January 2002 - Air-L - lists.aoir.org

Major Online Communities Report from Pew Internet and American Life Project
by Steven Clift 14 Mar '02

14 Mar '02

This time with a subject line ... P.S. I would be interested in the results of similar studies in other countries. - SLC *** Democracies Online Newswire - http://www.e-democracy.org/do *** The Pew Internet and the American Life Project <http://www.pewinternet.org> has released one of the most important studies about the "two-way" Internet to date - "Online Communities: Networks that nurture long-distance relationships and local ties." Below is the press release. Access the full report from: http://www.pewinternet.org/reports/toc.asp?Report=47 For my full Democracies Online commentary visit: http://mail.tc.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?A2=ind0110&L=do-wire&D=1&H=1&O=D&F=&S=&P=3 265 The report states that most people find local online groups in the off-line world. I also see tremendous potential for online efforts which make it easier to find, evaluate, and join online communities based on geography and other key factors. This happens to tie extremely closely with the proposed Open Groups standards effort that I am promoting <http://www.publicus.net/opengroups/>. To receive notice of the pending release of a major technical draft, send an e-mail to <open-groups-announce-subscribe(a)yahoogroups.com>. With support, Open Groups could help increase online group interactivity many times over. Read on for the press release and pass this on to others. Steven Clift Democracies Online Newswire http://www.e-democracy.org/do Provided to DO-WIRE by: http://www.pewinternet.org FOR RELEASE AT 6 P.M., OCTOBER 31, 2001 CONTACT: Lee Rainie or John Horrigan at 202-296-0019 http://www.pewinternet.org/about/about.asp?page=5 90 million have participated in online groups Many use the Internet to connect with online communities that embrace their hobbies, their professions, their passions, and their beliefs 28 million go online with church groups, sports leagues, and social organizations in their home towns WASHINGTON- The Internet allows tens of millions of Americans to participate in a thriving social world where they enjoy serious and satisfying contact with online communities. Some 84% of Internet users have contacted an online group. That means that more Americans have used the Internet to contact a group than have gotten news online, or searched for health information, or bought a product. Many of these online groups are far flung and allow Internet users to connect easily with others around the world who share their passions, beliefs, hobbies, and lifestyles. At the same time, 26% of online Americans use the Internet to intensify their connection to their local community by planning church meetings, organizing neighborhood gatherings, arranging local sports league operations, coordinating charity activities, and petitioning local politicians. These findings represent some hopeful news that the Internet can be a tool for vigorous social engagement, rather than a technology that spurs isolation and alienation among users. · 50% of those who participate in online groups say the Internet has helped them get to know people they would not otherwise have met. · More than a third (37%) of those who participate in online groups say the Internet has helped them meet others from different generations than their own. · More than a quarter (27%) of those who participate in online groups say the Internet has helped them connect with people from different racial, ethnic, or economic backgrounds than their own. These results come in a survey of Internet users by the Pew Internet & American Life Project, a research organization that examines the social impact of the Internet. They are contained in a report entitled, "Online Communities: Networks that nurture long-distance relationships and local ties." "For vast numbers of Americans, use of the Internet simultaneously expands their social worlds and connects them more deeply to the place where they live," says Lee Rainie, Director of the Pew Internet & American Life Project. "Online groups are comfortable places for people to congregate and get to know organizations and people they might never have encountered." Many online Americans are using the Internet to connect to traditional groups that exist in the offline world such as professional and trade associations, hobby enthusiast organizations, religious groups, ethnic and racial fraternal organizations, and political groups. A surprisingly large number of those contacting online groups (56%) say they became active in a group -- even traditional, offline organizations -- after they began communicating with it over the Internet. At the same time, millions of online Americans now use the Internet to connect to groups to which they belonged before they began using the Internet - and they report that their use of the Internet has helped them become more involved with those groups. One other encouraging sign is that use of the Internet is drawing new kinds of people to groups. In particular, young adults and minorities are using the Internet to participate in all kinds of online clubs and organizations and this is leading to new forms of civic involvement. "The network of networks has become a collection of communities," said John Horrigan, senior researcher at the Pew Internet Project and principal author of the report. "Many actively engage in cyber groups through email and bulletin boards that are lively forums for sharing ideas, hashing out issues, and making new friends." The Pew Internet Project study identifies 9 different types of Internet users who are attracted to online groups. Many belong to several types: On average, a Cyber Groupie (or someone who has checked out an online group) has visited 4 different online groups at one time or another. The different types are: · The Getting Ahead group - 51% of Internet users who have checked out trade and professional associations or labor unions. They are more likely to be college-educated men. · The Getting By group - 43% of Internet users who use Internet groups to mange day-to-day responsibilities, such as parenting or medical conditions. Women, especially those in the 35-44 age bracket, gravitate to this group. · Belief groups - 56% of Internet users who go to religious online groups or those relating to spiritual beliefs. Those in Belief groups value making personal connections more than the average Cyber Groupie. · Lifestylers - 28% of Internet users who go to online groups to contact people with similar lifestyles. Lifestylers tend to be men under age 34 and are among the very active emailers of other online community members. · Ethnic and racial groups - 15% of Internet users who have contacted an ethnic group online. This is the most racially diverse set of Cyber Groupies; this group is also younger and more urban than other categories of online communitarians. · Civic Engagement group - 45% of Internet users who have contacted an online group such as a neighborhood association or local charitable group. This group is older than average, and active in emailing online groups close to home. · Political Groupies - 22% of Internet users who have contacted a political group online. This group is mostly educated white males, and they are among most active emailers of others in online groups, and report that online groups have deepened their involvement in groups to which they already belong. · Entertainment groupies - 60% of Internet users who go to online groups about TV shows or fan sites of particular performers. This Cyber Groupies are younger than average, and have been online longer than others who go to online groups. · Sports Junkies - 42% of Internet users go to online groups about their favorite sports teams or local teams in which they participate. These users fit a perhaps predictable profile: they tend to be suburban men between the ages of 35 and 44. Here are some other key findings from the survey: · Men tend to be drawn to online groups involving professional activities, politics, and sports. · Women tend to be drawn to online medical support groups, local community associations that are online, and cyber groups relating to entertainment. · Lurking is not prevalent among Cyber Groupies; fully 60% email their group, 43% several times a week. · 35% of all Internet users go online for news about their local community or community events. · 30% of all Internet users go online to get information about their local government. · 11% of Internet users know of a local issue in which the Internet played a role in organizing citizens to communicate with public officials. · 51% percent of all Americans know of a place in their community where the Internet is publicly available. Overwhelmingly, these places are public libraries. African-Americans are the most likely to say that their community lacks public access to the Internet; 42% of African-Americans say their community does not have publicly available Internet terminals somewhere, compared with 29% of whites and 33% of Hispanics. The Pew Internet & American Life Project is a nonpartisan, independent research organization funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts to study the impact of the Internet on families, communities, health care, education, civic and political life, and the work place. ^ ^ ^ ^ Steven L. Clift - W: http://www.publicus.net Minneapolis - - - E: clift(a)publicus.net Minnesota - - - - - T: +1.612.822.8667 USA - - - - - - - ICQ: 13789183 *** Please send submissions to: DO-WIRE(a)TC.UMN.EDU *** *** To subscribe, e-mail: listserv(a)tc.umn.edu *** *** Message body: SUB DO-WIRE *** *** To unsubscribe instead, write: UNSUB DO-WIRE *** *** Please forward this post to others and encourage *** *** them to subscribe to the free DO-WIRE service. ***

3 2

Science magazine article
by Barry Wellman 18 Feb '02

18 Feb '02

Folks, I'm delighted to alert folks to a review article I wrote in Science, reviewing work about computer networks as social networks. In addition to arguing that computer networks are social networks, it substantively focuses on how the Internet fits into everyday (nonwork) life and computer-mediated tools for knowledge acquisition and management in networked organizations. You can access this article via my website. The URL is below, just click on Publications. While you're there, feel free to sightsee some of my other recent, relevant stuff. Cheers, Barry ___________________________________________________________________ Barry Wellman Professor of Sociology NetLab Director wellman(a)chass.utoronto.ca http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~wellman Centre for Urban & Community Studies University of Toronto 455 Spadina Avenue Toronto Canada M5S 2G8 fax:+1-416-978-7162 ___________________________________________________________________

2 2

on gauges and other technical standards
by Allan A Friedman 13 Feb '02

13 Feb '02

Hello all, After reading the recent discussion on railroad gauges deriving from ancient standards, I am curious if anyone is doing work looking into technical standards. I'm writing my undergrad honors thesis on technical Internet standards, and the need for public interest involvement in the standardization process, viewing this as a subset of the "technical is political" or "code is law" body of work. Although my thesis is predominantly policy-oriented, I'd really like some theory to work with, aside from market failures and civic governance. Chasing citations back and forth has not turned up a whole lot in this area. If anyone has any suggestions for literature that delves into examining the larger impacts of specific technical design decisions, from any perspective (sociology, psychology, policy, etc) I would really appreciate it. Thanks for your help, /allan ... et surtout||Allan Friedman n'oubliez pas||Center for Social and Policy Studies de tomber||Swarthmore College amoureux||allan(a)friedmans.org http://www.sccs.swarthmore.edu/~allan "For the umpteenth time that evening, he wished computer code responded to threats of physical violence..."

2 1

Re: welcoming thoughts about activists and 'new media'
by Lachlan Brown 01 Feb '02

01 Feb '02

Yes, I can help you there. Also Tiziana Terranova who is at the University of Essex. You might also post to Nettime bbs. By the way, what's your institutional affiliation? Lachlan Brown (416) 826 6937 VM (416) 822 1123 Hello, I'm doing some research with people involved in non-profit organizations an= d their use of 'new media'. I am trying to find out how exactly they use technology to organize and navigate through information, what types of information is transferred between groups and why users essentially engage the technology =8B in this case, for social change. I'm interested in gaining a deeper understanding about horizontal and vertical flows of communication, physical connectivity, data communality, interactivity and ease of use in organizing social-change networks within a technological framework for democratic advancement. I'm preparing a focus group session, and with such a wealth of different ideas/individuals/thoughts on this listserve, I was wondering if any of you had some ideas as to what types of questions you would ask...what explorations do you think are worthy in this area? What specific questions would you ask if you were in this focus group with non-profits? Thanks in advance for any insight you can provide...I will be sure to share any information I gain from the meeting. Linda Jean Kensicki -- _______________________________________________ Sign-up for your own FREE Personalized E-mail at Mail.com http://www.mail.com/?sr=signup 1 cent a minute calls anywhere in the U.S.! http://www.getpennytalk.com/cgi-bin/adforward.cgi?p_key=RG9853KJ&url=http:/…

4 3

Space and territoriality
by Chris Heckler 01 Feb '02

01 Feb '02

3 2

Blogging
by Jeremy Crampton 31 Jan '02

31 Jan '02

Hi, I would be interested to hear of any work done on blogging or blogs (weblogs), either published or as presentations. Initially I just want to get an idea of who is blogging (gender, age) and why, what is in the blogs, how popular they are, and so on. Perhaps if there is enough interest I could summarize to the list. Many thanks! __ Jeremy Crampton 404 651-1763 http://monarch.gsu.edu/jcrampton/

3 2

Blogging info
by JASON NOLAN 31 Jan '02

31 Jan '02

> > >Today's Topics: > > 1. Blogging (Jeremy Crampton) > 2. RE: Blogging (Cem Timurkan) > 3. re: introduction (Lachlan Brown) > 4. RE: Technology in Hollywood - Summary (Bunz, Ulla K) > 5. Re: re: introduction (Ben Davidson) > 6. RE: Technology in Hollywood - Summary (Frank Schaap) > Hi Everyone; My first post to AoIR. Hello everyone! I'm on the organizing committee for the AoIR conference in Toronto, so I'll probably end up posting more as the time goes on. Thanks to Barry Wellman for pointing out this strand to me, or I may not have noticed for a couple of days. I've been playing about with blogging for a couple of years. I run or coordinate about 15-20 blogs, and am coordinating some doctoral research into teacher professionalization using Blogs as data collection tools, and have run/helped run blogs with secondary, undergrad and graduate classes. I'm presently heading a team putting together an educationally focused blogging software tool called Edublog (Edublog.com) and we're in early beta testing of the tool. Members of our edublog team have used, or are using most of the major (and some of the minor) blogging tools (blogger.com, Livejournal.com (deadjournal.com) greymatter (noahgrey.com/greysoft/ now greylogs.com) thraxil.dhs.org) For a good overview on blogging for writers, have a look at a short article published this month in E2k (www.netauthor.org/e2k/) called " Ceci n'est pas un blog!". One of my research assistants has spent the year putting together a wonderful blog listing all the articles on blogging she could find on the net. The list is chronological as she found them, and she's presently organizing them into groups. The list is at http://edublog.forestry.utoronto.ca/~laurel/ (this address will change to edublog.org/~laurel pretty soon, and the old address will not work after around May 2002). There is also some blogging info in "A report on Future Trends for Online Learning Environments in North America" (http://achieve.utoronto.ca/papers/VivendiReport.html) If anyone's doing work in blogs, or wants to be kept informed on what we're doing, please email me. Hope this helps, and stimulates some discussion on what is, to me, one of the coolest things going on on the net. Jason Oh, my blog is jasonnolan.net ;-) -- Jason Nolan PhD Scholar in Residence, Knowledge Media Design Institute University of Toronto http://achieve.utoronto.ca/jason/ (416)978-5656/3884f ICQ: 6238593

1 0

Re: Air-l digest, Vol 1 #286 - Blogging
by Valdis 31 Jan '02

31 Jan '02

Check out http://blogdex.media.mit.edu/ -- they are like the Yahoo/DMOZ/Google of the blog world. You can even type in a blog URL and they will list the blogs it points to, and the blogs pointing to it. Enough data to do a simple ego network. Valdis Krebs http://www.orgnet.com air-l-request(a)aoir.org wrote: > [SNIP] > > Message: 1 > From: "Jeremy Crampton" > To: <air-l(a)aoir.org> > Date: Wed, 30 Jan 2002 12:11:54 -0500 > Subject: [Air-l] Blogging > Reply-To: air-l(a)aoir.org > > Hi, > > I would be interested to hear of any work done on blogging or blogs = > (weblogs), either published or as presentations. Initially I just want = > to get an idea of who is blogging (gender, age) and why, what is in the = > blogs, how popular they are, and so on. > > Perhaps if there is enough interest I could summarize to the list. > > Many thanks! > > __ > Jeremy Crampton [SNIP]

1 0

Re: lurking
by Debbie Herring 31 Jan '02

31 Jan '02

I've been following both this thread and the one re: newsgroup research with interest. In the process of analysing and writing up a two year part/obs study of a usenet group (100K posts) and an extensive survey, I've looked in detail at the lurker issue, and if anyone is interested, I can email a summary of the results so far. Debbie-- Urban Theology Unit, Sheffield http://dialspace.dial.pipex.com/debbie.herring Views expressed in this email are my own and are not necessarily those of the University of Sheffield or UTU.

2 1

RE: [Air-l] Technology in Hollywood - Summary
by Frank Schaap 31 Jan '02

31 Jan '02

Ulla wrote: > Couple of weeks ago I asked for help with finding movie scenes in which > technology is integrated into everyday life situations of the movie > characters. Earlier I mentioned the hilarious MovieOS, which does all the things computers in Hollywood movies do. I finally tracked down its origins (?) to the Userfriendly comic. The storyline about the MovieOS starts here: http://ars.userfriendly.org/cartoons/?id=20010111 and continues for a couple of weeks (you'll have to click through a couple of different storylines that intersect with this storyline, but it's worth it). There's also a nice page "Things Computers Can Do in Movies" (with a couple of references to movies) here: http://curby.dhs.org/data/quotes/MovieComputing.html Enjoy :) Frank.

1 0