This month's Wired magazine has an interesting article on the "reputation economy", Multiple Personality Disorder, that holds some nice hidden lessons for building a successful online community.

At it's core, your online community is about getting total strangers to work and share together - to trust each other. A transparent reputation system is a great way to instantly build trust amongst strangers:

The very existence of our reputation arises from the fact that information is shared. As we buy and sell, borrow and repay, our identities multiply, accumulating new qualities and scars. This is a good thing... Our reputation precedes us, and this is exactly what allows us to form links with strangers without starting from scratch.

However, there are good and bad reputation systems.

Think about credit agencies. When it comes to our digital reputations, systems like ChoicePoint and Equifax are reviled, while ranking and endorsing systems like eBay's thrive. Why? Transparency. The eBay community incents its members to participate because they can see exactly who is saying what about whom. And interestingly, this transparency lets my digital reputation be as much about what I say of others, as it is about what other say about me.

What does this mean in practical terms? It means that for members of your online community to trust each other you need to let them complement and criticize out in the open.