This took a lot of thinking - online communities are so vast that I boggled my little mind!
With a class mates help I was able to narrow the field and I think I have a starting point;
- closed groups on face-book http://www.facebook.com/
- you-tube http://www.youtube.com/
- Stroke Foundation NZ Inc http://www.stroke.org.nz/
In a way all sites are intended to inform - either the masses of a selected few, for example the Stroke Foundation of NZ Inc is for the masses, primarily to educate, to inform those looking for help and or knowledge and it can offer local contact for support. One of the closed face-book groups I am a part of is also for education and support - go OT class mates! But the other face-book group is mainly for the support of a friend coping/struggling with some of her life goals and is not so much for education. You-tube on the other hand is all about entertainment, some education (depends on where you look) and possibly support for those who feels alone and that the internet is the only friend they have.
The face-book and you-tube communities are interactive to some point, anyone can enter ideas and make comments on the ideas of others, entries are make online with what ever thoughts have come into their heads at that moment or with a video that a person has been working on for a long time, just think about what Justin Bieber did and how it changed his life. (Not a fan so am not going to add a link!) The Stroke Foundation is mainly about departing knowledge to the masses. This site happens to be a one way site meaning that the public are not able to make entries where as with the other communities any person that is included in the group can make a comment, but then again the "public" are not able to view or make entries but it still remains a two way information forum.
I feel that attention seekers make entries onto you-tube, people who want to be noticed in some way. Where as the the face-book group is about support a friend and the stroke foundation is about departing knowledge.
Below is a snipped bit form the Stroke Foundation web site;
I don't think that snipping from the face-book groups would be a good idea as the groups are private and that would go against the privacy act, which is a ethical issues that can and does arise with online communities and there seems to be no accountability for what people are able to place on sites so it comes down to a singular persons values. Having said that it is great that these communities are able to be around as they help people/friends who are in different countries or at the ends of our country stay in touch.
I have since learnt that I could have used my blog and the correspondence that some of my class mates and I have been doing, below is a sample;
- Lyn Participation in Occupation said...
- Hey thanks for the comment on Dystonia. Just as they say in New Zealand you cannot go too far without someone being able to help you. Imagine what technology is going to do to this communication!
- 12 April 2011 20:40
- Heather Participation in Occupation 1 said...
- thanks Lyn, mind blowing stuff
- 12 April 2011 20:45
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