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Sociolinguistics in virtual communities
by Debbie 11 Jul '03

11 Jul '03

Hi, I've suddenly discovered that my thesis needs a huge injection of sociolinguistics to pull it together. Can anybody recommend (a) an accessible overview of the field, prefereably written in the last 5 years, and (b) anything that's a "must read" on linguistic communities? I've been doing a part/obs case study of an internet community, so anything with specific reference to linguistic sommunities in that kind of context would be particularly useful. Thanks -- Urban Theology Unit, Sheffield http://cybertheology.org.uk Views expressed in this email are my own and are not necessarily those of the University of Sheffield or UTU.

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call for papers
by david silver 10 Jul '03

10 Jul '03

Folks, here's the latest version of an interesting call for papers. sorry if this has already been sent to the list. david *** CALL FOR PAPERS The Information Society (TIS) special issue on SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF PUBLIC POLICY IN THE INFORMATION AGE Edited by Milton Mueller (Syracuse University) and Becky Lentz (Ford Foundation) If the 1990s was the decade of market liberalization in media and telecommunication industries worldwide, how will the next decade be defined? What and who will set the agenda for communication and information policy? Current policy discourse is focused on relatively narrow regulatory or legal issues, such as broadband regulation, the proper scope of intellectual property rights, interconnection and competition in telecommunications, and media concentration. While recognizing the importance of issue-specific policy research, this special issue would attempt to shift some attention to the underlying social and political determinants of public policy. The objective is to encourage the development of revised conceptions of the public interest appropriate to a transformed economic and political environment. Papers that bring together insights from multiple areas, such as political science, sociology, economics, critical geography, information studies, urban studies, policy studies, communications and cultural studies, are especially welcome. Ideally, papers would shed light on current developments and place them in perspective that has relevance for future public policy directions. As more specific examples of the type of papers/research we seek: * Analyses of long-term change in media and telecommunications institutions that draw upon any relevant literature of institutional change (e.g., the New Institutional Economics, the Old Institutional Economics, social movement theory, sociological theories of organizational repertoires and innovation). * Papers exploring changes in the way citizens, consumers, business groups or other constituencies are organizing to influence communication and information policy, including new analyses of how so-called global civil society or transnational advocacy networks are involved in communication and information issues; * Papers that assess the impact of globalization on communication and information policies, and explore the relationship between national policies, constituencies, and institutions on the one hand and international organizations and constituencies on the other. * How conceptions of the public interest in communication and information policy have changed in response to new technologies, new industry conditions and political and social developments. Are new theories of the public interest in communications and information policy being formed? How are normative principles responding to the changing landscape? * Explorations of the role of ideas and scholarly research in shaping, fomenting or resisting changes in policy. Manuscripts prepared according to the TIS guidelines should be submitted by October 1, 2003. Please send the manuscripts to: Milton Mueller <mueller(a)syr.edu>. Authors are encouraged to discuss their ideas with the guest editors. http://www.slis.indiana.edu/TIS/contributors/authors.html

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Call for Papers: Cybersounds: Essays on Virtual Music Culture
by Mike Ayers 10 Jul '03

10 Jul '03

feel free to forward, distribute, etc. Cybersounds: Essays on Virtual Music Culture (working title) Edited by Michael D. Ayers, New School for Social Research, New York City Call for Chapters Submission Deadline: November 14th, 2003 There is no doubt that the Internet has the ability to shape and transform the art fields. The popular culture art forms- Film, Television and Music have found their specific homes in cyberspace, but out of the big three, music has found the most controversial space to say the least. In the post MP3 scare*, this volume seeks to examine the role of cyberspace in the cultural production, creation and transformation in the way which society consumes and uses music in its various forms. This volume seeks to examine music and cyberspace, utilizing theoretical perspectives from cultural studies, sociology, cyberculture studies, feminist perspectives and media studies Suggested submission topics include, but not limited to: a.. How cyberspace challenges/confirms traditional production of music cultures b.. Online music (sub)cultures vs. Real Life music (sub)cultures c.. Musical genre manifestations online d.. Theoretical perspectives on the digitalization of music e.. Theoretical perspectives of consuming music through cyberspace f.. Case/Comparative studies of fan groups and fan identity in cyberspace g.. Quantitative studies on downloaders h.. Artist/Audience Interactions online i.. The Political Economy of Digital Music j.. Politics of Digital Music Chapters should be submitted in Microsoft Word format, 12 point font, double spaced. Essays should be in the range of 7500 - 10,000 words with references in ASA style. Send submissions and inquires to michael.ayers(a)manhattan.edu ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- * It could be argued that we are now entering in a "phase two" MP3 scare with the recent RIAA threats on suing individual file sharers.

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Re: Webspace as public spheres
by Jay Hauben 09 Jul '03

09 Jul '03

Mary, I have looked at the Internet from the perspective of public sphere or commons versus private property. I used the writings of John Locke as my theoretical basis and drew the conclusion that the net is a public space or commons to be protected from efforts at privatization. You might find my work interesting. There is a draft at: http://www.ais.org/~jrh/icann/locke.txt I had hoped to present a talk based on this paper at the 2002 AoIR conference but ended up doing a workshop on Internet history. Good luck with your chapter and defense of "alternative public spheres". Take care. Jay Mary wrote: > Date: Tue, 08 Jul 2003 12:08:22 -0400 > From: "Mary L. Gray" <mlgray(a)ucsd.edu> > To: AIR List <air-l(a)aoir.org> > Subject: [Air-l] Webspace as public spheres > Reply-To: air-l(a)aoir.org > > Hello all : ) > > I'm working on a chapter right now that looks at personal websites and blog= > s > crafted by rural LGBT youth as "alternative public spheres" or > counterpublics. I'm mostly relying on theorists dealing with the creation > and meaning of public spheres (Habermas, Fraser, Warner), but I'd love to > hear of other folks know of solid work out there specifically dealing with > the Net as public space? > > And extra points if anyone has suggestions for readings on commercializing > of privatizing of public space vis-=E0-vis Walmart > : ) > > All the best, > Dissertating Mary > ________________________________ > Mary L. Gray <mlgray(a)ucsd.edu> > Department of Communication > University of California, San Diego > vox: 502/451.5003 > mail: PO Box 4004, Louisville, KY 40204 > http://weber.ucsd.edu/~mgray >

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CFP: Management Science Special Issue On Open Source
by Karim R. Lakhani 09 Jul '03

09 Jul '03

Hi All, FYI, CALL FOR PAPERS Management Science Special Issue on Open Source Software Guest Editors Eric von Hippel Sloan School of Management Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Georg von Krogh Institute of Management University of St. Gallen Submission deadline: September 1, 2004 Free and open-source software (OSS) and the processes used to develop it are very unusual in a number of ways. Such software is developed by individuals and firms that freely reveal the code that they write, releasing it under licenses that allow others to use it, to modify it as they wish, and distribute their modifications to others. Project management methods used in open source software projects have proven capable of converting the volunteer efforts of users and programmers who come and go as they please into high quality software products - some very large and complex. The efforts of these volunteers are coordinated with the aid of only very simple but powerful collaborative tools. Thousands of such projects exist today, and the code they develop and freely reveal can offer value to many. (Well-known examples are the GNU/Linux computer operating system, Apache server software and the Perl programming language.) Researchers in the social sciences have become aware of the very interesting characteristics of F/OSS and its development system, and a lively, interdisciplinary research community has sprung up to explore the phenomenon and its implications for management. The aim of this special issue is to provide an appropriate forum for some of the very exciting and high quality research now being done on OSS. The outstanding quality and interdisciplinary scope of Management Science makes it an ideal journal for this purpose. We wish to encourage authors rooted in multiple disciplines, such as sociology, economics, social psychology, organization behavior, information systems, innovation process research and strategic management to consider submitting their work to this special issue. We welcome both theoretical research and empirical research using quantitative or qualitative methods. All articles should, in line with the editorial policy of Management Science, have clear relevance to management practice. Below we offer a sample listing of the broad range of OSS-related topics that are appropriate for this special issue. · How do OSS development projects originate and how do they “work?” What are the incentives to contribute to OSS projects? How do volunteers find, join and leave projects? How are the activities distributed among contributors and how is the work of many volunteer contributors coordinated or interlinked? How are resources provided and allocated? What is the nature of leadership in OSS projects? · How do OSS practices compare with conventional product development practices with respect to both processes used and outcomes attained - such as relative development cost, performance and quality of software developed. · Intellectual property-related issues: What factor impact on the choice of OSS licenses? How effective are the various OSS licensing arrangements? What are lessons from OSS for the protection of digital intellectual property and the intellectual commons more generally? · Why do some OSS projects succeed and some fail? What characterizes the competition for talent and expertise between OSS projects, and between OSS projects and proprietary software projects? · What are the competitive dynamics introduced to markets by OSS? What are the strategic implications: How do firms compete with or collaborate with the outputs of OSS projects? Do these lessons apply generally across other fields of technological innovation? Authors should prepare their manuscripts according to Management Science’s guidelines for authors. Every submission will be reviewed according to the single-blind review process of Management Science. The anticipated publication date of the special issue will be early 2006. Papers should be submitted electronically at informs.manuscriptcentral.com. On the first screen of the submission process, authors should select “Special Issue” as their manuscript type and designate Georg von Krogh as the Department Editor. Questions should be directed to: Professor Georg von Krogh University of St.Gallen Institute of Management Dufourstrasse 48 CH-9010 St.Gallen Switzerland georg.vonkrogh(a)unisg.ch -- =============================================== 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 voice: 617-851-1224 fax: 617-344-0403 http://spoudaiospaizen.net/ http://opensource.mit.edu | http://freesoftware.mit.edu http://userinnovation.mit.edu

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origin of "blog"
by Bernard Stehle 09 Jul '03

09 Jul '03

Last week, Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition (2003), appeared in bookstores for the first time. I was surprised not to find an entry for "blog." I thought the term was at least 5 years old. Am I right? For how long has the term been in existence among bloggers? (Webster's Tenth Edition, 1993, understandably did not include "blog"; a representative from M-W says, however, that even for the 2003 edition the term is neither old enough nor generally known enough outside bloggerhood to be included in the Eleventh. Am I justified in my astonishment, or is the rep telling it like it really is?) --Bernard

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Webspace as public spheres
by Mary L. Gray 09 Jul '03

09 Jul '03

Hello all : ) I'm working on a chapter right now that looks at personal websites and blogs crafted by rural LGBT youth as "alternative public spheres" or counterpublics. I'm mostly relying on theorists dealing with the creation and meaning of public spheres (Habermas, Fraser, Warner), but I'd love to hear of other folks know of solid work out there specifically dealing with the Net as public space? And extra points if anyone has suggestions for readings on commercializing of privatizing of public space vis-à-vis Walmart : ) All the best, Dissertating Mary ________________________________ Mary L. Gray <mlgray(a)ucsd.edu> Department of Communication University of California, San Diego vox: 502/451.5003 mail: PO Box 4004, Louisville, KY 40204 http://weber.ucsd.edu/~mgray

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FW: World Internet Project - Oxford, 18 July 2003, 2.45-5pm
by Monica.Murero＠MERIT.unimaas.nl 09 Jul '03

09 Jul '03

Dear Colleagues and Friends, FYI: Monica Murero =========== There will be an International Panel on Internet use and non-use around the world on Friday afternoon, 18 July, 2.45-5pm at the Said Business School of Oxford University, directly opposite the east exit of Oxford rail station. The public, including the media, is invited. This panel session is one aspect of a larger meeting of social Scientists representing 75 percent of the world's Internet users, which will be at the Oxford Internet Institute to compare Internet use and non-use on five continents. The participants are linked together in the World Internet Project (WIP); each is involved in the conduct of representative national sample surveys in countries as diverse as China, Germany, Japan, Korea, Russia, Sweden and the United States. For more information please refer to our OII Web site at www.oii.ox.ac.uk Thank you. Sincerely, Bill Professor William H. Dutton, Director Oxford Internet Institute University of Oxford 1 St. Giles' Oxford OX1 3JS United Kingdom http://www.oii.ox.ac.uk Monica Murero AoIR Conference Chair in Maastricht AoIR Candidate for Vice-Presidency Visit the Election Forum: http://aoir.org/forum

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reminder: 2 more days of discussion with candidates
by Ulla Bunz 09 Jul '03

09 Jul '03

Just a brief reminder that you have two more days (till July 11) to ask candidates running for an AoIR office any questions. The online, open discussion forum is at http://aoir.org/forum The voting period will begin soon after, but is restricted to members. If you would like to vote in this election, consider becoming a member, which will also reduce the cost for conference registration in addition to providing many other benefits such as access to the AoIR paper archives, discounts on journals, and more. http://aoir.org/airjoin.html Thanks! Ulla ---------------------------------------------------- Ulla Bunz Assistant Professor Department of Communication Rutgers University 4 Huntington Street New Brunswick, NJ 08901 Email: bunz(a)scils.rutgers.edu ----------------------------------------------------

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Selon les étudiants américains, les jeux vidéos sont sources de convivialité
by Frank Thomas 09 Jul '03

09 Jul '03

Steve, You are becoming a transatlantic celebrity. Even the Internet newsletter of the BNP Paribas Bank cites you! Of course, crossing the Atlantic might take a time so I don't know when you published the study. Could you please give a link to it? Cordialement Frank Thomas Selon les étudiants américains, les jeux vidéos sont sources de convivialité Un chercheur américain, directeur du département Communication de l'université de l'Illinois à Chicago, vient de publier une étude sur le comportement des étudiants vis-à-vis des jeux vidéos. Steve Jones a interrogé pendant huit mois 1 162 étudiants issus de 27 universités des Etats-Unis et a tiré des conclusions intéressantes, et relativement surprenantes. On apprend ainsi que les jeux vidéos, loin de couper les jeunes de leurs camarades, les rapprocheraient plutôt. C'est l'avis de 51 % des garçons interrogés, mais également celui de 34 % des filles. Les motivations de ces jeunes joueurs sont cependant différentes : si, pour 45 % des jeunes hommes, le plaisir est la première raison qui les pousse à jouer, c'est l'ennui qui prédomine chez les jeunes femmes, à 33 %. Sur 65 % de jeunes qui jouent régulièrement aux jeux vidéos, la moitié ont déclaré que cette pratique empiétait un peu, voire beaucoup sur leur temps de travail scolaire. Pour Steve Jones, rien de grave dans cet aveu, puisqu'il a constaté que les habitudes de travail de ces adeptes du jeu vidéo étaient sensiblement les mêmes que celles des étudiants pris dans leur ensemble. Les filles, que l'on croyait peu intéressée par les jeux vidéos, divertissement estampillé depuis toujours masculin, sont en fait de plus grandes consommatrices de jeux sur ordinateurs ou de jeux en ligne, à 60 % contre 40 % pour les garçons. Elles sont de plus autant que les jeunes hommes à jouer sur les différentes consoles de jeux vidéos en circulation. (Atelier groupe BNP Paribas - 08/07/2003) source: http://www.atelier.fr/page.php?P=data/toute_l_actualite/&tic_id=9&Item=itm_…

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