Both MOOTWeb and AFOM are private groups, meaning that the general public is not welcome to simply show up in either community and participate in the activities of the members. This should not be taken to mean an anti-social attitude, as the members of the groups are far from anti-social. Instead, both groups are trusting communities, and new people should not join unless they will be able to participate without disrupting the atmosphere that the current members have built.
The way most new members join AFOM is by invitation from a current member. Before they join the list, however, the prospective member is discussed by all of AFOM to decide if they should or should not join the list. In the past, AFOM has had a lengthy discussion about whether or not there should be a policy in place for the process. No concrete rules were set in place, but it is best if a person who wants to join the list knows at least two current members. Then it is up to the group as a whole. If it seems like most members feel comfortable with the new person, then the person is allowed to join. If it seems like most members would prefer that the person not join the list, then the person is not allowed to join. Traditionally, new people should also know me, as the list is named alt.friends.of.matt, and the only thing that many of the original members had in common was that they were all friends of mine.
It is reasonable for the members of AFOM to want to approve new members on a case by case basis. As I already stated, AFOM is a close and trusting community. New members may earn the trust of older members in time, but there is a time of adjustment. And it is possible that a new member may not interact well with the current members. Another concern that members of AFOM have addressed is the size of the list. The present number of slightly less than 20 is a comfortable number. I think it is this way because over time, every member of AFOM has had the opportunity to meet every other member in real life, and everyone is a friend with everyone else. If the number of members on AFOM were to increase drastically, then the group would become less intimate. The growth would change AFOM into a different type of community, and I'm fairly certain that the members of AFOM are happy with the way the community is now.
The actual act of subscribing is performed by sending an email to the Majordomo server that hosts AFOM. Each request for a subscription has to be approved by AFOM's administrator, Daniel Rinehart. Daniel checks with AFOM before admitting a new member or not. Old members who left the list of their own accord have been allowed to rejoin AFOM at any time with pretty much no discussion. I think one major reason that this has worked is because no member of AFOM has ever been asked to leave the list. People who unsubscribe do so of their own accord and for their own reasons.
MOOTWeb also gains new members through existing members. A new member is referred to the address of MOOTWeb, where he can go to try the MOO as a guest character. Once logged on as a guest, there are guidelines to follow to request a permanent character on the MOO. The wizards of MOOTWeb approve or deny characters, so they have the final say in allowing someone a character or not. Elissa Goldberg, one of the wizards, says that there is no set policy on whether a person can join or not. She says that the wizards decide whom joins based on whether they think the new member will interact well with the current members of the community.
AFOM and MOOTWeb both approve new members on a case by case basis. Neither has formal rules dictating who can and cannot join. Neither community is strictly opposed to new members joining, but both are careful about who is allowed to become part of the group.
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This page was created by Mathew Corthell for the course Computers and Society in the fall of 1999 at Northeastern University.