Communication symmetry
There are at least two people in any collaboration, and we can classify collaborative applications by communication symmetry. Here are the classes with a few examples of each:
- One to one: email, instant messaging, VOIP call
- One to many: blog, podcast, static Web site
- Many to many: listserver, threaded discussion forums, VOIP conference call
Bear in mind that there may be gray areas. For example, a blog may have several contributing authors and allow limited feedback from the audience in the form of comments.
Also, a given Web site may have a mix of applications. For example, on Amazon.com, the reader review section is many-to-many and the book search and description is one-to-many.
How does Internet communication symmetry compare with that of other media?