Merriam-Webster online dictionary defines community as a "unified body of individuals." That is, a community is a group of people who, for reasons of location, common interest, or situation have gathered themselves together as a unit. Communities in our everyday world range from neighborhoods to bird watching clubs, from workout classes to company segments.

A cyber community is a group of individuals who, for reasons of common interest or situation, meet and gather on the Internet using the World Wide Web (WWW). These groups may never meet face to face, or they may meet face to face everyday. Cyber communities range from Special Interest Groups (SIGs) within Usenets to webrings, from company mailing lists to organized homepage companies like Tripod.