| OverviewThis book is available as an Adobe
Reader eBook on the publisher's website:
newriders.com Communities are part of all successful web
sites in one way or another. It looks at the different stages that
must be understood: Philosophy: Why does your site need community?
What are your measures of success? Architecture: How do you set up
a site to createpositive experience? How do you coax people out of
their shells and get them to share their experiences online?
Design: From color choice to HTML, how do you design the look of a
community area? Maintenance: This section will contain stories of
failed web communities, and what they could have done to stay on
track, as well as general maintenance tips and tricks for keeping
your community "garden" growing. Editorial ReviewsProduct DescriptionCommunities are part of all successful web sites in one way or another. It looks at the different stages that must be understood:Philosophy: Why does your site need community? What are your measures of success?Architecture: How do you set up a site to createpositive experience? How do you coax people out of their shells and get them to share their experiences online?Design: From color choice to HTML, how do you design the look of a community area?Maintenance: This section will contain stories of failed web communities, and what they could have done to stay on track, as well as general maintenance tips andtricks for keeping your community <169>garden<170> growing. | Amazon.com ReviewIn light of recent world events, many people have been reaching out for the sort of closeness and supportive reassurances that can come from friends "met" in online communities. In an article written for TechTV.com, Design for Community author Derek M. Powazek notes that in the days following September 11 new sites sprang up and message board activity went through the roof. Message boards and chatrooms allowed people to connect with others--so crucial in times of trouble--to share breaking news, find ways to help, or post personal stories. Of course, online communities are not only for the bad times: Web stores feature user-posted reviews, bulletin boards build up around all types of issues or shared experiences, celebrities answer questions in live chat sessions, and singles with Web cams check each other out. "Web communities happen when users are given tools to use their voice in a public and immediate way, forming intimate relationships over time." Powazek should know; he created Fray.com and Kvetch.com and has acted as a consultant on Web community features for Netscape, Lotus, and Sony. Design for Community offers thorough (and entertaining) discussions on all aspects of building and maintaining a Web-based community. There are chapters on choosing content (including Powazek's recipe for encouraging positive communities), designing ("How do you present a discussion system that encourages friendly conversation?"), deciding on the backend technology necessary to run a site (whether server-side software or free Web-based tools), setting up rules, hosting, moderating, and even someday "killing" your community. Each chapter features an interview with an expert, like Steven Johnson of Plastic.com on design and Emma Taylor, host of Nervecenter.com, a "community of thoughtful hedonists," on setting barriers and enforcing rules. Powazek maintains a companion site for this book at Designforcommunity.com, with excerpts, more essays, and, of course, a forum for discussion. If you're even considering building an online community, you must begin with this book. --Angelynn Grant |
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Reader Reviews From Amazon (Ranked by 'Helpfulness') Average Customer Rating: based on 13 reviews. Dry and dated, 2009-01-24 Reviewer rating: if you're in a postion in which you build communities, you know most of this stuff or could find it for free online. Way overpriced. Extremely trite. So Y2K. | Don't start (or run) an online community without it, 2005-07-26 Reviewer rating: I have been managing an online community of about 6,000 users since 2004. Prior to that, my experience was one with Web Design and Project Management. Little did I know what was ahead for me. The challenges that I ran into were many and I was fortunate to count with the help of some great users of the community who volunteered their help and expertise to help us steer through them.
If I had taken the time to research and ran into "Design for Community: The Art of Connecting Real People in Virtual Places", prior to the design and launch of the community, I would have definitely implemented many of the pieces of advice it offers. I started reading this book only a week ago, and within hours of grabbing it, I was finding things I could apply to our community to address some of the pending issues that needed to be solved.
This is one of those books I won't stop recommending to anyone with the task of designing a site to host an online community, and then those tasked with managing it. Its advice, though a bit dated in some places, is priceless and timeless for the most part. | The definitive book on getting people involved, 2003-07-25 Reviewer rating: This book crops up a lot in recommendations from bloggers, and it's easy to see why. This book is a broad, yet detailed, treatment of how to start, grow, and manage, online communities. A successful online community (such as the thriving javaranch.com) has a real and valuable sense of belonging. This book can help you understand both the 'why' and the 'how'. Most of the points made in this book are applicable to everything from email lists, through bulletin boards, to blogs, Amazon reviews and beyond. Many are also very thoughtful, such as the discussion of setting "barriers to entry", or the tricky subject of how to gracefully end a community. The book also includes some interviews with people involved in specific online communities. These interviews are not as directly useful as the rest of the book, but are an interesting alternative to the author's style. If you are at all interested in gathering or supporting a group of real people using online tools, you need this book. It doesn't say much about specific tools or technologies, but it has the ever-elusive quality of "lasting value". I can really imagine myself re-reading and referring to this book in five or even ten years time. | A great place to start planning, 2002-07-03 Reviewer rating: This book tells you what it takes to run a virtual community - any kind. It is written in plain English, and it had been extremely fun to read. I highly recommend it to non-technical readers such as Web project managers, Webmasters and Web designers. Everybody will be able to learn a great deal from this book, regardless of their backgrounds. You will find yourself feeling much more knowledgeable - if not confident - after reading this book. | Excellent PRACTICAL guide to building online communities, 2002-03-03 Reviewer rating: My review of this book is simple - it tells you everything you need to know to build and run an online community, in plain language, without irrelevent academic theories. If you only buy one book, buy this one. I have been involved with online communities for a while, and because I have been unhappy with their limited functionality, have been creating next generation software for them. |
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