Kollock and Smith Usenet Reaction

In “Managing the Virtual Commons: Cooperation and Conflict in Computer Communities” , an article I read for my COM430Z class, the authors Kollock and Smith discuss Usenet and the many problems associated with communicating on the internet. According to Kollock and Smith, Usenet was “…one of the largest computer-mediated communication systems…” People from all over the world use these discussion groups, known as newsgroups, to express opinions on topics such as technical computer problems, computer games, languages and hot topic issues, such as the World Trade Center bombing. However, with this opportunity for communication solely through the computer come many complications. There must be control over what is said to ensure that nothing is overly offensive, there are rules to be followed and not a lot of support to enforce these desires. Kollock and Smith say that Ostrom, in 1990, found a number of principles that must be met in order to have a community be organized and govern themselves. Although these communities in her studies were based on face to face interactions, they can be applied to the Usenet users, as they too are a community. Ostrom states that there must be group boundaries clearly defined, rules are to match local needs, people affected by the rules should have a say in adjusting them, external authorities must respect the rules of the community, there must be a monitoring system, sanctions are necessary, and community members need access to low cost conflict resolution. All these standards are imperative for the success of the Usenet community. They must be met in order to ensure the effectiveness of Usenet and to ensure that it remains with its original purpose and meets the needs of its users.

Communicating via the computer brings about a whole new set of social standards, mildly comparable to that of face to face contact. For instance, the limit of bandwidth, the space one has available to discuss, can be compared to talking in person with someone and not monopolizing the entire conversation. Smith and Kollock also say one of the largest issues with Usenet is the free-rider problem. With the availability of Usenet to all, people put their thoughts, their ideas, their work out for the whole world to see, and “free-riders” can often take their ideas and make them their own, or go into a discussion, with none of the work done. This problem is comparable to assignments being posted for an entire class to see. I’m sure there are some students out there that don’t do the actual work, read the work of other students, and can gain an idea of what they should write. This is a major problem with students today. There are major consequences in all schools if caught, yet that is only if they are caught. People get away with taking the ideas of others and getting the same credit for contributing with someone else basically doing all the work for them. Free-riding is abusing the privileges associated with the wonderful technology we have available.