Feature Article

Since the advent of the Internet, people have used it first and foremost to connect with others that share their interests and ideas. Even today, online gathering places like discussion groups continue to be one of the most highly trafficked of Web features.

Spotlight On

One of the best ways to help your alumni and members reconnect is by giving them a forum for reaching out to one another - either one-on-one or in groups. That's why a wide array of services from online directories, to career networking, to discussion groups ensures that your users can reconnect in a way that works best for them, increasing the likelihood that alumni and members will continue to come back to your site again and again. Here's a look at how some of our clients are planning to use discussion groups in particular to drive traffic and foster the social networking that is so critical to today's Internet users.

Letter from Paul Gangi

The concept of discussion groups has been around even longer than the Internet as we know it today. The first, in fact, was introduced in the late 1970s as a Computerized Bulletin Board System (CBBS). Later, this same technology would become known as "sysop," which was short for system operator. Essentially, the sysop worked like a virtual bulletin board - enabling users to post messages and others to read and respond to those messages.

The rest, as they say, is history.

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