i-world vs real world?
I wonder... how close/far apart is your internet-world from the real-world?
Are you different online from in person?
Do your internet (i-) friends wind up being "real life" friends?
Are the two worlds separate, or are things evolving where LJ is just another means of communicating?
I think of the two worlds as somewhat separate but the area gets fuzzy where they meet. I realize some i-friends aren't as ... what's a good word.. invested? involved? in each other lives as they might be for friends who are physically closer... but when you lose an i-friend, or feel betrayed by someone online, it doesn't really hurt any less...
I also think I'm more shy in person, but that isn't quite as frequent as it used to be.
These are the things I wonder while watching Saturday morning cartoons. :)
*** EDIT ***
It occurred to me that I didn't really put my own thoughts in here..
I think it's just as easy to like someone online as face-to-face, and it's just as easy to hurt in either medium. For me, the computer is just another version of the telephone, though with more features and ways to meet people in the first place. .. and even that is changing :) Online is different, of course, without the non-verbal cues, and you have to take that what someone tells you is genuine... but you have to do that in person, too, don't ya...
I consider the two worlds to be getting closer and closer together. If we're friends here and exchange ideas, well wishes, sharing of hurts and growth, etc.... then I consider you (collective you) :) every bit as much as friend in real life and I'm very grateful to know you. It's ok that some i-relationships remain on a more casual level, much like you might do with a coworker or casual acquaintance from work or school, and it's ok if they develop into "let's meet for coffee" or playdate kind of relationships, or if they stay all online. I'm easy :) But if I'm coming to a town in/near where you live, I'd love to meet up for lunch or something, too!
When I first started getting into the internet community in 1996 via tools like IRC, CompuServe, newsgroups etc. ... there seemed to be a distinct cut for some people (in my experience, mostly men) would go online and make up entire fantasy lives ... so I'd be thinking I was friends with someone and realized it was just a version of role-playing for them. I don't see that quite as often as I used to, but then I don't participate in the open chat forums like I did then, either... usually I only chat on Yahoo or AIM with someone I already know.
I first met
dimbyd and
adriaanse on a music newsgroup somewhere around 1999. We didn't meet in person until within the past year or so, but they are two of my very best friends in the whole world (literally, one is in Wales and the other in The Netherlands). I loved them dearly long before we ever met.
I'm very grateful for my friends :)
and would it PLEASE STOP SNOWING NOW?? GEEZLE PETE!
Are you different online from in person?
Do your internet (i-) friends wind up being "real life" friends?
Are the two worlds separate, or are things evolving where LJ is just another means of communicating?
I think of the two worlds as somewhat separate but the area gets fuzzy where they meet. I realize some i-friends aren't as ... what's a good word.. invested? involved? in each other lives as they might be for friends who are physically closer... but when you lose an i-friend, or feel betrayed by someone online, it doesn't really hurt any less...
I also think I'm more shy in person, but that isn't quite as frequent as it used to be.
These are the things I wonder while watching Saturday morning cartoons. :)
*** EDIT ***
It occurred to me that I didn't really put my own thoughts in here..
I think it's just as easy to like someone online as face-to-face, and it's just as easy to hurt in either medium. For me, the computer is just another version of the telephone, though with more features and ways to meet people in the first place. .. and even that is changing :) Online is different, of course, without the non-verbal cues, and you have to take that what someone tells you is genuine... but you have to do that in person, too, don't ya...
I consider the two worlds to be getting closer and closer together. If we're friends here and exchange ideas, well wishes, sharing of hurts and growth, etc.... then I consider you (collective you) :) every bit as much as friend in real life and I'm very grateful to know you. It's ok that some i-relationships remain on a more casual level, much like you might do with a coworker or casual acquaintance from work or school, and it's ok if they develop into "let's meet for coffee" or playdate kind of relationships, or if they stay all online. I'm easy :) But if I'm coming to a town in/near where you live, I'd love to meet up for lunch or something, too!
When I first started getting into the internet community in 1996 via tools like IRC, CompuServe, newsgroups etc. ... there seemed to be a distinct cut for some people (in my experience, mostly men) would go online and make up entire fantasy lives ... so I'd be thinking I was friends with someone and realized it was just a version of role-playing for them. I don't see that quite as often as I used to, but then I don't participate in the open chat forums like I did then, either... usually I only chat on Yahoo or AIM with someone I already know.
I first met
dimbyd and
adriaanse on a music newsgroup somewhere around 1999. We didn't meet in person until within the past year or so, but they are two of my very best friends in the whole world (literally, one is in Wales and the other in The Netherlands). I loved them dearly long before we ever met.
I'm very grateful for my friends :)
and would it PLEASE STOP SNOWING NOW?? GEEZLE PETE!