electronic Frontier was the first to bring virtual communities to the attention of researchers and practitioners. Although virtual groups

A distinguishing feature of virtual communities is their sense of community, i.e., their participants’ feelings of membership, identity, influence, and attachment with each other. This study tests a model in which members ’ perceptions of the group’s norms mediate the relationships between supporting each other and identifying each other with the members ’ sense of virtual community. Two studies were conducted providing partial support for the model. The results show that the perception of norms mediate the relationship between SOVC and (a) observing and publicly exchanging support, (b) perceiving that others know one’s identity, and (c) using technical features to learn and create identity. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

High turnover and under contribution are problems in many online communities, threatening their ability to provide resources for members and even their existence. This article describes two approaches for increasing attachment to online communities inspired by social psychological theory. With identity-based attachment, members feel connected to the group as a whole and its purpose. With bond-based attachment, they are connected to particular members of the community. These theories lead to alternative designs of an online community. To increase identity-based attachment, we created subgroups within the community and provided members with targeted information about the subgroup, repeated exposure to it, and communication with the subgroup as a whole. To increase bond-based attachment, we provided members with targeted information about particular community members, repeated exposure to them, and communication with them. Results of a six-month field experiment show that both designs increased self-reported attachment and member participation compared to a control condition, although the identity-oriented designs were more effective. Identity-oriented features led