------------------------------------------------------------------------ Computer-Mediated Communication Practicum John December Lesson 4: Internaut Survival Skills 14 Jan 94 -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Introduction In this final practicum lesson, I'd like to give you some insight into how you can use and do research on the Net. In order to be literate on the network, you will need to create your own system for navigating in the information and communication communities you encounter. I'll describe my experiences as an "Internaut" and hypertext writer. I'll also give you some pointers to studying CMC and learning more about the Internet. Since mooing seemed to be so fun for many last week, we will also tour the "Diversity University" Moo. Core Skills: you gain some insight into o How to survive in cyberspace o How to begin collecting your own pointers to information o How to moo Key concepts to understand o The net contains so much information, you could not possibly go through all if it o Surviving in this sea of information involves your ability to be an active, critical, cunning, and perspicacious user. o Mooing combines synchronous text interaction and asychronous communication through objects. Setup for lesson: 1. Login to a Unix workstation using your userid and password. 2. Bring up a Unix window. 3. Startup Mosaic: setup mosaic-2.0 mosaic & Lesson Preparation: 1. Open up the CMC Course Web Page 2. Open up my "Internet Web Text" 3. Open up my "Information Sources" file (under "References") 4. When we jump to the Moo at 8pm, you can open the Moo tour instructions from the CMC Course Web page. Discussion: In my experience on the Internet, I've seen the development of many new tools, communities, and the tremendous increase of information on and about the Internet. Since May, 1992, I've maintained a file of information sources about the Internet and Computer-Mediated Communication. In this file, I list pointers to more information on a wide range of topics. SURFING ------- Maintaining my Information Sources file requires me to cull through a large amount of information and communication. The purpose of my list is to gather pointers to information, so that what I have now an "index" to Internet and CMC information resources. My goal in this process is to: * Daily skim through my email. Skim = read subject lines, sender, first few lines of message; save it to a directory, cmc/data/ if I want to look at it later; save off personal or other related email to directories, delete the rest. * Skim through Usenet newsgroups. * Mosiac: - Check the Mosaic "What's new page" - Follow links: announced places, guesses, home pages, alternate paths - Put things into my hotlist and later look at them in more detail What I'm doing: * I'm very rapidly moving my hands on the keyboard and the mouse; looking at the Mosaic screen for cues (e.g.: noting what kind of file is expected, stopping the globe if it takes too long). In teaching these practicums, I've realized that my thought process in using the mouse, keyboard, and most applications is automatic---muscular, not verbal; I find it difficult to slow down and verbalize how I work the physical interface. What I'm thinking: * I enter a mental state that perhaps is like someone playing a video game: I'm concentrating on what I'm seeing and thinking if it fits into the category of information about the Internet or topics related to CMC. What I'm feeling: * I feel a sense of satisfaction or success when I add something to my hotlist or save it to my cmc/data directory. * I don't find the web of links confusing. I have a good sense of how Mosaic is going to record my path, so I feel confident about the "Back" button. I understand the URLs, so I know what kind of resource I'm looking at and where on the net the machine is. Hypertext doesn't confuse me; I have dreams in hypertext. (hyperdreams?) :) I've been writing documents in HMTL for about six months, since the appearance of Mosaic 1.0. In creating the files for this practicum, my thought process is very much the same as when I developed graphical user interfaces (programming using C++ or C for X Window System Graphics or Domain/Dialogue Graphics). SURVIVING IN CYBERSPACE ----------------------- 1. Actively and critically look at the options a tool gives you. For example, the Z-mail interface gives you many ways to use fairly sophisticated features for managing your email. Which features are important to you? Probably only a few, but you need to discover what the tool offers. For example, I found that clicking on the spinning globe in Mosaic 2.0 stops the network retrieval process---by guessing. Sometimes a manual or documentation helps you use a tool---sometimes just using it helps. 2. Set the level of information flow that is right for you ---unsubscribe to discussion lists you are not interested in; find the sources of information that you want to follow, but perhaps allow for serendipitous discovery. For example, in my quest for information sources about the Internet and CMC, I subscribe to a few discussion lists that I know are very comprehensive in their coverage of new resource announcements. I also subscribe to a couple of lists where "off the wall" or less well-known resources come up. I process a large amount of information very quickly through my own system of encountering, evaluating, and processing this information. (It is not unusual for me to go through 100+ email messages a day, 5 newsgroups and dozens of hyperlinks through Mosaic -- of course, this is my area of study.) Addiction to information and communication is a real issue (Rheingold, 1993, p. 151, p. 182, p. 228), but not an inevitable consequence. In his preface for the first edition of _Zen and the Art of the Internet_, Brendan Kehoe pointed out that the Internet can indeed be a "time sink." 3. Be resourceful and flexible when dealing with the Net and tools---some of this technology is very new---the search engines I point to in my Internet Web Text are just weeks old. Know how you can find an alternative route to get at something. Also, realize that much of the information on the Internet is electronically published by volunteers. Using this information is not like looking up information in paper-based published texts. You will have to be much more resourceful and crafty in finding what you want---including discovering how you can use tools to access servers that are not hopelessly overloaded. 4. Recognize the larger issues involved in network use. In these practicums, I've tried to give you a sense of the (sometimes frustrating) world of a global system for CMC. The use of the Internet and connected networks involves more than 15,000,000 users now (doubling every eight months), but access to this network is still limited to those with the money and knowledge. Using the color workstations at Rensselaer and the high speed Internet connections puts you in the information elite. My concern is that access in terms of both equipment and training is very inequitably distributed. In my article in GNN News (see my home page) about electronic communication issues raised at the recent MLA, I report on a call for humanist participation in the development of the National Information Infrastructure. I think that not only humanists must take part in the design of the NII but that efforts must be made to diversify the base of users. Our society must deal with the social consequences of the new communities on the Net. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Extras" (Optional): o Create your own hypertext page that contains links to the Internet things you want to explore further. ************************************************************************ HOMEWORK 4: ======================================================================== Describe the Internet from your own perspective: describe what the Internet is and/or what you might want to study in CMC. (50 lines or so) Turn in this homework by posting to the course discussion list no later than class time next week. ************************************************************************ Comments: Thank you for participating in the practicums. In teaching these, I've taken a non-traditional approach to network training---exposing you to many advanced applications quickly. I've learned more about how I might more effectively teach this material. I'd really appreciate your feedback on how the practicums went for you---what things confused you, what troubles you had, what went well. Good luck in the rest of the course. I won't be doing any more practicums, but feel free to ask me any questions. You are now on your way to becoming an Internaut! ........................................................................ Copyright (c) 1994 John December