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THEORY ON DEMAND
In order to achieve their goals, creative networks devote special attention to forms of social organization, which in the case of creative networks are quite specific and depend on the development of the field and are linked to all the different levels of the networked structure (the socio-technical, politically economical, translocal/local, etc.). As already mentioned, the principal form of social organization for creative networks are the mailing lists. They provide the every-day communication and a regular exchange of information between the participants. Mailing lists are also a platform to discuss on-going network culture and media art events as well as the development of the field in general. An important form of social organization for creative networks are local media centers that operate as nodes in creative translocal networks and a base of resources that supports these networks (for instance, with technical infrastructure – servers and services, human resources to administrate them; to organize meetings and events, etc. for community members). New media culture and electronic art festivals must be mentioned here as well – they provide regular real-life meeting opportunities for creative network participants, and are important for strengthening the community (as concluded already before). Likewise, the technical infrastructure has always been important for creative networks – maintaining their own servers and providing the necessary services, because this is the virtual home of creative networks. In analyzing the fields of activity and forms of social communication of network communities I also compared creative networks with today’s social networks. As a result, I traced some significant differences. When comparing Web 1.0 and Web 2.0 networks, one of the most visible differences seems to be the technical platforms. In the 1990s, they were owned by the networks and communities themselves. They were created based on non-commercial and utopian visions that saw digital networks as a space for free information exchange, a new type of social interaction and creative self-expression. Nowadays Web 2.0 platforms are created and maintained by corporate businesses with commercial aims outside the horizon of the communities that use these platforms. As mentioned before, for creative networks the field of activity is clearly defined and they have a meaningful goal that, again, is connected with establishing and developing the field of activity of these networks. Furthermore, in most cases of creative networks, they start off first with onsite meetings, followed by developing an online communication platform afterwards (for example, a mailing list). As for the social network – it is governed by another principle. On social network sites, mostly the ties between people are established either by ‘following’ people with similar interests or by keeping in touch with old acquaintances. Creative networks still use mailing lists for organizing their field of activity and for their daily communication (not only in the earlier period but today also). Nowadays, the social network platforms are often used by creative network participants also, however, as experts admit, mailing lists are more suitable for organizing the field and establishing ties between the real and the virtual, because as Lovink asserts, they are ‘the bridges that gap the networks and the events’. In turn, social networks (Facebook, Draugiem.lv) are suitable for ‘expending your social horizon’ (Lovink 2010) – for instance, for social communication on a personal level, as well as for self-promotion. Nevertheless, experts find them less suitable for organizing a shared field. This is due to the fact that communication is possible only via personal profiles or by following published messages (Twitter). Of course, this is not conclusive, because new features are added constantly. Blogs, wiki and other network content management systems for example, are platforms that make the development of collaborative