Media praise for The Art of Community
Have a blog? Join our Blogger Review Program
"The Internet provides the potential to separate us into a cacophony of discordant voices or to congregate us as purpose-driven communities. Jono Bacon, in his insightful The Art of Community, teaches the latter path, detailing the principles of successful community-building in a way that will appeal to both neophyte and expert alike. Given the increasingly critical role of community managers in the technology industry and beyond, The Art of Community should find a place on any businessperson’s bookshelf, not to mention that of the PTA president, book club organizer, or union activist. Yes, it's that good."
--
"Jono Bacon truly understands communities–and more importantly, how to build communities that thrive. This is the definitive guidebook to building successful communities–definitive because it is based on Jono's extensive experience as community manager for Ubuntu, a product that inspires an Apple-esque devotion in very large part because of its vast and dedicated community. For developers and entrepreneurs who want to learn how to tap into the power of community, as Ubuntu has done so masterfully, this book is a must-read."
--
"In the age of participation, there is no better tour guide than Jono Bacon. The Art of Community teaches leaders how to increase collaboration and authenticity to build belonging. This isn't just for technology leaders; anyone who wants to harness community for their cause should read this book."
--
"In Art of Community, Jono "Community" Bacon once again shows that his nom de guerre is apropos. He breaks down the soft science of community management in a way few others could. Jono fundamentally understands the soft science that is community management. With his trademark British humor, he deftly explores the intricacies and subtleties of his trade, while weaving a story that is both entertaining and informative. In The Art of Community, Jono combines his deep knowledge of community with his trademark British humor. The result is both informative and entertaining, and is a must read for those looking to better understand the soft science that is community management."
--
"Few people, in my experience, understand how to create, build and support community better than Jono Bacon. With The Art of Community, Jono's taken his experience, his intelligence, as well as his great humour, and has effectively distilled it into an indispensable book for anyone who want to start a community (whether around software or any other shared interest or endeavour, really) or participate in one in a positive and productive way. Jono understands that communication and authenticity is at the core of effective participation, and goes beyond the theoretical to provide practical guidance on things like governance, process, conflict resolution and avoiding burnout that are right on the mark. The Art of Community is an excellent book!"
--
"Jono Bacon, in The Art of Community, takes you on a personal journey to the heart of what it takes to have and become part of a productive and well-oiled community. "
--
"The Art of Community tackles a very difficult question in the Open Source world: how do you build a strong community around your project? Jono addresses this by using anecdotal evidence of good community organization, and discussing the facets that apply to community development...I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in the dynamics of a community or any project leader looking to build from the ground up."
-- , TuxTeam.com
"...once Jono Bacon gets down to the business of sharing his years of free software CM skills from the KDE and Ubuntu communities his programmer's mindset comes to the fore and a nice set of dot pointed tips and steps emerges as a good structured framework for community building."
-- , Patchwrangler
"It doesn't matter if you are involved in an established Open Source community project, thinking of starting a new project or battling through some community issues this book is for you...Jono Bacon has unparalleled experience in cultivating and motivating to become active parts of vibrant and successful on-line communities...When you've read the book for yourself I am confident that, like me, you will be enthused with new ideas that you are bursting to implement."
-- , brian.teeman.net
"The book is a good one and, definitely worth a read. "
-- , Random thoughts and serendipity
"One thing that's impressed me about Jono Bacon, something one can notice back when he and others were building a community around their pioneering Linux podcast, is that he simply gets the concept of community. It comes out in most everything he says, and most every decision he makes. This is the kind of a person you want writing a book on the topic. open source community building cannot be boiled down to a formula. It's a constant effort, a soft science, an art, and Bacon is an ideal art teacher. "
--
"The success of the open source software movement demonstrates that no obstacle is insurmountable when people come together around a shared vision. In The Art of Community, Ubuntu community manager Jono Bacon gives readers a profound glimpse into his hands-on experience as the orchestrator of one of the movement's most powerful communities. His book offers valuable lessons on effective leadership and community building. Its compelling combination of useful theory, real-world best practices, and instructive personal anecdotes make it a richly comprehensive guide for both aspiring and experienced community leaders. "
--
"Jono Bacon's The Art of Community is a wonderful meditation on building communities using modern infrastructure tools and practices gleaned from the Free and Open Source Software movement. Jono's examples, taken from his work on Ubuntu, give a good picture of a working community and how it functions. The fact that the book is backed by a conference and an online community means this fine effort will potentially continue to grow into the watering hole for community gardeners, leaders and managers. "
--
"Communities are very complex ecosystems of human beings. Cultivating, growing, shaping and guiding the community to make them productive is definitely as much (or even more) art as science. In ‘The Art of Community’ Bacon does an excellent job explaining in detail the considerations for managing and cultivating a healthy open source community. He provides a blueprint for developing and maintaining an open source community in a programmatic way and his attention to detail and understanding of the dynamics of communities make this book an invaluable resource for anyone looking to build and maintain a community. Drawing from his own extensive experience, Bacon does a great job of explaining how to help foster a community and provides great advice ranging from choosing infrastructure, measuring growth and even hiring a community manager. All and all a must-read for any community manager."
--
"Jono Bacon has long been an insightful voice for open source community. Now his artful stories, distilling the ethos of organizing people and activities on the net, at conferences, and in our daily routines, provide a framework for successful, community building strategies."
--
"...following Jono's suggestions may yield you what every leader (even a capitalist) wants — a loyal and passionate community willing to collaborate to achieve a common goal."
--
"If you listen to open source fans, you might get the idea that 'the community' is elves who come out of the woodwork to fix your broken software while you sleep. In The Art of Community, Jono Bacon explains how reality is a little more complicated, and what the community needs in return. This book will help you get started with the diverse skills required to keep a collaborative community on track, including copywriting, social software selection, conflict resolution, and measuring if it's all working."
--
"This book will be useful for anyone looking to build a volunteer community around any kind of project or cause whether it involves software, open-source, racoons, or none of the above."
--
"As a rock solid book The Art of Community is not only about communities, but also management, organization and even marketing – it is the bible for community leadership. This book should have been out a long time ago and reading through the chapters made me reflect on almost every important situation I had to face with teams, from conflicts all the way to handling buzz. It would have helped solve some of the issues I was stuck in much faster then I did (although all the issues solved in the end were exactly how Jono described it). I am eager to apply more of this wisdom on the current projects I am involved in."
--
"O'Reilly books are the gold standard in cutting edge technology titles. This book takes this subject down from the 30,000 ft level into the trenches where all the hard work is done. It takes strong leadership skills and suite of very smart tools to build and maintain Internet communities. This book fills a very big vacuum in this topic. "
-- , Vallejo Community Examiner
"...the diverse lessons in this book -- from how to handle conflicts, to "aspiring to inspire," to learning to be a community leader by listening to others and working with them instead of being a dictator -- are also great lessons in our offline, real world. This is a fun read with fascinating observations on the human condition. "
-- , ComputerWorld
"...this book is undeniably well constructed, full of useful information and written in an entertaining way by someone who truly believes in the power of ‘community’"
-- , Ariadne
"Jono Bacon's The Art of Community is a great book if you want to learn about community building but in my opinion with perhaps a bit too much focus on Ubuntu and larger opensource communities in general. Still definitely worth reading if you want to somehow help with organizing a community. " Full Review >
-- , zerokspot.com
"The Art of Community by Jono BaconFrom Ants to Anteaters, Bees to Beekeepers…I have definitely become enlightened on the complex process of community building.The Art of Community is a simple guide to creating, building and maintaing communities. In this book, Jono Bacon breaks down community management so carefully that I… " Full Review >
-- , houseofhold.blogspot.com
"In The Art of Community, Jono Bacon tackles the task of explaining how to attract, build and maintain productive collaborative online communities. Bacon has had impressive credentials to author such a book and draws from his experience skillfully. With over ten years experience in the open source community he has the hands-on experience with initiatives..." Full Review >
-- , shawnday.com/randomosity
"The Art of Community provides good coverage of community, helping readers to think about building a community and the tasks and work involved in doing so." Full Review >
-- , www.rojotek.com/blog
"One more day left in the O'Reilly blogger review program. This time I have been looking at The Art of COmmunity by Jono Bacon. Overall it's a great book for a foundation in community building and growing social websites. It's filled with lots of good advice and common sense. My… " Full Review >
-- , www.johnarroyo.com/
