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In lugnet.general, Tim Courtney writes:
> Thanks for reading - and I'd love to hear your thoughts!
Great topic, Tim!
Hmm... Well time for Hendo to babble again... :)
In my analysis, the term "Lego Community" is a group of humanity that
reaches far beyond any of the limitations you have suggested. The entire
Lego Community includes TLC employees, distributors, retailers, raw material
suppliers, AFOLs, TFOLs, children who play with Lego products, parents who
buy them, and any number of other people that are in any way connected to
Lego Toys and services.
That said, I think the community you are discussing is a sub-group of the
overall, one that includes primarily AFOLs and TFOLs (some of whom might
also overlap into the other subgroups of the overall).
Of this subgroup, Lugnet is one smaller subset therein, at a level with some
of the others you mentioned (some of which I am unfamiliar with myself).
And then, in the subsets such as Lugnet, there are further sub-sub-sets of
all sorts (in the case of Lugnet, we have tremendous compartmentilization).
And again, some individuals overlap and are part of more than one of these
layered groups, whereas others might not be (sometimes for lack of interest
in a particular nitch, other times for lack of awareness of a group's
existance).
And, as has been said, not all of the subgroups are on the internet. They
can come in many forms and in many places, worldwide. It is true that
Lugnet is an invaluable resource for many subsets meeting and learning of
each other. But simply because someone might post about the hobby outside
of Lugnet does not make them excluded from the overall community.
Nonetheless, there is something that is different from community that we
often overlook here: culture. The culture of Lugnet is certainly different
than that in some of the other subgroups. Managers in a boardroom in
Enfield, CT might be part of the overall community, but I doubt the culture
of their meeting is the same as what we hobbyists share on Lugnet.
The culture we have in these subgroups is often carried out to LUG meetings
and Fests, where it has been known to evolve to even higher levels. And as
it evolves, we become increasingly separated from other cultures. Of
course, our non-Lego friends might refer to this condition as "geekdom", but
regardless, the culture of Lugnet is a special and rare (though not unique)
thing, whether on the internet or elsewhere. Through our hobby, through the
medium of communication of this subgroup, and through the encouragement we
instill in each other, we have developed into an inviting universe that is
open to any who have a connection to the brick. And those who have similar
likes or dislikes within our hobby of such great variation can find a
sub-sub-set with others who can share and grow with the same interests.
I for one love all these layers and compartments of our community. It is
true that I will never likely be a part of everything that goes on, but that
is fine. I don't have much interest in some of the themes in some groups, I
don't care much for renderings or auctions, nor do I discuss much in .mecha
or .robotics. Yet, I appreciate that these groups exist. I even appreciate
.off-topic.debate, and I would not want our Lugnet subgroup of the overall
to be without that tiny sub-sub-set. As I see it, they are on-topic simply
by being fellow Lego enthusiasts. Giving them a place nearby to debate is
better than them debating in .general or .whatever.else.
Well, that's my two cents for now... :)
-Hendotronic Rex
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