In order for us to be distinguish between the virtual and the real communities we must first look at the factors that separate and connect them together. For instance, as a mean of communication, the virtual community lacks the communication attributes that are present in real communities like eye contact, body language, listening, etc., it depends more on the writing style in order to show the tone that the writer is intending to present.
Also in virtual communities, the presence of the receiver is not necessary since time synchronization is not important (ex: emails, SMS, etc.).
Physicality and space in real communities are essential, which gives it more authority where the communication can be more controlled.
When it comes to Identity, real community is much more trust worthy because the receiver/sender is physically in front of you; but in the virtual community, identities can never be certain since the receiver on the other side does not have to show their true identity.
In today’s world, whether we like it or not, we are a part of two communities, a virtual and a real one. I for one am trying my best to keep a balance in both worlds in order to be part of the social agenda. But if I had to choose, I would stick with the virtual community, even though people will argue that it’s harder to communicate. That maybe so but what I have realized in virtual communities is that because of it’s unrestricted time and space, it has made staying in touch with people so much easier. I can easily communicate with a person on the other side of the world where the timing would be completely different and I don’t have to wear socially accepted attire for me to converse with that person.
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