IC Contact

[imsorey]

telepathy | action | message

Comments

[imsorey]

[Eating all of this information up. Actually, he grabs out a notebook to write it down as Dirk explains so he doesn't forget some of the terms.]

So growing up you basically had to learn an entire computer language in order to properly use the technology at your disposal. At least it doesn't sound too hard to pick up once you hear it once.

[oneandmikleonly]

Learning by doing...? If you grew up with the technology and platforms already in place at least that seems a little more intuitive...though I would hope guides existed as well for less savvy users.

[splinten]

The entire system creates clear divides between those who know and those who don't. It's possible to learn, but in some ways it was designed to foster a sense of community by creating that secondary code.

[imsorey]

A sense of community?

[Like ruins nerds knowing the ancient language or something, maybe]

I guess I can see it. Does that happen in practice, or just in theory?

[oneandmikleonly]

I guess I'm not quite getting it. How does it foster a sense of community by creating such clear divides?

[splinten]

It happens in practice. Generally, it's the sense of community that is built by dividing those 'in the know' from those out of it. If you know what TBT stands for you have that sense of belonging to the community that uses the term, while those who don't understand it are outside the community. The insider's perspective can only be defined by delineating an outside.

[imsorey]

Then there are plenty of people who are on the "outside", at least until they learn the terms.

[oneandmikleonly]

I suppose it makes sense. Your involvement in the community is proportionate to how much effort you commit to putting in, both in learning the technology and the platforms and terminology, and taking the selfies themselves. It's a neat enough system and not an uncommon paradigm, just harder for us to picture since it's technologically-based.