Welcome to Social On The Net

Introductions

First I’d like introduce myself and say hi to all the wonderful people I’ve met online, many of whom have become friends. My name is Dan J. Mace and in the different social places online I’ve used different variations of that according the rules of each.

Experience

How do I know about these things? Since the early 1990’s, due to a back injury I’ve had many hours where I was stuck in a chair and rather than watch the walls yellow, I got online to meet others, enjoy conversation, play online chess and other online games. My back is much better now and I continue online because of the people and the worlds I've discovered here.

In many ways the internet is as much a place as any geographical location in the universe. It has places of business, information, news and social gatherings. People come here to find more things than I could ever list. It's almost as endless as the universe and its only limitation is the imagination of the person visiting it.

Over the years I’ve met a lot of people in every different kind of online social atmosphere there is. For those who think online is strictly for the kids, I was born in 1952.

My Experience:

à Began online when there was nothing but Bulletin Boards

à Spent many hours in chat rooms of almost every kind… yes, almost every kind. Many for friendship, some for fun, some for research for this site and others out of just plain curiosity.

à Social Events Director and Events Manager for events in an adult 2, 3D virtual worlds.

à A consultant and a moderator for online dating sites.

à I’ve owned numerous online businesses since 1994 and have 7 active web sites and businesses online now

à Developed and advanced online technology to enhance and facilitate online interaction including a current project that will aid in online universities, conferencing, webinars, retail shopping and many other applications.

à Produced films and video’s using avatar actors from virtual worlds and introduced the use of them in real life outlets such as virtual tours of real homes and towns using an avatar as the tour guide in those situations.

à Produced entertainment videos with avatar actors both inside the virtual world and in the real world and placed real world people inside the virtual worlds.

I’ve done many other things online but hopefully this will establish my experience well enough.

Why This Site

Now for the reason for this site. To help people understand what’s out there. To help them find what they’re looking for, what to look for according to your interests as well as what to avoid. To know how to get along and make friends in these places and to clear up some misunderstandings and misconceptions. And for those who have been online for a while to maybe make life a little easier when a new person comes into their social space and doesn't make trouble due to misunderstandings.

In addition, I will be offering a ratings system for as many places as I can based on what people look for in them.

I hope you find it informative and helpful and please feel free to contact me with any questions you may have.

This website and all its contents are copyrighted © Nothing on this site may be used without express written permission of Dan Mace, owner and developer of this site.

Index

When link is in Blue it has content, in Black it is being worked on & page is blank.

For fast easy loading we will be keeping the “Bells and Whistles” to a minimum.

à Some great things about online social places

à Talking about the best ways to get along in online social environments

à Rules to remember in socializing

à What to look for when you’re trying to understand what’s going on in chat

à Warning signs

à Terminology and abbreviations

à Ratings for online social places

à What kinds of social places are there and what to look for in a place you would like

à A separate adults only section. Not for pornography but for places that are more adult oriented.

Getting Started and Clearing Up A Few Misconceptions

First and foremost let’s clear up one of the biggest misconceptions about the ‘others’ you meet online. Regardless of the method of communication, from E mail to Virtual Worlds the ‘others’ ARE real people. They are not players in a game you buy and set up on your computer. They are subject to the same needs, wants and desires as everyone else and have every right to expect the same courtesies they would be afforded if you were meeting in the mall face to face in your home town..

All too often I’ve heard the comment, “It’s just a game!” well what you’re doing with it may be but the others playing it with you are still real people. If you remember nothing else, remember that. If it helps here is an analogy.

The computer is like any other vehicle that conveys you to other places. Look at it like a car. You get in it, you drive it around the net and you see others in their cars but behind every steering wheel, or in this case mouse and keyboard, is a real person doing the driving. As real as you are so when you approach someone online, don’t do or say anything you wouldn’t do if you were sitting side by side at a traffic light, looked over and acknowledged each other.

For those of you who have been the target of rudeness remember, rude people do what they are regardless of where they are. You have every right to be treated with respect but that doesn't mean you always will be. In your home town or on the net it’s the same. You’re going to meet all types of people and very likely types you never even knew existed. Which will be both good and bad.

What Is Different About Interacting On The Net

To begin with the biggest difference is the inability to emote in type. What you said and what they read may easily be 2 different things.

Since they can’t hear the tone of your voice they may, and not too rarely will, take what you said the wrong way. Rather than argue or take offense, clarify.

Added to this potential for problems is the fact that you are interacting with people from all over the planet and for all I know a few aliens on Sat Link as well. With each different spoken language, each different cultural background and adding the already lacking of emoting in type it’s easy to see how things can be misunderstood.

You know your own language and how people speak it. When you meet someone new pay attention to “how” they say things. If the phrasing seems a bit off there is a good chance you’re speaking with someone who’s first language is different from yours.

As in all things, and this a very valuable thing to remember, if you’re not sure….ask.

I’ll be adding more soon…..

Thanks for stopping by, Dan