Poor Richard's Building Online Communities

By John R. Levine and Margaret Levine Young.
July 2000, 385 pages, US$29.95

Anyone with Internet access can set up an online community -- you don't have to be a rocket scientist or spend thousands of dollars. In fact, you probably already have the programs you'll need. But to have a successful Web commmunity where members actively participate you'll need a bit more information. Poor Richard's Building Online Communities explains everything you'll need to know.

What You Need to Know

• What programs are involved and how to manage them
• Where to promote your community so others can find it
• How to protect the privacy of your members
• Ways of dealing with dissension and needless arguments
• How to provide information that people can use
• How to foster a sense of trust and belonging with your members

Kinds of Online Communities

• Mailing lists
• Usenet newsgroups
• Web-based message boards
• Web-based "all-in-one" community sites
• Internet Relay Chat (IRC)
• Instant-messaging systems
• Virtual worlds, MUDs, and MOOs

Table of Contents

Part I: Introduction to Online Communities
Chapter 1: What Is Online Community?
Chapter 2: Online Community Options
Chapter 3: Participating Effectively

Part II: Mailing List Communities
Chapter 4: Finding, Joining, and Participating in Mailing Lists
Chapter 5: Creating and Managing Your Own Mailing List

Part III: Usenet Newsgroup Communities
Chapter 6: Finding, Joining, and Participating in Newsgroups
Chapter 7: Creating and Managing Your Own Newsgroup

Part IV: Internet Relay Chat (IRC)
Chapter 8: Finding, Joining, and Participating in IRC
Chapter 9: Creating and Managing IRC Channels

Part V: Web-Based Communities
Chapter 10: Finding, Joining, and Participating in Web-based Communities
Chapter 11: Creating and Managing Your Own Web-based Community

Part VI: Growing and Managing Your Community
Chapter 12: Publicizing Your Community
Chapter 13: Encouraging Sharing and Responding to Dissension
Chapter 14: Making Money with Your Community
Chapter 15: Privacy, Spam, and Other Issues
Chapter 16: Managing Groups of Communities

Part VII: True-Life Stories
Chapter 17: The Computer Book Publishing List
Chapter 18: Knitting.About.com
Chapter 19: Comp.compilers
Chapter 20: soc.religion.unitarian-univ
Chapter 21: The uua.org Mailing Lists
Appendix: Resources for Online Community Managers