Among the Oxford English Dictionary's definitions of "community," we encounter the following, all of which emphasize the importance of place and presence:

• A body of people organized into a political, municipal, or social unity.
• A body of men living in the same locality.
• A body of persons living together, and practising, more or less, community of goods.
• Often applied to those members of a civil community, who have certain circumstances of nativity, religion, or pursuit, common to them, but not shared by those among whom they live; as the British or Chinese community in a foreign city.

What happens to the idea of community when one introduces the virtuality that characterizes the electronic text? As Isel Sulam points out, Virtual Communities in E-Space take several forms

Last updated: 20 July 2002