ArchNet is an online community developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s School of Architecture and Planning for architects, planners, urban designers, interior designers, landscape architects and scholars with a special focus on the Islamic world. Through archnet.org it is hoped that members of a growing international community will be able to help each other by sharing expertise, local experience, resources and dialogue.
ArchNet provides an extensive, high-quality, globally accessible, intellectual resource centered on architecture and planning issues. The ArchNet model is particularly relevant for individuals with limited access to traditional architectural slide libraries and publications. Using a PC and Internet connection, ArchNet members working and studying without the support of active local professional societies can leverage an online repository of architectural documentation that offers unique perspectives on the design, structures and building practices of Islamic societies.
Through the website, each user is allocated a personal workspace. From this space, ArchNet members are able to contribute their own findings and research to the larger site. The website will aim to foster close ties between institutions and users. Through the use of online forums, chatrooms and debates, it is hoped that the site can encourage and promote discussions among participants. It will be a bottom-up system, in which information will eventually flow directly from the user to a continually expanding database, which can be shared by all.
