BBC highlights the historic role of The WELL:

‘How the Grateful Dead built the internet‘.

“In the 1980s, years before the World Wide Web, a virtual online community emerged called the Well (the Whole Earth ‘Lectronic Link). Centred on the San Francisco Bay Area of California, the Well not only thrived in its own right, but proved to be one of the most influential factors in the birth of the internet as we know it today… “

 

 

Real People. Real Names. Real Conversation.

When we talk about The WELL, we are usually talking about the conferences, where the magic happens, where posts develop into conversations, and members become a community.

Conversation is so treasured on The WELL that members of the community banded together to buy the site in 2012. Still civil, still thoughtful, no data mining, no ads. Real People. Real Names. Real Conversation.

If you like what you see, join us!

      _______________________________________

Now included with WELL Membership: Mastodon

the Open-Source Social Network                                                     

Your WELL membership now gives you access to our Mastodon server and the entire Fediverse, in addition to the rich conversations in our local conferences. The Fediverse is an internet-wide social network. free of advertising, algorithms, and corporate objectives. Join us and see Mastodon Quick Start Guide to join the worldwide conversation today!

Join The Well!
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Featured Recently in The Inkwell

Unlike most conversations on The WELL, you don’t need a WELL member account to participate – this one is open to all!

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Miriam Zellnik: The Vaudeville Murders: A Libby Seale Mystery, Feb 11 - 24, 2025

 

We’re delighted that our featured author is Well member Miriam Zellnik as our guest in the Inkwell conference for the next two weeks, discussing her new book “The Vaudeville Murders: A Libby Seale Mystery“, which she co-wrote with her brother, Joe.

 

Libby Seale – a recent transplant from New York’s Lower East Side – enjoys the glamor and the bustle of her work as a seamstress at Crowther’s Portland Variety. That is, until the murder of her friend Vera Carabella, a magician’s assistant, reveals a darkness at the heart of her new home town.

 

 

VISIT the archived conversation

 

 

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Lee Felsenstein: Me and My Big Ideas - January 27 - February 10, 2025

 

Lee Felsenstein: Me and My Big Ideas: Counterculture, Social Media, and the Future

Lee Felsenstein joins Inkwell.vue to discuss his autobiography, Me and My Big Ideas: Counterculture, Social Media, and the Future, self-published in 2024 under his imprint FelsenSigns (<www.FelsenSigns.com>). As the third person to receive an account on The WELL, Lee played a pivotal role in the computer revolution, not just as an innovative engineer but also as a keen observer of the societal dynamics it shaped. His book goes beyond a personal memoir, offering a rich exploration of the intersection between technology, sociopolitical reform, and computer-assisted communication, spanning from the Free Speech Movement to the rise of modern social media.

VISIT the archived conversation

 

 

 

 

 

Visit the rest of the topics in The Inkwell

Well Members Say:

I am a political junkie, and the heat-to-light ratio in the Politics conference is very favorable — there’s a lot of substantial discussion without a lot of name-calling. The Sports conference features the day-to-day discussion of all kinds of sporting events, but the best things about the conference are the annual football and March Madness pools. Finally, the Legal conference is where I go to share war stories and get advice and dark humor from the grizzled old war horses.

–Doug Masson, Attorney
WELL Member since 1999

I love the Writers conference, home to a wonderfully supportive community of all types of real working writers being real people together. Byline is full of inside info the working writer needs — contracts and contacts, editors and agents. Current gives me thoughtful insights — and some fiercely argued points of view — on what’s happening in the world.

-Joe Flower, Healthcare Futurist     
WELL Member since 1989

My home on The WELL is the convivial chow.ind. It’s the best place online to talk about food — eating it, cooking it, going out for it, and heck, even making dioramas from it. You’ll also find me in the San Francisco conference, which I co-host. There we discuss all aspects of city life from arts to sports to politics to — okay, eating again. I’m also a fan of Plumage, where a fashion reality check is always available from friendly cohorts.

-Brady Lea, Playwright/Teacher     
WELL Member since 1998

I have always loved the Weird conference because “weird” only begins to describe it. I love the Plumage conference because my friends and I never get tired of talking about clothes, shoes, bags, accessories, and grooming, and because on Oscar night we cast all discretion aside and call it like we see it. And the Media conference is as rich and huge and fast-moving as media culture itself.

-Stephanie Vardavas, Attorney and Author
WELL Member since 1994