Cyberhood vs neighborhood

Though I'm pretty technically savvy, I'm still a luddite of sorts when it comes to online communication. I have a history of doing this. I just prefer straight up talking to someone, preferably face to face, over any other form of communication. I avoided ext messaging like the plague until I was forced to come to terms with the fact that it wasn't just a passing fad. Anyway, long story short, I never really cared for any form of electronic communication method. The literal distance between people connected through an internet community reduces the bond between its members. I believe that a virtual community is a kind of surrogate for a type of interaction you are missing in real life. The class project was a little different though, in that we were all members ofa virtual community and a real one. What I observed is that we saw each community as separate entities. I know I never payed as much attention to what anyone wrote as much as I would have if we were talking. I strongly believe that online communities exist to fill needs people can't meet in their real lives.