I hesitate to resurrect such an old publication, but my dissertation developed and tested a mode of equilibrium among the network relations of users and groups of the EIES computer conferencing system: Rice, R.E. (1982). Communication networking in computer-conferencing systems: A longitudinal study of group roles and system structure. In M. Burgoon (Ed.), Communication yearbook, vol. 6. (pp. 925-944). Beverly Hills, CA: Sage. It made a similar argument, that there is both a basement level of interaction required to maintain online groups, and a ceiling of interaction beyond which people can't process more messages. Groups must evolve toward the middle range, and reciprocity within and across groups is the feedback mechanism. I know that Lin Freeman also applied Q-analysis to the maximum carrying capacity of online conferences, but don't know if he ever published it. ============================================================ Ronald E. Rice Professor, Chair of Department of Communication School of Communication, Information & Library Studies Rutgers University 4 Huntington St., New Brunswick, NJ 08901-1071 w: 732-932-7500, ext. 8122; f: 732-932-6916 e: rrice@scils.rutgers.edu; http://scils.rutgers.edu/~rrice ============================================================