why does it seem to you that a person stays part of a community even if s/he doesn't interact within the community itself but only with other people who do? (referencing your "lurking and occasionally sending an email" role)
I don't think you have to be a politician to be politically active. Likewise, I don't see a need to post in a newsgroup to interact with people who you met there and share common interests with.
The reason *I* consider myself part of that community comes down to the fact I care about some of those folks (present company included), and I would make some effort to visit with them if I happened to be in the same location. We have a common interest which provides a basis for friendship. (OTOH, there are some regular posters I wouldn't drive across town to visit, and in fact I don't.)
In a more general sense, I think that a lot of people who are members of various communities only interact with portions of the community at a time. I'm willing to bet that Al Gore has only met 1% of all registered Democrats in the US, but nobody questions his membership in the Democratic party. People who are not "public persons" might reasonably interact with a smaller percentage of a large community, and still consider themselves members.
I'd like to add to my original statement above, and point out that in fact I'm a member of the community of all US Marines, not just the retired ones, and that gives me a strong connection to all others who claim the title.
Re: expressing my inner two year old
why does it seem to you that a person stays part of a community even if s/he doesn't interact within the community itself but only with other people who do? (referencing your "lurking and occasionally sending an email" role)
I don't think you have to be a politician to be politically active. Likewise, I don't see a need to post in a newsgroup to interact with people who you met there and share common interests with.
The reason *I* consider myself part of that community comes down to the fact I care about some of those folks (present company included), and I would make some effort to visit with them if I happened to be in the same location. We have a common interest which provides a basis for friendship. (OTOH, there are some regular posters I wouldn't drive across town to visit, and in fact I don't.)
In a more general sense, I think that a lot of people who are members of various communities only interact with portions of the community at a time. I'm willing to bet that Al Gore has only met 1% of all registered Democrats in the US, but nobody questions his membership in the Democratic party. People who are not "public persons" might reasonably interact with a smaller percentage of a large community, and still consider themselves members.
I'd like to add to my original statement above, and point out that in fact I'm a member of the community of all US Marines, not just the retired ones, and that gives me a strong connection to all others who claim the title.