Conferencing systems are online communications facilities that allow users to log in and participate in discussions on a variety of topics. Although this is a rather amorphous cat-egory of software, some distinguishing characteristics can be identified. Conferencing is distinguished from chat or instant messaging systems because the messages are asyn-chronous (that is, one person at a time leaves a message, and there is no real-time interaction between participants). Unlike Netnews newsgroups, conferencing systems such as San Francisco Bay Area–based The Well tend to have users who are committed to long-term discussions in conferences (topical discussion areas) that tend to persist for weeks, months, or even years. Conferencing systems are often grouped under the umbrella term of Computer-Mediated Communications (CMC).
History
In the 1960s, researcher Murray Turoff at the Institute for Defense Analysis decided to adopt for computer use a dis-cussion method called Delphi, developed at RAND corpora-tion. This method was a collective process by which new ideas were discussed and voted on by a panel of experts. After he implemented Delphi as a system of messages passed via computer, he began to generalize his work into a more general method of facilitating online discussions. His Elec-tronic Information Exchange System (EIES, pronounced “eyes”) was designed to facilitate discussion within research communities of 10–50 members.
The emergence of topical online discussions can be seen in the development of the Usenet (or Netnews) newsgroups in the early 1980s, the development of communications or memo systems within large offices (particularly within the government), and the emergence of bulletin boards and online services for personal computer users. Most early news and bulletin board software had only rudimentary facilities for linking topics and responses. A more sophisti-cated approach to conferencing emerged within the PLATO educational computing network in the 1970s, in the form of Plato Notes. This system began as a simple way for users to leave messages or help requests in a text file, and evolved into a structure of “base notes” and linked response notes, a topic-and-response structure that became the general model for conferencing systems.
In the mid-1980s, the Well (Whole Earth ’Lectronic ’Link) began to provide online conferencing to anyone who subscribed. It used a text-based system called Picospan. With its improbable eclectic mix well salted with Grate-ful Dead fans and computer “nerds,” the Well became a sort of petri dish for cultivating community (see virtual community). Long-term friendships (and feuds) and occa-sional romances have been nurtured by such conferencing systems.
Typical Structure
A typical text-based conferencing system is divided into conferences, which are generally devoted to relatively broad subjects, such as UNIX, pop music, or politics. Each confer-ence is further divided into topics, which usually reflect particular aspects of the general subject (such as a particu-lar UNIX version, a pop music group, or a political issue). Most conferencing systems have a person or persons who act as a moderator (sometimes called a “host”) who tries to encourage new users, keep discussions more or less on topic, and discourage personal attacks or vehement state-ments (“flames”).
A user signs onto the system and “joins” one or more conferences. Each time the user visits a conference that he or she has joined, any topics (or responses in existing top-ics) that were posted since the last visit are presented. The user can read the postings and, if desired, enter a reply that becomes part of the thread of messages. (Users are also gen-erally allowed to start new topics of their own.)
Web-based Conferencing
Text-based systems such as Picospan are driven by the user entering command letters or words. While this paradigm is familiar to people who have experience with operating systems such as UNIX or MS-DOS, it can be more diffi-cult for users who are used to the point-and-click approach of Windows programs and the World Wide Web. Many new conferencing systems use Web pages to present confer-ence topics and messages, with buttons replacing text com-mands. (The Well continues to offer both the text-based Picospan and the Web-based Engaged.)
Although the Well and other conferencing systems such as The River continue in operation, conferencing systems have been largely supplanted by newer forms of online expression (see blogs and blogging, social network-ing, and wikis and Wikipedia). (Note that “conferenc-ing system” can also refer to video-based software such as Microsoft Live Meeting for facilitating meetings between geographically dispersed participants.)
History
In the 1960s, researcher Murray Turoff at the Institute for Defense Analysis decided to adopt for computer use a dis-cussion method called Delphi, developed at RAND corpora-tion. This method was a collective process by which new ideas were discussed and voted on by a panel of experts. After he implemented Delphi as a system of messages passed via computer, he began to generalize his work into a more general method of facilitating online discussions. His Elec-tronic Information Exchange System (EIES, pronounced “eyes”) was designed to facilitate discussion within research communities of 10–50 members.
The emergence of topical online discussions can be seen in the development of the Usenet (or Netnews) newsgroups in the early 1980s, the development of communications or memo systems within large offices (particularly within the government), and the emergence of bulletin boards and online services for personal computer users. Most early news and bulletin board software had only rudimentary facilities for linking topics and responses. A more sophisti-cated approach to conferencing emerged within the PLATO educational computing network in the 1970s, in the form of Plato Notes. This system began as a simple way for users to leave messages or help requests in a text file, and evolved into a structure of “base notes” and linked response notes, a topic-and-response structure that became the general model for conferencing systems.
In the mid-1980s, the Well (Whole Earth ’Lectronic ’Link) began to provide online conferencing to anyone who subscribed. It used a text-based system called Picospan. With its improbable eclectic mix well salted with Grate-ful Dead fans and computer “nerds,” the Well became a sort of petri dish for cultivating community (see virtual community). Long-term friendships (and feuds) and occa-sional romances have been nurtured by such conferencing systems.
Typical Structure
A typical text-based conferencing system is divided into conferences, which are generally devoted to relatively broad subjects, such as UNIX, pop music, or politics. Each confer-ence is further divided into topics, which usually reflect particular aspects of the general subject (such as a particu-lar UNIX version, a pop music group, or a political issue). Most conferencing systems have a person or persons who act as a moderator (sometimes called a “host”) who tries to encourage new users, keep discussions more or less on topic, and discourage personal attacks or vehement state-ments (“flames”).
A user signs onto the system and “joins” one or more conferences. Each time the user visits a conference that he or she has joined, any topics (or responses in existing top-ics) that were posted since the last visit are presented. The user can read the postings and, if desired, enter a reply that becomes part of the thread of messages. (Users are also gen-erally allowed to start new topics of their own.)
Web-based Conferencing
Text-based systems such as Picospan are driven by the user entering command letters or words. While this paradigm is familiar to people who have experience with operating systems such as UNIX or MS-DOS, it can be more diffi-cult for users who are used to the point-and-click approach of Windows programs and the World Wide Web. Many new conferencing systems use Web pages to present confer-ence topics and messages, with buttons replacing text com-mands. (The Well continues to offer both the text-based Picospan and the Web-based Engaged.)
Although the Well and other conferencing systems such as The River continue in operation, conferencing systems have been largely supplanted by newer forms of online expression (see blogs and blogging, social network-ing, and wikis and Wikipedia). (Note that “conferenc-ing system” can also refer to video-based software such as Microsoft Live Meeting for facilitating meetings between geographically dispersed participants.)
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