Early history of an online community, Part 3. Extra-Palatial Encounters

By John Suler, Ph.D.

(Page 41 of 53)

The primary focus or “hot spot” of the Palace community is the Palace itself - a visual chat environment where people converse and play with graphics, scripts, and sounds. However, over the course of its development, the community has spilled over into other realms of the internet, and even beyond the internet. These supplemental forms of communication enrich the community. In fact, it's very possible that a virtual community might even stagnate and eventually die without these other pathways to share information and develop relationships. Synchronous communication on the internet, as in text-driven chat environments, is captivating because everyone is “there” at the same time. The disadvantage is that there is a definite limit to how many words and ideas can be pumped through real-time typed text. In its evolution, the Palace overcame this limitation in a variety of ways.

Newsgroups

Newsgroups appeared very early in the history of Palace, with more coming online over time. By the end of the first year, the groups included the Palace Design Forum (for architects of Palace sites), Palace Announcements (where users posted announcements about events), Palace Tech Support, Palace Iptscrae Language (for discussions of scripting), Palace Pserver Operators (for issues related to the server software), and Palace Community Standards. The Community Standards group is especially interesting concerning the social history of Palace. On the TPI web site, it was defined as:

... a forum for expressing viewpoints on what constitutes acceptable and non-acceptable behavior in social cyberspace. What is offensive? How should it be handled? Should it BE handled? WHO should handle it? Here is where you can come together and define what the rules of intra-Palace-server behavior should be.

When it first appeared, shortly after the opening of Palace in November 1996, there was flurry of postings about a wide variety of social and technical issues. After the “Rape of Quentin” incident, the group overflowed with discussions about abusive behavior, what to do about it, and the overall purpose of Palace. Once these discussions died down, the newsgroups postings dropped off dramatically, with long stretches of time with almost no postings at all. Activity once again resurged in the summer of 1996 when the “deep-thinkers” on the PUG list were encouraged to take their debates about Palace philosophy - especially what to do about anti-social behavior at the Palace - off of the list. After a flurry of exchanges, the newsgroup activity once again waned.

Were user's interests in social and philosophical issues simply periodic flashes in the pan? Probably not. Many of the newsgroups experienced low, sporadic traffic, which may be attributed to the intrinsic nature of a newsgroup. Accessing a newsgroup means that the person has to know how to use a newsgroup reader, either a separate program or one bundled into a web browser. It's extra software to learn, extra buttons to click, extra internet locations to find, and therefore a barrier - albeit rather simple - to diving into the postings. But the barrier is also psychological. Even when the newsgroups were made easily available via the Palace web site, activity was still slow. People have to shuffle continually back and forth TO a newsgroup to read and post. It's not a synchronous exchange of conversation, as in chat. Nor does the word come right to your door, as in e-mail. Compared to chat and e-mail, conversing by pinning notes to a bulletin board feels awkward... and lackluster.

Palace Web Sites

Websites devoted to Palace-related topics also appeared shortly after the Palace opened and blossomed over the coming months. Some of the most visited sites, and therefore a “nucleus” of the Palace web, are those created by TPI, the Magus (along with its Palace Newsletter), and the PUG. A variety of other sites also were created by enthusiastic members who wanted to contribute to and make their mark on the Palace world: (1) archives of Palace resources, like avatars, sounds, MIDI files, and scripts; (2) “how to” sites describing methods for creating and using avatars, sounds, MIDI files, and scripts; (3) pages devoted to a particular Palace site, describing its culture, people, and purpose; (4) pages that described specific Palace events, such as the Palace Parties and the death of Robin; (5) bio pages where Palatians would describe themselves and their life at the Palace; (5) various other articles and handbooks about living at the Palace.

These web sites provide something that is not possible in a chat environment - the efficient communication of detailed and/or lengthy information. If Palace chat servers are the taverns of the Palace community, then web sites are the libraries.

Mailing Lists

Mailing lists (listservs) were one of the most powerful extra-palatial communication tools. They became major building blocks of the community. Lists for the wizards, Palace site operators, and iptscrae scripters were created shortly after Palace opened, in early December 1996. According to Finchy, one of the creators of these lists, “It was a major breakthrough, as it really helped to solidify our community and to serve as a record of our trials and tribulations, which there have been a few.” The wizard list at first was small, with an intimate group of ten subscribers. A year later, it consisted of almost 60. With that increase in size came the tendency towards schisms, debates, and flaming which are typical in the developmental course of a listserv. The unique aspect of this list is that the subscribers don't merely exchange information, or socialize, or “shoot the breeze” about their opinions and ideas - which are the typical activities of most lists. The wizard list is a WORKING list. The wizards must work together in overseeing and modifying the social and technical realms of Palace. That common bond and necessity of performing a task together helps the group endure and, in its best moments, learn from the conflicts that arise on the list.

Occasionally there have been requests to limit the types of messages posted to the wizard list. No personal bantering. No one-liner jokes. No flames or spam. But in the long run the list remains mostly “free.” Bumgardner, who was instrumental in its creation, prefers that the wizards use the list in any way they deem fit. Jokes, flames, and spam are all part of the group process and all potentially solidify the group when openly expressed and discussed. Conflicts are inevitable, as they are in any group, but it is far better to discuss them than it is to suppress their expression, which forces them underground and then to resurface in a much more insidious path.

The wizard list also serves as an important vehicle for the wizards to communicate with the TPI officials, who also subscribe. With the increasing demand on their time, the TPI staff's participation faded on the list, sometimes leaving the wizards wondering whether they were “home alone” without the feedback and guidance they were used to. A wizard chairperson was elected to serve as liaison between the list and TPI officials. Although TPI's presence on the list can enhance communication and productive decision-making, it's growing distance from the list did reflect a basic quality of the list. It is a free-form, independent, non-authoritarian, and trusted (by TPI) forum for the wizards to meet on a level playing field in order to socialize, exchange ideas, hash it all out, and make decisions. These qualities of the list reflect the qualities of the wizard group itself.

The importance of the wizard list as a centrally organizing “mind” of the Palace community is paralleled only by the PUG list, which was created midway through the first year of Palace's history. While the wizard list provides a central point for the “inner circle” to gather as a cohesive group, the PUG provides the same function for the entire membership. Much larger than the wizard list, the PUG listserv at first was difficult to manage. As discussed earlier in this chapter, it became necessary to actively moderate the list, publish guidelines for it in the PUG Charter, and at one point split the list into subsidiary lists in order to control the number of postings and heated debates.

Some people attributed the problems that developed on the PUG list to the intrinsic nature of a mailing list. Unlike chat, people aren't “face to face” with each other on a list. You can click on “send” and not have to deal with the other's reaction until later. In mail you also can say (type) everything that's on your mind. As one PUGster stated, “Its just too damn easy to attack, defame or otherwise flame someone via email.... things are said on a mail list that most would never have the balls to say to someone's face.” Some members described how they had seen similar problems develop in other chat worlds that created a mailing list for its users, such as WorldsChat:

... we had great fun there [in the chat environment] for quite a while. And then, when the message board came along, it seemed to change the feeling of the place. It seemed that the flames, the bickering, and the out and out fights that erupted on the board inevitably spilled over to the environment. Many survived this, but many of us also became disenchanted, or maybe even disgruntled and left. I know for a fact that many of us that lived through those times directly attribute the loss of WorldsChat's sparkle to the wars and/or soap opera that broke out on the message board. This is what I see the Palace PUG migrating towards (and more recently, the Deep Thoughts board).

While it's entirely possible that the list problems spill over and contaminate the chat environment, it's also possible that the reverse is true. Although discussion is limited in chat due to the restrictions of type-text communication, chat is nevertheless a powerful social environment. People get juiced up emotionally. In fact, the restricted and as a result AMBIGUOUS communication may enhance the psychological drama. When people aren't exactly sure what you mean, they fill in the gaps with their own fantasies. However, very little of this can be openly discussed due to the limitations of chat. When mailing lists are created, they may open the floodgates for all the backed-up emotions and opinions to surge forward. Ideally, the list may provide the necessary opportunity for more freely discussing and working through these emotional issues. With a whole group of people participating, a variety of opinions and perspectives can be shared - which helps immeasurably with “reality testing.”

The storm and stress phase of the PUG list tapered off considerably by January of 1997. But the list continued to be active and productive. Although some may users may be left with hard feelings. the overall effect of the list on the community was positive. At the very least, it acted as a “safety value” for pent up emotions and frustrations. At best, some of the misunderstandings and conflicts spilling over from chat were resolved.

Private E-mail

E-mail reigns as the single most important method for developing relationships online. It is a private communication that allows as much expression as the person cares to put into it. When a relationship grows in a chat world, at some point the pair begins to communicate via e-mail. You have to go out of your way to send an e-mail. It's a personal touch. Compared to chat, people can more efficiently convey information, as well as more easily express themselves. Beneath any chat world, there is an extremely complex network of private e-mail relationships. In that network, people explain, vent, share, decide, plan, and deepen their contact with others. While the Palace may be the conscious focus of this chat community, the underlying infrastructure of e-mail relationships provides nourishment that helps the community thrive.

Real Life Encounters: The Palace Parties

In the development of online relationships, people often reach the point where they want more than an online relationship. They want contact in the “face-to-face” world. Like e-mail, telephone calls and in-personal rendezvous create a complex interpersonal network that enhances the Palace community - except such “real life” contact can be more powerful than e-mail in its ability to help people feel closer and fortify their relationship.

In addition to informal contacts, the Palace community also organized several “Palace Parties” which were held every few months during the first year. In New York, Las Vegas, and then Atlanta, several dozen Palatians would gather for a weekend of socializing and comparing notes on their Palace experiences. The attenders were people who had easy geographical access to the party and dedicated Palace users who were willing to travel to get there. A mailing list was created for the party attenders, as well as a web site where descriptions and photos of the gathering were posted for anyone in the community who was interested in the “recap” of the event.

The number of people attending the parties were relatively small compared to the total population of Palace users. However, the impact of the parties on the community is large. Many of the people who attend these events are dedicated Palatians who spend a great deal of time online and invest much effort in the progress of the Palace civilization. They are the nucleus and social “glue” of the community. At the parties, they have the opportunity to compare their online perceptions of each other to their face-to-face perceptions. They fill out their understanding of each other, in some cases become much closer. The net result is the strengthening of that social nucleus.

Where to? Community or Game?

The first year or so has shown a dramatic change in that virtual experience called “Palace.” Where that development will head in the future is an open question. In its second year of existence, the Palace community continues to grow, but that progress is not guaranteed forever. There are dangers within and without. Communities are highly complex organisms that can go awry without appropriate guidance that gives them identity and purpose. Palace could expand into a widespread nation-state of sites with mutually enriching commerce, or decay into a feudal system of isolated, stagnant fiefdoms... or something inbetween. The internal design of the software combined with the internal management of the community will decide that fate. From without, there are other, perhaps even more powerful forces at work. The world of the internet is highly competitive and constantly in flux. Software comes and goes. Virtual communities come and go. Only the fittest will survive. Only those communities that provide what people WANT in a virtual community will survive.

What DO people want? What does TPI think people want? What do TPI and Bumgardner want? The creators and the inhabitants might choose to develop all of the complex political, economic, and social infra-structures that make up a thriving community. But that's a tall order that goes beyond software engineering. Maybe it's not even what will interest the masses. As Palace grows in popularity, there may be a shift towards games, entertainment and feature events as the major attractions. In the winter of 1997, the addition of major add-on features like Auditorium and Shockwave seems to lean Palace in that direction.

So is Palace destined to be a community.... a game.... a mixture of both? The distinction might be irrelevant. The intrinsic beauty of Palace is its design as an open social environment where personal and group identity can draw on fantasy as much as reality. It's an alternative community where people can mix their real and imagined selves to their hearts content. Along the way, all sorts of social, political, and psychological dramas will unfold - as this history of Palace demonstrates. But that's all part of the game.... The community *is* the “game.”

Historical Moments in Early Palace History

1. The Day the Palace Changed

That's what several old-timers call the Valentine's Day Party in 1996. The celebration was a special event for several reasons. It was one of the first publicly announced, well-attended parties at the Main site. Most importantly, the Valentine's Party was the first whole site activity that took advantage of Palace's claim to fame - AVATARS. Almost everyone dressed up for the occasion. SEXY props were the order of the day, with scantily clad forms traipsing all over the Mansion. From that point onward, seductive props profligated. Prior to the Valentine's Party, those kinds of props rarely were paraded in public.

CYBERSPACE LESSON LEARNED? Users indeed enjoyed Palace as an adult-oriented, ”naughty” place. The Valentine's Party was a convenient trigger for some inclinations that were just waiting to blossom. Some people even think “the history of Palace is the history of sex.”

2. Skeezil Fools the Establishment

Skeezil was a well respected, talented, and devoted member of the Palace community. He was invited to be wizard at some Palace sites and even placed in the position of Vice Chairperson of the newly formed Palace User Group. Much to the surprise and dismay of some adult members, Skeezil turned out NOT to be a 26 year old computer programmer, but rather a 14 year old dishwasher/busboy with lots of computer time on his hands.

Major arguments broke out at the Palace and on the PUG list. Was it right that Skeezil had deceived the establishment? Was he pretending to be mature, or was he really mature? Should he be forced to resign from his position in the establishment? Did it matter how chronologically old he was? To some people, even some TPI officials, it didn't matter. But many of these issues are still being debated.

CYBERSPACE LESSON LEARNED? Cyberspace is a great level playing ground where appearance and status from the “real” world falls to the wayside. “Unimportant” people can be heard and recognized, just like the “important” people. Yet, in cyberspace, people are not always whom they seem to be... Or are they?

3. Dodge City: Boom and Bust

Dodge City was created as a social experiment. At this TPI sponsored site, there were no wizards, no rules, no holds barred. You could do anything you wanted without the establishment looking over your shoulder. A haven for naughtiness and snertdom. Maybe even a way to dissociate and contain the snert problem.

Snerts indeed gathered there. Unfortunately, they were not content with a kingdom of their own. They used Dodge City as a staging area to launch raids on Main, where they made as much a nuisance of themselves as possible.

The experiment ended. Dodge City was closed down.

CYBERSPACE LESSON LEARNED? Acting out is indeed acting OUT. Anti-social people will never be content with themselves. They need a more “normal” social structure to act against, thereby defining themselves. No matter what territory you yield to them, there will always be barbarians at the gate.

4. The Death of Robin

The news of Robin's death was announced on the PUG list. She was a regular at the Palace. Many people knew and liked her. However, before her death, many people did not know that she suffered from a very a painful and destructive version of MS - so much so that she enlisted the services of Dr. Kavorkian. A touch of national publicity, and grief, entered the Palace community. Some people wished they had known more about her condition. They wished they could have helped. A memorial service was held at one of the Palace sites and a web page describing her life was posted. At the Main Mansion site, Robin's Garden was erected in her memory.

CYBERSPACE LESSON LEARNED? Disabilities are not always visible online. In some ways, that may be a good thing. In some ways, perhaps not... Another lesson - Palace is a community like any real world community, with all the same triumphs and losses.

About the Author

John Suler, Ph.D. is Professor of Psychology at Rider University. This article comes from his online hypertext book The Psychology of Cyberspace which describes his ongoing research on how individuals and groups behave in cyberspace. His work has been reported by national and international media, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, the BBC, and CNN. www.rider.edu/~suler/psycyber/