NET11: CONCEPTUAL RESEARCH & REFLECTION PROJECT
"Advanced Internet users do not confuse the electronically generated 'ephemerality' of their communication with a real ephemerality: they take seriously the requirement to communicate with clear vision of the consequences of what they are doing." (Allen, n.d)
The emergence in recent years of social networking sites like Facebook, MySpace and Twitter and the various Blogging sites, has resulted, in my opinion, in a lot of inane nonsense being published on the internet. Do other people really need to know that you spent the evening cleaning vomit off of your carpet? (Facebook entry). Or that your favourite three words in the English language are “make porverty history” (Twitter entry – complete with spelling mistake!). How many people have been caught out lying to their employer about being sick on a work day because they have published details on their social networking site about actually spending their (sick) day off at the beach? The problem is, I think, that at the time of publishing these entries, the authors are not thinking of their words being around forever. With Twitter especially, using the phrase “What are you doing?”, it seems ephemeral, sort of like a throwaway line, something you don’t really think much about.
As a means of communication, the Internet is impersonal. Users are often alone in a room staring at a computer screen, often not knowing if who they are communicating with are who they say they are. I believe that the type of communication on ICQ and other chat sites like MSN and Yahoo is ephemeral, to a point. You type your message in, the other person types something back. Then when the session is closed, the words disappear. However, the effects of a negative chat experience can be long reaching. I remember years ago, when I first became connected to the Internet, I used to visit AOL chat rooms. There was one particular individual who used to say the most horrible things to people, using really vile, offensive language (I won’t repeat it here!). It was a shame because the other people in that particular chat room were friendly and interesting. Anyway, one day this individual made a particularly nasty comment about my mother. I was really upset by this, as I had only lost my mother to cancer a few months before. Although his words were “ephemeral” in that they were only on the screen for a few minutes until I turned it off, the upsetting effect those words had on me lasted for a long time (so much so that I still remember the incident, 7 years later).
Websites, by contrast, seem to be more permanent and long lasting rather than the seemingly temporary nature of internet communication, yet as Allen pointed out,
"Web ephemerality works in reverse – in that communication appears ephemeral,but is not, whereas websites may appear permanent, but in actual fact are ephemeral,because of their tendency to disappear or change." (Allen, n.d)
It is very frustrating to spend time researching on the Internet, only to find that the web page is years out of date, or the link to a required page no longer works. Thankfully there are some solutions to this – archive programs like the Wayback machine, Pandora and WebCite help to keep the web pages from disappearing into the ether of time.
ANNOTATED SITES
1. The Wayback Machine
URL: http://www.archive.org/about/about.php
The Wayback Machine allows Internet Users to browse through 85 billion web pages archived from 1996 to a few months ago. Keyword searching is not currently supported, so a user needs to know the exact name of the web page they are searching for.
I thought this site was a good idea; it is very frustrating to find that a page you want to view has disappeared. Also, from a historical point of view this site is useful, as there is a history of pages from 1996 until the present day. Sites like this one, and Pandora, an Australian archive site, help to avoid the ephemerality of websites.
2. Going, Going, Still There: Using the WebCite Service to Permanently Archive Cited Web Pages
URL: http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1550686
WebCite is a member of the International Internet Preservation Consortium and is an on-demand archiving system for ‘web references’ – (web pages and web sites cited by scholars). WebCite, was created to overcome the problem of “link rot” (where pages disappear or become irrelevant over time). Authors of online documents and websites which are expected to be cited by others can ensure that their work is permanently available by creating an archived copy using WebCite and providing the citation information including the WebCite link on their Web document(s).
I thought that the whole concept of WebCite was a clever one, and helps to overcome the problem of the ephemerality of web pages.
15. Metaphors of use and communication differentiation
"Internet communication technologies draw for their appeal and legibility (i.e. how they can be understood) on metaphors and practices from non-internet communication. We use them, we understand them as versions of the latter, finding or creating differences between them that are not actually technically there since the net reduces all information flows to an identical format (with small variations) as it actually works." (Allen, n.d)
“The nature of the World Wide Web is unfamiliar to most people. In order to make sense of this foreign environment people describe the unfamiliar in terms of the familiar. Metaphors are often used for this purpose.” (Ratzen, 2000)
“… richness and applicability of structure, suitability of the metaphor and well understood literal meaning to an intended audience” (Madsen, 1994)
Internet metaphors are often ‘dynamic’ words, in that they refer to a movement or travel – we “surf” the net, we travel along the “information superhighway”, our computer systems can be “invaded” by Trojan Horses, viruses and worms. (Jamet, 2002). Sometimes the meaning of a metaphor will change over time, for example ‘World Wide Web’ is now understood to mean ‘the internet’ by a large proportion of users, rather than by its original meaning.
Allen writes “… to understand something as new as the Internet, we need to imagine that it is similar.” In 2009, the internet may not regarded as “new” any longer, but metaphors do continue to play an important part in users understanding and operating within the internet culture. As Allen further describes it:
“Advanced users need to recognize the cultural significance of the metaphors, but at the same time realize that although the Internet is similar in some ways to other systems like telephones, libraries, mail etc, it has its own peculiar dynamics” (Allen, n.d)
Many Internet metaphors are used because the concepts they are describing or illustrating within the internet are similar in nature to those in the non-internet, or ‘real’ world. For example, the purpose behind sending an email is similar to that of sending a written letter (i.e. we are communicating in writing to another person); communicating on ICQ or other chat programs has a similar purpose to that of talking to somebody on a telephone; researching facts for a project by searching on the internet shares a similar concept to physically looking for a book in a library, so it makes sense to me that a lot of internet processes and practices use metaphors and analogies like mailing, libraries and telephone system terms to make it easier for users to understand.
ANNOTATIONS
1. Ratzan, Lee (2000) "Making sense of the Web: a metaphorical approach"
This article included Preliminary results of the Internet Metaphor Project which showed that new internet users did require the use of metaphors to describe the Internet and the Web, but that this use decreased as a user’s skill level increased. There were also differences in the metaphors used by men and women, and by different age groups.
2. Palmquist Ruth A (1996) “The Search for an Internet Metaphor: A Comparison of Literatures”.
URL http://asis.org/annual-96/ElectronicProceedings/palmquist.html
This paper published the results of a study of Internet metaphors used in 100 articles from 1995. It includes a detailed and lengthy description of the term ‘metaphor’, including the characteristics of a ‘good metaphor’, which I included in my text. There were some interesting metaphors, a lot of them involving libraries. Palmquist concludes that in the future it will be essential to choose metaphors with care, to avoid promoting the internet as a “myth woven in fiber optic strands”.
I found this site useful, and used a quote by Madsen (and cited by Palmquist). I thought this cite would be credible because it is a university paper, presented at the ASIS annual conference in 1996
Concept No.23: Human-computer interfaces
"The Internet lessens the recognition of difference between humans and
computers because, at a distance, it is often feels similar to communicate and act on the Internet regardless of whether one is speaking with a human or a
machine." (Allen, n.d)
Allen also states
“the Internet was originally designed to enable humans to instruct computers to act at a distance. The Internet still has this capacity; thus, we begin to see the emergence of a cultural sensibility in which the hard and fast distinctions between humans and computers as different kinds of ‘communicating devices’ breaks down……Interacting with websites feels similarly impersonal or, more subtly, further indicates the extent to which humans readily accept the presence of machine-like ‘intelligence’ in their lives.” (Allen, n.d)
Allen mentioned the readiness of humans to accept a “machine like” intelligence in their lives, and I think that the growth of the internet, and internet based services is living proof of this. The majority of Internet users would now be just as comfortable (or for some people, more comfortable), communicating with a ‘machine’ (i.e. the computer), than a human. There is now no aspect of a human’s life where a computer or the internet would not be able to be involved. For children born this decade, it’s almost as though from the cradle to the grave, the internet is there. Once the child is born, the internet can be used for everything from buying baby clothes to equipment, to parenting advice, arranging childcare, then education. Every aspect of life and every major life event can then involve internet or computer interaction – education, health, shopping, dating, marriage, divorce, finance, insurance, sex – you name it, the Internet or computers are involved. Even death plays a part in the internet – if your relatives can’t come to your funeral, then they can watch a virtual funeral instead – your funeral service can be streamed directly to their computer!
If an individual is not happy with their own “real” life, they can even live a virtual, or second life instead, through second life communities. Here they can take on whatever persona they wish. This does have some positive aspects, for example a person with a physical disability that means they can’t walk in real life can have an opportunity to forget their disabilities and experience walking life through their second life avatars. Netherlands student Niels Schuddeboom describes his experience of second life -
"Perhaps the most profound difference I have experienced is that people have treated me differently" he said. "In real life, due to my wheelchair and lack of physical coordination, people often regard me as intellectually as well as physically disabled." (Cassidy, 2008)
Tim Thwaites wrote about the whole concept of people disappearing into an electronic world in an article titled “Bodies and Brains already merged with Computer Power.” (Thwaites, 2006). He also discusses the emergence of social networking sites, and the whole second life industry, where the income from the sale of characters and accessories used in the second life worlds already equal the economy of some countries. Thwaites also quotes American bioethicist James Hughes, who in an article on the future of human beings in the International Science news weekly New Scientist, suggested that within the next 50 years “our bodies and brains will be surrounded by and merged with computer power." This takes Allen’s concept of human’s accepting a “machine-like” intelligence in their lives to a whole new level. Thwaite concludes that “Perhaps before that happens we need to give some serious thought as to how best to integrate the human and electronic worlds”. At the moment, it is still humans controlling computers, but what if that situation was to change?
ANNOTATED SITES:
1. Bodies and Brains Already Merged with Computer Power – Tim Thwaites.
URL: http://search.informit.com.au.dbgw.lis.curtin.edu.au/fullText;dn=306437252525522;res=IELHSS
This article was very interesting, and explained in an informative, yet easy to understand way about the effects of modern technology on every day life. He discusses the role of technology, and how the negative effects of the technological world are feeding back into the ‘real’ world. Thwaites also discusses the often bizarre world of internet gaming, especially role playing games.
I liked the quote at the end of the article, by the American bio-ethicist James Hughes and felt it fitted in with the point I was trying to make. I feel that the site is credible, because I found it via Curtin’s Gecko database. As I had never heard of Eureka Street though, I did a Google search and discovered it was a magazine published since 1991 and hit publishes commentaries on public affairs, arts and theology.
2. KARL FISCH’S “DID YOU KNOW” PRESENTATION
URL: http://thefischbowl.blogspot.com/2007/06/did-you-know-20.html
I saw Karl Fisch’s “Did You Know” presentation early on in NET11. I was so impressed that I wrote a blog entry about it. http://sheila-starterforten.blogspot.com/2009_03_01_archive.html
The part that really got me thinking was this:
“Predictions are that by the time children born in 2007 are 6 years old, a supercomputer’s computation capabilities will exceed that of the human brain…by
2049 a $1,000 computer will exceed the computing capabilities of the human
race.” (Fisch, 2007).
If this is true, and that in 2013 there will be a supercomputer that has computation capabilities exceeding that of the human brain, where does this leave the concept of human/computer interfaces? While ever the human brain’s capabilities exceed that of the computer, the human is still in control. But once it’s not? I don’t like to think about that!
Concept No. 28: The paradox of the World Wide Web
Advanced Internet users recognise the character of the Web, seek to utilise its advantages, ameliorate its deficiencies and understand that not all users have the same abilities as themselves in reconciling the paradox of the
WWW. (Allen, n.d)
What is ‘The Paradox of the World Wide Web’? – I used my Collins Paperback Dictionary and came up with the following definition: 'A global network of computer files containing contradictory elements'. The definition of WWW as a global network of computer files makes it sound very simple, yet it is anything but simple. And herein lies the paradox of the Web – on face value, it can be fun, easy to use and informative, but on a deeper level there are all sorts of problems lurking beneath the surface.
Turkle made the following comments in “Life on the Screen: Identity in the Age of the Internet”:
“Computers don’t just do things for us, they do things to us, including to our ways of thinking about ourselves and other people…..People explicitly turn to
computers for experiences that they hope will change their ways of thinking or
will affect their social and emotional lives.” (Turkle, 1995)
Although written 14 years ago, I think these comments are still relevant in 2009. Computers, and in particular, the internet, are becoming an increasingly important part of our everyday lives, not just our social and emotional lives. A 2001 study on the effects of the Internet on everyday lives concluded that (after Internet connection)
…”people are not doing anything particularly new-they are doing old things in new ways and finding that some of those new ways suit their lifestyles better.”
(Anderson & Tracey, 2001)
Again, this still applies in 2009 - we are not really doing anything new, it’s just the way we are doing things have changed. We use social networking sites to keep in touch with our friends, instead of (or as well as) phoning or writing, we shop on the internet instead of in person, we use internet dating sites to meet new people. Our activities haven’t changed (communicating with friends, shopping), but the way we are doing them has.
But back to the Paradox of the World Wide Web – I started to think about areas in our lives where the internet has an influence, and the contradictions involved.
One of my colleagues is happily married to a Nigerian man; they met through an Internet site. Yet how many stories do we read about how innocent people have met potential partners from overseas through Internet sites, and then have been robbed of their life savings, because the person they ‘met’ on line isn’t all that they seem?
Another lady I know met her South American fiancé through Second Life and she speaks highly of this site. By contrast, a former acquaintance curses Second Life; her teenage son has racked up thousands of dollars in credit card debt through this site.
Buying goods on an Internet website and paying by credit card is an increasingly popular and convenient way of shopping. But how many stories do we then hear of people being ‘ripped off’ with bogus goods, or having their credit card details ‘stolen’ after using websites that turn out to be not all that they seem?
Kling (cited in Anderson & Tracey, 2001) argued (in the area of organizational information systems) that "technological change does not have a simple impact on a society". . This is true of the World Wide Web. But as long as users keep in mind the paradox of the World Wide Web, that it is not all that it seems, then the impact does not have to be a negative one.
ANNOTATED SITES
1. The Negative Impact of the Internet and Its Solutions
Ru Guangrong, Chinese Information Center for Defense Science and Technology
URL
This was a very interesting paper! While I examined the paradox of the World Wide Web, and the impact of the internet on our lives, I was looking at it from a personal/social level. This article outlines the negative impact of the internet on Chinese society. It looks at aspects such as Cultural & military invasion, and has sections on security = “..the Internet makes it easy to lose and leak secrets. Because cleared staff can freely send and receive electronic mail, voluntary leaking of secrets has become remarkably easy”
Regarding credibility - I was a little skeptical at first so I visited www.uscc.gov and found that the USCC is actually the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, created on October 30, 2000 by the Floyd D. Spence National Defense Authorization Act. So I presume this is a credible source.
2. Digital Living: The Impact (or otherwise) on Everyday Living - Ben Anderson, Karina Tracey
This was an interesting article. Although 8 years old now, a lot of the information was still relevant. It examines the impact of the Internet on the everyday lives of U.K. citizens. The study found that there is little significant change in people's time use that can be associated with their acquisition of an Internet connection. I found some of the interviewee’s comments interesting – since having the internet, one subject found they could watch Delia on the TV and then use the internet to download a recipe. I liked the comments about doing old things in new ways. It did make me realize how much has changed since 2001 – I wondered what a similar survey would find now.
Because this has been published in the American Behavioral Scientist, I thought it would be a credible source.
REFERENCE LIST
Allen, M (n.d) Curtin University of Technology, Perth
Anderson, B & Tracey, K Digital living: The impact (or otherwise) of the Internet on everyday life. The American Behavioral Scientist. Thousand Oaks: Nov 2001. Vol. 45, Iss. 3; p. 456 (22 pages) Available: http://proquest.umi.com.dbgw.lis.curtin.edu.au/pqdlink?Ver=1&Exp=05-18-2014&FMT=7&DID=84500095&RQT=309&cfc=1
Cassidy, Margaret. Flying with Disability in Second Life [online]. Eureka Street; Volume 18, Issue 1; 10 Jan 2008; 22-24. Availability: ISSN: 1036-1758. [Cited 18 May 09]. http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=2787
Collins Paperback Dictionary & Thesaurus (2006) Harper Collins Publishers, Glasgow.
Fisch, Karl. 2007. Did You Know presentation [on-line] Availability: http://thefischbowl.blogspot.com/2007/06/did-you-know-20.html
Gunther Eysenbach, MD, MPH1 and Mathieu Trudel, 2005 Going, Going, Still There: Using the WebCite Service to Permanently Archive Cited Web Pages. Centre for Global eHealth Innovation, University of Toronto and University Health Network, Toronto Canada
Available: http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1550686
Jamet, D. University Jean Moulin – Lyon France. LINGUIST List 13.35 8/1/2002 Qs: Internet Metaphors, "Labiodental r" Editor: Karen Milligan
Available at: http://www.linguistlist.org/issues/13/13-35.html
Palmquist Ruth A (1996) “The Search for an Internet Metaphor: A Comparison of Literatures”. Graduate School of Library and Information Science, The University of Texas Austin, Texas Available at http://asis.org/annual-96/ElectronicProceedings/palmquist.html
Ratzan, Lee (2000) "Making sense of the Web: a metaphorical approach". Information Research, 6(1)
Available at:
Thwaites, Tim. Bodies and Brains Already Merged with Computer Power [online]. Eureka Street; Volume 16, Issue 18; 28 Nov 2006; 7-8. Availability:
Turkle, Sherry. 1995. Life on the Screen: Identity in the Age of the Internet. New York: Simon & Schuster. Introduction: Identity in the age of the Internet, 9-26
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