bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Internet security: Who is leaving the ‘virtual door’ open and why?
Authors: Downs Daniel M. , Ademaj Ilir , Schuck Amie M
Published: May 2013

The purpose of the present paper is to study Chicago residents’ knowledge about Internet security and their utilization of prevention and detection tools. The results from hierarchical linear models suggest that there are significant gender, race, age, and community differences in knowledge about firewalls, spyware, phishing and data encryption, as well as the utilization of prevention and detection tools such as anti-virus programs, pop-up blockers and parental control software. Further, diffusion of innovation theory and utopian and dystopian perspectives toward technology help to explain some, but not all, of the variation in peoples’ knowledge about Internet threats and their use of security measures. These findings should help experts identify those people that may be more susceptible to cyber victimization, and highlight the importance of users’ behavior in the realm of Internet security.
Toward global measurement of the information society: a U.S.-China comparison of national government surveys
Authors: Williams Kate , Yan Hui
Published: May 2013

To be global, digital and inclusive, we need comparable measures of ICT use around the world. To contribute to this, this research note analyzes what questions the Chinese and the U.S. governments ask in their large, long-running surveys on the topic of computer and internet use. The process and content of these surveys point up agreements, differences, and silences. Based on this, we propose nine basic questions that can be standardized and used in all country surveys of ICT use to create a coherent global dataset.
Real vlogs: The rules and meanings of online personal videos
Authors: Jean Christian Aymar
Published: May 2013

This paper explores what the “rules” of vlogging (video blogging) are: the various visual and social practices viewers and creators understand and debate as either authentic or inauthentic on YouTube. It analyzes a small, random set of vlogs on YouTube and highlight several controversies around key celebrities on the site. This essay concludes by challenging whether conversations around authenticity will persist in dialogues about online video.
Political protest Italian-style: The blogosphere and mainstream media in the promotion and coverage of Beppe Grillo's V-day
Authors: Pepe Alberto , Di Gennaro Corinna
Published: May 2013

We analyze the organization, promotion and public perception of "V-day", a political rally that took place on 8 September 2007, to protest against corruption in the Italian Parliament. Launched by blogger Beppe Grillo, and promoted via a word of mouth mobilization on the Italian blogosphere, V-day brought close to one million Italians in the streets on a single day, but was mostly ignored by mainstream media. This article is divided into two parts. In the first part, we analyze the volume and content of online articles published by both bloggers and mainstream news sources from 14 June (the day V-day was announced) until 15 September 2007 (one week after it took place). We find that the success of V-day can be attributed to the coverage of bloggers and small-scale local news outlets only, suggesting a strong grassroots component in the organization of the rally. We also find a dissonant thematic relationship between content published by blogs and mainstream media: while the majority of blogs analyzed promote V-day, major mainstream media sources critique the methods of information production and dissemination employed by Grillo. Based on this finding, in the second part of the study, we explore the role of Grillo in the organization of the rally from a network analysis perspective. We study the interlinking structure of the V-day blogosphere network, to determine its structure, its levels of heterogeneity, and resilience. Our analysis contradicts the hypothesis that Grillo served as a top-down, broadcast-like source of information. Rather, we find that information about V-day was transferred across heterogeneous nodes in a moderately robust and resilient core network of blogs. We speculate that the organization of V-day represents the very first case, in Italian history, of a political demonstration developed and promoted primarily via the use of social media on the Web.
Wordlings in a Web 2.0 world
Authors: Lee Carolyne
Published: May 2013

Public language has become impoverished by ‘managerialism’, often reducing it to strings of ‘weasel’ words, a phenomenon blamed on the information society. This process is not as ubiquitous or as inevitable as often represented, however. Drawing on Burke’s notion of human beings as ‘wordlings’, I argue for the centrality of well-crafted words, especially on the internet, and offer examples of language crafted with care and passion, leading to distilled and vivid expression. I use the term ‘word bytes’ for such language, as it can cut through the multiple items of information from many other media by which it is surrounded, and demand to be noticed and remembered. I conclude we do not have to accept the impoverished form of ‘managerial’ English, often produced by elites and used to justify the ‘financialisation’ of the late capitalist world. We can begin to counter it by our own practices of using words with care and passion, and by disseminating our words. We can also stop and question ‘weasel’ language wherever we encounter it.
Use and importance of the Internet at the University of Maiduguri, Nigeria
Authors: Mishra Manish Kumar
Published: May 2013

The objective of this study was to evaluate the use and importance of Internet at the University of Maiduguri, Nigeria. The results from the analysis showed that Internet is very important for 60.77 percent respondents, with 74.62 percent of the respondents using the Internet for research. Yahoo is the preferred e-mail client for 79.23 percent of the respondents and 71.54 percent of the respondents use Google as their favorite search engine. Necessary facilities should be provided to faculty and students to make use of information resources available on the Internet.
Privacy in the digital world: Towards international legislation
Authors: Al-Shakhouri Nour S. , Mahmood A.
Published: May 2013

In today’s digital world, personal privacy has become the number one issue for consumers [9]. Consumers' confidence in personal privacy is directly affecting and limiting the growth of the Internet commercial development. Therefore, it has become a necessity to address the consumers privacy concerns for the interests of the parties involved. Examples of the different ways of penetrating the consumers' privacy are reviewed. The national and international efforts to formulate regulatory and self-regulatory programs to protect the consumers' privacy are demonstrated. The different privacy enhancing technologies are presented. The problems and shortages of the current national and international consumers' privacy protection regulatory effort including privacy enhancing technologies are addressed. The argument of the need for an international efforts and the proposed role of the United Nations (UN) towards enforced international privacy legislation is established. The complexity and the multi dimensional factors that affect the proposed international legislation are discussed.
Beyond Google and evil: How policy makers, journalists and consumers should talk differently about Google and privacy
Authors: Hoofnagle Chris Jay
Published: May 2013

Google has come to symbolize the tensions between the benefits of innovative, information-dependent new services and the desire of individuals to control the contexts in which personal information is used. This essay reviews hundreds of newspaper articles where Google speaks about privacy in an effort to characterize the company’s handling of these tensions, to provide context explaining the meaning of the company’s privacy rhetoric, and to advance the privacy dialogue among policy makers, journalists, and consumers.

The dialogue surrounding these tensions is unfocused because many policy makers, journalists, and consumers concentrate the debate on whether the company violates its “you can make money without doing evil” corporate motto. This first observation flows to a second: Google’s conception of “evil” is tied to the revolution the company brought about in advertising practices, practices that many think are mainstream now. Google is thus missing opportunities to remind the public that its advertising policies have several strong pro-consumer aspects, many of which are lost when “evil talk” is employed. Third, vague privacy rhetoric signals a weak commitment to technical or legal safeguards. Journalists are well suited to remedy this by exercising greater inquiry and skepticism in contexts where Google’s privacy representations are non-substantive. Finally, Google heavily relies upon appeals to competition, arguing that those who adopt the company’s services engage in meaningful tradeoffs. Quietly shifting practices, lock in, and lengthy data retention periods, however, mean that these tradeoffs must be continually reevaluated. Google should give voice to its competition and tradeoff rhetoric by creating data portability and deletion rights for consumers.
Navigating the blogosphere: Towards a genre-based typology of weblogs
Authors: Lomborg Stine
Published: May 2013

The personal weblog is a continuously evolving genre of online communication in which bloggers and readers create diverse social spaces for conversation and self-expression. This article addresses a conceptual gap in the literature, namely how to distinguish the personal weblog from other types of weblogs. The author develops a typological framework for classification of weblogs in three dimensions: content, directionality, and style, and uses the typological space to propose a working definition of the personal weblog and discuss it as a distinct sub-genre.
Survival of the fittest tag: Folksonomies, findability, and the evolution of information organization
Authors: Wichowski Alexis
Published: May 2013

Folksonomies have emerged as a means to create order in a rapidly expanding information environment whose existing means to organize content have been strained. This paper examines folksonomies from an evolutionary perspective, viewing the changing conditions of the information environment as having given rise to organization adaptations in order to ensure information “survival”— remaining findable. This essay traces historical information organization mechanisms, the conditions that gave rise to folksonomies, and the scholarly response, review, and recommendations for the future of folksonomies.
Facebook and academic performance: Reconciling a media sensation with data
Authors: Pasek Josh , More Eian , Hargittai Eszter
Published: May 2013

A recent draft manuscript suggested that Facebook use might be related to lower academic achievement in college and graduate school (Karpinski, 2009). The report quickly became a media sensation and was picked up by hundreds of news outlets in a matter of days. However, the results were based on correlational data in a draft manuscript that had not been published, or even considered for publication. This paper attempts to replicate the results reported in the press release using three data sets: one with a large sample of undergraduate students from the University of Illinois at Chicago, another with a nationally representative cross sectional sample of American 14- to 22-year-olds, as well as a longitudinal panel of American youth aged 14-23. In none of the samples do we find a robust negative relationship between Facebook use and grades. Indeed, if anything, Facebook use is more common among individuals with higher grades. We also examined how changes in academic performance in the nationally representative sample related to Facebook use and found that Facebook users were no different from non-users.
Why Lakoff still matters: Framing the debate on copyright law and digital publishing
Authors: Gurman Diane
Published: May 2013

In 2004, linguist and cognitive scientist George Lakoff popularized the idea of using metaphors and “frames” to promote progressive political issues. Although his theories have since been criticized, this article asserts that his framing is still relevant to the debate over copyright law as applied to digital publishing, particularly in the field of scholarly journals. Focusing on issues of copyright term extension and the public domain, open access, educational fair use, and the stewardship and preservation of digital resources, this article explores how to advocate for change more effectively — not by putting a better “spin” on proposed policies — but by using coherent narratives to frame the issues in language linked to progressive values.
A critical examination of Blackboard’s e-learning environment
Authors: Coopman Stephanie J.
Published: May 2013

Blackboard’s e-learning system dominates the online learning software market. In this essay I critically examine the structure of Blackboard’s two online learning delivery systems, Blackboard 8.0 and Blackboard CE6. I identify ways in which the platforms both constrain and facilitate instructor-student and student-student interaction. I addition, I delineate features that sustain and challenge traditional power relationships in the classroom. I conclude with implications for online pedagogy and practical applications for instructors and students.
Wikidentities: Young people collaborating on virtual identities in social network sites
Authors: Mallan Kerry , Giardina Natasha
Published: May 2013

Wikis and social networking sites (SNS) are arguably two of the most popular tools used by young people as part of their everyday social interactions. We propose that the concept of the wiki may be useful for understanding the kinds of virtual identities that are constructed, visually presented, and narrated in online contexts, such as MySpace. The term Wikidentities is used in this paper to encapsulate the kinds of identity work which may occur through SNS. We argue that wiki-like behaviour has consequences for reconceptualizing identity as something that is mediated by (rather than at odds with) technology. Our research opens up ways for considering new forms of agency for young people appropriate to a high-tech era that encourages collaboration, negotiation, and risk.
The social aspects of agent design
Authors: Wan Yun
Published: May 2013

Web-based software agents have been the primary source of ecommerce innovation and development in the past decade. Yet, the fact that the empirical design and evolution of these agents are not only determined by technology but also by their social aspects is probably not much appreciated. No agent lives in a historical vacuum. Instead, Web-based software agents operate in a social environment. It is through this environment that they interact with their users, compete with peers, bring profit to agent maintainers, and undergo regulation by public policies. In other words, Web-based software agents are also social agents.
The club no one wants to join: Online behaviour on a breast cancer discussion forum
Authors: Jaloba Ann
Published: May 2013

An analysis of the posts on a U.K.-based breast cancer discussion forum suggests that the type of online discourse found in this area is topic-led not people-led. Most participants posted for a short time and then left the forums. Pre-existing social networks played no significant role – most people who came to this breast cancer forum did so because they did not have an offline network of people in a similar situation. The nature of interactions on such forums may suggest that the best model may be one where interaction is structured by topics and information and interaction is mediated through topical hierarchies.
Usage of communication portfolios in distributed work environments
Authors: Lee Chei Sian , Watson-Manheim Mary Beth , Ramaprasad Arkalgud
Published: May 2013

The purpose of this study is to examine the use of communication portfolios in distributed work environments (DWEs). A communication portfolio refers to a mix of information communication technologies (ICTs), consisting of either single ICT or multiple ICTs, that organizational communicators use for communication in the workplace. Our results demonstrate that a variety of communication portfolios with different sizes, contents and structuring mechanisms were used organization members in DWEs.
What value do users derive from social networking applications?
Authors: Neale Larry , Russell-Bennett Rebekah
Published: May 2013

Why do users of social networking sites recommend some applications to their friends while rejecting others? What value do they obtain from applications? This exploratory study investigates the value users derive from ‘cool’ Facebook applications, and explores the features that either encourage or discourage users to recommend applications to their friends. Our qualitative data reveal consumers derive a combination of functional value along with either social or emotional value from the applications. Female Facebook users indicate self-expression as important motivators, while males tend to use Facebook applications to socially compete. Three broad categories emerged for application features; symmetrical features can both encourage or discourage recommendation, polar features where different levels of the same feature encourage or discourage, and uni-directional features only encourage or discourage but not both. Recommending or not recommending an application tends to be the result of a combination of features and context, rather than one feature in isolation.
A persistence paradox
Authors: Wu Fang , Huberman Bernardo
Published: May 2013

It is widely believed that persistence in most endeavors is essential to their success. By its very nature, persistence enhances both the quality of an outcome and its probability of success because people are willing to endure failures before achieving a desired goal. To test this hypothesis on a massive scale, we studied the production histories and success dynamics of 10 million videos uploaded to a popular video Web site. Our results reveal that while the average quality of submissions does increase with the number of uploads, the more frequently an individual uploads content the less likely it is that it will reach a popularity threshold. These paradoxical findings, which hold both at the aggregate and individual levels, throw light on the act of production in the attention economy.
Has green news reporting gone green? An analysis of geographically diverse newspapers' online and print coverage of climate change
Authors: Watt Marguerite J.
Published: May 2013

With newspaper pages and staffs shrinking, fewer stories are seeing print; but with heightened competition for online audience, some stories for which there’s little room in the pages of newspaper may find a place on Web pages instead. This study examines whether a sampling of newspapers are shifting more of their environmental coverage online, particularly in regions that have given such beats priority coverage. Content analysis also suggests what newspapers are doing, despite budget constraints, to serve their readers; and how effectively they are exploring the opportunities of an online edition.
Linked Data tools: Semantic Web for the masses
Authors: Goddard Lisa , Byrne Gillian
Published: May 2013

Semantic Web technologies have immense potential to transform the Internet into a distributed reasoning machine that will not only execute extremely precise searches, but will also have the ability to analyze the data it finds to create new knowledge. This paper examines the state of Semantic Web (also known as Linked Data) tools and infrastructure, to determine whether semantic technologies are sufficiently mature for non-expert use, and to identify some of the obstacles to global Linked Data implementation.
The size distribution of open access publishers: A problem for open access?
Authors: Frantsvåg Jan Erik
Published: May 2013

I stumbled across the question of publisher size while preparing for an earlier article. From the viewpoint of an economist, the size distribution of Open Access publishers looked inefficient. In this article I first explore reasons to be sceptical to a situation with a large number of small publishers. Then I go through the numbers from the Directory of Open Access Journals, also discussing problems inherent in the material. The results are then compared to similar data about Toll Access publishing. A conclusion is that, even though numbers may lack in exactitude, there seems to be a need for institutions to look at how they organize their publishing activities.
In search of prosumption: Youth and the new media in Hong Kong
Authors: Chu Donna
Published: May 2013

This study addresses three research questions that aim to describe the media use patterns of young people in Hong Kong. In particular, four dimensions of media use are taken as preliminary indicators to determine whether young people fit the popular stereotype of active Internet users. The dimensions include their reasons for going online, their initiative for information management, their production of content, and their collaboration and sharing activities on the Internet.

A self-administered semi-structured questionnaire was distributed to 649 sixth formers in 11 secondary schools in Hong Kong between December 2008 and February 2009. The survey found little support for popular claims that celebrate the active roles of participants in the new media culture. Despite growing up “digitally,” the young people in this study did not demonstrate markedly different characteristics in their media use. Indeed, instead of making the most out of the new media environment as “prosumers,” they remained passive consumers in most cases. These findings call for a more critical evaluation of terms such as “prosumption,” and of assumptions about generational differences in media use.
The role of advertising in financing open access journals
Authors: Frantsvåg Jan Erik
Published: May 2013

In a number of articles or books, advertising is pointed to as a possible way of financing open access (OA) journals. Very little work seems to have been done on finding out how advertising actually functions as a source of financing for OA journals. A survey was carried out to explore the field, both why journals did not employ advertising, and how advertising was employed. The findings show little uptake of advertising among OA journals, and indicate that there is a lack of understanding of how advertising could best be employed.
Digital reading spaces: How expert readers handle books, the Web and electronic paper
Authors: Hillesund Terje
Published: May 2013

This article focuses on changing reading characteristics and presents a study among a group of expert readers. Considering technological bases of reading and applying corporeal and material perspectives, the study examines manners in which proficient readers handle printed and digital texts, attempting to explain differences in digital and paper-based reading. Based on findings, the article reflects on how long-form text can be productively transferred into the digital reading space.
Digital materiality? How artifacts without matter, matter
Authors: Leonardi Paul M.
Published: May 2013

It sounds rather odd to say that digital artifacts -- like software -- have material properties because people generally think of materials or materiality as physical substances such as wood, steel, and stone. Yet scholars increasingly talk about the "materiality" of digital artifacts. What do they mean? In this paper, I explore two definitions of the adjective "material" -- practical instantiation and significance -- in addition to its normal connotation as matter. I argue that treating materiality as the practical instantiation of theoretical ideas (like policies that allow women to vote help make material the idea that sexes are equal) or as what is significant in the explanation of a given context (like material evidence in a courtroom trial) provides a more useful framework for understanding how digital artifacts affect the process of organizing. I contend that moving away from linking materiality to notions of physical substance or matter may help scholars of technology integrate their work more centrally with studies of discourse, routine, institutions and other phenomena that lie at the core of organization theory, specifically, and social theory more broadly.
Library perspectives on Web content management systems
Authors: Fulton Camilla
Published: May 2013

Library Web sites are in constant flux. Not only does site design change to draw and retain user attention, but the system and underlying structure of the site changes as well. With an amazing amount of library-created resources posted online, Web administrators face challenges in maintaining the content efficiently. This paper will explore library perceptions attached to Web content management system use, based on data received from survey respondents.
Facebook privacy settings: Who cares?
Authors: Boyd Danah , Hargittai Eszter
Published: May 2013

With over 500 million users, the decisions that Facebook makes about its privacy settings have the potential to influence many people. While its changes in this domain have often prompted privacy advocates and news media to critique the company, Facebook has continued to attract more users to its service. This raises a question about whether or not Facebook's changes in privacy approaches matter and, if so, to whom. This paper examines the attitudes and practices of a cohort of 18- and 19-year-olds surveyed in 2009 and again in 2010 about Facebook's privacy settings. Our results challenge widespread assumptions that youth do not care about and are not engaged with navigating privacy. We find that, while not universal, modifications to privacy settings have increased during a year in which Facebook's approach to privacy was hotly contested. We also find that both frequency and type of Facebook use as well as Internet skill are correlated with making modifications to privacy settings. In contrast, we observe few gender differences in how young adults approach their Facebook privacy settings, which is notable given that gender differences exist in so many other domains online. We discuss the possible reasons for our findings and their implications.
No knowledge but through information
Authors: Jones William
Published: May 2013

This article argues for the following: 1. Information is a thing to be handled and controlled; knowledge is not. 2. Knowledge can be managed only indirectly, through the management of information. 3. Personal knowledge management (PKM) is, therefore, best regarded as a subset of personal information management (PIM) – but a very useful subset addressing important issues that otherwise might be overlooked.
E-research and methodological innovation in Dutch literary studies
Authors: Kaltenbrunner Wolfgang , Wouters Paul
Published: May 2013

This paper studies the digitization of a well-established print bibliography for Dutch literary studies and its implications for the discipline. On the basis of qualitative interviews with users, we first compare three particular research practices in the field, and how they are affected by the digitization. Secondly we analyze the controversy that accompanied the digitization. We touch upon three prominent aspects of scholarly identity that recurrently surfaced in the discussion: research methodology, skills/tacit knowledge required on the part of the user, and the geographical/cultural space in which research is conducted.
Knowledge management and diplomacy: Reflections on the demise of the valedictory despatch in the context of an informational history of the British Diplomatic Service
Authors: Black Alistair , Bryant Antony
Published: May 2013

In October 2009 the BBC aired a short series of radio programmes entitled Parting Shots. The programmes featured a series of final communications, called valedictory despatches, from British Ambassadors leaving their posts to take up duties elsewhere or retire from the Diplomatic Service. As opposed to being merely vehicles for conveying reflective and summary knowledge about countries for the benefit of successors as well as the Foreign Office in London, some despatches contained discourteous and injudicious comments about ambassadors’ host countries and their people. The sensitive nature of these types of despatches, combined with their ease of dissemination electronically, made inevitable the severe circulation restrictions that were placed on them in 2006, leading to their effective demise. Our new knowledge of the past existence of the valedictory despatch immediately raises the question of the history of diplomatic communication, including issues related to the mediation of diplomacy by technologies and techniques conducive to knowledge sharing. The article synthesises evidence from secondary sources on the history of British diplomacy that highlights its information and communication aspects. Primary sources are also exploited in the form of valedictory despatches from British ambassadors abroad and publications on diplomacy contemporaneous with the time being studied. The traditional, stereotypical image of the diplomat is that of gentlemanly intellectual, ‘bon viveur’ and adventurer, socially adept and thus skilled in the art of negotiation. However, an investigation of the history of diplomatic information and communication practices – from the era of manuscript and messenger through to the ages of the telegraph and telephone, and now that of the internet – reveals the diplomat less as gentlemanly negotiator than as knowledge manager, as a collector and conduit of information designed to enhance the knowledge of policy-makers. The historic knowledge-management role of the diplomat highlights the part technology has played in the world of diplomacy, including the relationship between the ambassador abroad and the political centre. It also offers a further perspective on the ways in which technologies open up new possibilities, intended and unintended, often fraught with ambiguity and potential for enhancement and disruption. In turn this offers lessons for further consideration of what can be termed the Dark Side of Knowledge Management, and for organizational communication in general.
May they come in? A comparison of German and Flemish efforts to welcome public participation in the news media
Authors: De Keyser Jeroen , Sehl Annika
Published: May 2013

Much attention has been paid to audience participation in online journalism in recent years. This article contributes to that ongoing discussion by focusing on the previously largely overlooked macro level. It compares participatory journalism on German and Flemish national newspapers’ Web sites with a threefold aim: a) discussing the (lack of) introduction of certain participatory features in both markets; b) offering the first longitudinal perspective in that field for both markets; and, c) analyzing the various influences of market size on participatory journalism implementation. The longitudinal overview confirms that changes are happening at a fast pace. In general, the availability of participatory features on national Flemish and German newspaper Web sites is comparable, as both markets belong largely to the same journalistic culture. The larger part of the dissimilarities is explained by the difference in market size.
Encouraging participation in an intra-organizational online idea community: A case study of a Swedish municipality
Authors: Hrastinski Stefan , Sjöström Sofie , Eriksson Lundström Jenny , Larsson Anders Olof , Ozan Håkan
Published: May 2013

Online communities have flourished in organizations in recent years, but large numbers of them fail. A deeper understanding of how participation can be promoted in online idea communities (OIC) is essential, because the most common reason of failure is low levels of participation. In this paper, we investigated how participation could be encouraged in an intra–organizational OIC. Our case organization was Sollentuna municipality in Sweden. They decided to introduce an OIC to collect ideas from staff as input when developing the municipality’s forthcoming IT strategy. We used the theory of online identity–based communities (Ren, et al., 2007) as a lens and a mixed research method comprising interviews and an analysis of the content of the OIC. While this theoretical perspective certainly has merits on its own, the study topic at hand made it necessary to complement the theory with more specific design principles that take the unique characteristics of intra–organiztional OIC into account. These included that managers were expected by staff to be core members of the community, frequent and complementing promotion activities were necessary in order for the OIC to be used, very low entry barriers were expected, and the employees expected the discussion to be focused, both in terms of content and time. The design principles need to be tested and further developed, by conducting studies on other OIC.
User unknown: 4chan, anonymity and contingency
Authors: Knuttila Lee
Published: May 2013

Both horrifying and fascinating, 4chan.org (http://www.4chan.org/) is a wildly popular message board with a highly dedicated community of users. Compared to social media’s increasing push to persistent identity online, 4chan maintains a culture of anonymity. Focusing on the ontological encounter spawned by the site, this paper argues that the interface embodies contingency and senses of alterity in several uniquely virtual ways. It concludes by articulating how this online mode of being holds promise beyond the often repugnant content generated by the site.
Tightening the Net: Intellectual property micro-regimes and peer-to-peer practice in higher education networks
Authors: Jackson Steven J , Vimawala Alok
Published: May 2013

This paper examines recent responses by U.S. university administrators to the volume and legal challenges surrounding on-campus and in-residence peer-to-peer (P2P) traffic. Since the earliest days of online P2P activity, universities have served as key flashpoints in the broader file sharing and intellectual property debates. But while there has been considerable attention to the emerging file-sharing case law, and some attention to the shifting legal and political strategies of IP holders most affected by P2P traffic (or most aggressive in asserting their rights), the multiple, varied, and often ambivalent responses of university network administrators have for the most part escaped sustained attention. This paper draws on published survey and original interview data to explore the distinctive and heterogeneous policy sets put together by campus network administrators and decision-makers in dealing with IP issues associated with on-campus file-sharing practice. Such institutional micro-regimes constitute a crucial and understudied border zone between law and culture, functioning as key translation points through which external IP claims get filtered (e.g., DMCA take-down notices), and strategic sites at which a substantial amount of real-world IP regulation is effectively accomplished.
Boundaries of research disciplines are paper constructs: Digital Web-based information as a challenge to disciplinary research
Authors: Nolin Jan Michael
Published: May 2013

Modern disciplinary research is partly constructed, and limited, by the medium of paper. It is possible to bypass the restraints imposed by paper in modern Web publication. Still, the research sector keeps publishing as if the qualities of the hard copy should be forced on the Web. This article discusses the role of paper in the construction of the boundaries of disciplines and the challenges from digital Web-based publication.
Describing and measuring the value of public libraries: The growth of the Internet and the evolution of library value
Authors: Jaeger Paul T. , Bertot John Carlo , Kodama Christine M. , Katz Sarah M. , DeCoster Elizabeth J.
Published: May 2013

In the current economic climate, public libraries find themselves in the position of defending and justifying their funding and continued existence to their stakeholders. Many of these public libraries seek to prove their worth to their community through the use of different measurements and metrics to demonstrate quantifiable contributions and different understandings of the concept of value as part of showing a contribution. As libraries need to justify their value to policymakers, library usage is skyrocketing, begging the question: how can public libraries effectively demonstrate their value as critical social institutions to the communities that they serve and the policy-makers that allocate their funding? By examining varied concepts of value, this paper explores different understandings of public libraries as places and their contributions to society. The paper also discusses various approaches public libraries have taken to illustrate, articulate, and demonstrate their value. After detailing several value demonstration approaches that public libraries are taking currently or could take, this paper discusses the implications of value demonstration approaches for libraries in social and policy contexts.
The age of Web diplomacy: Exploration of international broadcasting online
Authors: Douai Aziz
Published: May 2013

This paper examines the Web sites of 10 international broadcasters targeting Arabic speaking audiences in the Middle East. Data from 2006 and 2009 are used to compare the formal features of the sites, mainly domain names, hyperlinks and type of news stories presented on the sites. The empirical analysis uncovers a rough typology of international broadcasters in the Middle East. The first category refers to international broadcasters that position their institutions as alternative media voices in the targeted regional media market. The second category of international broadcasters perceives their role as information sources about their sponsoring states, functioning like a “tourist” pamphlet. The study charts future research prospects on international broadcasting in the age of the Internet, how these efforts could be harvested in public diplomacy enterprises.
The value of online friends: Networked resources via social network sites
Authors: Stefanone Michael A. , Kwon Kyounghee , Lackaff Derek
Published: May 2013

This study investigated the instrumental value of resources embedded in online social networks. 49 primary participants solicited a total of 588 secondary participants who were asked to complete a modest task. Approximately 16 per cent of all secondary participants responded (N = 98) to the request. 8.5 per cent of weak ties responded and strong ties were about three times more likely to respond. Perceived reciprocity, contact frequency and a composite measure of tie strength were all positively related to enacted support.
Blogs and blogging: Current trends and future directions
Authors: Larsson Anders Olof , Hrastinski Stefan
Published: May 2013

Adopting an interdisciplinary scope, this paper presents a review of research on blogs and blogging within the social sciences and the humanities. It maps out what kind of research has been completed, how it has been performed and what gaps that might need to be filled in this relatively new area of research. More specifically, the paper will analyze all articles on blogs and blogging published until 2009 and indexed by the ISI Web of Knowledge.
The role of online learning in the merit and promotion process: Is credit necessary or applied?
Authors: Kupczynski Lori , Gibson Angela M. , Challoo Linda
Published: May 2013

Traditionally, universities have awarded promotion/tenure based on subjective criteria developed by the granting institution and disregarded credit for creating and teaching an online course. Current standards for promotion/tenure at Texas public universities and the role that an online course should play in tenure/promotion process are explored. Texas was selected to represent national standards in the promotion and tenure process.
A forum of their own: Views about the Internet among ultra-Orthodox Jewish women who browse designated closed fora
Authors: Lev-On Azi , Neriya-Ben Shahar Rivka
Published: May 2013

The paper studies Internet uses and gratifications by ultra-Orthodox women who are members of closed online fora. The fora constitute a unique environment for ultra-Orthodox women, where they can talk amongst themselves anonymously using modern technology, for purposes that may be illegitimate in their community. It was found that the women perceive the Internet as harmful and dangerous to the ultra-Orthodox lifestyle, but as constructive and empowering personally. The paper also studies what relationships women form online and who they discuss their activities with.
Clandestine chatters: Self-disclosure in U.K. chat room profiles
Authors: Fullwood Chris , Thelwall Mike , O'Neill Sam
Published: May 2013

With the increasing popularity of social networking sites, it has become relatively common for Internet users to develop an online presence via a personal profile page. Moreover, some chat rooms allow members to develop profile pages too. As a potential first point of contact, effective profile construction may play a pivotal role in the management of first impressions. Identity construction in profiles seems to be particularly important for chat room users, because they are often likely to interact with strangers. Since chat rooms can be used for anti-social purposes, the type and extent of the information posted in chat room profiles seems likely to be different from that in online profiles for social networking sites, which may be more closely tied to offline identities. This investigation of information in 324 profiles from two Lycos chat rooms for adults found that most users include a picture of themselves on their profile, hence apparently tying themselves to their offline identity. Nevertheless, the majority remain anonymous, probably many more than for social networking sites and blog authors. There are sex differences in the types of information posted on chat room profiles, with women tending to include more personal information. Furthermore, older users are more likely to post information about relationship status and location than younger users. These sex and age differences in profile content may be a consequence of the different motivations for using the service as well as disparities in self-disclosure norms.
Who connects with whom? A social network analysis of an online open source software community
Authors: Shen Cuihua , Monge Peter
Published: May 2013

By examining “who connects with whom” in an online community using social network analysis, this study tests the social drivers that shape the collaboration dynamics among a group of participants from SourceForge, the largest open source community on the Web. The formation of the online social network was explored by testing two distinct network attachment logics: strategic selection and homophily. Both logics received some support. Taken together, the results are suggestive of a “performance-based clustering” phenomenon within the OSS online community in which most collaborations involve accomplished developers, and novice developers tend to partner with less accomplished and less experienced peers.
The Health Internetwork Access to Research Initiative (HINARI) in eligible American countries: Benefits, challenges and relationship to Internet use
Authors: Ross Sheri V. T. , Buckles Christina
Published: May 2013

The Health Internetwork Access to Research Initiative (HINARI) aims to reduce financial and legal barriers to scholarship by providing Internet access to full text biomedical and health research articles for scholars in economically developing countries. In this study citation data was used to evaluate if HINARI journals have had greater use since the initiation of the program in eligible American countries. Also considered was if a relationship exists between the use of HINARI journals and Internet user statistics. While an increase of journal use is apparent in two of three sub-regions (Caribbean America and Central America), only one of three sub-regions (South America) suggests a correlation between Internet use and HINARI citation frequency. The benefits, challenges and future considerations for HINARI are discussed, as they pertain to scholars and program administrators.
Concerns about mobile phones: A cross-national study
Authors: Baron Naomi S.
Published: May 2013

Mobile phones allow people to communicate when, where, and with whom they wish. However, users are often troubled to find themselves always available to others. To measure attitudes towards mobile phones, we asked students from universities in five countries what they liked most and what they liked least about having a mobile phone. Responses across all countries indicated that communication was both what subjects liked most and least — enjoying the ability to contact others but feeling trapped by other people’s ability to always contact them. Concerns about dependency on mobile phones corresponded to intensity of usage. Some distinctions between countries reflect variation in available technology, while others may result from cultural factors.
Disciplining social media: An analysis of social media policies in 26 Swedish municipalities
Authors: Klang Mathias , Nolin Jan
Published: May 2013

Social media can be seen as a resource for increased interaction between municipal authorities and citizens. However, as authorities attempt usage of social media, practices can become entrenched in traditional regulatory frameworks that emphasize openness and transparency rather than interaction with citizens. Social media usage by authorities tends to touch upon a broad range of regulatory elements, some of which are legal in character and others that we see as embedded in the technologies themselves as well as practices developed in connection with the technologies. In this paper, 26 Swedish social media policies produced by municipalities are analyzed in order to better understand how the conflict between transparency and interaction is dealt with in practical guidelines. We are concerned with how the diversity of social media is understood and how public functions are identified. By analyzing challenges and policy strategies outlined in these documents, it becomes possible to identify four alternative foundational positions based on social media being perceived as a problem/possibility or homogeneous/heterogeneous. The general tendency in all material is that routines of command and control are established in order to create clear goals and practices for individual social media activities and thereafter to discipline social media activities to remain firmly within the intentions of the blueprint. This explicitly disallows activities to adapt to needs developing through interaction with citizens. Nevertheless, we have also found a number of participatory strategies that are either aimed at increased quality of community services or at extending the marketability of the municipal brand.
Is the voter only a tweet away? Micro blogging during the 2009 European Parliament election campaign in the Netherlands
Authors: Vergeer Maurice , Hermans Liesbeth , Sams Steven
Published: May 2013

This study explores the use of Twitter by candidates, in particular their networking and micro-blogging activities in the election campaign for the European Parliament elections of 2009 in the Netherlands. The main focus is on identifying what political aspects (e.g. party characteristics and candidate characteristics) influences their use of Twitter as a campaign tool. Furthermore, we explore the effectiveness of candidates' activities on Twitter in gaining votes.