| Summary: | Hakutermit: community, communication, ICT, Mansetori, Naapurit.net, Oppiva Ylä-Karjala In the late 90s new ICTs were introduced to community communication. This thesis is a comparison of three projects done in Finland in this area i.e. Mansetori in Tampere, Naapurit.net in Oulu and Oppiva Ylä-Karjala in Northern Karelia. This thesis looks at what new features new ICTs have given to these specific communities sociologically as well as technologically. I also look at how these communities have developed during the time of the projects. Have new ICTs aided the process of creating better community spirit by creating new ways of communication? How did the people accept these new ICTs as a communication tool? What was the general attitude towards these projects? Methodology of this thesis includes an analysis of the in-depth interviews done with the project co-ordinators, and relevant literature. As main results I would mention the willingness of the people living in these communities, to include new ICTs as a way of communication. Some community spirit was improved by the discussions and local news articles seen in the ICTs. But the main result, in my opinion is that there is still a long way to go in order to make new ICTs available to all (lack of education and guidance exists), and the fact that community spirit can be only reinforced by ICTs. Face-to-face communication is still a necessity in local community communication.
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