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World Internet Access Report 2006 - cost of online access in global cities
by Philip Howard 20 Mar '06

20 Mar '06

I'm part of a project that has just done an online pub called the World Internet Access Report 2006. The goal is to get us beyond the World Bank / Davos 'Internet penetration' indicators of IT and development. There's a short piece comparing cost of 1 hour cybercafé access in world's 24 largest cities....and all the raw data is there. www.wiareport.org phil Dr. Philip N. Howard Assistant Professor Department of Communication University of Washington

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Re: [Air-l] AoIR in Latin-America
by egeorge＠uottawa.ca 20 Mar '06

20 Mar '06

Hi all, I was member of the steering committee of the conference in Toronto and responsible of the proposals made in French. I totally agree with the opinion of Alex Kuskis. I will only add that I remember some remarks of several members of this list -- from the USA but also from English Canada -- who were very negative with the idea to have a bilingual or multilingual conference. Best Wishes Éric ---------------------------------------------- Éric GEORGE (http://aix1.uottawa.ca/~egeorge/) ---------- In my recollection the inclusion of French presenters in Toronto worked reasonably well, given the association's executive attempts to subvert the bilingual French and English presentations they had initially agreed to. As a member of the Toronto organizing committee, I recall that we felt it important for AIR to grow internationally by recognizing the bilingual nature of their Canadian conference host country. With the help of people like David Mitchell, former editor of the Canadian Journal of Communication, we secured Canadian government funding for translation services and the call for papers was duly issued in French and English. There were a sufficent number of French-speaking scholars to assess French-language proposals. Cyber-philosopher Pierre Levy was secured to present one of the keynotes and all seemed well with the world. Then, a few months before the conference, the Toronto organizers were instructed by the AIR executive to cancel the French sessions and return the government funding offered for translation purposes. The Toronto conference chair refused and was deposed by the executive group, who installed a number of recently-involved locals more amenable to their wishes. Needless to say, those of us who had worked on the conference for 2 years were devastated, but managed to get the French sessions held anyway by arranging for set-up and support. The Francophone scholars who were aware of what had happened were upset, but thanked the deposed organizers. This heavy-handedness caused considerable bad feeling and set back AIR in this part of Canada, where several people have expressed a disinclination to be members until AIR becomes more than tokenly international. I air this dirty laundry now (pun intended) because of our Vancouver colleagues expressed desire to hold the conference, the discussions about AIR in Latin America, and language on the Internet. Now, I would never expect my native language of Latvian to be accommodated by AIR (nor the Croatian that someone mentioned), but when the conference is held in countries where major world languages such as Spanish or French are spoken, and when local organizers are willing to go the extra distance to secure funding, translation and organization, leaving it to the executive to just show up, why would the association continue to insist on its anglo-centrism? The executive who decided that English was to be the association's working language in all matters was almost all-American, and all English-speaking, except for one token member. Is that reflective of an association that purports to be international? ......................Alex Kuskis ***********************

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Re: [Air-l] AoIR in Latin-America
by geert lovink 20 Mar '06

20 Mar '06

hi, i was a bit surprised about your remark on the aior as the list and organization is so deeply anglo-centric. there are NEVER any postings on that list in languages other than english. so what does that 'regardless of language' means to you? there are hardly any lists, sites, blog or journals that are poly-lingual. best, geert

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ANN: BlogTalk Reloaded Call for Proposals
by Thomas N. Burg 20 Mar '06

20 Mar '06

Hi, the call for BlogTalk Reloaded (http://blogtalk.net) is closing soon. FYI: the call is ending at April 1. We already received a lot of proposals. I'd like to further encourage you to submit proposals particularily from the field of information sciences. The conference will take place in Vienna, Austria from Oct 2-3, 2006. The proposal should have between 200 and 500 words. For further information please refer to http://blogtalk.net/call.html Thanks Thomas ***************************************************************** Thomas N. Burg BlogTalk - The International Conference on Social Software Esslinggasse 16/25 1010 Vienna, Austria http://randgaenge.net http://blogtalk.net http://permalink.info AIM:thomasnburg JID:burg@talk.permalink.info

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Cost of Onlne Access in Different Nations
by St-Amant, Kirk 20 Mar '06

20 Mar '06

Hi all, Im trying to find data or research that examines the differences in pricing/costs for internet access (as well as different methods for pricing/billing for such access) in different regions and different nations in order to do an international cost comparison of online access around the globe. Does anyone know of sources that examine these cost factors or have suggestions for where I might want to search for such data? Please feel free to respond to me off list at kirk.st-amant(a)ttu.edu Thank you in advance for your help. Best, Kirk

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English as a Language for International Communication
by Suely Fragoso 20 Mar '06

20 Mar '06

I really think we are complicating a very simple matter here. English is the most widely known second language, and its users are highly spread out in the planet. That is why international communications tend to happen in English nowadays... Why is it so? Well, there are many interesting causes (historical, sociological, linguistic even) Some of them appear to be annoying for several non-English speakers, but I propose that we target the issue of how to make international communications possible/effective nowadays for now. I will offer myself as an example (centered in belly-button, eh?): I can read 6 languages, but rarely get a chance to speak anything but English with most foreigners I meet. I remember talking to several interesting researchers last year in Chicago: Dutch, Croatian, French... if we were to communicate, we had to find a common language, one all of us knew, and that was English. It would have been absurd to propose that everyone spoke in their native tongue - or, better to say, it would only make sense as an exercise of semiotics and after the 4th or 5th drink at the reception :) I proposed the AoIR Latino (as Michel brilliantly nicknamed it) list to be 3-lingual because I suppose that every academic whose native tongue is Spanish or Portuguese can read texts on the other language, as they are very similar. I can also suppose that everyone in AoIR can read English (because conferences language is English and the main AoIR list is in English as well). However, the pluriliguistic approach would not be applicable to the main AoIR list: please people, do not start writing in Croatian or Japanese and I promise not to write in Portuguese either! It should be enough revenge on the linguistic imperialists that we murder their language writing it so badly ;) Sue >>> japeks(a)hotmail.com 20/03/06 0:21 >>> I concur Nathaniel, Although there may be a lot of problems with English-only approach we have no practical choice either. We use English because this is where the action is. The problem gets only more compounded by issues of culture and identity: non-English scholars may find themselves comparing their work to that of English-only audience and get very little in return. Those who read text translated from English in their native language, (not only Japanese, why would it be different in any other language?) may not always appreciate and seek value in their own neck of the woods following models from the English-speaking world, not always helpful and even less reflective of their own realities. Jarek Janio Santiago Canyon College Orange, California >From: Nathaniel Poor <natpoor(a)umich.edu> >Reply-To: air-l(a)listserv.aoir.org >To: geert lovink <geert(a)desk.nl> >CC: air-l(a)listserv.aoir.org >Subject: Re: [Air-l] AoIR in Latin-America >Date: Sun, 19 Mar 2006 21:44:50 -0500 > >I was thinking: "If we spin off the people who don't speak >English.... who may not even be on the list in the first place... >then we will have a more restricted view of the Internet..." > >pero si, entiendo que es un problema con las idiomas del mundo... y >ingles... y el internet... >(but yes I understand that it's a problem with languages of the >world... and English... on the net...) >I also understand there is, currently, no easy answer to the issue of >"we speak different languages but want to talk to each other" >actually I had my undergrads read... something... from the "ferment >in the field" edition (1980s?) of the Journal of Comm, that had a >dialog where Ev Rogers was one of the people, and he, I think it was >him (apologies if I am wrong), had an interesting point about >language where he said, for instance, English-language researchers do >get a lot of material to read, but at the same time a lot of it is >translated, so, the example he used was the Japanese, the Japanese >can get most of the English material in translated form, but Japanese >work is rarely translated into English >now I don't know if that was true then or even true now, but for me >it was an interesting point about how language issues may not quite >cut in expected ways > >I feel that if we spin off non-English, then as you write there will >never be any postings on the list in languages other than English! >(but not like I am fluent in anything but English, my Spanish is not >very good, and honestly I find my near mono-lingualism a problem) >maybe it is chicken and egg... > >but, now that I have a better understanding of how it might work I >think it sounds like a solution worth trying >Sue is going to be a "go-between", and perhaps some others will also >be on both lists and can cross-post *and* translate >that would be really cool.... >so instead of creating different lists that are very separate, there >can be communication! (my PhD is in Comm) > >I am also glad the AIR conference is in different parts of the world, >although that may only avoid American-centrism, but we are a young >organization and these things take time (there is always ICA....) > > >On Mar 19, 2006, at 4:03 PM, geert lovink wrote: > > > hi, i was a bit surprised about your remark on the aior as the list > > and organization is so deeply anglo-centric. there are NEVER any > > postings on that list in languages other than english. so what does > > that 'regardless of language' means to you? there are hardly any > > lists, sites, blog or journals that are poly-lingual. best, geert > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >--------------------------------------------- >Nathaniel Poor, Ph.D. >www.umich.edu/~natpoor >Visiting Assistant Professor >Communication Studies Dept. >Albion College >http://www.albion.edu/commstudies > > >_______________________________________________ >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/

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CFP: Web Searching: Interdisciplinary Perspectives - deadline reminder
by Michael Zimmer 20 Mar '06

20 Mar '06

[Reminder of approaching April 1 deadline for chapter proposals - mz] CALL FOR CHAPTERS Web Searching: Interdisciplinary Perspectives (Digital Formations Series. Peter Lang Publishing) Editors: Amanda Spink, Professor of Information Technology, Queensland University of Technology Michael Zimmer, Department of Culture and Communication, New York University Proposal Submission Deadline: April 1, 2006 Full Chapters Due: August 1, 2006 INTRODUCTION Web search engines have emerged as a unique new media formation within contemporary culture. “Web Searching: Interdisciplinary Perspectives” will provide an interdisciplinary, theoretical perspective of the lived experience of web searching; each chapter will push forward our understanding of social, cultural, economic, legal, political, information and communication impacts of these technologies. The book will critically examine the emerging critical issues, theories, and interdisciplinary formations arising from, and surrounding, web searching, particularly the impact on individuals, social groups, modern and postmodern ways of knowing, and public and private life. CHAPTER SECTIONS Planned book sections include, but are not limited to, the following: Communication Perspectives Cultural Perspectives Economic Perspectives Ethical Perspectives Information Behavior Perspectives Legal Perspectives Political Perspectives Social Perspectives SUBMISSION INFORMATION Potential contributors are invited to submit a 2-5 page chapter proposal to the Editors by April 1, 2006, detailing the background, motivations and structure of the proposed chapter. Authors will be notified by April 15 as to the status of their proposal and sent organizational guidelines. Full chapters should be 8,000-9,000 words in length and are due on August 1, 2006. Final revised manuscripts will be due on September 30, 2006. INQUIRIES AND SUBMISSIONS Inquiries and submissions can be forwarded electronically to: Amanda Spink – ah.spink(a)qut.edu.au Michael Zimmer – michael.zimmer(a)nyu.edu ----- Michael T. Zimmer Doctoral Candidate, Media Ecology Department of Culture and Communication New York University email: michael.zimmer(a)nyu.edu webpage: http://michaelzimmer.org/

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Reminder: open call netporn anthology
by Marije Janssen 20 Mar '06

20 Mar '06

Open call for articles for online netporn anthology Institute of Networkcultures The Institute of Networkcultures (INC) would like to invite you to send in a proposal for an article about netporn for our coming open netporn archive. In the aftermath of the Art & Politics of Netporn conference, organized by Katrien Jacobs, Matteo Pasquinelli and Geert Lovink, which was held in October 2005 in Amsterdam: www.networkcultures.org/netporn, we want to create an online database where a collection of articles will be published. This includes articles which were presented at the conference, but we are also aiming to expand our database with new work. The database will be a place which is durable; our goal is to create an open netporn archive which is accessible for everybody. It will contain a diverse selection of articles concerning the many aspects of internet pornography, like: the creation of identity through p2p porn, the rise of indieporn, the case of censorship, the role of media and performance artists, and the positioning of alternative sexualities online. In this way the archive can function as a place where you can find a wide range of work concerning this topic. Please send us a proposal (200 words max.) for your work if you think it's suitable for the archive. Deadline: 6 april If you have any questions you can contact Marije Janssen: marije(a)networkcultures.org

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Re: [Air-l] air-l Digest, Vol 20, Issue 23: sharing EndNote files
by catherine middleton 19 Mar '06

19 Mar '06

Hi Charlie (and the list), If you're interested in information systems research, there is a great resource with shared EndNote files on the ISWORLD portal, at http://www.isworld.org/endnote/index.asp. There is a repository of literature on mobile business at http://www.m-lit.org/, references can be downloaded once you log in. I have a searchable EndNote library with references on broadband and wireless technologies at http://www.broadbandresearch.ca/endnote/endnote.php. It needs to be updated, but the file is available for download. If you're working in this area and would like to add your files to this database, drop me a note. catherine middleton >Message: 8 >Date: Sun, 19 Mar 2006 12:29:12 -0600 >From: "Charlie Balch" <charlie(a)balch.org> >Subject: Re: [Air-l] Citation Managers - Alternatives to > Endnote/CiteULike/... ? >To: <air-l(a)listserv.aoir.org>, <a.bruns(a)qut.edu.au> >Message-ID: <118401c64b83$05721780$6501a8c0@charliedesk> >Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" > >I use Endnote and simply put quotes in the "notes" field. This has the >added benefit of allowing me to search for quotes and key terms. In fact, >when possible, I put the entire text of an article in the notes section. I >also put a link to the filename of the article when I'm able to download an >article. > >I've tried hard to convince other graduate students and faculty to share >their Endnote libraries but have not had much success. Other than laziness >and lack of use of these powerful biblio tracking applications, I can't >understand why folks would not want to share the refs they find helpful. >Can someone explain this lack of sharing to me? > >Thanks, >Charlie >LSU Doctorial Candidate >http://charlie.balch.org > >

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Re: [Air-l] AoIR in Latin-America - a new mailing list (subset of AoIR's main list)
by Suely Fragoso 19 Mar '06

19 Mar '06

Natpoor (!) has a point. I am used to try to predict objections, so I had considered that beforehand. I believe that, as moderator of the LA-Air list, I should transfer all important discussions which extrapolate the reach of that sublist to the main AiR list (translated to English - if my writing still deserves that denomination after 10 years back in Brazil). I also intend to send brief summaries of whatever is said and discussed in the LA list to AoIR Exec and/or to main AoIR list whenever applicable. I sent a message to some Brazilian mailing lists inviting people to join LA-AiR and warned that I would be doing that, so no-one feels 'betrayed' that I 'gossip' in one list about another. It can be a good idea to maintain everyone informed of this potential flow of info between lists (I tried to do it by stating clearly that LA list is a subset of the main AiR list, perharps this is not enough) Next predictable objection is that I will function as a gatekeeper between the world of LA list and the main AiR list. That does not hold, as any member will be as able to mention what happens in one list on the other one as much as I will. News from LA list so far are, btw, none :( Sue >>> jhuns(a)vt.edu 19/03/06 1:20 >>> It hasn't happened that way yet... the large network effects occur on the main list still. smaller, tighter networks have always existed off the main air-l list. i don't see this as a change of any sort in that regard, but i do see it as a great opportunity for those people who want to develop the LA-AIR lists. keep in mind, we already have several other lists, mostly topical, but some to do work. On Mar 18, 2006, at 11:12 PM, natpoor(a)umich.edu wrote: > uhm, just a thought, but what if I think there might be an unfortunate > side to this, since, greedy for knowledge as I am, and a believer in > the overly-utopian "the Internet will join us all in to one humanity > regardless of language" thing, does this mean that the AIR list > will be > losing cool discussions to the LA-AIR list? (and maybe there will be > people who are on LA-AIR and not AIR?) > > es verdad que no puedo entender mucho espanol... pero... > > ok, I could subscribe... but what about those who are only on one of > the lists? we're losing the network effects!!! > > el doctor pobre > Jeremy Hunsinger Center for Digital Discourse and Culture () ascii ribbon campaign - against html mail /\ - against microsoft attachments http://www.aoir.org The Association of Internet Researchers http://www.stswiki.org/ stswiki http://cfp.learning-inquiry.info/ LI-the journal _______________________________________________ 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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