I’m a big believer in looking towards the practices of other industries for inspiration and new ideas.
I’ve said before that I’ve often referenced the practices of an online hip-hop community to inspire the creative interaction I use with software customers.
Recently I stumbled upon a community management article that does a wonderful job applying design principles from the 1970’s book A Pattern Language to online community building.
This article effectively shows that the same principles that have been used within architecture to create vibrant and effective spaces, can also be applied towards the design of online community spaces that have a focus on their desired user experiences.
Check it out. It’s pretty long, but well worth the read.
Applying “A Pattern Language” To Online Community Design
