FRANK SAID:
I think what we're seeing here is typical use by a generation who grew up with computers and the internet present by default. They're not interested
in the internet _an sich_, as most people on this list I imagine. They're not very interested in computers and the internet as a technology, as many
of the tech-savvy "old school" users were/are. They're pretty much putting
it to practical use: interacting with the school/university website, searching/surfing a bit for information and entertainment, joining the odd
forum, e-mailing, and chatting with friends. Maybe it's time to recognize that this is typical use and that what came before really was atypical, tech-savvy, avant garde use of the specific technology/medium that is the internet.
I completely agree. This recognition, however, is far away in some circles. Particularly, the idea that since children grow up with computer media they naturally recieve a complete understanding of these media is very popular. But the understanding that they recieve, as Frank states, is now (with somewhat user-friendly graphical interfaces etc.) that of a user - not that of someone who can engage with these media in critical ways. Not even to the extent that they can make informed choices about IT work tools or take a stand on broader semi-technical discussions related to IT (software patents, open source etc.) Interestingly, at one time many people were worried about girls not being eager videogamers since they would not develop the IT skills that some boys got from installing drivers, messing with system files etc. Today, that fear has been eliminated - because today you can be a gamer without developing such skills. So, building on Frank's observation I would point to the problem of implementing IT at all levels of society without taking seriously the need to actually provide students (and others) with an understanding of the aspects related to IT that one does not pick up by "interacting with the school/university website, searching/surfing a bit for information and entertainment, joining the odd forum, e-mailing, and chatting with friends". Best regards, Jonas -------------------------------------------- JONAS HEIDE SMITH PhD candidate, MA in Media Studies IT University of Copenhagen Department of Digital Aesthetics and Communication Glentevej 67 / Office 1.12 DK-2400 Copenhagen Tel: (+45) 38 16 89 35 Mobile: (+45) 24 91 33 13 Web: http://www.itu.dk/people/smith/ -----Original Message----- From: air-l-admin@aoir.org [mailto:air-l-admin@aoir.org] On Behalf Of Frank Schaap Sent: 18. februar 2004 11:25 To: air-l@aoir.org Subject: Re: Oops there goes the thread RE: [Air-l] Re: first post (An Internet Withou... Steffasong@aol.com wrote:
As you can see from the sig file, I am from the States. Most of my students are not internationals. What do you think is the reason for their lack of
Internet savvy?
Well, there are a couple of things happening as far as I've been able to get them to talk about it. Unlike Eero's kids (in another message), my students have had access to computers and the Internet for the past 5 to 8 years. Most of them at school, with little restrictions, and a fair lot of them at home too. The main thing is that they're not really interested in the internet as a medium, just like they don't care much for tv as a medium. It's all about if "what's on" is interesting. Also, if it doesn't come ready to use with Windows, few people will bother to download software for it to check it out. Unless it's interesting, like downloading music. So, they use Internet Explorer and MSN Messenger. Of course, Outlook (Express) will let you subscribe to newsgroups, but no one uses Outlook, because everybody only uses Hotmail. There could be a nice paper here about "nomadic" use of the net by students, who use the net mostly in computer rooms and at their parents place. They have a cellphone and because almost all universities in the Netherlands _don't_ have a campus, students live in privately rented rooms and shared apartments throughout town, often forgoing a landline or ADSL/cable to save money. If it doesn't work on the computers (ie Windows + IE) they have access to, then they don't use it. I think what we're seeing here is typical use by a generation who grew up with computers and the internet present by default. They're not interested in the internet _an sich_, as most people on this list I imagine. They're not very interested in computers and the internet as a technology, as many of the tech-savvy "old school" users were/are. They're pretty much putting it to practical use: interacting with the school/university website, searching/surfing a bit for information and entertainment, joining the odd forum, e-mailing, and chatting with friends. Maybe it's time to recognize that this is typical use and that what came before really was atypical, tech-savvy, avant garde use of the specific technology/medium that is the internet. Frank. -- Barst [NL] http://fragment.nl/barst/ Fragments [EN] http://fragment.nl/fragments/ _______________________________________________ Air-l mailing list Air-l@aoir.org http://www.aoir.org/mailman/listinfo/air-l