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9 new working papers + 1 thesis on freesoftware.mit.edu|opensource.mit.edu
by Karim R. Lakhani 29 Feb '04

29 Feb '04

Hello All, <sorry for any x-posting> Please find below the following new papers on our website. As usual the authors will appreciate your direct feedback. Many thanks to all the authors that have submitted papers. Keep em coming! Best Karim ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Paper 1 Authors: Chan, Tzu-Ying & Jen-Fang Lee Title A Comparative Study of Online User Communities Involvement In Product Innovation and Development http://opensource.mit.edu/papers/chanlee.pdf Abstract: The literature lacks a conceptual understanding on how different types of online user communities can influence the product innovation and development. Therefore, this research attempts to understand this phenomenon by re-classifying the current online user communities from the perspective of product innovation and development and has resulted in five different models of user communities. We compare and discuss of the five models. Lastly, we will further discuss the deficiencies of the User Collaboration Innovation Communities, theoretically and practically, to suggest the feasibility of the research direction in the future. Paper 2: Author: Dahlander, Linus Title: Appropriating Returns From Open Innovation Processes: A Multiple Case Study of Small Firms in Open Source Software http://opensource.mit.edu/papers/dahlander.pdf Abstract: This paper addresses a largely neglected area within the growing literature on open source software (OSS) namely how firms generate returns and how that changes over time. Firms exist and sell a variety of products and services related to OSS, even though the OSS community has used legal and normative mechanisms to avoid property right claims and commercial transactions. The paper draws upon an explorative multiple case study of six small firms in Sweden and Finland that try to commercialize OSS, with rich empirical evidence from various data sources. The cases illustrate how firms try a variety of approaches to generate adequate returns and that selling services seem to be the dominant trend. By being adaptive and change ways of generating returns over time, the firms tackle the rapidly changing environment and uncertainty of what works. Firm also balance the relative inefficiency of traditional means of intellectual property right such as patents by putting greater emphasi s on first mover advantages and creating network externalities. Paper 3 Author: Hemetsberger, Andrea Title: When Consumers Produce on the Internet: The Relationship between Cognitive-affective, Socially-based, and Behavioral Involvement of Prosumers http://opensource.mit.edu/papers/hemetsberger1.pdf Abstract: This article advances our understanding of the motivational sources for consumer involvement in online joint innovation. The 'free' or 'open-source' software movement is the largest socio-technical network and most visible empirical evidence of this new phenomenon. The paper promotes a behavioral view of involvement and offers a conceptualization and empirical evidence of the relationship between cognitive-affective, socially-based and behavioral involvement in online joint production. An Internet survey with 1486 contributors to open-source software revealed that the extent of behavioral involvement is strongly related to the structure and strength of relationships between different motivations. The relationship between concern for self and concern for others especially distinguishes the level of contribution to online projects. Paper 4 Author: Hemetsberger, Andrea Title: Fostering cooperation on the Internet: social exchange processes in innovative virtual consumer communities http://opensource.mit.edu/papers/hemetsberger2.pdf Abstract: Virtual communities of consumers increasingly engage in voluntary collaborative production of digital goods and services which became highly successful in recent years. This paper offers a theoretical conceptualization and empirical evidence of the key elements and processes of exchange in those communities. Within a culture of gift-giving and generalized social exchange, knowledge as the main resource of the community is multiplied by giving it away freely to others and thus, fosters contribution behavior. Friendship, peer reputation and external feed-back provided by a global user community represent highly motivating social rewards which, combined with individual gain of knowledge, constitute a self-sustaining system of exchange. Paper 5: Author: Hemetsberger, Andrea Title: Understanding consumers' collective action on the Internet - a definition and discussion of relevant concepts for research http://opensource.mit.edu/papers/hemetsberger3.pdf Abstract: This paper offers a new approach for understanding online collaboration and collective action of 'prosumers'. It is proposed here that theories of collective action and social representations theory, in particular, provide a theoretical framework for studying the structural and social context of online collaboration of consumers, the social actors involved, and how public discourse contributes to shared meaning creation and dissemination in online communities. Processes of naming, classifying, personalizing and institutionalization give their actions ontological reality and contribute to the sustainability of the common effort. An overview and definition of these processes and relevant influencing factors is given and possible indicators of these concepts in open-source communities are highlighted. Paper 6: Authors: Hemetsberger, Andrea & Christian Reinhardt Title: Sharing and Creating Knowledge in Open-Source Communities The case of KDE http://opensource.mit.edu/papers/hemreinh.pdf Abstract: Our research suggests that knowledge is shared and created in online communities of practice through the establishment of processes and 'technologies' that enable virtual re-experience for the learners at various levels. It demonstrates that online communities of practice overcome the problem of tacit knowledge transformation through the usage of technological tools, task-related features, analogies and usage scenarios. Three questions guided our research. The first one concentrates on how community members organize content with regard to their daily routines that potentially transforms into knowledge for other members. Secondly, as open-source communities depend on attracting and socializing new members, we inquired how new members are enabled to accumulate the knowledge necessary for becoming a valued member. Thirdly, we asked how members co-create and conceptualize new ideas - create new knowledge - in absence of physical proximity. Re-experience is enabled by modular tas ks and transactive group memory, rigid guidance of new members, openness and legitimate peripheral participation, asynchronous communication, and virtual experimentation. Empirical evidence is based on an ethnographic investigation of the KDE project community. Paper 7 Author: Scherler, Thorsten Title: Open Source Software within organization - Critical factors for consulting http://opensource.mit.edu/papers/scherler1.pdf Abstract: The consultation of enterprises and organizations regarding the correct implementation of modern information technology is an important segment on the modern consulting market. The main focus of this work is to conduct the consultation in consideration of the topic “Introduction of Open Source e-Business Technologies”. Due to limited budget funds more and more enterprises are designing their value chain more cost-effective by using web based systems. Mostly all parts of the value chain can be supported by e-business technologies. To further reduce the costs this e-business technologies should be Open Source. Paper 8 Author: Prufer, Jens Title: Network Formation via Contests: The Production Process of Open Source Software http://opensource.mit.edu/papers/prufer.pdf Abstract: Why do both software developers and firms contribute to the production process of Open Source Software (OSS) despite not receiving direct monetary rewards for it? This papers extends results of the economic literature by modelling the OSS production process as an application contest to a "qualified network". The winners receive reputation and high investments. Investors searching for highly talented applicants profit from the selection mechanism of the OSS production process and finance it to receive inside information. We describe incentives for developers and firms and compare the mechanism with alternatives for its efficiency. Paper 9 Author: Masum, Hasan Title: TOOL: The Open Opinion Layer http://firstmonday.org/issues/issue7_7/masum/index.html Abstract: Shared opinions drive society: what we read, how we vote, and where we shop are all heavily influenced by the choices of others. However, the cost in time and money to systematically share opinions remains high, while the actual performance history of opinion generators is often not tracked. This article explores the development of a distributed open opinion layer, which is given the generic name of TOOL. Similar to the evolution of network protocols as an underlying layer for many computational tasks, we suggest that TOOL has the potential to become a common substrate upon which many scientific, commercial, and social activities will be based. Thesis: Author McLaughlin, David Title: Opening The Code: Software Excellence As A Function Of Its Development Environment http://opensource.mit.edu/papers/mclaughlin.pdf Abstract: Software is an increasingly important component of the modern world; indeed, software forms the architecture around which today’s digital society is built. Because of the complex interrelationship between computer code, liberty, and the distribution of power in society, the environment in which code is produced makes a tremendous difference in the resulting structure of the world. An "Open" foundation for software development provides a variety of economic and societal benefits, but there are a number of preconditions necessary for its full deployment. One of the primary stumbling blocks is the need for the Open development process to demonstrate its capacity for producing "excellent" software. This thesis tackles that obstacle by first defining excellence in software, and then examining the software ecosystems that surround proprietary and Open Source conceptions of digital property in terms of their incentive structures--incentives that either encourage or discourage quali ty. Herein, this thesis demonstrates that not only can an Open Source development model produce quality software, but it also takes advantage of the complex adaptive systems model of diversity and adaptation to better meet the established criteria of an "ideal" software development system. -- =============================================== Karim R. Lakhani MIT Sloan School of Management & The Boston Consulting Group, Strategy Practice Initiative e-mail: karim.lakhani(a)sloan.mit.edu | lakhani.karim(a)bcg.com mobile: 617-851-1224 http://spoudaiospaizen.net/ | http://web.mit.edu/lakhani/www http://opensource.mit.edu | http://userinnovation.mit.edu

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Hanging Out Gets Kudos
by Barry Wellman 29 Feb '04

29 Feb '04

She's too modest to tell you, but there's a really nice book review of Lori Kendall's _Hanging out in the Virtual Pub: Relationships and Masculinities Online. Berkeley: Univ of California Press, 2002. The review by UCLA community sociologist David Halle is in the January 2004 issue of _Contemporary Sociology_, v.33, n.1, p. 31-32. (CS is the major soc review journal.) Here are some excerpts: "In the course of this engagingly written, well-researched, and illuminating case study, Kendall examines almost the entire gamut of theories about the nature of online interaction." "Kendall's main conclusion is that online interactions are much more like those offline than is sometimes thought." Lori's book is a wonderful ethnography of a bunch of guys (and a few gals) highly involved in an online, text-based community (no cute little avatars).

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Assistant Professor in Environmental/Risk Communication (Rutgers University)
by Ulla Bunz 28 Feb '04

28 Feb '04

Assistant Professor (tenure track) Environmental/Risk Communication, Department of Human Ecology, Rutgers University: Basic and applied research, teaching, and Extension outreach in the area of environmental or risk communication. Issue may vary (e.g., natural resources, land use, natural hazards, environmental and/or health risks). Research related to topics such as stakeholder involvement, risk perception, public information, science communication, environmental justice. The person filling this position will be expected to teach undergraduate courses in environmental or risk communication and have the possibility of graduate teaching in her/his discipline. Opportunities to collaborate with colleagues in the land grant college (Cook College, which houses the multi-disciplinary Department of Human Ecology), and schools of policy, communication, and medicine, among others. Candidates must have a Ph.D. in social science related to the field of environmental/risk communication such as communication, journalism, psychology, planning, sociology, geography, environmental studies, law, urban studies, or anthropology. The successful candidate will have experience teaching, conducting research, and implementing outreach efforts. Send letter of application, two writing samples, and three letters of reference to: Environmental Communication Search Committee, Caron Chess, Department of Human Ecology, Rutgers University, 55 Dudley Road, New Brunswick, NJ 08901-8520. Electronic submissions encouraged: humanecology(a)aesop.rutgers.edu. Applications will be reviewed starting March 1. Rutgers is an Equal Opportunity Employer. -- Ulla Bunz Assistant Professor Department of Communication Rutgers University 4 Huntington Street New Brunswick, NJ 08901

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journalists weblogs
by Alexandru Leonties 27 Feb '04

27 Feb '04

Does anybody know a good place on the web that integrates/aggregates weblogs of journalists? I am interested for a research on the credibility of such (journalism) weblogs. Thank you, ===== Alexandru Leonties Assistant Lecturer Journalism Department A.I.Cuza University Iasi + 40 740 049 246 aleonties(a)yahoo.com, leonties(a)uaic.ro __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Finance: Get your refund fast by filing online. http://taxes.yahoo.com/filing.html

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RE: digital recording
by Zoe Dowling 27 Feb '04

27 Feb '04

Bernie, As far as I am aware (and I've spent quite a bit of time looking into this recently) getting your minidisc recordings onto PC always involves recording back in real time, using one software program or another. However, there is some light at the end of the tunnel for MD fans (however this would mean ditching your current MD player and investing in a new one!) As reported on Minidisc.org: Sony hits a grand slam! Announcing Hi-MD (spec) a new Minidisc format based upon a 1GB MD medium and existing MD media reformatted to 300MB. Hi-MD equipment features uploading to PC for mic-input recordings, and built-in linear PCM as well as ATRAC3plus encoding at 256 and 64kbps. Hi-MD recorders also function as USB data drives. Available in April, recording equipment prices will be $200 (MZ-NH600D), $250 (MZ-NHF800), $300 (MZ-NH900) and $400 (MZ-NH1) with Hi-MD blanks costing about $7. Sony Press Release: http://news.sel.sony.com/pressrelease/4270 Best, Zoe _________________________________________________ Zoe Dowling, Ph.D. Candidate Department of Sociology, School of Human Sciences University of Surrey, Guildford, GU2 7XH, UK http://www.soc.surrey.ac.uk/~scp1zd/ Date: Wed, 25 Feb 2004 12:11:58 -0500 From: bernie.hogan(a)utoronto.ca To: air-l(a)aoir.org Subject: [Air-l] digital recording Reply-To: air-l(a)aoir.org Hi Everyone, A thread was started last week about digital transcription software. This week I was wondering what people were using to actually get the digital files. I've been using a minidisc player and a program called WinNMD, but that is subpar since it only transfers in realtime. Any suggestions? Take Care BERNiE Bernie Hogan Ph.D. Student Department of Sociology NetLab, Knowledge Media Design Institute University of Toronto

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cfp: LIFE WITH THE ULTIMATE CONGLOMERATE
by katharine sarikakis 27 Feb '04

27 Feb '04

**apologies for crosspostings** international journal of Media & Cultural Politics (MCP) LIFE WITH THE ULTIMATE CONGLOMERATE: a call for short essays on the politics of contemporary media content, control and policy We, the citizens, own the airwaves, yet we don't control them. The corporations that control them feed us a steady diet of electronic junk food and it is making our democracy sick. (Ralph Nader) The first half of the twentieth century produced pessimism about ideological control and social and cultural harm as a consequence of media expansion. By the end of the second half of the century, a variety of theoretical positions had posited the media as a usurpation of reality itself. Whatever the status of such claims, the media now claim a centrality which has profoundly redefined culture. To mark the launch of MCP, the Editors are inviting scholarly mini-essays of over 1000 and not more than 1500 words on any theme exploring the relationship between the contemporary media and the politics of representation, or policy, or control, and commenting on recent waves of pessimism about the media in culture (Virilio's concept of 'fin de siècle infantilization', for example, or Nader's 'electronic junk food'). Contributors are invited to address print, broadcast or electronic media as they choose, and likewise to adapt the theme to specific forms, genres, theories, practices, demographics, localities, audiences, pedagogic and research contexts, and topical issues. All contributions should be submitted to Katharine Sarikakis k.sarikakis(a)coventry.ac.uk by email attachment, by 31 May 2004. For details on style, please go to: http://www.intellectbooks.com/journals/mcp/ Best wishes The Editors MCP Please note that MCP is also now accepting full length submissions for the inaugural volumes to be published in 2005, on general media and cultural politics themes. -- Dr Katharine Sarikakis Communication, Media and Culture Coventry University Priory Street Coventry CV1 5FB, UK Tel:+44.24.76887474 Fax:+44.24.76887440 ******************** http://www.coventry.ac.uk/cms/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=583&a=3243 ******************** International Journal of Media and Cultural Politics http://www.intellectbooks.com/journals/mcp/

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Re: digital recording
by Matt Ratto 26 Feb '04

26 Feb '04

Bernie, I started out using a minidisc and also grew frustrated with the real-time transfer issue. Recently, I got a iRiver mp3 jukebox with a 20 gig HD. This little number does real-time mp3 encoding and also transfers files via USB 2.0. I have a powered stereo mike (Sony ECM-ZS90) that I use with this. Oh, and the battery lasts approximately 16 hours. Now all I have to worry about is the battery on my powered microphone running out - which has in fact happened. best, Matt Dr Matt Ratto Networked research and digital information KNAW-Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Science Joan Muyskenweg 25 Postbus 95110 1090 HC Amsterdam The Netherlands tel: (31)(20)462-8719 fax: (31(20)665-8013 http://www.niwi.knaw.nl/en/nerdi2/toon

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NY Times article on videogame research
by Leslie Regan Shade 26 Feb '04

26 Feb '04

-- Congratulations to Mia Consalvo for her lovely picture and mention in today's NT Times: "The Ivy-Covered Console" about the rise of videogame research in academia. Check it out at http://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/26/technology/ circuits/26play.html?th Leslie Regan Shade Associate Professor Communication Studies Concordia University

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CSCW 2004 Paper Submission Deadline Approaching!
by Reddy, Madhu 26 Feb '04

26 Feb '04

Dear Colleague, We would like to remind you that the deadline for Paper submissions for the ACM Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work 2004 is March 19, 2004 at 5 pm Pacific Standard Time. We are now accepting electronic submissions at http://www.acm.org/cscw2004/call_papers.html. Please read the guidelines on the page to insure that your paper meets the submission requirements. In particular, all authors' names and affiliations should be blanked out on the copy that is submitted for review. If you have any questions about your paper submission, please send it to cscw2004-papers(a)acm.org. Please remember that even if you decide not to submit a paper, we have other tracks that may be of interest to you. The deadlines for these tracks are listed below and the electronic submission for the tracks will be available soon. Notes *New Track* March 19, 2004 Videos April 30, 2004 Panels April 30, 2004 Tutorials April 30, 2004 Workshops April 30, 2004 Interactive Posters June 25, 2004 Demonstrations July 9, 2004 Doctoral Colloquium July 9, 2004 We are also proud to announce that our open plenary speaker will be Mitchell Kapor and closing plenary speaker will be Lawrence Lessig. To find out more about our plenary speakers, please visit http://www.acm.org/cscw2004/plenary.html. The conference will be held November 6-10 2004 in Chicago, ILL. Hotel and other information will be available at http://www.acm.org/cscw2004/registration.html. Please forward this message to anyone who you think may be interested; our apologies if you receive multiple copies. If you have any questions, please visit our web site (http://www.acm.org/cscw2004) or contact us by email (cscw2004-info(a)acm.org) We look forward to seeing you in Chicago! Gary Olson and Jim Herbsleb, Conference Co-Chairs Madhu Reddy Publicity Chair

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RE: [Air-l] digital recording
by Kevin Tharp 26 Feb '04

26 Feb '04

Hello: I use a Sony Digital Voice Recorder (IC Recorder ICD-BP150). Connects by USB to my pc so I can easily move files to hard drive. Limited storage space, but I can get about 2 hours of voice recordings. It has been a fantastic resource. Regards, Kevin W. Tharp On Feb 25, 2004, at 12:11 PM, bernie.hogan(a)utoronto.ca wrote: > Hi Everyone, > > A thread was started last week about digital transcription software. > This week > I was wondering what people were using to actually get the digital > files. I've > been using a minidisc player and a program called WinNMD, but that is > subpar > since it only transfers in realtime. >

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