I worked a lot on blueyonder cs/dod communities at the time online and on irc.
It was mostly OK, the biggest eye opener at the time (I was 20ish) was when I'd hop onto one of the other admins (female) irc account and holy hell that was an experience in private conversations.
well recalled, that is very true and I am glad you raised that, obnoxious, on the other side of the coin, I fondly recall the UK Multiplay series of LAN events, for me these events showed that in person, people are just nicer, perhaps online it's not just the 'safety' of anonymity, it's closer to machismo posturing with a dash of mob rule combined with the tragedy of the masses, in real life, with a ratio of about 999:1 I saw a lot of good respectful behaviour and it was a great to be a part of that, that community had community at the core in a very genuine way, they deserved their success.
It was mostly OK, the biggest eye opener at the time (I was 20ish) was when I'd hop onto one of the other admins (female) irc account and holy hell that was an experience in private conversations.