I think it’s interesting that you point out that most of your online communication is with people you have a connection to in the physical world, but early virtual community members were interested in communicating with new people. I imagine that the Internet was a lot safer than, but now the idea of going online to communicate with strangers just sounds frightening. If our generation hadn’t grown up with the whole “stranger danger” fear and the worry about releasing personal info online for predators or stalkers to find, I wonder if we’d be more friendly and open like the early Wellites.