Hello everyone, I'm just getting started on my PhD studies, unfunded as yet, regarding new social technologies and online communities and would really appreciate any hints, tips and advice members of this list may have on good information sources, relevant publications, events and so on. Broadly speaking, I'm interested in how communities extend from the online to the offline and vice versa, how participation in online communities becomes part of every-day life, how the lines between offline and online communication and relationship building are blurred as access to online social tools becomes ubiquitous. More specifically, I am looking at how new social technologies affect local communities and what developers should take into consideration while creating new tools with a view of fostering online community. I hope to come up with results that offer an insight into how the concept of community is changing for members of a hyper-connected society, and the implications of that change for local communities. My research approach is ethnographic. It would be great to hear from others with similar interests, and also perhaps to discover fellow "sufferers" at similar stages of their academic careers, for a bit of mutual support and encouragement. :) Of course, any advice would be hugely appreciated! Best regards, Annamari Martinviita PhD student University of Oulu, Finland martinvi@mail.student.oulu.fi