Logical, but not the only.


Though peer to peer seems to be my preferred medium for striking up a conversation, I don't complain when other tools get the job done. A number of years ago ICQ seemed the best suited for this sort of contact, though it sprung up in other platforms as well.

About five years ago a woman from New Zealand found me on ICQ and we talked for a couple of weeks. I even helped her solve crossword puzzles. A more lasting relationship was established with a high school student who found me via a message that I'd posted on a forum.Actually, I tried to maintain contact with him after he finished the project for which he'd enlisted my aid, but it turned out that he wasn't interested in continued contact. Finding some information closely related to something I was looking for on a web site led me to send an e-mail message to the person who set up the site. This led to an exchange of e-mail and a short friendship.

Over the years I've encountered many people through various online activities. Is meeting them via P2P any different than, say, via ICQ, or a discussion forum, or simply e-mail? I tend to think that it is, primarily because the element of chance in such a meeting is so great. We can miss each other by five minutes, or by being connected to different servers, or by not looking for the right items in P2P.



Go to: Strangers on a network.