September 2006 - Air-L - lists.aoir.org

OA
by Dr. W. Reid Cornwell 11 Sep '06

11 Sep '06

This is the gateway to Peter's work in Open Access http://www.earlham.edu/~peters/hometoc.htm ________________________________ Dr. W. Reid Cornwell The Center For Internet Research P.O. Box 6369 Breckenridge, CO 720.212.0719 (phone) 970.485.5109 (mobile) wrc(a)tcfir.org http://tcfir.org

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interactive browsing
by Maciej Kos 10 Sep '06

10 Sep '06

Hello Everybody, I am looking for some data on interactive browsing regarding sites like YouTube. How much traffic (or page views) is generated by interactive browsing vs. searching vs. referring links? What is the ratio? Could you recommend any freely available publications/data (I am a poor student :))? If not on this topic, then perhaps some recent materials on interactive browsing in general. As I am very new to Internet studies, I don't really know where to start. Thanks a lot. M. Kos _____________________________________________________________________ I am looking for an academic mentor. Would you be willing to help me?

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Re: [Air-l] ableism
by Kathy Mancuso 10 Sep '06

10 Sep '06

Hi all, I have not been responding to the debate on ableism largely because I am currently unwell and have limited computer access. I will endeavor to compose a more thought through reaction when I have time. However, I would like to apologize for referring to Dr Cornwell as Mr Cornwell. I had not been made aware that he had a PhD, and on this point I am genuinely sorry for my own misinformation. On the other hand, we were discussing Dr Goddard's dissertation in that very post, thus I was assured that he did indeed have a PhD. By using polite language and honorifics, I was attempting to couch this in a friendly manner so it would not be taken as a flame, but rather as a genuine request to keep AoIR-L a safe space for everyone, and to allow us to better continue in our work of "unpacking the knapsack" of privilege in online spaces. I'm sorry that my politeness has been incorrectly interpreted, and I will attempt to be more polite next time. I would also like to make it clear that I did not say that any individual on this list was an ableist. When I said willful spin, I was referring to the fact that the "blindness" referred to seemed to be a kind of "willful ignorance," as I had mentioned in the previous sentence, and I thought that people would notice that the repetition of the word was referring back to my previous usage of the term. kathy -- . . . connection in an isolating age . . . Katherine Mancuso, graduate student, Emory University Web 2.0 research, life, and meta: http://museumfreak.livejournal.com http://del.icio.us/museumfreak "Whenever anyone says 'You are,' they mean 'I want you to be.'" --Anais Nin

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Fwd: [school-discuss] Self Organising Systems for mass education
by Jeremy Hunsinger 10 Sep '06

10 Sep '06

Here's an interesting set of ideas that might go against some of my assumptions in regard to the OLPC project from MIT. However, I am not so sure about the results just yet. Begin forwarded message: > From: Knut Yrvin <knuty(a)skolelinux.no> > Date: September 10, 2006 3:45:56 AM EDT > To: schoolforge-discuss(a)schoolforge.net > Subject: [school-discuss] Self Organising Systems for mass education > Reply-To: schoolforge-discuss(a)schoolforge.net > > By Sugata Mitra, Dean of Research at The NIIT Institute and Chief > Scientist at NIIT Limited > > * An extract: > > The “Hole in the wall” experiments > > Groups of children can learn to use computers on their own, > irrespective > of who or where they are. > > Groups of children, given access to shared, publicly accessible > computers in playgrounds and other public areas, will teach themselves > to use the technology on their own. > > The original “hole in the wall”, January 1999, Kalkaji, New Delhi, > India > > We found this through a set of experiments conducted from 1999 onwards > and often referred to as the “Hole-in-the-wall” experiments. > > We found that children given unsupervised access to computers in > public > or play areas would become: > > 1. Computer literate – in their own way, with their own > vocabulary, but highly effective nevertheless. > 2. Better at math and English – I don’t know why, maybe > because they learn to analyze and solve problems in groups. > 3. More social and cooperative – because they learn > that knowledge, unlike material objects, grows with sharing. > 4. More interested in school – if the computer is near > or in the school premises. > 5. Less likely to drop out of school – because they > want their computer. > 6. Less interested in petty crime – mostly because all > their free time is spent at the computer. > 7. Generate local goodwill – parents like the idea that > the child is learning something and not creating trouble at > home. > > It took us five years of rigorous measurements across the Indian > subcontinent to verify these results amongst 40,000 of the world’s > poorest children. Almost half of them, girls. > > The data based outcomes showed: > > * Acquisition of functional computer literacy > * Improvement in academic performance > * Increase in confidence and self-esteem > * Increased collaborative behavior > > Apart from data-based findings, there is consistent anecdotal evidence > of large-scale impact on school enrollment, retention, concentration, > attention span and problem-solving ability. > > To keep computers working in, mostly, outdoor environments, we had to > design several pieces of hardware and software. In five years a design > emerged that is reliable and low on maintenance. The design is > resistant to vandalism and undesirable adult access. Interestingly, > both vandalism and adult access is automatically low in public places > where children are present. We were also able to design software to > remotely monitor all activity at these “playground” computers. > > We found much more effective use of the computers already owned by > schools—200 children can become computer literate using one playground > computer—making it an effective and affordable method. > > Without adult intervention or supervision, 40,000 village children > experimented with computers and software to acquire an enduring > understanding of the information age. > > The news article: > > http://www.egovmonitor.com/node/5865 > > The scientific articles: > > http://www.hole-in-the-wall.com/docs/Paper06.pdf > http://www.hole-in-the-wall.com/Publications.html > > Best regards > > Knut Yrvin jeremy hunsinger Assistant Professor Pratt Institute www.cddc.vt.edu wiki.tmttlt.com www.tmttlt.com () ascii ribbon campaign - against html mail /\ - against microsoft attachments http://www.stswiki.org/ sts wiki http://cfp.learning-inquiry.info/ Learning Inquiry-the journal http://transdisciplinarystudies.tmttlt.com/ Transdisciplinary Studies:the book series

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Social Networking Web Site Permissions...
by kuehlm＠ou.edu 10 Sep '06

10 Sep '06

> Hello Listmates- > > I am a geography master's student, just starting out in the world of > internet research and have a question: > > Has anyone conducted research on Myspace.com and been forced (by IRBs or > other parties) to obtain permission from myspace (or any other social > networking website) before conducting the research? > > How have you gone about this? > > Or > > Does anyone know of a way to prove that the information on myspace.com is > public information and thus permission from the owners is not necessary? > > Any help would be great! > Thanks! > Marcie > > ________ > Marcie Kuehl > Department of Geography > M104 Sarkeys Energy Center > University of Oklahoma > 405.325.7468 > kuehlm(a)ou.edu

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Re: [Air-l] Brisbane accomodation needed
by Sarah Stewart 10 Sep '06

10 Sep '06

there's plenty of backpackers about but they are pretty scungy. Sarah Sarah Stewart PhD Candidate Senior Lecturer School of Midwifery Otago Polytechnic Forth St Private Bag 1910 Dunedin New Zealand Tel: 0800 762786 sarahs(a)tekotago.ac.nz >>> smith(a)sfu.ca 09/10/06 3:07 AM >>> I realize this isn't likely the appropriate place for it, but I am getting a bit concerned that I can't find a reasonably priced room near the conference hotel. I left it too late to get the discounted rooms (shame on me), so I am now facing either a very pricey room in the Hilton or somewhere else... Does anyone have a suggestion for a room nearby that doesn't cost an arm and a leg? I am not fussy - would take just about anything. I arrive Tuesday, Sept 26, leave Sunday, Oct 1. -- Richard Smith, Associate Professor School of Communication Simon Fraser University, 515 West Hastings Street, Vancouver, CANADA V6B 5K3 Phone: 604 291 5116 Web: http://www.sfu.ca/~smith/ New book!: http://arago.cprost.sfu.ca/smith/mawc _______________________________________________ The air-l(a)listserv.aoir.org mailing list is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org Join the Association of Internet Researchers: http://www.aoir.org/

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Re: [Air-l] Fwd: RE: Facebook Protest and other things you raised.
by Sarah Brooke Robbins 10 Sep '06

10 Sep '06

Sal: I'm SO glad you made the connection from social networks on Facebook-like sites and MMOGs. I've been pining to do it here but sat back to watch the arguments first. Your comparison is especially insightful to me because it stresses the point that in MMORPGs and networking sites alike, the real commodity is a user base. Whether that user number is used to justify advertising investment or monthly subscription costs, the number of people using the site/network is what attracts money into the system. Thus, as the main commodity of a site, users tend to begin to feel some sense of ownership in that community (as the sites encourage them to do). One of the most interesting ideas to me regarding the Facebook situation is that the students I've spoken to felt that the site was "for students" in a way that made it feel like a closed community which I think made them feel safer. They trusted that their profiles would only be viewed by people "like them." I think this sense of a membership went a long way in causing the feelings of violation and creepiness that contributed to the protests. On another tack, your ideas about what the users have contributed to the community in their "one way" relationship makes me think about SecondLife where the stakes seem even higher. Users hold the copyright on anything they create in the environment and can make real money from their creations (search for Slingo to see an example) thus when the creators of SecondLife make a system change people feel not only their comfort threatened but also their money-making potential and we all know that money makes the world go round :) Sarah "Intellagirl" Robbins On 9/10/06, Nancy Baym <nbaym(a)ku.edu> wrote: > > Sal Humphries was having trouble sending this to the list, so sent it > to me. With his permission I pass it on to the list. > > > > >Nancy Baym wrote: > > > >>What I find interesting, and frankly rather upsetting, and cannot yet > >>fully articulate (help fellow listers!) is that we (speaking here as > >>a user) get invested in these sites. We use them to build identities, > >>to create connections, to network, for whatever purposes. We spend a > >>lot of time there and we get invested through time, social > >>connections, and affect. And then the developers get a new idea and > >>suddenly we all have to live with it or leave. To use the front lawn > >>metaphor, it's as though they decide that actually the streets > >>shouldn't be on a grid pattern, they should all be cul-de-sacs and if > >>you didn't want to live on a cul-de-sac, well, move to a new town. > >>Who were you to think you had any say in city planning? > >> > >>As these sites become more and more integral to everyday experience, > >>it seems the developers have more and more of an obligation to > >>understand and their users, and to incorporate their concerns into > >>the design before making big changes, and to give people options for > >>managing problematic elements of the changes they decide to make > >>anyhow (in the facebook case, turning off the minifeed for your own > >>profile). > >> > >>There seems to be a real difference between the ethical and practical > >>obligations to users in these "web2" sites and the way that > >>businesses have related to their customers in the past. As I say, > >>this is not something I've worked through, but design and > >>development, customer service, public relations, and community > >>relations all seem to merge in new ways. > >> > >>Does anyone have more thought-through ways to think about what I'm > >>trying to get at here? > >> > > > >I think you raise some very interesting points about the ways we > >lose control (to some extent) of our communities and identities > >through conducting parts of our social life in proprietary spaces. > >I've been thinking about this in relation to mulitplayer online > >games and the relations between publishers and players. Most Terms > >of Service agreements used by social softwares (including MMOGs) are > >one-sided contracts which leave users with little recourse to > >administrative justice should things go wrong. For instance if a > >player is banned by the customer service team in a game, there is > >often no mechanism of appeal, no system of accountability in place > >which can constrain the publisher. And players of these games, like > >the users you mention above, invest thousands of hours into games, > >building content for the publishers (which the publishers then > >usually lay claim to). > > > >The (market-based) argument is that as consumers we are able to > >constrain the publisher through our 'exit power'. The thought that > >if they (publishers) push too far, players will trash the game and > >leave is the thing that will supposedly prevent inequitable > >treatment of the users they provide the service to. But this > >argument ignores the high switching costs to the users. Because in > >social softwares, the affective and time investments are huge. The > >cost of leaving, to the user, is often too high to contemplate and > >they will put up with a good deal more than is fair. Exit power may > >work for consumers, but actually users of games and social softwares > >are more than consumers - they are very productive and that changes > >things. > > > >The thing is that currently these service providers achieve their > >success on the back of content created by their users, but there is > >no attendant sense of obligation to their users. The irony is that, > >in the MMOGs at least, players pay to make content for the > >publishers, (and by content I include the idea that social networks > >are affective content with a very real economic value to the > >publisher) who can then screw them every which way, and with > >impunity. I think this is probably clearest in the case of bannings > >- the denial of access to a persons own online identity and > >community, but there are also implications for the ongoing design > >processes. > > > >I've published a paper canvassing aspects of this which you can find at: > > http://eprints.qut.edu.au/archive/00004311/01/4311.pdf > > > >TL Taylor is publishing soon on more design oriented issues, and I > >think you might find that interesting: > > > >"Beyond Management: Considering Participatory Design and Governance > >in Player Culture," First Monday, forthcoming. > > > >She also published a rippingly good article back in 2002: > > > >"'Whose Game Is This Anyway?'": Negotiating Corporate Ownership in a > >Virtual World" in F. Mayra (ed.), > ><http://granum.uta.fi/cgi-bin/book.cgi?6901>Computer Games and > >Digital Cultures Conference Proceedings. Tampere: Tampere University > >Press, 2002. > > > >Hope some of this might be useful in thinking through the issues you > raise > >Sal > > > >Dr Sal Humphreys > >Post Doctoral Fellow > >Faculty of Creative Industries > >Queensland University of Technology > >Brisbane, Australia > >Mob. 0414 456 078 > > _______________________________________________ > The air-l(a)listserv.aoir.org mailing list > is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org > Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: > http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org > > Join the Association of Internet Researchers: > http://www.aoir.org/ > -- Sarah "Intellagirl" Robbins http://www.intellagirl.com http://secondlife.intellagirl.com Yahoo: Intellagirl Skype: Intellagirl SecondLife: Intellagirl Tully

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Brisbane accommodation
by Graham Longford 10 Sep '06

10 Sep '06

For those without hotel accommodation yet for AOIR 7.0 in Brisbane (and who can't stomach the $1000AUD for 3 nights at the Hilton), I just booked for 3 nights at the Astor Best Western for $525AUD. A substantial savings. The hotel is just a few blocks from the conference venue and looks more than adequate. Thanks for the suggestion Mary-Helen! And thanks to Richard for reminding me to take care of this mundane detail. Apologies to non-attendees for this post. Cheers, Graham -- Graham Longford, Ph.D. Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Canadian Research Alliance for Community Innovation and Networking (CRACIN) Co-investigator, Community Wireless Infrastructure Research Project (CWIRP) Faculty of Information Studies University of Toronto 140 St. George St., Rm 310 Toronto, Ontario CANADA M5S 3G6 email: graham.longford(a)utoronto.ca +1 416-978-4662

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Fwd: RE: Facebook Protest and other things you raised.
by Nancy Baym 10 Sep '06

10 Sep '06

Sal Humphries was having trouble sending this to the list, so sent it to me. With his permission I pass it on to the list. > >Nancy Baym wrote: > >>What I find interesting, and frankly rather upsetting, and cannot yet >>fully articulate (help fellow listers!) is that we (speaking here as >>a user) get invested in these sites. We use them to build identities, >>to create connections, to network, for whatever purposes. We spend a >>lot of time there and we get invested through time, social >>connections, and affect. And then the developers get a new idea and >>suddenly we all have to live with it or leave. To use the front lawn >>metaphor, it's as though they decide that actually the streets >>shouldn't be on a grid pattern, they should all be cul-de-sacs and if >>you didn't want to live on a cul-de-sac, well, move to a new town. >>Who were you to think you had any say in city planning? >> >>As these sites become more and more integral to everyday experience, >>it seems the developers have more and more of an obligation to >>understand and their users, and to incorporate their concerns into >>the design before making big changes, and to give people options for >>managing problematic elements of the changes they decide to make >>anyhow (in the facebook case, turning off the minifeed for your own >>profile). >> >>There seems to be a real difference between the ethical and practical >>obligations to users in these "web2" sites and the way that >>businesses have related to their customers in the past. As I say, >>this is not something I've worked through, but design and >>development, customer service, public relations, and community >>relations all seem to merge in new ways. >> >>Does anyone have more thought-through ways to think about what I'm >>trying to get at here? >> > >I think you raise some very interesting points about the ways we >lose control (to some extent) of our communities and identities >through conducting parts of our social life in proprietary spaces. >I've been thinking about this in relation to mulitplayer online >games and the relations between publishers and players. Most Terms >of Service agreements used by social softwares (including MMOGs) are >one-sided contracts which leave users with little recourse to >administrative justice should things go wrong. For instance if a >player is banned by the customer service team in a game, there is >often no mechanism of appeal, no system of accountability in place >which can constrain the publisher. And players of these games, like >the users you mention above, invest thousands of hours into games, >building content for the publishers (which the publishers then >usually lay claim to). > >The (market-based) argument is that as consumers we are able to >constrain the publisher through our 'exit power'. The thought that >if they (publishers) push too far, players will trash the game and >leave is the thing that will supposedly prevent inequitable >treatment of the users they provide the service to. But this >argument ignores the high switching costs to the users. Because in >social softwares, the affective and time investments are huge. The >cost of leaving, to the user, is often too high to contemplate and >they will put up with a good deal more than is fair. Exit power may >work for consumers, but actually users of games and social softwares >are more than consumers - they are very productive and that changes >things. > >The thing is that currently these service providers achieve their >success on the back of content created by their users, but there is >no attendant sense of obligation to their users. The irony is that, >in the MMOGs at least, players pay to make content for the >publishers, (and by content I include the idea that social networks >are affective content with a very real economic value to the >publisher) who can then screw them every which way, and with >impunity. I think this is probably clearest in the case of bannings >- the denial of access to a persons own online identity and >community, but there are also implications for the ongoing design >processes. > >I've published a paper canvassing aspects of this which you can find at: > http://eprints.qut.edu.au/archive/00004311/01/4311.pdf > >TL Taylor is publishing soon on more design oriented issues, and I >think you might find that interesting: > >"Beyond Management: Considering Participatory Design and Governance >in Player Culture," First Monday, forthcoming. > >She also published a rippingly good article back in 2002: > >"'Whose Game Is This Anyway?'": Negotiating Corporate Ownership in a >Virtual World" in F. Mayra (ed.), ><http://granum.uta.fi/cgi-bin/book.cgi?6901>Computer Games and >Digital Cultures Conference Proceedings. Tampere: Tampere University >Press, 2002. > >Hope some of this might be useful in thinking through the issues you raise >Sal > >Dr Sal Humphreys >Post Doctoral Fellow >Faculty of Creative Industries >Queensland University of Technology >Brisbane, Australia >Mob. 0414 456 078

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Re: [Air-l] Publishishing
by Caroline Haythornthwaite 10 Sep '06

10 Sep '06

Ok, let's not assume -- perhaps you'd like to introduce yourself to the list. /Caroline Haythornthwaite ---- Original message ---- >Date: Sat, 9 Sep 2006 16:37:34 -0600 >From: "Rasputin" <rasputin(a)sukinsyn.com> >Subject: Re: [Air-l] Publishishing >To: <air-l(a)listserv.aoir.org> > >All you've found out is that a site shares a server along with 15,000 other >websites. > >You know what they say about assumptions? > > > >-----Original Message----- >From: air-l-bounces(a)listserv.aoir.org >[mailto:air-l-bounces@listserv.aoir.org] On Behalf Of elw(a)stderr.org >Sent: Saturday, September 09, 2006 3:30 PM >To: air-l(a)listserv.aoir.org >Subject: Re: [Air-l] Publishishing > > >> Subject: Re: [Air-l] Publishishing >> >> strange that sukisyn site is on the same host as the host organization >> of tcfir.org the focus on education foundation. strange coincidences >> occur i suppose. > > >It seems fairly obvious that the recent rash of trolls are all connected >to one particular list member, who appears not to have the awareness of >general internet operational issues to be conscious of the ease of >figuring out who he is. > >--elijah > >_______________________________________________ >The air-l(a)listserv.aoir.org mailing list >is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org >Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: >http://listserv.aoir.org/listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org > >Join the Association of Internet Researchers: >http://www.aoir.org/ > >_______________________________________________ >The air-l(a)listserv.aoir.org mailing list >is provided by the Association of Internet Researchers http://aoir.org >Subscribe, change options or unsubscribe at: http://listserv.aoir.org/ listinfo.cgi/air-l-aoir.org > >Join the Association of Internet Researchers: >http://www.aoir.org/ ---------------------------------------- Caroline Haythornthwaite Associate Professor Graduate School of Library and Information Science, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 501 East Daniel St., Champaign IL 61820

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