- Air-L - lists.aoir.org

Re: [Air-l] on conferences
by Matthew Bernius 26 Apr '07

26 Apr '07

> > Jeremy is correct that AoIR did not publish the research annual (but > he's not correct insofar as it's Peter Lang Publishing that's the > publisher and not "Steve's Publisher" :-)). It was, as usual with all > things AoIR, volunteer work that made it happen, and it was primarily > Mia Consalvo who volunteered. Without here there would not have been > an annual, just as there would not have been one without the program > chairs who served as editors, nor without the contributors. > > It's also correct that the last research annual will be the last one > published by Peter Lang. Sales were abysmal, and while I don't have > the figures in front of me, they were in the neighborhood of fewer > than 100 sold of each. > One option to consider is a print on demand (PoD) journal. While there might be some stigma in releasing it through a digital PoD service like LuLu.com, it seems that it would be mitigated by a peer-review process. The benefit is that it eliminates direct printing costs. The final product could simultaneously be released in PDF form (since you'd need that to build the print file anyway). And once templates are set up, it wouldn't be too hard to "automate," or at least routinize, much of the production workflow. Heck this has the potential for a great XML application. - Matt -- ----------------------------- Matthew Bernius New Media and Customer Intelligence Strategist for Hire mBernius(a)gMail.com http://www.waking-dream.com

2 1

print and online journals
by Jonathan Sterne 26 Apr '07

26 Apr '07

Hi All, I've been reading this discussion with interest as it is a topic about which I am passionate. And because I am avoiding a pile of final exams. I've been involved with Bad Subjects (we were "open access" before "open access" http://bad.eserver.org) since 1994 and recently had a nasty runin with Sage after publishing a piece in New Media and Society (you can read about it at http://superbon.net/?p=461) There are a few issues to disentangle here, I think. 1. The "actual" quality of a journal is not the same thing as its prestige/standing in a field. The latter matters for people's tenure dossiers at many (though not all) institutions; the former matters for all of us when we are actually doing out work. The two may or may not be related. 2. Journals require labor. Not just the reviewing and writing kind, but also the publishing kind, which is the traditional function of publishers. If you remove the publisher, you need some kind of funding stream to pay for the additional resources and labor that a journal uses. Or you need people who are willing to work for free. This is one of the greatest obstacles to the open-access movement and will doom those many new online journals. People think that the main costs are eliminated when you eliminate paper. But almost all those print journals come with some paid staff (often graduate students) who manage the submission and review process. Others are paid for formatting, proofreading and keeping the journal looking good. Those functions are still important. 3. In theory, professors aren't working for free. We draw salaries to do a combination of research, teaching and service. When we write for journals or review for them, we are working on salary. However, one trick of the neoliberal university is to redefine the job: reduce the number of administrative staff in departments or reduce the number of departments and increase their size; move funding obligations to individual faculty who must apply for grants to support their students and sometimes even to support their office supply budgets; increase class size and reduce the number of TAs; and on and on. Eliminating paid positions for journals, while linked to the increased "freeness" of open access, is also linked to the increasing time crunch in the professor job. (This also trickles down to students, who are expected to publish and travel much more, which cuts into the one activity that is most important in graduate education prior to the dissertation: reading). I feel very Capital I, Part I: it's about surplus labor. 4. That said, open access is generally a good thing if your goal is to disseminate what you write. When the Canadian Journal of Communication went open access (it survives through dues and -- I think -- also through grants) their readership shot up. http://www.cjc-online.ca/ The new International Journal of Communication (http://ijoc.org) also has funding behind it, and they've managed to attract some big names in the field, which should probably offset the online prestige issue, at least over time. 5. But dissemination is only one goal. Many journal publishers, like Sage, are more interested in protecting their profits than facilitating the circulation of scholars' ideas. And like it or not, many junior faculty at least feel they have to be concerned about where they publish and not just how many people read or use their material. Which is why we can't just junk the current journal system without also reworking the tenure system. 6. For what it's worth, anything long, I prefer to read on paper. So the answer, to me, is some kind of incrementalism, with a simple, final goal: open access journals with both online and print components that are funded well enough not to extract additional free labor from students and faculty, and which are useful to people -- like assistant professors -- who will still need to partake of the academic prestige economy for the forseeable future. Best, --J, and now back to grading

2 1

Re: [Air-l] Our VT colleagues
by William Bain 26 Apr '07

26 Apr '07

Ellis Godard wrote <<"have to negotiate things" is a moral imperative not, of course, often followed.>> I respectfully take the point. Without wishing to insist on developing a thread that doesn't seem to be getting a lot of attention, I would add that maybe you've struck a realpolitik chord in terms of the reference to Donald Black's "pure sociology". Based only on looking at the article you've referenced (far too little, I admint) the first thing that strikes me is that it's an approach that goes much against the current transdisciplinary grain. On the other hand,k used in conjunction with other approaches, maybe there's a good deal in it. Whether this is the forum for it or not I suppose remains to be seen. Best regards, William William Bain PhD Student Comparative Literature Department of Spanish Philology Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona --------------------------------- Ahhh...imagining that irresistible "new car" smell? Check outnew cars at Yahoo! Autos.

1 0

internet surveying question
by Jeremiah Spence 26 Apr '07

26 Apr '07

I am designing a survey that will be implemented in June with users of telecenters in Brazil that will attempt to rate the skill level or maybe the degree of sophistication of the internet user. Does anyone know of any existing surveys or literature that I might be able to explore? Thanks, Jeremiah Spence PhD Student Department of Radio, Television & Film Population Research Center University of Texas at Austin jspence5(a)mail.utexas.edu

2 1

wikipedia video unlikely in real wikilife
by Barry Wellman 26 Apr '07

26 Apr '07

Some one was asking about a video showing an edit war on Wikipedia. I think it is not likely in real Wikipedia life because of the Three-Revert Rule: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Three-revert_rule Which basically says don't revert an article three times in a 24 hour period. This is an official Wikipolicy. And the norm is that you can't use meatpuppets or sockpuppets to evade. OTOH, as best as I can glean, it is not automatic in that the software doesn't ban you if you go over 3. But I've seen multiple cases of a person complaining (often the other you're editing) to an admin who then blocks the 3-reverter for 24 hours or more. I know I've been tempted to do multiple reverts in one article (the other person is always wrong, eh?), but decided I didn't want to be in edit war hell. And no, I am not doing systematic research on Wikipee. Just a Wikiuser. Barry Wellman _____________________________________________________________________ Barry Wellman S.D. Clark Professor of Sociology NetLab Director Centre for Urban & Community Studies University of Toronto 455 Spadina Avenue Toronto Canada M5S 2G8 fax:+1-416-978-7162 wellman at chass.utoronto.ca http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~wellman for fun: http://chass.utoronto.ca/oldnew/cybertimes.php _____________________________________________________________________

2 1

Kelvin Grove Urban Village design competition
by Marcus Foth 25 Apr '07

25 Apr '07

ENTRIES CLOSE 31 MAY 2007 Kelvin Grove Urban Village design competition The Kelvin Grove Urban Village Project Team is conducting a design competition, seeking ideas and proposals for an installation (or multiple / distributed installations) at the Kelvin Grove Urban Village that will “display visual evidence of connectivity within the community”. This competition aims to attract students and professionals who have an interest in the visual and multimedia applications of Information and Communication Technology. The competition has two streams. The student stream is available for full-time or part-time Australian secondary or tertiary students and offers a prize of AUD 2,000. The open stream is available for everyone including businesses and offers a prize of AUD 5,000. The indicative budget for creation and installation is AUD 40,000. The competition commences on 1 January 2007 and closes on 31 May 2007. For further details or to obtain an entry form visit the Kelvin Grove Urban Village website. http://www.kgurbanvillage.com.au/news/design_comp/ Please consider entering this competition and please distribute widely. Thank you. Dr Marcus Foth Kelvin Grove Urban Village Information and Communication Technology Committee -- Dr Marcus Foth Australian Postdoctoral Fellow Institute for Creative Industries and Innovation Queensland University of Technology (CRICOS No. 00213J) Creative Industries Precinct, Brisbane QLD 4059, Australia Phone +61 7 313 x88772 - Fax x88195 - Office Z6-511 m.foth(a)qut.edu.au - http://www.vrolik.de/publications/

1 0

Carl Couch Internet Research Award -- deadline extended
by Mark D. Johns 25 Apr '07

25 Apr '07

CALL FOR AWARD APPLICATIONS Carl J. Couch Internet Research Award 2007 DEADLINE EXTENDED TO MAY 14, 2007 A student award competition Sponsored by the Carl Couch Center for Social and Internet Research http://www.cccsir.org The Carl Couch Center issues an annual call for student-authored papers to be considered for Carl J. Couch Internet Research Award. The Couch Center welcomes both theoretical and empirical papers that (1) apply symbolic interactionist approaches to Internet studies, (2) demonstrate interactive relationships between social interaction and communication technologies as advocated by Couch, and/or (3) develop symbolic interactionist concepts in new directions. Papers will be evaluated based on the quality of (1) mastery of Symbolic Interactionist approaches and concepts and Couch's theses, (2) originality, (3) organization, (4) presentation, and (5) advancement of knowledge. Evaluation will be administered by a Review Committee of four: Dr. Mark D. Johns, Luther College, Decorah, Iowa Dr. Katherine M. Clegg Smith, Johns Hopkins University Dr. Lori Kendall, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Dr. Dennis Waskul, Minnesota State University, Mankato Competition is open to graduate or undergraduate students of all disciplines. Works that are published or accepted for publication are not eligible for award consideration. Entries should not exceed 30 pages (approximately 7500 words) in length, including references and appendices. Limit of one entry per student per year. The top three papers will receive Couch Awards to be presented at the 2007 meeting of the Association of Internet Researchers (aoir.org) in Vancouver, BC. The top paper will be awarded a certificate and a cash prize of $300 US, runner up will receive a certificate and a cash prize of $200 US, and a third paper will receive a certificate and a cash prize of $100 US. All three authors will be invited to present their work at a session of the AoIR conference, October 18-20, 2007. Those interested should send a copy of their paper, with a 100-word abstract, electronically to Mark D. Johns at mjohns(a)luther.edu Application deadline is extended to May 14, 2007. Notification of award will be sent by June 15. Those with questions or comments about Couch Award application, please contact: Mark D. Johns Dept. of Communication Studies Luther College Decorah, IA 52101 Tel: (563) 387-1347 E-mail: mjohns(a)luther.edu

1 0

Doctoral Colloquium at AoIR 8.0 Vancouver
by Nancy Baym 25 Apr '07

25 Apr '07

Call for Participation Association of Internet Researchers (AoIR) Annual Conference 2007, Vancouver, Canada Doctoral Colloquium =================== The AoIR 8.0 Doctoral Colloquium offers Ph.D. students working in internet research or a related field a special forum on Wednesday, October 17, 2007 where they will have a chance to briefly present their dissertations-in-progress and discuss them at length with peers and established senior researchers. Interested students should prepare a 2 page summary of their research. This should provide a context for the research, describe the methods being used, the progress to date and expectations and hopes from the colloquium. Faculty mentors include: Ronald Rice, Arthur N. Rupe Chair in the Social Effects of Mass Communication, University of California-Santa Barbara, United States. Maria Bakardjieva, Associate Professor. Faculty of Communication and Culture, University of Calgary, Canada. Mary Bryson, Associate Professor, Education & Counselling Psychology and Special Education, The University of British Columbia, Canada. Robert Burnett, Professor and Chair, Media and Communication Studies, Karlstad University, Sweden. Lori Kendall, Associate Professor, Graduate School of Library and Information Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, United States. We hope to announce additional mentors shortly. Please submit your 2 page application by Friday, May 25 2007 to: Nancy Baym : nbaym [at] ku.edu Applicants will be notified of acceptance by 15 June 2007. Successful applicants will be asked to prepare an 8 page paper on their research and the issues they wish to discuss by 1 August 2007. For further details please visit the conference website at http://conferences.aoir.org/index.php?cf=6 or contact the organizer of the AoIR Doctoral Colloquium, Nancy Baym : nbaym [at] ku.edu The AoIR 8.0 Doctoral Colloquium is sponsored by Microsoft Research. Please forward to relevant lists, and please excuse cross-postings.

1 0

Event at the Centre for Research into Material Digital Culture, Sussex, UK 21st May
by Kathleen O'Riordan 25 Apr '07

25 Apr '07

The Centre for Research into Material Digital Cultures at the University of Sussex, Public Lecture: 'Sensorium: Embodied Experience versus Digital Media' Speaker: Caroline Jones, Professor of Art History, MIT Respondent: Esther Leslie, Professor of Political Aesthetics at Birkbeck, University of London. Welcome: Professor Sue Thornham, University of Sussex/Caroline Bassett, Director, Centre for Research in Material Digital Cultures Chaired by Dr Michael Bull, founding editor of Senses and Society. Monday 21st May 2007 At 5:30 at the Brighton and Sussex Medical School Lecture Theatre, University of Sussex All Welcome. RSVP to Vanessa Sammut so we can keep track of numbers: V.A.Sammut(a)sussex.ac.uk The Centre for Research into Material Digital Cultures http://www.sussex.ac.uk/rcmdc/

1 0

Re: [Air-l] Our VT colleagues
by William Bain 25 Apr '07

25 Apr '07

Ellis Godard wrote "Consider high school prep rallies. They bring many folks together, but also elucidate and enunciate boundaries between boosters and those disinterested or opposed, and so are the subject of not only celebration but scorn." Well, yes, of course, but I mean so I would have assumed. You have to negotiate. Being probably too reductive about something complex, I'd offer the idea that part of what happens in the type of derangement that explodes into "inexplicable" violence is a lack of understanding about how to negotiate or a lack of negotiators. I'd take it further and say something about SSGs but I'd be way out of my depth. Anyway, my words mean exactly what you read there. I wouldn't want them to be misconstrued as indicating that I am against differences. I am highly in favor of the rhetorics of difference. It seems to me that at perhaps its best a society is an agreement to disagree. You have to negotiate things. Best regards, Will William Bain PhD Student Comparative Literature Department of Spanish Philology Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona --------------------------------- Ahhh...imagining that irresistible "new car" smell? Check outnew cars at Yahoo! Autos.

3 2