Neighbors Redux

Yesterday's riff on real-world community building sites was greeted with reminders from some readers that there are alternative forms of community out there.  And, I acknowledge that online community building increasingly refers to "communities of interest" built around themes and media--music, photos, videos.  The biggies we all know, like myspace, youtube, friendster, bebo, xanga and hi5. 

I, however, have a soft spot for real places where people live, work and play.  That's why I like another new site that deepens your community knowledge, called hotspottin.com.  Hotspottin let's you share with others your favorite hot spots in your or any town--restaurants, bars, romantic places to picnic.  As I travel a lot, I like the idea of advancing an insider's knowledge of a city before I arrive.  And, what could be better than putting community back in the hands of the people.