Introduction
Online social interaction, participation and experience, is growing as more and more people across the world join the ranks of Internet users. Everyday life, the daily, mundane, commonplace experiences, objects, habits and routines, now include for a growing percentage of Western culture populations, online interaction with others in some form. (Tay, E. 2009) Whether it be checking through Facebook to keep up with what friends, relatives and other people are doing, tweeting a 140 character description of what we’re doing or participating in communities, blogs or online games. The Internet can be regarded as a social space within its own right (Slater, D. 2002), with its own structures, rituals and languages, yet these online social interactions still appear to be regarded as less important than those that occur in the physical world. This is evidenced in academic writing, media and incidental conversation with others.
