Howard Rheingold, a leading figure within online communities around the world, will be live on BBC Online to answer your questions, on Monday 4 October between 8.30pm and 9.30pm. Send your questions in advance using the email address below! Howard Rheingold is a widely respected author, speaker, and online community developer. He is the author of numerous books and has traveled the World giving talks about the value - and pitfalls - of online communities. Rheingold has nearly 15 years' practical experience building online communities and was one of the founder members of The Well. Earlier this year, Howard was invited to deliver a keynote speech at a conference organised by the BBC and attended by leading industry figures, politicians, and those interested in developing networked communities in the UK. His speech, titled "Community Development and the Cybersociety of the Future" is available in Real Audio and as a transcript at the Partnerships Online site, an organisation working closely with BBC WebWise on a new community networking initiative. Following this chat, participants will be invited to continue the discussion on the new WebWise message board forum. Email your questions now to: liveanddirect@bbc.co.uk ----------Links---------- Chat with Howard Rheingold, 8:30pm BST Monday 04 October (3:30pm EST) http://www.bbc.co.uk/liveanddirect Howard Rheingold BBC Communities Day Speech: http://www.partnerships.org.uk/bol BBC WebWise: http://www.bbc.co.uk/webwise Howard Rheingold's website and book "The Virtual Community": http://www.rheingold.com/