[beppe]

Thank you Elfwreck. Your post really warms my heart because it answers to many of the questions that I have for this theme, and it gives many occasions for learning and for furthering my understanding.

Originally Posted by Elfwreck

People who develop serious, long-term relationships online consider them "real." They call the other kind "physical." (Or "meatspace," although that's a bit flippant.)

Exactly, i thought that there might be names. I do like the ones you mention, real for what I called virtual and physical/meatspace for what i called real. Iìll use those from now on. Thanks

Nope. Plenty of interest-showing online happens through private messages, emails, and isolated chat sessions. Initial meetings online are almost all public, but the get-to-know-each-other stage can have as much privacy as the people wish.

Sure, of course. Nevertheless those first important steps, those that one remembers, those are out in the open. No big deal. I have a long time meatspace friend (since 40 years at least), we became friend in a funny way that we both remember very fondly.

This, yes. Aside from emoticons & smileys, and acronyms like LOL and OMGWTFBBQ, there are in-jokes and methods of phrasing that show the textual equivalent of tone of voice, posture, and degree of intimacy being claimed.

This is very good to know. A sort of technique, a meta-lenguage. I imagine that this is not coded but rather left to each creativity and fantasy. It is very interesting, what you said. It tickles my never sleeping imagination. Now I need a potential Internet partner to experiment.

This sometimes works, and sometimes causes a great deal of strife. Many people seem to forget there are other humans behind those avatars, and feel comfortable lashing out or being hateful in ways they'd never do in a physical meeting.

Ok. I am quite aware, I also agree on the reasons you put this up. thank you

The internet, in removing the requirement for immediate response and overt emotional display, is a lot more comfortable for many introverts. I'm an extreme introvert; I'm not sure I've ever willingly introduced myself to a stranger in "real life." Online, I'm comfortable joining new forums on a whim, making intro posts, and jumping into random conversations.

This is certainly a central point in the whole topic. I am quite extrovert, so I do not have inbuilt decoders for introverts ways, but being a strong extrovert I have a natural inclinations toward them, I mean the ways, not the introverts as such. With them I have the impression that there is always something to learn for me. It is very interesting.

It can be; it functions differently in internet relationships, because it's *entirely invisible* to others. In physical life, people who spend a lot of time being private together are noticed; others can recognize that they have some kind of connection. Privacy online makes it possible to have deep relationships that other people know nothing about.

Exactly what I thought. And very well phrased. Somehow i am inclined to put value in these aspects of Internet contact. Even if it is not very clear to me why it should.

Comparable in what way?
Meaningful? Sure. If I listed my 10 closest friends at the moment, two of them are people I've never physically met.
Romantic? Sometimes. (Not my thing. Tried it; doesn't work right for me.)
Spiritual? I've had terrific luck with spiritual connections online.

You opened up the question quite nicely.
I choose to be not too specific on the original question just to have answers like yours. I hope more poster will add to this particular theme. Again, thank you so much.

I have a lot more social connections on the internet than I do in meatspace.

It shows and it is a great fortune for me that you saw the thread.

Define "spilling into"--the two close friends I mentioned, I've had hours-long phonecalls with.

I do have other friends that I care for deeply, that I've never spoken to, nor am likely to; there's language barriers. (I have no idea how good their spoken English is, and my spoken Hebrew is nonexistent.)

What I had in mind, in a confuse way - I admit - was the possibility for a solid strong relation to develop in Internet and stay confined there, confined to phone calls, mails, chats, letters, Skype, sms, I all count them as external to meatspace. That what I meant.

Ciao. hope to see you soon.