What makes IRC and other similar global chat programmes quite unique as a form of communication is the way that it is solely words that are used to construct an imagined shared context for conversation. This raises interesting questions - can "virtual communities" emerge out of this unique means of communication, a means of communication where all cultural artifacts are stripped from human discourse with the exception of the written word. 

One channel I visited to get the lowdown on this phenomenon was the "Scotland" channel. "Piper" (IRCers use "nicknames" rather than their real names) a 35 year old male from Michigan in the U.S.A. who works as a theatre company manager has been a regular on the Scotland channel since August 1997, brought there by his interest in Scottish heritage - his great great grandparents emigrated in the 1800s. He visited the channel after visiting the country on holiday, keen to speak to people from his native land. Building up friendships with the other regulars evolved over a fairly short period of time and to him the regulars using the channel "Scotland" are all a definite part of a tight-knit community. Such was his enjoyment of using the channel that he arranged a "real life" meeting back in February, hosted in his area, where around 12 regulars live. Everyone was just as he expected they would be in person Piper says, although he does admit that some of the people that tend to be on the shy side are more outgoing on IRC, where there is obviously no facade or embarrassment, and one can be more open. 

But this also raises the question of honesty, theoretically it would be very easy to adopt another persona to one's "real life" character and ultimately to become someone else. According to Piper however IRC can be divided into two groups, those who use IRC to pretend to be something they are not, and those who are themselves. Identifying the "phonies" as Piper calls them is usually quite easy, it becomes apparent after you get to know them a little bit. As well as forming close relationships, IRC regulars can even fall in love, despite the anonymity and ephemeral nature of their communication. This anonymous nature Piper says makes people open up, and this openness led him to meeting his wife online, on a local bulletin board system (a kind of local public message board). They began by exchanging points of view through e-mail, taking the same sides in political discussions before "talking" in private. After 3 months he called her and the rest is history. Piper was lucky though, most people who begin relationships after meeting on IRC live thousands of miles away. "The deepest root of a relationship is communication, and IRC friendships are based on that very thing" is Piper's final comment before we part company. 

Another regular of the Scotland channel is 39 year old Titania, an American female who lived in Glasgow for some years with her Scottish husband before relocating to Florida. She believes that some people tell the truth some don't, but you never know... "you can't look into their eyes to see if they're lying". IRC is just another part of her life, and she maintains that you get to know people in a different way than if you were to meet them initially in person. One of the appealing things about IRC can be the fact that the friends she has there aren't often directly involved in her life, therefore they can offer more detached advice to any problems she might want to discuss. Playing down the notion that she might take on a different persona on IRC to that of real life, she maintains she's definitely the same person on both. 

The next "Scotland" channel meeting is due to take place in Toronto on the 26th, 27th and 28th of June, a meeting that Titania is keen to go to, although she does admit it will be strange at first and possibly a little awkward. This meeting is being arranged by 21 year old "asia" who told me that it will take place at the Neil Wycik College Hotel, a spartan but cheap means of accommodation. "asia" first began IRCing in January 1996, while at college (a place where increasingly many start chatting due to ease of access) and the "Scotland" channel was one of the first she visited due to a loose family connection. She was struck by the warm and friendly nature of the channel and became a regular visitor. The idea that she is part of a community she insists is totally correct and as well as inhabiting the "Scotland" channel, she is also an operator (someone vaguely "in charge") in channel "atheism", which acts as a forum for philosophical, ethical and moral discussion. She is currently engaged in a long distance relationship, keeping in touch through the telephone, IRC and e-mail. 

Interestingly, last summer there was a "Scotland" channel gathering in Glasgow, organised by "dH^", who resides in Glasgow's east end. He's forged some good friendships with people from overseas and said that the gathering was a great success constituting a Glasgow tour, plenty of visits to pubs, and even a trip up to Oban. 

This channel is just one of many thousands of channels strewn across cyberspace. Each one represents a degree of community, a unique band of geographically dispersed people using the written word as a conversational medium. As internet use becomes more widespread and grows, so too will more of these alternative communities, adding another dimension to the geography of human communication and the evolution of spatial structures. 

The "Scotland" channel homepage can be found at: http://www.bayside.net/users/scotland