http://www.ibuyer.net/ sounds more like a buying commune than a
community to me. It does have a welcoming feel, although I'm not sure
that I want to commune with other buyers. What do we have in common?
That we all buy things?? It's an interesting set-up, I'm not sure what
to make of it. ~Joy


> This is a community?  Cynthia  -----------
<<http://www.internetwire.com/technews/tn/tn983885.dsl
eudora="autourl">http://www.internetwire.com/technews/tn/tn983885.dsl
<bold> LAUNCHING OF THE COMPREHENSIVE COMPUTER COMMUNITY Internet Buyer
Network builds biggest information portal on the Internet.</bold>




~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Stork Site http://www.storksite.com

"The Premier Pregnancy and New Parenting Community"

on Women.com http://www.women.com

This is a community?

Cynthia

-----------

http://www.internetwire.com/technews/tn/tn983885.dsl


LAUNCHING OF THE COMPREHENSIVE COMPUTER COMMUNITY Internet Buyer Network
builds
biggest information portal on the Internet.

http://www.internetwire.com/technews/tn/tn983827.dsl

NEW LOCAL COMMUNITY WEB SITES EXPAND NORTH AMERICAN PRESENCE

Ezyfind.com Allows Local Media Organizations to Protect and Grow Their Local
Revenue Streams in Internet Age

BOULDER, CO -- (INTERNET WIRE) -- 08/17/99 -- Ezyfind.com, a network of unique
media-driven community-centric Web sites, today announced its North American
expansion and the opportunity for media organizations to become premier
information sources for their communities. The Ezyfind.com network of
community
sites, which will be launched September 15, 1999, represents today's most
effective way to post and find information about local communities on the
Internet.

"The response to Ezyfind.com from media organizations has been overwhelming,"
said Noel Miller, president of Ezyfind.com. "These groups understand the
importance of developing local community Web sites and of protecting and
cultivating revenue streams in today's fast-changing media landscape.
Interested organizations are advised to hurry and secure their place as an
Ezyfind.com affiliate before the early-September North American launch, as
there are a limited number of regions available."
Ezyfind.com's interactive, community Web sites combine local information
sources, e-commerce and Web communications. The sites use global technology to
market locally, enabling media organizations to expand their brand names at
the
local level on the Web and connect directly to their communities, all while
generating significant income.

Ezyfind.com allows organizations to increase their revenue stream in several
ways, including selling classified employment advertising, local merchant Web
pages and online stores. Existing sales forces can also be leveraged by adding
Ezyfind.com products to the organization's current roster of offerings.
"Ezyfind.com provides each individual type of media organization the
opportunity to diversify their offerings, quickly and simply," said Miller.
"Newspapers, for example, see the service as a way to protect their classified
advertising revenue from online media. Radio stations look at it as their
entrance into the visual media arena. For a television station, Ezyfind.com
provides a way to expand their brand through another visual medium."

Media groups also benefit through the enhanced contact with their communities.
Every Ezyfind.com affiliate has access to a number of Web page-building tools
to give to select communities of interest and nonprofit groups. This not only
helps build goodwill and expand the organization's presence in its community,
but also quickly and easily expands the site. In turn, this ongoing expansion
drives additional traffic as well as attracting repeat visitors.

About Ezyfind.com and International Strategies

International Strategies, the holding company of Ezyfind.com, was founded in
1994 and delivers community-centric portals and online stores to local
geographic communities and to national and international communities of
interest (COINS). The most effective way to find information about a community
over the Internet, Ezyfind.com is a customizable, interactive portal system
that combines local information sources, e-commerce, and Web communications to
provide access to community notices, employment listings, real estate,
classifieds, local businesses and more.

The current test site is available at www.ezyfind.com. To view a completed
site,
visit Ezyfind.com Australia at www.ezyfind.com.au.

I've been contacted by a recruiter who is looking to fill a position for a
Community Manager. The company is a health-care company located in
Emeryville. They have been active on the Web as an e-commerce site since
last October and their products and community are slanted toward women. The
terms look very competetive and the company plans for an IPO soon.

The contact information is as follows:

**************

SALVADOR MARCUS LIRA
Executive Recruiter, e-Commerce
San Francisco Bay Area

@office:
marcus@... <mailto:marcus@...>
415/781-4340 x 710
@home:
bluesagepoets@... <mailto:bluesagepoets@...>
415/788-3473

***************

http://newmedia.com/newmedia/99/08/techreport/Community.html

(Published in NewMedia August 1999 Contents)TECH REPORT
Community is a Commodity
TECH REPORT

http://www.internetwire.com/technews/tn/tn983515.dsl

RocketTalk Community Center Is Released
Provides a Forum and Meeting Place for RocketTalk Subscribers
FULLERTON, CA -- (INTERNET WIRE) -- 07/22/99 -- RocketTalk, Inc. has announced
the full release of the RocketTalk Community Center, a text-based chat hub
that
allows RocketTalk users to meet others from around the globe that are
interested in exchanging RocketTalk voice messages and add them to their
RocketTalk contact list with a single button press. The free Community Center
software is available at the RocketTalk web site, at www.rockettalk.com.

http://www.redherring.com/insider/1999/0719/news-abuzz.html

New York Times gets Abuzz
By Stephanie Gates
Redherring.com


July 19, 1999
The New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT) announced Thursday it will acquire
expertise management software company Abuzz Technologies. But according to
Andy
Sack, Abuzz CEO, the purchase is actually being made by Times Company Digital,
which is spinning off from the holding company. "It's a private spin-off --
for
now," says Mr. Sack.
A spokesperson for the New York Times denied that Times Company Digital is
splitting off, but said the company is always exploring opportunities to
increase shareholder value.
Jerry Colonna, managing partner with Abuzz investor Flatiron Partners was
privy
to the details of the transaction but said he could not comment about the
exact
identity of Abuzz's new owner.
A spin-off would not be surprising news, given the recent trend by media
companies like Ziff-Davis (NYSE: ZD) to spin off their digital assets and reap
the rewards through an IPO or a tracking stock. Barry Parr, an e-commerce
analyst with International Data Corporation (IDC), says, "Right now, there
appears to be a lot of media companies who are thinking about it."

JOINING THE HIVE

Abuzz is a knowledge management company. It builds question-and-answer
software
that routes questions to the appropriate expert within an organization. Its
first product, an email-based system called Beehive, was released in the
second
quarter. Abuzz plans to add instant-messaging capability in the future.

According to Mr. Sack, Abuzz was acquired to advance Times Company Digital's
vision for creating an online interactive network. "The New York Times
audience
is incredibly interactive," he says.

"The CEO of Times Company Digital, Martin Nisenholtz, wants to create
high-quality knowledge communities," Mr. Sack says. "He's purchasing Abuzz to
fill in a variety of pieces to fit into that network."

GENERATING ABUZZ

Abuzz Technologies first met with the New York Times about eight months ago.
The business development guys from Times Digital were surveying the space of
expertise management and talking to Abuzz's competition. They subsequently
approached Abuzz to pursue a partnership relationship.

After several months, the companies decided to join. "Ultimately, it made the
most sense to combine," Mr. Sack explains. "We had the same vision in terms of
knowledge communities."

Although he wouldn't reveal any terms of the deal, Mr. Sack indicated that his
venture backers were pleased. Otherwise, of course, they would not have agreed
to the acquisition.

Red Herring
J U L Y 2 0 , 1 9 9 9

The empty restaurant
Site managers are like shopkeepers. They realize they get more traffic when
their shop appears to be full. But the browsing experience on most sites, for
all the user knows, is theirs alone. Many sites offer discussion boards and
polling to bolster the feeling of community, but these tools don't tell a
visitor if they have the only lonely eyeballs on the site at the moment. Even
the take-back-the-Web pioneers at ThirdVoice can't help users see who's
browsing with them. AOL's secret sauce, after all, is its chat rooms.

There are several products emerging to solve this "empty restaurant" dilemma
for other sites. For example, Mpath Interactive on Monday announced a new
service, HearMe.com, which lets users talk (not type) in real time with other
people on a particular site. The company is offering pre-fab HTML to site
managers to get them to implement this free service. Lipstream offers similar
services through Excite. And then there's NovaWiz's Odigo, a little app that
shows where on the Web your friends are at the moment, or, alternatively, who
else is on the site you're on.

Hummer Winblad funds baby-boomer portal

By Georgie Raik-Allen
Redherring.com
July 17, 1999

Internet companies targeting women, teenagers, and seniors abound. However, a
new startup, spun off from CNN and funded by Silicon Valley venture capital
firm
Hummer Winblad Venture Partners, is focusing on a different affinity group:
baby-boomers who believe they are ten years younger.

Senior Product Manager/Director of Product Marketing
2 openings
RealCommunities, Inc.
7/14/99

RealCommunities, Inc. is an Internet start-up building web community
infrastructure and applications for consumer and business web sites.  The
company's business model is based on software licensing, services, and
sharing of transaction fees.  RealCommunities has received a substantial
seed round of funding primarily through customer pre-paid license and
service fees.

The management team includes:

* CEO Cynthia Typaldos, a well-known expert on Web Communities, a
co-founder of GolfWeb, and previously Director of Software Marketing at Sun,
* VP of Engineering Bhaskar Prabhala, an experienced senior engineering
manager from Sun and ePLAY.
* VP of Business Development & Marketing Paul Giordano, a sales, marketing,
and business development veteran of Quickturn, Mentor Graphics, and Valid
Logic Systems.

The company is seeking key personnel to be part of the core team to define
and build the web's first customizable and extensible community
infrastructure for deployment on high traffic content and ecommerce web sites.

The company is currently located in Saratoga with plans to relocate to
Cupertino.

The product marketing descriptions are below.  For information about
engineering openings please contact Bhaskar at bp@....

SENIOR PRODUCT MGR/DIRECTOR OF PRODUCT MARKETING JOB DESCRIPTION
The level of these jobs is flexible and will depend on the candidate.
There are two openings.

Please note that the CEO strongly believes in product marketing having a
very powerful role in the company.  She was previously a product manager
herself and taught a course in software product marketing for 5 years at UC
Berkeley Extension.  The product, and company,  will live or die depending
on the abilities and vision of the product managers.

Responsibilities:
o Product definition (includes review with customers)
o Competitive analysis
o  Identification of partners at many levels, and negotiation of partner
deals   (Partners will include 3rd party software vendors, e-commerce
vendors, etc.)
o Offerings: licenses, services, support, etc. including pricing structure
o  Drive products through development and launch and beyond

Required Experience & Knowledge:
o       Knowledge of entire software product life cycle from idea
conception and definition through launch and end of life
o       Knowledge of the Internet
o       Familiarity with on-line community and interactive application
software
o       Demonstrated success in software product definition and launch
o Experience working on products utilizing HTML/DHTML, Java, Javascript,
Perl, CGI, database structures, transaction systems and/or operating
systems, high thruput systems
o 7+ years experience in product marketing of interactive software
applications with at least 2 years in Internet and/or online services

The Jobs:
These jobs are very hands-on.  The company is young, and the team currently
less than 10 people.  You will be expected to do whatever it takes at that
moment to move the company forward.  The product managers will be expected
to build mock-up web pages and have good technical background and skills.
Previous experience as a software developer is necessary for one of the two
positions as it involves the definition of infrastructure software,
standard APIs, and integration tools.

Personal Qualities:
o Great attention to detail is a must.  We are building a very high quality
product that our customers will depend on.
o Ability to prioritize.  Key to our success is figuring out what to do
now, what to do later, and what to never do.
o Excitement, passion and vision about Web Communities

Education:
An undergraduate technical degree is required* and an MBA is highly
desired.  *Candidates with non-technical degrees are encouraged to apply if
they can demonstrate technical knowledge and abilities.  Knowledge of
sociology a plus.

To apply, put your resume on the web and send the URL to Cynthia Typaldos.
Feel free to call too.

Thanks.

Cynthia
--------------------------------------------------------
Cynthia Typaldos - Founder & CEO, RealCommunities, Inc.
http://www.realcommunities.com/
ct@...  408 867-8875 (phone)  -8295 (fax)
14375 Saratoga Ave., Saratoga, CA 95070
Instructor:  "Web Communities" course at UC Berkeley Extension
http://www.typaldos.com/webmarketing/ucb/fall99.html

Third Voice Rips Holes in Web
by Chris Oakes

3:00 a.m. 9.Jul.99.PDT
Third Voice, a Web annotation utility, is more powerful than its authors
intended -- in addition to providing freedom of expression, it can call up
users' data and be used to generate fake Web pages.
http://www.wired.com/news/news/technology/story/20636.html?tw=eg19990712

-- Cynthia

http://www.forbes.com/forbes/99/0705/6401118a.htm

Word-of-mouth marketing is perfect for companies with big ideas and small
advertising budgets. It takes on a new meaning on the Internet.
Word-of-modem
By Silvia Sansoni

I like Janelle Brown, she's a great writer.  She's written quite a bit on
community.

In my opinion, this Third Voice and Gooey stuff is really goofy.
Would love to hear others' opinions.

Cynthia
----------------

Dangling conversations
Can Third Voice's approach to Web community evolve beyond drive-by scrawls?

- - - - - - - - - - - -
By Janelle Brown
July 7, 1999
Salon Magazine
http://www.salonmagazine.com/tech/feature/1999/07/07/third_voice/index.html

Two years ago we automatically put people into groups in the GolfWeb Players
Club.  We wanted to do it based on a particular criteria (e.g. location,
handicap) but we didn't have time to make it really sophisticated so we just
put them into groups of 20 that filled up as they joined. There was always one
member fixed member in each group, one of the product managers. Unfortunately,
for some reason Sportsline turned off this feature.

Cynthia

July 5, 1999
http://search.nytimes.com/books/search/bin/fastweb?getdoc+cyber-lib+cyber-li
b+13220+2+wAAA+caruso

DIGITAL COMMERCE

Improving Dialogue on the Internet

By DENISE CARUSO

Thanks to the Internet, as some very wise person has noted, we have at least
disproved the old saw about a thousand monkeys at a thousand keyboards
eventually producing a Shakespeare play.
And all the millions of nodes in all the broadband, packet-switched, fully
synchronous networks in the world apparently cannot prevent people from
exchanges that are the digital equivalent of "Your mother wears Army boots."

Internet snobs may be inclined to dismiss the inanity of most public
conversations on the Web as irrelevant in their larger, more commercial vision
of the Internet.

But others, noting a seemingly insatiable appetite for public messaging, argue
that the future of even the commercial Internet depends on making this crucial
component more satisfying for everyone.

To move people beyond the graffiti-esque quality of much online messaging,
they
are developing software and discussion practices that encourage computer users
to talk to, rather than at, each other. One of the most innovative ideas for
creating value and relevance in online conversation is coming from the
world of
documentary film.

Marc Weiss is a longtime independent filmmaker and past producer of the highly
regarded PBS television series "P.O.V.," which addresses controversial
topics in
American culture -- abortion, Vietnam, death and dying, gay life, ageism,
school prayer -- by allowing people to tell their own stories.

"P.O.V.," an acronym for "point of view," started online salons to encourage
postprogram conversation. One particularly remarkable response -- to a program
on the Vietnam War Memorial -- drove home for Weiss the potential of the
medium.

The theme for the Vietnam discussion sprang from Weiss' realization that his
"whole life had been changed" by the values he learned in the anti-war
movement
of the 1960s and early '70s. Whether people were for or against the war, had
gone to Vietnam, stayed home or come to America as refugees, he said, "I
realized that there was a whole generation who had never reflected on how
their
lives since the war had changed."

This theme -- notably sidestepping the polar arguments of the last 25-plus
years -- drew thousands to the site, creating 225 topics for discussion, each
with 300 or 400 messages. "We had vets who said they learned more in that
forum
than they had in 25 years at the veterans' hall," Weiss said.

He says the success of the Vietnam forum inspired him to create a nonprofit
organization, Web Lab (www.weblab.org), that is developing new models for
online
media and sponsoring projects that bring "fresh perspectives and new
voices" to
the discussion of public issues.
The Web Lab software now under development will allow the creation of highly
structured online dialogue, using standard bulletin-board technologies and
features. But though the basic technologies are standard, Web Lab's
enhancements are not.

For example, people interested in joining a Web Lab discussion group must
first
complete a detailed registration form. The software gathers these registration
forms and sorts them by categories, and when all the slots in a forum are
filled, it spits out an e-mail message to inform people that their group is
ready to go.

Each group is limited to 60 or 70 people -- only about a third of whom
typically post messages -- to keep the conversation manageable. But once the
groups have started, Weiss and his team stay out of the way, letting the group
manage itself. "Our function is monitoring, not moderating," he says.

In September, Web Lab will produce the online discussion for PBS' "American
Love
Story," a five-episode "P.O.V." program about an interracial marriage.

Weiss says Web Lab is already gathering people's stories on the Web Lab site.
And although he acknowledges that the discussion will obviously include racial
issues, Weiss says the theme -- again, sidestepping the usual polarity of
conversations about race -- is a more universal question: "How do couples
negotiate their differences?"

Negotiating differences is the key to online discussions and to relationships,
says Benjamin Barber, director of the Walt Whitman Center for the Culture and
Politics of Democracy at Rutgers University.

Barber, in conjunction with the Yale University Information Society Project,
has started Civic Exchange: Strong Democracy in Cyberspace, a project based in
part on the theories he developed in his book on participatory democracy,
"Strong Democracy."
Financed by the Markle Foundation, Civic Exchange is building an online
environment designed to reinvigorate the ideals of thoughtful democratic
discourse.

"We're trying to address the dilemma that technology moves people too fast,"
Barber says. "It's an impediment to democracy, which should be slow and
deliberative. So we're trying to install speed bumps on the Internet."

He says the same kind of paradox exists for the Internet that has always
existed in the practice of democracy.

"On one hand, democracy is about doing it yourself," he said. "But to turn
self-interested, narcissistic individuals into free citizens takes education,
acculturation and some sense of external authority," to give them enough
discipline to be responsible and free.

Similarly, the Internet is designed to maximize speedy do-it-yourself
communication, without the intervention or hierarchy of authority or even
mediators
.
"That's what makes it appear more democratic," Barber said. "But as we've
seen,
instead of knowledge, you get raw information. Instead of informed opinion,
you
get private prejudice. Instead of common ground, you get divisive private
interests. So it isn't democracy; it's anarchy."

Yet any introduction of editors or monitors is perceived as undemocratic.
Barber and his Yale partner on the project, Beth Noveck, hope to bridge that
dichotomy by inventing a new genre of online discussion.

Their Civic Exchange software will require that participants answer a few
questions before they gain access to the discussion area. And when
participants
are in the discussion site, there are stringent rules. "But," Barber said,
"with the participation of the others in the group, you can remake the
rules or
modify them."

Unchangeable, though, is a rule imposed by the software itself: The group must
elect its own moderator. Barber says this single feature alone may solve the
dilemma of online anarchy vs. democracy -- if not for the Internet writ large,
at least for those seeking meaningful dialogue.

Whether the go-go culture of the Internet will slow down for Civic Exchange's
speed bumps is uncertain. But what drives the group is the attempt to harness
the network's strengths to people's needs, instead of vice versa. "It's about
using the architecture to your advantage, but not being victimized," Ms.
Noveck
says. "At the very least, we shouldn't be bullied by it."


Copyright 1999 The New York Times Company
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
'By whom?' Dorothy Parker, when told she was outspoken
Denise Caruso 415.695.0508 vox/fax
Digital Commerce/Technology Columnist, New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/reference/indexdigicom.html
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

I filled out their questionnaire.  It was kind of fun.   Hope it turns out
to be useful.

Cynthia

>From: Dan_Forbush@...
>X-Lotus-FromDomain: PR NEWSWIRE
>To: algard@..., alison@..., jzwiebel@...,
>        Cynthia@..., craig.stiff@..., jnodeen@...,
>        selby@..., Meghan@..., rfoster@...,
>        John@..., drm@..., kristen@...,
>        casey@..., Patrick@..., judysl@...,
>        jocelyn@..., Rachaela@...
>cc: Maria_Perez@...
>Date: Tue, 6 Jul 1999 23:03:15 -0400
>Subject: Media Insider Interview on Virtual Communities: Ready to Roll
>X-Rcpt-To: cynthia@...
>
>
>
>
>Greetings --
>
>A couple of weeks ago, we posted in ProfNet a call for experts
>on virtual communities who would be willing to join us in an
>Media Insider discussion of the subject. You kindly dropped us a note.
>
>We are now ready to convene that discussion in a specially
>designated and easy-to-reach place  -- and I hope you (or your
>client, as the case may be) will now join us.
>
>If you wish, you may go immediately to
http://www.mediainsider.com/interviewrooms
>to participate. You'll find that no user name or password is needed.
>
>Or, by way of explanation, you can read the following, which is pretty much
>what you'll find at the site.
>
>
>EXPOSURE FOR PARTICIPANTS AND THEIR ORGANIZATIONS
>
>When completed, the interview will be edited and posted
>as the featured "Trade Talk" Q&A in Media Insider, to which
>approximately 5,000 public relations officers now subscribe.
>We'll promote the piece in one of our daily ProfNet Search
>transmissions, which goes to more than 8,000 ProfNet
>subscribers.
>
>All invited participants in the discussion will be offered to
>post in ProfNet's Experts Database (http://www.profnet.com/ped) a
>free profile for a one year period. This will be accessible to
>all journalists who might have need for expert sources on
>virtual communities or other subjects about which you
>may offer authoritative comment. In the "Trade Talk" Q&A,
>we'll create a link to this profile for the benefit our our
>members. We'll also create a link to any relevant Web site(s)
>of your choosing.
>
>In a future issue of ProfNet Technology Briefs, which
>circulates to more than 1,000 reporters, we'll incorporate a
>three-sentence excerpt from the interview so as to spotlight
>you as a source who can offer comment on the
>proliferation and significance of virtual communities.
>
>
>INVITED PARTICIPANTS
>
>Among those who have indicated interest in the discussion and
>we are hoping -- via this invitation -- to join us:
>
>Alex Algard, of SoundDomain.com
>Alison Berke, of bworks.com
>Cynthia Typaldos, of RealCommunities, Inc.
>Craig Stiff, of Animation Science Corporation
>Janey Nodeen, of the Burke Consortium
>Cristina Dolan, of OneMain.com
>Jim DeBello, of CollegeClub.com
>Marlene Maheau, of Telehealth.net
>Mary Westheimer, of Bookzone.com
>Josh Sinel, of Blue Barn Interactive
>Patrick Farrell, of SocialNet.com
>
>If your name -- or that of a client you think would make a
>valuable contribution to the discussion -- is not on this list, please
>drop me a note or give me a call. In some cases, we
>received expressions of interest without a specified
>candidate to go with it.
>
>
>THESIS OF THE INTERVIEW
>
>With the arrival of so-called virtual communities, we can begin to
>envision the emergence of entirely new businesses based wholly on
>multi-media enabled networks that can offer significantly greater value
>to customers than bricks-and-mortar enterprises. In this interview, we'll
>discuss the virtual community as a new "form of life" on public
>networks.
>
>
>OPENING QUESTIONS
>
>We expect to conduct the interview over a period of about two
>weeks. Following are the questions we are asking of all
>participants as openers:
>
>1. Please tell us a bit about the virtual community(ies) with which
>you are involved: purpose, present status, aspirations, etc.
>
>2. Please tell us what you think is most significant about the arrival of
virtual
>communities. How do you define a "virtual community" -- and how do you think
>your enterprise is likely to change the sphere in which you're working?
>
>3. Please tell us how you see your virtual community evolving in the near
term
>(one
>year), mid-term (two to five years), and long-term (five to ten years). We're
>interested in, among other things, expansion of audience, international
reach, and
>impact of new technologies.
>
>
>TO PARTICIPATE
>
>Simply go to http:www.mediainsider.com/interviewrooms and click on the
>highlighted text as requested. You'll find the three questions above
>posted there as distinct threads. Just click on the "reply" button in each
>message, and submit your answer. We're asking all participants to complete
>the first round of questions by this Sunday, July 11.
>
>If you have questions, please call or email me.
>
>Many thanks.
>
>Dan Forbush
>President, ProfNet
>Editor, Media Insider
>1-800-PROFNET
>dan_forbush@...
>

From: Massar, Betsy <Betsy_Massar@...>
Sent: Tuesday, July 06, 1999 4:35 PM
Subject: job posting 10921R

Quicken.com, one of the internet's most visited financial web sites is
looking for an associate producer on their community team. This is a great
entry level position for someone who has been wanting to get into the
internet and is fascinated by the way the internet is changing the way
investors make their decisions.

The job is designed mostly to assist the Community Producer in making our
site's message boards among the best on the web.

Day to day duties will include, but not be limited to:

**Sparking daily message board-based discussion of market-moving events,
corporate earnings, and other financial news
**Helping recruit, inspire, and manage contractors and seeders
**Writing headlines to draw people into the message board area of the site
**Identify strategies for promotion of community within the company and
outside
**Light (learnable) programming tasks

Requirements:
The ideal person will love stocks and have a strong appreciation for the
equities markets,
Have strong writing skills
Have a "Nose for News" in knowing what makes the markets buzz
Have quite good knowledge of the Web and financial web sites (however, web
experience is not required, but just an interest and an ability to learn
fast is! )
The ability to pick things up quickly and have fun doing it.

Please send a cover letter why this position fits your experience and
interest to Betsy_Massar@....

Hi everyone,

Another great job at Women.com.  Please respond as instructed at the end of
the
job description.  If you are an alum of one of my courses, be sure to mention
that.  And please forward to your friends and colleagues.

Thanks.

Cynthia
------------

Position:               Senior Product Manager, Women.com Networks

7/6/99

Women.com, the premier internet network for women, is looking for a Sr.
Product
Manager who has experience in conceptualizing, designing, development and
launching of interactive services and products for the Internet. You will have
the opportunity to work closely with and lead cross-functional groups
comprised
of key individuals from our engineering, editorial, marketing, e-commerce and
sales teams.

Our ideal candidate will be responsible for:
·       Defining new products and tools for use by Editorial, Production and
Sales on the site.
·       Develop product proposals, drive consensus on requirements, produce
product plans, negotiate priorities and development schedules
·       Perform competitive analysis and recognize key market opportunities
and
threats
·       Evaluate content and application partners
·       Drive products through development and launch.

Our ideal candidate will have the following qualifications and more:

·       Knowledge of entire software product life cycle from idea
conception and
definition through launch and end of life.
·       Knowledge of the internet portal, publishing and services market,
trends, competitive offerings and related technologies is required.
·       Familiarity with on-line community and interactive application
software
is a necessity.
·       Ability to thrive in a cross-functional environment, working equally
with all levels of the organization.
·       Demonstrated ability to develop product on-time and on-budget.
·       Experience working on products utilizing HTML/DHTML, Java, Javascript,
Perl, CGI, database structures and content management systems would be very
helpful.
·       7+ years experience in marketing and product management of interactive
software applications with at least 2 years in Internet and/or online services
.

Personal Qualities:
·       Self-starter capable of making a personal commitment to building a
successful company
·       Comfortable with rapidly expanding business environment
·       Flexible, adaptable to changes, team player, team leader as needed
·       Has high standards for performance, quality and production
·       Excellent communications skills
·       Great attention to detail while maintaining the big picture vision


Education:
An undergraduate business or technical degree is required and an MBA is highly
desired

Women.com is the premier network of award-winning Web sites for women
convering
news, health, lifestyle, career, family, pregnancy, fashion, shopping,
personal
finance and more.

Full-time position in San Mateo, California at Women.com Headquarters.
Competitive salaries commensurate with experience, plus benefits. We’ll be in
touch with qualified candidates.

To apply, email, fax or mail your cover letter and resume
Contact: Human Resource Administrator
1820 Gateway Drive, Suite 100
San Mateo, CA 94404-2471
Email: jobs@...
Fax:650/378-6599
NO PHONE CALLS PLEASE

http://www.mercurycenter.com/svtech/news/breaking/merc/docs/035356.htm
http://www.usatoday.com/life/cyber/tech/ctf498.htm
Sense of community on the Net
BY ELIZABETH WEISE
USA Today
GardenWeb is a thriving on-line enclave. As many as 15,000 users a day drop in
to discuss keeping aphids at bay, growing eggplants and learning the habits of
scented geraniums.

-------------------------------------------------------
E-commerce firms try community
By Troy Wolverton
June 28, 1999, 7:30 a.m. PT
http://www.news.com/News/Item/0%2C4%2C38439%2C00.html?sas.mail

Building communities on commerce sites may help boost customer loyalty, but
some companies are finding that monitoring them comes with a price tag and a
few headaches.

With message boards, customer reviews, and discussion groups popping up
like daisies, sites such as eBay, Amazon.com, and Expedia have become more
than just places to buy. Customers share their experiences, make
recommendations, and post criticisms of the sites, all of which can be of
value to an e-commerce firm looking for an edge over the ever-growing
competition.

In addition, studies indicate that online shoppers are not particularly
loyal to individual stores--and e-commerce firms are hoping their community
features will bring users back for more.

That strategy is not without potential pitfalls. Analysts are mixed on
whether the pros of community features outweigh the cons.
Geoffrey Bock, senior consultant at the Patricia Seybold Group, said
e-commerce companies need to "think long and hard" about how they add
community features to their sites to avoid contentious forums that might
offend customers.

Online auction site eBay encountered the darker side of its community
earlier this month when a flame war between some of its users broke out on
its message boards. After the flames turned into personal attacks, the
company took action against some 25 users, asking some to stop posting to
the boards and suspending others completely.

Matt Bannick, vice president of customer service at eBay, acknowledged
that although a good community experience can greatly affect a customer's
opinion of the site, it is difficult to oversee the company's message
boards, both logistically and financially.

Ken Cassar, an analyst with research firm Jupiter Communications, pointed
out that a big down side of building community on a commerce site is the
cost of monitoring it, as Amazon must do with book and music reviews posted
on the site by customers. Commerce sites monitoring message boards and
postings run the risk of being "distracted from their core role as sellers
of products," he said.

"It may be presumptuous for any one business to believe that it can do
both well," he said.

But Bannick said eBay views community building as essential to its
business. The boards not only give eBay users an outlet to vent their
frustrations--they also provide eBay with valuable feedback.
"We get a lot of criticism," Bannick said. "But the reality is that we
have a lot to learn. By listening, we can continue to improve."

International Data Corporation analyst Jill Frankle said the benefits of
community interaction on e-commerce sites outweigh any negatives. People are
seeking opinions of other online users, Frankle said, adding that criticism
of the firm on its sites shouldn't affect overall sales.

"Nobody would be doing this type of thing if it wasn't driving usage or
driving commerce," she said.

Hi everyone,

We are looking for great engineers and product managers.  Here's the
engineering job descriptions.  I'll be sending out the product marketing
job descriptions soon. Please apply and/or pass on to your friends and
colleagues.  Building this company is going to be a lot of fun!

Cynthia
----------------------------------------------------------
Cynthia Typaldos - Founder & CEO, RealCommunities, Inc
http://www.realcommunities.com/
ct@...  408 867-8875 (phone)  -8295 (fax)
14510 Big Basin Way, Suite 285, Saratoga, CA 95070
Instructor:  "Web Communities" at UC Berkeley Extension
http://www.typaldos.com/webmarketing/ucb/spring99.html

RealCommunities seeks outstanding engineering talent

RealCommunities, Inc. is an Internet start-up building web community
infrastructure and applications for consumer and business web sites.  The
company's business model is based on software licensing, services, and
sharing of transaction fees.  RealCommunities has received a substantial
seed round of funding primarily through customer pre-paid license and
service fees.  The management team includes CEO Cynthia Typaldos, a
well-known expert on Web Communities, a co-founder of GolfWeb,  and
previously Director of Software Marketing at Sun, and VP of Engineering
Bhaskar Prabhala, an experienced engineering manager from Sun and ePLAY.
The company is seeking key personnel to be part of the core team to define
and build the web's first customizable and extensible community
infrastructure for deployment on high traffic content and ecommerce web sites.
The company is located in Cupertino.

Product Architect

Responsible for overall architecture of our community infrastructure
products. Will lead the design and implementation of our backend system
which includes scheduling, report generation and transaction modules. The
system needs to be highly scalable and reliable. Will be working with
product development team and will provide technical guidance in designing
and implementation. Two to three years of experience as a project leader
and 5-7 years in software development is required. Experience with bringing
up a web community backend system is a plus. Working knowledge of various
web based client server technologies is required. Requires team leadership
skills and willing to work in a startup environment.  MS in computer
science or  equivalent is preferred.

Web Community Software Engineer

Responsibilities include design and implementation of modules in our
community infrastructure products. Knowledge of various web based
technologies is preferred. Experience with web servers and systems with
database backend or transaction processing systems is required. Must have
experience in bringing up web sites on Unix or NT platforms, and
programming with a scripting language. Must be able to take third party
toolkits or software modules, modify/customize them and integrate in our
products. Three to five years of experience in software development is
required.  BS/MS in computer science or equivalent.

Webmaster/producer

Will be responsible for bringing up and maintaining our web site for both
external and internal use. Must have experience with web authoring and
graphics artwork tools. Two years experience in developing web sites with
HTML, scripting languages, and SQL is required. Experience in linking pages
between different web sites is a plus. Will be working with our partners
under tight schedules. Will be responsible for all the details and driving
action items related to our web site.

Product Managers

The company is also seeking senior product managers.  For details please
contact ct@....

Contact Information

To apply for any of the above engineering jobs please contact Bhaskar
Prabhala, VP of Engineering at bp@... or call him at 408
973-7215, fax 408 867-8295.

Engineering Job Descriptions Rev 1
6/23/99

http://www.businessweek.com/ebiz/index.html

No news here, but interesting that this article is in Bus Week, or at least
Bus
Week online.

-- Cynthia

BUSINESS WEEK E.BIZ

Building Global Communities
How business is partnering with sites that draw together like-minded
consumers

Executives at Warner Brothers (TWX) Online were fed up. For years, they had
looked on as fans of Bugs Bunny, Batman, the Tazmanian Devil, and other
characters banded together and hoisted brand images and sound clips onto
personal home pages in cybercommunities such as GeoCities and Tripod. What
really grated was the way the site operators were selling ad space on those
pages. ''They were underwriting the cost of copyright infringement,'' fumes
Warner Online President Jim Moloshok.

Warner wasn't about to sue its own fans. Instead, in January, Moloshok
formed a
joint venture with FortuneCity, a fast-growing online community based in
London. Together, they created a site called ACMEcity as a beacon for fans
around the world. The site has built home pages for 150,000 registered members
in two months--luring many of them away from GeoCities and Tripod with
giveaways.

Companies like Warner are finding much to love about online communities. Once
the frontier towns of the Net, these sites have blossomed into digital
metropolises. Their combined membership probably exceeds 25 million, if you
count some 16 million subscribers to America Online Inc. (AOL). Few of the
sites
are profitable as businesses. But companies are racing to partner with online
communities--or build their own--in hopes of solving two of the toughest
challenges on the Net: Reaching customers all over the planet and
understanding
who they are.

Like the Internet itself, online communities are often global from Day One. As
Net-based communications obliterate national boundaries, these sites draw
together like-minded individuals who would never converge in the real world. A
unit of AOL called ICQ, for example, provides instant messaging to hip young
members scattered from Fresno to Finland, and provides space for their home
pages. Jupiter Communications figures 45% of new home pages at community sites
are now going up outside the U.S.

Just as important to businesses, communities thrive on experimentation. First,
they popularized online chat and ''buddies'' networks. Today, these
neighborhoods are incubators for trends in E-business. ''We've built massive
Web sites with millions of relationships to consumers,'' says Bo Peabody,
President and CEO of Tripod, a trendy community owned by Internet portal Lycos
(LCOS). ''Now, we're finding ways to make those relationships profitable.''

The road to community business is already strewn with advertising. In both
GeoCities and Tripod, banner ads blink and scroll across most prominent Web
pages. But like neighborhoods in the real world, online communities have
unique
sensibilities. So site owners and marketers are struggling to invent what
Peabody calls ''commerce plus compassion.''

INFO IN EXCHANGE. To see how it works, consider the reasons cybernauts
flock to
communities. Mostly, it's the desire to know your neighbors and interact with
them. Many sites encourage this by offering free or discounted real
estate--meaning storage space for personal home pages on a computer server.
Many sites build the home page for new members--asking for nothing in return
except personal information on a registration form that includes name and
address, marital status, and hobbies.

Site owners can use this information to fine-tune the online experience by
making advertising, contests, and rewards programs more relevant. At sites for
music and film buffs, the banner ads flog online music stores and DVDs. These
vendors usually can't access the sites' registration lists. But site owners
will give them enough general data for them to target ad pitches.

Even without registration details, marketers on community sites are
swimming in
info. They can visit neighborhood chat rooms and bulletin boards or browse
photo galleries and music rooms on personal home pages. With smart software
tools, vendors can parse these snippets for tips on consumer trends.
Sometimes,
site owners do it for them. Exploiting such tools, Tripod has managed to sort
over 85% of its Web pages into categories.

When it comes to raising money, however, most sites are looking beyond banner
ads. Tripod's owner, Lycos, is now merging with USA Network to create a
sprawling conglomerate that includes an online auction site called First
Auction, TicketMaster Online-CitySearch, and a separate community called
Angelfire. As these properties become integrated, Tripod and Lycos will be
able
to aggregate member purchasing power to win discounts on consumer products and
services. First Auction will help homesteaders conduct personal auctions from
their home pages. ''These online properties will link up to form massive
electronic buying and selling chains,'' predicts Tripod's Peabody.

Companies like Warner that run their own sites acquire a precious commodity:
knowledge. In return for low-cost giveaways and perks--character images, film
previews, and online chat with actors from TV shows such as Friends and
Babylon
5--Warner gets personal info galore from the registration forms.

With that comes responsibilities for site owners. Fresh in everyone's
memory is
the scandal that engulfed GeoCities last summer, when the Federal Trade
Commission accused the site owners of selling members' personal information to
outside marketers. GeoCities denied the charge but agreed to bolster privacy
enforcement.

Even without abuse of privacy, however, advertising can rub homesteaders the
wrong way. Stick a Coca-Cola ad in a chat room, and participants will quickly
start flaming Coke, notes Jupiter analyst Patrick Keane. So when Japan's
Fujitsu Ltd. introduced advertisements on its 3-D site called WorldsAway, it
tastefully disguised them as objects. Click on a flower pot, and it takes you
to PC Flowers. World manager Timothy J. Lavalli, a PhD anthropologist, is now
building incentives into the fiber of the virtual world. For example, members
who spend $50 or more in on-site E-commerce might find their $9.95 monthly fee
waved, he says. Advertisers also pay more when they see that members are
willing to spend money.

A newer community called CyberSites goes even further: It tactfully surveys
members before exposing them to ads, negotiates group discounts on products
that are sold on-site, and allows each member to edit his or her online
profile
to accommodate shifting tastes. Step by step, companies and customers are
learning to be neighbors. In a community, they can also be partners.

BY NEIL GROSS

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/1999/06/15
/BU85526.DTL
Schwab to Open Online Stock Forum
Discussion area will be tightly controlled to guard against fraud

Sam Zuckerman, Chronicle Staff Writer

This NEWS.COM (http://www.news.com/) story has been sent to you from 
cynthia@....

Message from sender:
    Identity has real value!
-------------------------------------------------------
eBay plays hardball with feedback ratings
By Tim Clark
June 10, 1999, 8:00 a.m. PT
http://www.news.com/News/Item/0%2C4%2C37631%2C00.html?sas.mail

        In a business where reputation counts, eBay is quietly moving  to limit
its sellers' bragging rights when they move to rival auction  sites.

   At issue is the right to use eBay's  so-called "feedback ratings," which are
logged in as buyers and sellers  rate their experience when doing a transaction
on eBay. Transactions are  ranked as positive, negative, or neutral, and those
votes are turned into  numerical ratings, which eBay uses to measure user
satisfaction.

   eBay claims these ratings are proprietary and cannot be cited on other 
person-to-person auction sites, a stance that underscores larger,  controversial
issues of who owns data on a Web site. Indeed, tiny,  Toronto-based auction site
eDeal is  rebelling against the rule and continues to let users cite their eBay 
ratings on its site. The firm said it is openly defying what it calls an 
"ultimatum" from eBay's legal staff to stop.

   Meanwhile, Yahoo Auctions quickly  complied with eBay's demand earlier this
spring.

   High ratings are coveted by those who sell at online  auction sites as they 
indicate a record of positive eBay transactions. Scores can run into the 
hundreds, and too many negative ratings can get buyers or sellers kicked off 
the eBay site.

   "In the person-to-person market, reputation is extremely important," said 
Leon Kuperman, chief technology officer at eDeal, who said he hasn't heard  from
eBay since late April. "You may have a history of 100 completed  transactions
somewhere else, and you want to carry your own reputation to a  new auction
site. We see it as being the customer reputation that is  protected."

   eBay spokesman Kevin Pursglove said the company agrees that the ratings are 
important, but says the ratings belong to eBay, not the sellers, and should  not
be publicized on competing sites.

   Earlier this year eBay added a new clause on feedback ratings to its user 
agreement that states: "Because feedback ratings are not designed for  any
purpose other than for facilitating trading for eBay users, we may  suspend or
terminate your  account if you choose to market or promote your eBay feedback
rating on  any venue other than eBay."

   That clause makes the ratings eBay's proprietary information and allows the 
company to control the "potential for abuse" if sellers begin to inflate  their
eBay ratings at other sites, Pursglove said.

   But for eDeal, freedom to share information on the Net outranks all other 
arguments.

   "We feel like it's almost a First Amendment issue," said eDeal's Kuperman. 
"The customer has done all that work to build a reputation, and we don't  see
why [the information] doesn't belong to the customer itself  instead of eBay,
which is just the venue."

   Earlier this spring, Yahoo Auctions abruptly ended  what it now calls "an
experiment" over several days that allowed sellers to  cite their eBay ratings
in their Yahoo Auctions profiles. Yahoo declined to  say whether eBay had
contacted them.

   But the question of who owns the data published on a Web site raises  broader
issues, which may indicate why Yahoo decided to drop its "import  ratings"
feature so quickly.

   "There are some pretty big implications that go much beyond auctions," said 
Tim Brady, Yahoo's executive producer who oversees Yahoo Auctions, citing  as an
example software programs that allow individuals to move personal home  pages
created on one hosting site to another service.

   "It's the user's time, the user's data, and it's your tools. So who owns  that
data?" Brady said. "We want to do what's right for the user, but...we  need to
be sensitive as to what precedents we're setting."

   Similar issues have been tackled by Web publishers which objected when sites 
such as TotalNews "framed"  copyrighted  content from publishers, then sold
advertising in those frames. The  Washington Post, Washington Times Mirror, Time
Warner, CNN, Dow Jones, and  Reuters New Media sued TotalNews in February 1997,
then settled the suit in June 1997  when TotalNews agreed to use hyperlinks
rather than frames.

   eDeal's Kuperman said his firm remained silent for six weeks about eBay's 
stance on feedback ratings because eDeal may propose a free clearinghouse  that
would collect ratings from all auction sites and post them  at a central
location. He estimates there are 10 general  person-to-person auctions and
another 40 niche sites.

   A decision on that plan is expected by the end of June.

   Yahoo's Brady thinks the idea may have merit, though he stopped short of 
endorsing it.

   "From a user standpoint, the ability to carry your reputation around with  you
is awesome, and anything to facilitate that is a good thing," Brady  said.




-------------------------------------------------------

A friend of mine sent this to me...

Cynthia

Subject: FYI: PR opportunity
Date: Wed, 9 Jun 99 09:58:27 -0700
To:
<cynthia@...>

Cynthia -
I just noticed this in a PRNewsWire service I subscribe to called ProfNet
and thought of you. I think Media Insider is a PRNewsWire service. Feel
free to contact them directly if interested. You can mention that you
heard about it from me if you wish.
Carol

VIRTUAL COMMUNITIES - MEDIA INSIDER. We seek experts on virtual
communities who are willing to offer their experience and advice in an
online discussions hosted in coming weeks by Media Insider. We're
particularly interested in experts who can discuss any aspect of what
makes successful virtual communities tick, new technologies that are
making virtual communities possible, and the role of public relations
practitioners in creating virtual communities. Will appreciate your
forwarding leads at your convenience to dan_forbush@...
Thanks. >>> DF [cm::6/9:1564]

The link to the Vircomm Report should have been:
http://www.onlinecommunityreport.com/features/vircomm99/

They left out the .com in the newsletter below.

It's worth reading.

Cynthia

At 09:42 PM 5/31/99 -0700, Cynthia Typaldos wrote:
>
> In case you are not getting this directly.
>
> Cynthia
>
> X-Sender: jcashel@...
> X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Pro Version 3.0.3 (32)
> Date: Mon, 31 May 1999 19:48:35 -0700
> To: report@...
> From: Jim Cashel <cashel@...>
> Subject: Online Community Report
> Mime-Version: 1.0
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
> X-Rcpt-To: cynthia@...
> X-UIDL: 2b910c9e9b1c96e0872550b8f2539820
>
>
> ********************************************************
> * ONLINE COMMUNITY REPORT
> * Newsletter for Online Community Builders
> * Editors: Dan Shafer, Jim Cashel
> * June 1, 1999 | http://www.OnlineCommunityReport.com
> ********************************************************
> **** CONTENTS ****
> - Dan Shafer Joins Online Community Report
> - Delphi Partners wtih Xoom, Fox, Advance
> - Deja News Becomes Deja.com, Relaunches Service
> - Deja News Privacy Policy Overhauled
> - Talk City Files for IPO
> - Salon.com IPO Bidding Open Until June 14
> - Ticketmaster Online - CitySearch Acquires Match.com
> - Community Connection Launches in Singapore
> - Pathfinder to Pull Plug
> - Online Death Threats Force Forum Policy Changes
> - CollegeClub Offers First Virtual Commencement
> - Forum One Communications Launches Forum One Capital
> - Jobs
> - Articles and Resources
> - Feature: Review of Vircomm99
> - Feature: 30 Features To Consider When Choosing Forum Software
> **** SPONSOR'S MESSAGE ****
> People are talking...
> Star Wars...Ally McBeal...Y2K...Cheap Wine...Wrestling...Ambiguita...
> We may just have an email list for you.
> Or, start your own. FREE.
> Topica. Email lists for everyone. <http://www.topica.com/partner/one>
> **** NEWS ****
> * DAN SHAFER JOINS ONLINE COMMUNITY REPORT
> The Online Community Report is pleased to announce the appointment of Dan
> Shafer as Senior Co-editor. Dan most recently served as Editorial Director
> at CNET's Builder.com site, where he is now Editor at Large focused on the
> site's community site, Builder Buzz, and the annual Builder.com Live!
> conference. Dan's the author of over 40 books on technical themes, and one
> of the web's true authorities on online communities, having helped start
> both Salon Magazine's Table Talk and CNET's Builder Buzz. We're delighted
> to have him! <http://www.OnlineCommunityReport.com/shafer.htm>
>
> * DELPHI PARTNERS WITH XOOM, FOX, ADVANCE
> Delphi Forums has partnered with three major organizations to provide "host
> your own" forum capabilities: Xoom.com, News America Digital Publishing
> (owners of Fox), and Advance Publications Internet. The new partners boast
> a user base of approximately 19 million.
> Press release: <http://www.delphi.com/dir-app/service/press/newpartners.asp>
> * DEJA NEWS BECOMES DEJA.COM, RELAUNCHES SERVICE
> Deja News has changed its name to Deja.com. Simultaneously it has
> relaunched its service, offering community search and hosting capabilities
> as before, and introducing a new "Deja Ratings" service which allows users
> to share experience on consumer products and activities. Both the name
> change and new presentation distance the company further from its Usenet
> roots and closer to e-commerce. <http://www.deja.com>.
> * DEJA NEWS PRIVACY POLICY OVERHAULED
> In an unrelated development, Deja News, now Deja.com, has announced it is
> discontinuing a previously undisclosed policy of capturing navigation and
> email information about its users and members. A company spokesperson said
> the information had never been used with respect to individuals but said
> the company takes privacy seriously and will change its policy. A software
> developer first noted the practice and brought it to the attention of a
> news group. Computerworld article:
> <http://www.computerworld.com/home/news.nsf/CWFlash/9904305dejanews>
>
> * TALK CITY FILES FOR IPO
> Talk City, an online community site, has filed for IPO. Talk City shows
> 1998 revenue of $1.5 million and 1998 net loss of $15.7
> million.<http://www.talkcity.com/corp/4-30-99.htmpl> News.com:
> <http://www.news.com/News/Item/0,4,36017,00.html> Hoover's Online
> <http://www.ipocentral.com/ml_ipo/59747ml.html>
> * SALON.COM IPO BIDDING OPEN UNTIL JUNE 14
> Salon.com's IPO is open to individual bidding until June 14th. Salon.com
> is the second firm to use the "open IPO" model pioneered by W.R. Hambrecht
> and Co. Salon.com has been a leader in the community space with its Table
> Talk discussion area and recently acquired the long-established Well online
> community.
> <http://www.openipo.com/OpenIPO/base/BriefCen/bcendetail.htm?AucID=6>
> * TICKETMASTER ONLINE-CITYSEARCH ACQUIRES MATCH.COM
> Ticketmaster Online - CitySearch agreed to acquire web dating service
> Match.com from Cendant for a reported $50 million in stock.
> <http://www.matchnewscenter.com/cgi-bin/action/viewentry.cgi?id=1004>
>
> * COMMUNITY CONNECTION LAUNCHES IN SINGAPORE
> A new virtual community network launched May 15th in Singapore. "Community
> Connection" includes 13 virtual communities in business, entertainment,
> lifestyle, education and other themes. <http://www.coolconnect.com>
>
> * PATHFINDER TO PULL PLUG
> Time Warner has decided to abandon its five-year-long effort to create an
> umbrella Pathfinder brand and will instead let its individual media
> properties go their own way online. The company has announced that it has
> begun a six-month phase-out of Pathfinder in response to users who insisted
> on continuing to head straight to the company's long-established brands
> such as Time, Inc. Time Warner plans to try to tie the independent brands
> into a single eCommerce platform as part of the transition. Forum One
> currently counts over 700,000 message postings in Pathfinder boards, making
> Pathfinder one of the ten largest services in the Forum One Index.
> <http://www.pathfinder.com>
> Industry Standard article:
> <http://www.thestandard.com/articles/display/0,1449,4364,00.html>
> News.com article: <http://www.news.com/News/Item/0,4,35628,00.html>.
> * ONLINE DEATH THREATS FORCE FORUM POLICY CHANGES
> Stockhouse.com says it will tighten the monitoring and elimination of
> inappropriate postings following death threats leveled against executives
> of Bid.com posted on numerous bulletin boards. PRNewswire (unframed):
>
<http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/04-2
> 8-1999/0000921001&EDATE=>.
> * COLLEGECLUB OFFERS FIRST VIRTUAL COMMENCEMENT
> CollegeClub offered on May 19th what it billed as the first "virtual
> commencement". Ceremonies featured a commencement address by unannounced
> presidential candidate Elizabeth Dole. <http://www.collegeclub.com/dole/>
> * FORUM ONE COMMUNICATIONS LAUNCHES FORUM ONE CAPITAL
> Forum One Communications has announced the launch of a transactions unit
> called Forum One Capital. The new unit will be responsible for advising
> and negotiating merger and acquisition deals involving online communities.
> <http://www.ForumOne.com/capital>
> **** JOBS ****
> [No current listings. Post your openings here!]
> **** ARTICLES AND RESOURCES ****
> * Virtual Community Bookstore created by David Woolley
> <http://thinkofit.com/webconf/wcbooks.htm>
> *** FEATURES ***
> * STATUS OF ONLINE COMMUNITIES / REPORT FROM VIRCOMM99
> Dan Shafer, who joins the Online Community Report this month as Senior
> Co-Editor, recounts his experiences at and viewpoints on the recent
> VirComm99 conference held in San Francisco. There's a lot of good, some
> bad, and nothing particularly ugly to report.
> <http://www.OnlineCommunityReport/features/vircomm99>
> * 30 FEATURES TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING FORUM SOFTWARE
> Choosing forum software is one of the most daunting challenges facing
> community builders. There are dozens of products, hundreds of features,
> and rapid evolution in the industry from month to month. This article
> summarizes 30 key features to consider when choosing forum software.
> <http://www.OnlineCommunityReport.com/features/30
> Please write us if you have comments, information, job postings or
> announcements which should be included in a future Online Community Report.
> Press releases can be sent to report@....
> *********
> ONLINE COMMUNITY REPORT is a free monthly publication edited by Dan Shafer
> <dan@...> and Jim Cashel <cashel@...>, with assistance from
> the staff of Forum One Communications Corporation. If you would like to be
> included in or excluded from this mailing list, please visit
> <http://www.OnlineCommunityReport.com>. Comments and information are
> welcome. The Report is also available online at
> <http://www.OnlineCommunityReport.com>.
> Republication of part or all of this report is allowed as long as the
> Online Community Report is credited.
> Forum One Communications maintains the Forum One Index
> <http://www.ForumOne.com> tracking over 280,000 web forum discussions, and
> also provides consulting services to organizations building, managing, or
> selling online communities <http://www.ForumOne.com/consult>.
> (c) 1999 Online Community Report / Forum One Communications Corporation
> *******

In case you are not getting this directly.

Cynthia

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********************************************************
* ONLINE COMMUNITY REPORT
* Newsletter for Online Community Builders
* Editors: Dan Shafer, Jim Cashel
* June 1, 1999 | http://www.OnlineCommunityReport.com
********************************************************
**** CONTENTS ****
- Dan Shafer Joins Online Community Report
- Delphi Partners wtih Xoom, Fox, Advance
- Deja News Becomes Deja.com, Relaunches Service
- Deja News Privacy Policy Overhauled
- Talk City Files for IPO
- Salon.com IPO Bidding Open Until June 14
- Ticketmaster Online - CitySearch Acquires Match.com
- Community Connection Launches in Singapore
- Pathfinder to Pull Plug
- Online Death Threats Force Forum Policy Changes
- CollegeClub Offers First Virtual Commencement
- Forum One Communications Launches Forum One Capital
- Jobs
- Articles and Resources
- Feature: Review of Vircomm99
- Feature: 30 Features To Consider When Choosing Forum Software
**** SPONSOR'S MESSAGE ****
People are talking...
Star Wars...Ally McBeal...Y2K...Cheap Wine...Wrestling...Ambiguita...
We may just have an email list for you.
Or, start your own. FREE.
Topica. Email lists for everyone. <http://www.topica.com/partner/one>
**** NEWS ****
* DAN SHAFER JOINS ONLINE COMMUNITY REPORT
The Online Community Report is pleased to announce the appointment of Dan
Shafer as Senior Co-editor. Dan most recently served as Editorial Director
at CNET's Builder.com site, where he is now Editor at Large focused on the
site's community site, Builder Buzz, and the annual Builder.com Live!
conference. Dan's the author of over 40 books on technical themes, and one
of the web's true authorities on online communities, having helped start
both Salon Magazine's Table Talk and CNET's Builder Buzz. We're delighted
to have him! <http://www.OnlineCommunityReport.com/shafer.htm>

* DELPHI PARTNERS WITH XOOM, FOX, ADVANCE
Delphi Forums has partnered with three major organizations to provide "host
your own" forum capabilities: Xoom.com, News America Digital Publishing
(owners of Fox), and Advance Publications Internet. The new partners boast
a user base of approximately 19 million.
Press release: <http://www.delphi.com/dir-app/service/press/newpartners.asp>
* DEJA NEWS BECOMES DEJA.COM, RELAUNCHES SERVICE
Deja News has changed its name to Deja.com. Simultaneously it has
relaunched its service, offering community search and hosting capabilities
as before, and introducing a new "Deja Ratings" service which allows users
to share experience on consumer products and activities. Both the name
change and new presentation distance the company further from its Usenet
roots and closer to e-commerce. <http://www.deja.com>.
* DEJA NEWS PRIVACY POLICY OVERHAULED
In an unrelated development, Deja News, now Deja.com, has announced it is
discontinuing a previously undisclosed policy of capturing navigation and
email information about its users and members. A company spokesperson said
the information had never been used with respect to individuals but said
the company takes privacy seriously and will change its policy. A software
developer first noted the practice and brought it to the attention of a
news group. Computerworld article:
<http://www.computerworld.com/home/news.nsf/CWFlash/9904305dejanews>

* TALK CITY FILES FOR IPO
Talk City, an online community site, has filed for IPO. Talk City shows
1998 revenue of $1.5 million and 1998 net loss of $15.7
million.<http://www.talkcity.com/corp/4-30-99.htmpl> News.com:
<http://www.news.com/News/Item/0,4,36017,00.html> Hoover's Online
<http://www.ipocentral.com/ml_ipo/59747ml.html>
* SALON.COM IPO BIDDING OPEN UNTIL JUNE 14
Salon.com's IPO is open to individual bidding until June 14th. Salon.com
is the second firm to use the "open IPO" model pioneered by W.R. Hambrecht
and Co. Salon.com has been a leader in the community space with its Table
Talk discussion area and recently acquired the long-established Well online
community.
<http://www.openipo.com/OpenIPO/base/BriefCen/bcendetail.htm?AucID=6>
* TICKETMASTER ONLINE-CITYSEARCH ACQUIRES MATCH.COM
Ticketmaster Online - CitySearch agreed to acquire web dating service
Match.com from Cendant for a reported $50 million in stock.
<http://www.matchnewscenter.com/cgi-bin/action/viewentry.cgi?id=1004>

* COMMUNITY CONNECTION LAUNCHES IN SINGAPORE
A new virtual community network launched May 15th in Singapore. "Community
Connection" includes 13 virtual communities in business, entertainment,
lifestyle, education and other themes. <http://www.coolconnect.com>

* PATHFINDER TO PULL PLUG
Time Warner has decided to abandon its five-year-long effort to create an
umbrella Pathfinder brand and will instead let its individual media
properties go their own way online. The company has announced that it has
begun a six-month phase-out of Pathfinder in response to users who insisted
on continuing to head straight to the company's long-established brands
such as Time, Inc. Time Warner plans to try to tie the independent brands
into a single eCommerce platform as part of the transition. Forum One
currently counts over 700,000 message postings in Pathfinder boards, making
Pathfinder one of the ten largest services in the Forum One Index.
<http://www.pathfinder.com>
Industry Standard article:
<http://www.thestandard.com/articles/display/0,1449,4364,00.html>
News.com article: <http://www.news.com/News/Item/0,4,35628,00.html>.
* ONLINE DEATH THREATS FORCE FORUM POLICY CHANGES
Stockhouse.com says it will tighten the monitoring and elimination of
inappropriate postings following death threats leveled against executives
of Bid.com posted on numerous bulletin boards. PRNewswire (unframed):
<http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/04-2
8-1999/0000921001&EDATE=>.
* COLLEGECLUB OFFERS FIRST VIRTUAL COMMENCEMENT
CollegeClub offered on May 19th what it billed as the first "virtual
commencement". Ceremonies featured a commencement address by unannounced
presidential candidate Elizabeth Dole. <http://www.collegeclub.com/dole/>
* FORUM ONE COMMUNICATIONS LAUNCHES FORUM ONE CAPITAL
Forum One Communications has announced the launch of a transactions unit
called Forum One Capital. The new unit will be responsible for advising
and negotiating merger and acquisition deals involving online communities.
<http://www.ForumOne.com/capital>
**** JOBS ****
[No current listings. Post your openings here!]
**** ARTICLES AND RESOURCES ****
* Virtual Community Bookstore created by David Woolley
<http://thinkofit.com/webconf/wcbooks.htm>
*** FEATURES ***
* STATUS OF ONLINE COMMUNITIES / REPORT FROM VIRCOMM99
Dan Shafer, who joins the Online Community Report this month as Senior
Co-Editor, recounts his experiences at and viewpoints on the recent
VirComm99 conference held in San Francisco. There's a lot of good, some
bad, and nothing particularly ugly to report.
<http://www.OnlineCommunityReport/features/vircomm99>
* 30 FEATURES TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING FORUM SOFTWARE
Choosing forum software is one of the most daunting challenges facing
community builders. There are dozens of products, hundreds of features,
and rapid evolution in the industry from month to month. This article
summarizes 30 key features to consider when choosing forum software.
<http://www.OnlineCommunityReport.com/features/30
Please write us if you have comments, information, job postings or
announcements which should be included in a future Online Community Report.
Press releases can be sent to report@....
*********
ONLINE COMMUNITY REPORT is a free monthly publication edited by Dan Shafer
<dan@...> and Jim Cashel <cashel@...>, with assistance from
the staff of Forum One Communications Corporation. If you would like to be
included in or excluded from this mailing list, please visit
<http://www.OnlineCommunityReport.com>. Comments and information are
welcome. The Report is also available online at
<http://www.OnlineCommunityReport.com>.
Republication of part or all of this report is allowed as long as the
Online Community Report is credited.
Forum One Communications maintains the Forum One Index
<http://www.ForumOne.com> tracking over 280,000 web forum discussions, and
also provides consulting services to organizations building, managing, or
selling online communities <http://www.ForumOne.com/consult>.
(c) 1999 Online Community Report / Forum One Communications Corporation
*******

http://www.internetwire.com/technews/tn/tn982722.dsl

WHOLEFOODS.COM LAUNCHES COMMUNITY COMPONENT
IN-STORE MARKETING CAMPAIGN IN FULL EFFECT

AUSTIN, TX -- (INTERNET WIRE) -- 05/17/99 -- WholeFoods.com announces that
the company has launched the interactive online community component of its
e-commerce website. The site's commerce and content components went live in
March.

The new interactive elements of the WholeFoods.com website include online
forums and live chats that allow visitors interested in natural and organic
products to share ideas and hold discussions with other WholeFoods.com
shoppers.

According to WholeFoods.com Director of Community Jon Lebkowsky,
WholeFoods.com's community function is critical to the company's goal of
using the website to replicate the Whole Foods Market shopping experience.

"Our website is a community. That differentiates us from other online
grocers," said Lebkowsky. "Not only can our visitors purchase the natural
and organic products Whole Foods Market is known for, they can also get
product information and participate in our forums and live chats with
others in the natural and organic foods community across the country."

Meanwhile, the company has officially kicked off its in-store promotional
effort to drive traffic to the website. The campaign has been implemented
at all 94 Whole Foods Market stores nationwide and is the cornerstone of a
unique e-commerce approach that is making waves throughout the industry.
The campaign consists of a comprehensive program of online couponing,
in-store signage, an employee referral program and customer handouts with
direct incentives to try the site.

The primary component of the program is an in-store signage campaign
directing customers to the website and inviting them to, "get the whole
story at WholeFoods.com." The intention of the signs is to increase
consumer awareness and direct traffic to the WholeFoods.com site.

The second component of the promotional campaign is the Team Member
Incentive Program (TIP). The TIP program rewards Whole Foods Market's more
than 14,000 team members for sending customers to WholeFoods.com. In
addition to the team member bonuses, WholeFoods.com will supply team
members with buttons, t-shirts, coupons and business reply cards that
encourage registration and purchases on the website.

The third campaign component includes in-store customer handouts in the
form of coupon books for $10 or $5 off the customer's first order at
WholeFoods.com. In addition, the site offers visitors a chance to enter its
$5,000 Registration Sweepstakes to win $5,000 in Whole Foods Market gift
certificates.

The WholeFoods.com campaign has gained the attention of industry analysts
and made others in the online arena take notice. According to The Yankee
Group's Melissa Bane, WholeFoods.com's e-commerce business plan is "a good
example of how brick-and-mortar retailers can maximize the existing
customer and employee bases to succeed online."

WholeFoods.com is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Whole Foods Market, Inc.
(NASDAQ: WFMI), the nation's largest chain of natural food supermarkets.
The company is the most valuable Internet resource for consumers interested
in healthy lifestyles. WholeFoods.com offers the highest quality natural
foods and products available to Americans from coast-to-coast. The company
is located on the World Wide Web at www.wholefoods.com.

Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters
discussed in this press release are forward looking statements that involve
risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to general business
conditions, the timely development and opening of new stores, the impact of
competition, unanticipated costs or problems relating to Y2K compliance and
other risks detailed from time to time in the Company's SEC reports,
including the report on Form 10K for the year ended September 27, 1998.
Whole Foods Market, Inc. does not undertake any obligation to update
forward looking statements.

Return-Path: cduff@...

From: cduff@... (Charles Duff)

To: <<cynthia@...>

Subject: The News Story about Third Voice was in Nandotimes this morning:
has more detail

Date: Mon, 17 May 1999 08:46:17 -0700

X-MSMail-Priority: Normal

X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V5.00.2014.211

X-Rcpt-To: cynthia@...


<smaller>

<fontfamily><param>arial</param>REDWOOD CITY, Calif. (May 17, 1999 7:46
a.m. EDT
<underline><color><param>0000,0000,fefe</param><smaller>http://www.nandotimes.co\
m</smaller></color></underline>)
- The World Wide Web already has a reputation for clutter, but new
software that lets online users post their comments and complaints on
virtual sticky notes could make it downright disheveled. The software
from Third Voice can be downloaded for free.


"Third Voice creates for the first time a system of checks and balances
on the Internet," said Chris Shipley, editor of DemoLetter, a technology
newsletter. "There is now a way to communicate at the point of context,
which has tremendous implications."


Not everyone is going to enjoy the effect.


Web shoppers can stick a note on a retailer's site to complain they've
seen the same item for $10 less elsewhere. Financial pundits can add
warnings to corporate earnings reports. Voters can contradict
politicians, alternative healers can rebut doctors.


"Don't buy this," said a note that popped up during a test of the system.
"This product is terrible."


Here's how it works:


First, you download Third Voice software from its Internet site and
install it on your computer. When you want to add a comment to a Web
site, you simply click on an icon on your screen, type in your message
and post it on the site. Third Voice messages can be inserted on any page
where there is text. The creator of the page can't remove your comment.


The software also allows you to see the comments of others. If too many
comments are attached to one spot, an icon will appear on that spot.
Clicking the icon will give the reader a list of all comments, 10 at a
time.


If you don't want to see any comments, you can simply turn Third Voice
off.


Third Voice CEO and co-founder Eng-Siong Tan says the company won't
restrict most comments, but an editorial team will take complaints about
offensive or illegal speech from users of the service and assess whether
the comments should be removed, similar to the way America Online polices
its sites. In addition, comments will only be allowed from individuals,
not corporations.


"We're not going to let Chrysler go on Ford's Web site and post a note,"
said Tan, acknowledging enforcement may be difficult considering the
potential for a vast and growing number of comments.


The company will also offer a Web directory service that will rank Web
sites by the number of Third Voice comments. The directory will carry
advertising, which Tan hopes will generate income to support the venture.


But making money is his secondary goal, said Tan. "We think of this as a
small step back to the original meaning of the Web: Free, open expression
for all."


Barry Parr, research director at International Data Corp., said Third
Voice "could be a breakthrough product."


But Parr said the company faces significant challenges. The first is a
chicken-and-egg issue. Initially Web surfers may not bother to download
the Third Voice Software because the number of people posting comments is
so few.


"They also have some potential problems with spam and information quality
that are going to be harder to address, and could require a lot of human
intervention to resolve." That won't be easy for a company with 26
employees.


The technology has received some significant backing, more than $5.5
million in funds from the venture capitalists Mayfield Fund and Draper
Fisher Jurvetson.


Third Voice is also offering private forums to groups who want to comment
on specific Web pages, but do it without the world looking in.


Using this, teachers could host class discussions, researchers could peer
review documents and office workers could share project-related
information.


Leo Jolicoeur, who left his job as a vice president at the Web directory
Infoseek to run business development for Third Voice, said that
businesses could use the software to seek out and communicate directly
with their customers.


"In addition to giving every user a voice on the Web, Third Voice also
presents incredible appeal to advertisers, sponsors and transaction
partners," he said. </fontfamily></smaller>

This is interesting.  From a daily email I get called VentureWire.

Cynthia
----------------------------------------------------------
Cynthia Typaldos -- Web Communities Strategic Consulting
cynthia@...  408 867-8875 (phone)  -8295 (fax)
14510 Big Basin Way, Suite 285, Saratoga, CA 95070
Instructor:  "Web Communities" course at UC Berkeley Extension
http://www.typaldos.com/webmarketing/ucb/spring99.html
-----------------------------------------------------------

o Software Introduced for Commenting on Web Sites

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.--Third Voice has introduced
software that makes it possible to post comments on a
Web site, apparently without the permission of the site
operator. On its Web site, ThirdVoice identifies its
investors as Yogen Dalal, a partner at Mayfield Fund,
and Steve Jurvetson, managing director of Draper
Fisher Jurvetson.
http://www.thirdvoice.com

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