This zone is dedicated to ongoing research into aspects of the Internet. It is a work in progress and the thoughts, opinions and ideas are those of the author of each contribution.
Typo3 is a successful example of a thriving internet community which not only not only displays the technological aspect of community requirements but also the philosophical and more ephemeral ideals of the internet.
by Diane Russell
In 1999 I first came across this website while researching Content Management Systems (CMS). At that stage Kasper, the founder, was very much in front line development. Much of the online discussions were related to his frustrations as a programmer and his ideals about internet sharing.
Kasper Skårhøj had a vision resulting from his religious beliefs and frustrations in his work. The result was a desire to create an online web solution that would entice and motivate people to contribute to a free web based communication system.
This philosophy is ‘sharing on the non zero sum principle’. “…a gain by one player does not necessarily correspond with a loss by another.” (wikipedia1). The gains of members of the Typo3 community are not at the cost of other members.
Basically the Typo3 CMS system is like many other CMS systems. It is a way of entering data into a database via the internet by means of a ‘form’ on a browser.
A need for newsgroups evolved as the mailing list became more complex. It is interesting to see the lengths this community goes to assist other community members in understanding technological developments and the advantages of using them.
Initially there were no rules or guidelines, topics were mixed and it was pretty much a case of dive in and somehow it would all work out. Like all communities that grow it started developing a structure and form.
Once you have registered as a Typo3 user you have the power to ‘create and edit consultancy entries’, ‘create and edit references ‘, ‘access mailing list archives for the dev-list and others and
login to download applications from the extension repository’.
Kasper Skårhøj hoped and believed that the very nature of what he had created would entice and encourage others to contribute freely in a similar way. The Extension Repository is proof of his success.
It appears that there is much more to this community than simply a group of people with a common interest or agenda.To get a better understanding of this community we need to look at who is involved and their roles as well as the underlying philosophy of the community.
One cannot look at the effects of the ‘Typo3 community’ in isolation from the’ technology Typo3’. They have become two parts of a whole. The very existence of the one feeds the other. So when we look at Typo3 the community we must also look at Typo3 the technology and the vision of its founder. Just as when we look at the Internet we cannot isolate it from its origins as a resilient communication system answerable to no single authority.
We may not be able to determine what the outcome will be but we do know that it will be something that the community members want because they are the ones growing, testing and challenging all that is Typo3.
