Tuesday, 8 April 2008

Week 6 - task 3 - CofP's

When thinking about communities online that have a joint enterprise I couldn't think of a site that I actually go on that I haven't already mentioned in one of my other blogs, and I didn't want to continue using the same ones so I researched and found another site:
http://ukwindsurfing.com/

The UK Windsurfing Association (UKWA) website is a site dedicated to people who are interested in, or take part in, competitive windsurfing. There is an obvious joint enterprise (i.e an overall shared goal), that being the goal of competing in competitions and finding out where the latest competitions will be held.
There is a forum on the website which allows the members to discuss different issues. The forum is split up into different categories: 'Announcements', 'General', 'Events', 'Equipment' and 'Technique'. I feel that these different categories show that the UKWA is actually a CofP because the members, especially within the 'Technique' section of the forum, can help other windsurfers improve their technique which is emphasising the idea of learning through your actions. They can also discuss their love of windsurfing in general with the use of the forum. It is the forum which creates the strong sense of an online community.
Another reason I believe it is a CofP is because they definitely have a shared repertoire as they use vocabulary to do with windsurfing that we might not understand if we are not windsurfers or know nothing about windsurfing.
In relation to the hierarchy structure within the website, on the forums there will be people who are classed as more experts than other members and who are more well known throughout the site. I also suppose that the chairman of the UKWA would be classed as having the most power and thus highest up in ranks.

No comments: