I've been messing around with online communities starting with bulletin boards before I got on the actual internet. Then there were forums and I had actual meetups with people from those. Now on Hive I feel we have real communities. I've met loads of Hivers in person at the big international events and some more local ones. I'm sure this happens with FB groups too, but some of those are much bigger than the whole of Hive.
The technology is just an enabler and it's up to people to connect using it. We don't have to just take the feeds we are given. It should be about people and I don't want to see us all just interacting with 'AI'.
That's exactly what I mean. The technology has changed dramatically, but the part I miss is that feeling of actually being somewhere with other people. The Internet was smaller, but somehow it felt more personal.
And I agree about Hive. For all the differences between the old forums and what we have now, there's still something about Hive that feels more like a community than just a feed. I've met quite a few Hivers in person over the years too, and that's always been one of my favorite things about this place.