Showing papers in "Information, Communication & Society in 2008"
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore the extent to which young adults create video, music, writing and artistic photography, as well as the prevalence of sharing such material online, and find that despite new opportunities to engage in such distribution of content, relatively few people are taking advantage of these recent developments.
Abstract: This paper looks at the prevalence of creative activity and sharing in an age when the barriers to disseminating material have been considerably lowered compared with earlier times. The authors use unique data to explore the extent to which young adults create video, music, writing and artistic photography, as well as the prevalence of sharing such material online. Findings suggest that despite new opportunities to engage in such distribution of content, relatively few people are taking advantage of these recent developments. Moreover, neither creation nor sharing is randomly distributed among a diverse group of young adults. Consistent with existing literature, creative activity is related to a person's socioeconomic status as measured by parental schooling. The novel act of sharing online, however, is considerably different by gender with men much more likely to engage in it. However, once internet user skill is controlled for, men and women are equally likely to post their materials on the Web.
696 citations
TL;DR: It is especially found that non-users display an attitude towards social grooming that ranges from incredulous to hostile, which highlights the need to differentiate between the different modalities of Internet use.
Abstract: This paper explores the rapid adoption of online social network sites (also known as social networking sites) (SNSs) by students on a US college campus. Using quantitative (n = 713) and qualitative (n = 51) data based on a diverse sample of college students, demographic and other characteristics of SNS users and non-users are compared. Starting with the theoretical frameworks of Robin Dunbar and Erving Goffman, this paper situates SNS activity under two rubrics: (1) social grooming; and (2) presentation of the self. This study locates these sites within the emergence of social computing and makes a conceptual distinction between the expressive Internet, the Internet of social interactions, and the instrumental Internet, the Internet of airline tickets and weather forecasts. This paper compares and contrasts the user and non-user populations in terms of expressive and instrumental Internet use, social ties and attitudes toward social-grooming, privacy and efficiency. Two clusters are found to influence SNS...
481 citations
TL;DR: This article examined how people's different uses of the Internet predict their later scores on a standard measure of depression, and how their existing social resources moderate these effects, finding that individuals with high or medium levels of social support showed higher depression scores; those with low levels of support did not experience these increases in depression.
Abstract: We examine how people's different uses of the Internet predict their later scores on a standard measure of depression, and how their existing social resources moderate these effects. In a longitudinal US survey conducted in 2001 and 2002, almost all respondents reported using the Internet for information, and entertainment and escape; these uses of the Internet had no impact on changes in respondents' level of depression. Almost all respondents also used the Internet for communicating with friends and family, and they showed lower depression scores six months later. Only about 20 percent of this sample reported using the Internet to meet new people and talk in online groups. Doing so changed their depression scores depending on their initial levels of social support. Those having high or medium levels of social support showed higher depression scores; those with low levels of social support did not experience these increases in depression. Our results suggest that individual differences in social resource...
270 citations
TL;DR: This methodological paper addresses practical strategies, implications, benefits and drawbacks of collecting qualitative semi-structured interview data about Internet-based research topics using four different interaction systems: face to face; telephone; email; and instant messaging.
Abstract: This methodological paper addresses practical strategies, implications, benefits and drawbacks of collecting qualitative semi-structured interview data about Internet-based research topics using four different interaction systems: face to face; telephone; email; and instant messaging. The discussion presented here is based on a review of the literature and reflection on the experiences of the authors in performing completed research that used those four interaction systems. The focus is on functional effects (e.g. scheduling and other logistics, data transcription and data management), as well as methodological effects (e.g. ability to probe, collecting affective data, and data representation). The authors found that all four methods of data collection produced viable data for the projects they completed, but that some additional issues arose. Five themes emerged that form the organization of the paper: (1) interview scheduling and participant retention; (2) recording and transcribing; (3) data cleaning a...
235 citations
TL;DR: This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike License, which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Abstract: David S. Wall, (Cambridge: Polity, 2007), 288 pp., ISBN: 978-0-7456-2736-6; (hbk), 978-0-7456-2735-9, (pbk), £17.99, (hbk), £55.00. Whether new to or familiar with the subject of cybercrime, those ...
155 citations
TL;DR: The results presented in this paper suggest that rather than radically altering relationships, communication technology is embedded in social networks as part of a larger communication system that individuals use to stay socially connected.
Abstract: In contrast to technologically deterministic approaches that focus on how communication technology affects social relationships, this paper examines how individuals draw on a variety of commonly used communication media in conjunction with in-person contact to stay connected to their personal networks. I term this use of multiple communication media the ‘personal communication system’. Findings are based on a random sample telephone survey of 2200 adults living throughout the continental USA. Descriptive statistics show that despite the popularity of email and mobile phones, in-person and landline phone contact are still the most common ways of connecting with personal networks. Multivariate analysis reveals a more complex picture of media use, showing that the extent to which each medium is used varies to differing degrees with the size and diversity of personal networks. Hierarchical cluster analysis is used to explore the possibility that individuals may have different types of personal communication s...
130 citations
126 citations
TL;DR: The authors examined how the prevalence of news recommendation engines, such as the most-emailed stories list on the front page of the New York Times website, could change patterns of news consumption.
Abstract: This study examines how the prevalence of news recommendation engines, such as the most-emailed stories list on the front page of the New York Times website, could change patterns of news consumption The top five most-emailed articles from the New York Times website were collected for two 23-day periods The content of the most-emailed list was found to differ both from the articles cued by editors in a traditional newspaper format and from patterns of individual online news browsing Opinion, business and national news articles appear most frequently on the most-emailed list, and more than half of the total articles appeared on the list for multiple days Counter-intuitive articles and articles that offered advice about life issues were significantly more likely to remain on the list for multiple days The data suggest that the most-emailed list, part of a larger family of news recommendation engines (NREs), acts both as an aggregator of individual actions and as a new way for online users to navigate o
110 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a qualitative data has been collected on the web forum "Stormfront" supplemented by extensive online interviews with eleven of its members, and it is demonstrated that those experiencing stigmatisation in offline social life regard the forum as a virtual community that functions as an online refuge.
Abstract: Although the subject of extreme right virtual community formation is often discussed, an online ‘sense of community’ among right-wing extremists has not been systematically analysed. It is argued that to study this phenomenon and to understand its backgrounds and function, the offline and online experiences and actions of those involved need to be taken into account. For this purpose, qualitative data has been collected on the web forum ‘Stormfront’, supplemented by extensive online interviews with eleven of its members. It is demonstrated that those experiencing stigmatisation in offline social life regard the forum as a virtual community that functions as an online refuge, whereas those who – due to special circumstances – do not experience offline stigmatisation do not display an online sense of community. It is concluded that offline stigmatisation underlies virtual community formation by Dutch right-wing extremists. Because this mechanism may have broader significance, additional hypotheses for future research are formulated.
105 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors report findings from an ethnographic study funded by the ESRC eSociety Programme, which describes the introduction of a local child index and the ways in which professionals and the technologies are drawn together within the local child welfare network.
Abstract: 'Every Child Matters' (ECM) is a government response to longstanding concerns about child welfare and protection. A key feature is the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to improve information sharing and inter-professional communication. One of the proposals requires the establishment of an index, ContactPoint, which is a database containing information on all children in their area, to be used by child welfare professionals to indicate their involvement with a child and, where there is 'cause for concern', to facilitate joint action. Whilst these proposals for harnessing ICTs within child welfare are a central part of the government's modernization strategy, plans for the Index have been heavily criticized for its panoptic potential to invade privacy and override professional discretion and judgement. This paper reports findings from an ethnographic study funded by the ESRC e-Society Programme. Drawing on data collected in one 'Trailblazer' local authority area during the pilot phase, it describes the introduction of a local child index and the ways in which professionals and the technologies are drawn together within the local child welfare network. For the Index to achieve its original purpose of improving information sharing and inter-professional communication it must be 'used' by child welfare practitioners. But establishing the Index as a friend to the child welfare professional is not a straightforward process. The research suggests this is dependent on a set of relations that are being constantly negotiated and accomplished in everyday practice. It is clear the deployment of ICTs in professional practice is highly contingent upon local policy implementation, the local arrangement of services and the everyday practices of busy and sceptical practitioners.
102 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors make a distinction between co-location, which is a spatial relationship among individuals, and copresence, a social relationship, and conclude that so long as there ar...
Abstract: This article examines the issue of ‘ubiquitous connectivity’ on the Internet. The Internet, combined with the wireless technologies, is said to have made it possible for ‘anyone to contact anyone else anywhere at anytime’, but such ubiquity of connectivity has failed to materialize in actual human contact. Drawing on Goffman and Giddens's theories of human interaction, the authors make a distinction between co-location, which is a spatial relationship among individuals, and copresence, a social relationship. While co-location puts people within range of each other, copresence renders people mutually accessible for contact. However, the establishment of copresence is normatively regulated in society, which demarcates different regions of space for different types of activity. Social contact takes place in a domain where copresence is affected not only by the regionality of contact but also by the power relations that underlie personal affinity and social engagement. It is concluded that so long as there ar...
TL;DR: This paper found that new experiences, objects, actions and accomplishments using digital technologies were accepted as valuable or rejected depending on how well they fit with already existing thoughts and processes incorporated into the young people's habitus.
Abstract: Informed by Bourdieu's notions of habitus and taste, and Raymond Williams' notion of cultural form, this article considers the relationship between young people's use of technology and social class. Drawing on the findings of case studies of 25 Australian 15-year-olds, the article suggests that there is a strong link between technology use and class. We argue that markers of class such as parents' level of education and occupation inform the habitus of young people which, in turn, influences their digital tastes. The case studies set out to explore young people's digital communication practices at home and in school. The findings show the importance of habitus in young people's engagement with and interest in digital technologies. We found that new experiences, objects, actions and accomplishments using digital technologies were accepted as valuable or rejected depending on how well they fit with already existing thoughts and processes incorporated into the young people's habitus. Apart from common teenag...
TL;DR: This article examined the way politicians package themselves to their constituents via the Web and found that personal qualities are a key aspect of an elected representative's online persona, and any differences that exist between these democracies with different electoral cultures.
Abstract: This article examines the way politicians package themselves to their constituents via the Web. It looks at various aspects of online self-promotion by incumbent representatives in two advanced industrial democracies – the US and the UK. It seeks to ascertain the extent to which personal qualities are a key aspect of an elected representative's online persona, and any differences that exist between these democracies with different electoral cultures. It concludes by considering the findings of empirical research and what it reveals about the relationship between national electoral cultures and the politician's persona.
TL;DR: In this paper, the conceptual origins of cybercrime in social science fiction and other genres are explored to explore the relationship between rhetoric and reality in the production of knowledge about cybercrime.
Abstract: This article maps out the conceptual origins of cybercrime in social science fiction and other ‘faction’ genres to explore the relationship between rhetoric and reality in the production of knowledge about it It goes on to illustrate how the reporting of dystopic narratives about life in networked worlds shapes public reactions to technological change Reactions which heighten the culture of fear about cybercrime, which in turn, shapes public expectations of online risk, the formation of law and the subsequent interpretation of justice Finally, the article identifies and responds to the various mythologies that are currently circulating about cybercrime before identifying the various tensions in the production of criminological knowledge about it that contribute to sustaining those mythologies
TL;DR: The authors explore the problems inherent with sampling bloggers and their blogs, specifically several factors unique to these populations: spam blogs, abandoned blogs, access-restricted blogs, and non-traditional blogs and propose that these suggestions be applied to sampling methodologies concerning other Internet-based communities.
Abstract: In this paper the authors explore the problems inherent with sampling bloggers and their blogs, specifically several factors unique to these populations: spam blogs, abandoned blogs, access-restricted blogs, and non-traditional blogs. Reviewing 24 blogging studies, they focus on the four strategies that researchers have employed to sample bloggers and blogs on the Internet: self-selected and convenience samples, sampling through blog hosts, sampling with the assistance of blog aggregators or indexing websites, and sampling from ready-published lists of blogs. They look closely at the practicality of such methods and discuss their tradeoffs. They then examine several techniques that researchers utilize to sample elusive, networked and rare populations in an offline context, emphasizing how they can be applied to sampling bloggers and blogs. In conclusion, they propose that these suggestions be applied to sampling methodologies concerning other Internet-based communities.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present quantitative and qualitative findings from a case study of local political participation from a small town in the US and investigate the effect of the Internet on political participation.
Abstract: Broad and diverse civic participation is essential to a democratic society. Studies of opinion leadership show that politically active citizens report that Internet information and communication helped increase civic involvement by enabling them to keep up more easily with news, interact with fellow citizens or engage in collective action. Yet information about less active citizens remains scant. Does the Internet influence the politically passive majority of citizens to become more involved in political talk or other forms of participation? Do they report that the Internet has been helpful in increasing their involvement in political issues, interactions with other citizens, or with local government? These kinds of impacts that follow the primary effect of gaining access to information are considered secondary effects of the Internet upon political participation (Sproull & Kiesler 1991). This article presents quantitative and qualitative findings from a case study of local political participation from th...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe and develop theoretical notions of how coordination takes place within mobile network societies, that is, societies where travel, ties at-a-distance, email and mobile communications are widespread.
Abstract: This exploratory article describes and develops theoretical notions of how coordination takes place within mobile network societies, that is, societies where travel, ties at-a-distance, email and mobile communications are widespread. The article brings together studies of travel, communications and social networks through a particular focus upon the multiple processes of coordination. We specifically examine how communications are used to coordinate meetings between friends and family members, and how these ‘coordination technologies’ have in part changed the nature of arrangements to meet and conduct face-to-face meetings. We show striking changes in technologies and cultures of coordination – a shift from punctuality effected through clock time to a flexible and perpetual coordination effected through email and mobiles. This empirical research addresses specifically located embodied practices of coordinating meetings and it illustrates how coordination is a practical, relational accomplishment and how c...
TL;DR: Three strategies are discussed that help students manage their availability in IM that reflect the lack of formal rules in the use of these strategies, and participants have shared understandings of these practices, and the meaning they convey to others.
Abstract: Synchronous communication technologies facilitate coordination, afford social accessibility, and allow for flexible contact at a distance. The authors investigate the temporal structure of social accessibility, individuals' definitions of public and private time, and how social accessibility and privacy are negotiated. They examine university students' social accessibility in instant messaging with a multi-method study utilizing surveys, focus groups and interviews. Four key characteristics were identified: predictability, downtime, online concurrent IM activities, and multitasking. Private and public time blur seamlessly in IM, with students making themselves available as a function of social relationships and context. Negotiation of social accessibility is complex and often evolves over the development of a relationship. Three strategies are discussed that help students manage their availability in IM. Despite the lack of formal rules in the use of these strategies, participants have shared understandin...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present results of a six-month-long ethnographic research of nonverbal communication (NVC) in the Second Life (SL) virtual environment.
Abstract: A transition from text-based computer-mediated communication (CMC) to online interaction that includes both textual and nonverbal discourse represents a new development in online communication and a significant challenge to prevailing models for the analysis of CMC. This paper presents results of a six-month-long ethnographic research of nonverbal communication (NVC) in the Second Life (SL) virtual environment. A set of 108 SL locations selected in a non-structured manner provided a wide range of communicative contexts for the analysis of naturally occurring user interaction. The study was focused on the analysis of proxemic and kinesic cues. The results have pointed to a significant difference between user-defined and predefined nonverbal cues, indicating that user-defined NVC has stronger potential to enhance online interaction.
TL;DR: In this article, a detailed account of mobile phone use among Palestinian Israeli teenage girls who, at the time of the fieldwork (2003-2006), used mobile phones given to them by their illicit boyfriends, unbeknownst to their parents.
Abstract: This paper offers an analysis of mobile phone practices among Palestinian Israeli teenage girls, framed within a discussion about the domestication of communication technologies, women and the telephone, and Palestinian teenage girls in Israel. The paper constructs a detailed account of mobile phone use among Palestinian Israeli girls who, at the time of the fieldwork (2003–2006), used mobile phones given to them by their illicit boyfriends, unbeknownst to their parents. The analysis explores the ways in which the phone use dialectically reaffirmed and challenged intergenerational and cross-gender relationships; and reflects on the notion of ‘domestication’ as a framework for analysing mobile communication media.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explored the modes of communication rural individuals use most often with their three closest friends and how these modes vary by three factors: (1) social tie locality, (2) frequency of communication, and (3) degree of Internet usage.
Abstract: The number of ways that people communicate with their social networks has changed dramatically in the last 50 years. Traditionally, the local community was the basis for people's social interactions; most of people's closest friends resided locally and face-to-face communication was the predominant mode of communication. Yet, today face-to-face meetings are no longer the primary way to communicate as one can use a landline telephone or any number of the computer mediated communications such as email. This paper explores the modes of communication rural individuals use most often with their three closest friends and how these modes of communication vary by three factors: (1) social tie locality, (2) frequency of communication, and (3) degree of Internet usage. Using a 2005 random sample mail survey of 1,315 residents in an isolated region of the Western United States, the results show that people actively use email to maintain core social networks, particularly when alters live at a distance. However, cont...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors reviewed recent thinking and practice on the issue of youth mobilization in the United Kingdom and found that most top-down youth sites, such as youth parliaments and forums, lacked appealing, relevant content and a clear purpose; their aim was to generically "involve" young people without a set of specific reasons and benefits that would motivate young users.
Abstract: This article reviews recent thinking and practice on the issue of youth mobilization in the United Kingdom. Developing young people's sense of civic efficacy has been shown to be the key to facilitating civic engagement. However, different approaches and online mobilization strategies have been adopted by top-down government or parliament-supported projects, and by non-governmental or ‘issue’ organizations. To address the question of whether UK mobilization sites are making the most of the internet to facilitate youth efficacy 20 youth and issue mobilization websites were analysed looking at content, design and interactivity. The study found that most top-down youth sites, such as youth parliaments and forums, lacked appealing, relevant content and a clear purpose; their aim was to generically ‘involve’ young people without a set of specific reasons and benefits that would motivate young users. Youth portals were an exception to the rule as they provided users with comprehensive, accessible and relevant i...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors analyze the role of the state in online protest and distinguish between types of institutional authorities, further deepening the understanding of both state and non-state actors.
Abstract: A major debate has erupted in recent work on social movements about the role of the state in protest, with some advocating alternative approaches to the study of social movements, such as a focus on institutional authorities. Using data on four types of online protest (petitions, boycotts, and letter-writing and email campaigns), acquired using an innovative new methodology that produces a generalizable sample of online protest actions, this paper addresses this debate. While the state is a frequent target of online protest, a significant portion of protest activity targets other institutional authorities. The authors' analyses disaggregate the state and distinguish between types of institutional authorities, further deepening the understanding of both state and non-state actors. Their data also suggest an association between tactical forms and their targets. Finally, by using Internet data, this paper contributes to an under-studied area of social movement research: online protest.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated what is needed to make the mobile phone a more effective tool for the interaction between government and governed, and drew upon case studies of best practice from around the world to investigate the emerging ways in which large-scale usage of this type of...
Abstract: This paper investigates what is needed to make the mobile phone a more effective tool for the interaction between government and governed. Recent studies have shown that a significant proportion of the UK population have no intention of accessing the Internet; however, it is reported that there are more web-enabled mobile phones than there are PCs in the UK. Mobile phones may thus offer the most viable electronic channel through which to encourage large-scale take-up of online public services. Although people have integrated mobile phones into their everyday lives, we argue that unless there is a substantial change in social practices the much heralded ‘m-government’ will take a significant amount of time to become a reality. Despite these ongoing challenges, mobile technologies offer huge potential to represent mainstream government/citizen interaction. The paper will draw upon case studies of best practice from around the world to investigate the emerging ways in which large-scale usage of this type of ...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors used a lagged endogenous regression approach to find out whether switching to broadband increases the time spent online, the use of online communication services, the breadth of internet activities and the amount of online spend.
Abstract: Broadband changes everything. Or so we are told. But does it? There is only one way to find out - follow people who move from narrowband to broadband internet access and see what changes. This paper reports exactly this kind of analysis using data from a two wave European panel study (e-Living) and the lagged endogenous regression approach to see if switching to broadband increases the time spent online, the use of online communication services, the breadth of internet activities and the amount of online spend, and whether it decreases the time spent watching TV and the level of social leisure activities. The results suggest, in the main, that switching to broadband made little difference for this group of early broadband adopters who were already heavy internet users. There was no evidence of an online spend or social leisure substitution effect although there was evidence of a reduction in time spent watching television, and an increase in email in use, time spent online and breadth of internet use. In all cases however it was the previous levels of behaviour that were the most significant and switching to broadband was, in general, one of the least strong effects.
TL;DR: It is claimed that the MP3 player has reconfigured and recontextualized music in distinct yet interrelated ways and suggested that the reconfigurations afforded by MP3 technologies can be understood in terms of Katherine Hayles' conceptualization of ‘incorporative’ and ‘inscriptive’ practices allied with Apple's own theory of the iPod as an 'iconic interface’ cultivating an auratic ‘veneer of simplicity’.
Abstract: Apple's iPod and MP3 players in general have risen to cultural prominence in recent years. Figures now indicate that in Britain as many as 48 per cent of 16–34 year olds own some form of MP3 player, Apple have sold nearly 60 million iPods worldwide since their launch in November 2001, and the billionth worldwide legal music download was recorded in February 2006. In this context of relative mass and escalating appropriation we are faced with a series of pressing sociological questions concerning the transformative capacities of these technologies. This paper attempts to set out some of these questions for further investigation. Here it is claimed that the MP3 player has reconfigured and recontextualized music in distinct yet interrelated ways: (1) the reconfiguration of music as a virtual (MP3) rather than a physical cultural artefact (vinyl record, tape, or CD), which has implications for music collecting/archiving; and (2) extending the work of the personal stereo, the MP3 player is recontextualizing mu...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examine second wave and post-second wave feminist writing about the possibilities of new information and communication technologies, focusing on how these authors understand the transformative potential of technologies, and attention is drawn to the swings between optimism and pessimism about the role of technology for a feminist political agenda.
Abstract: This article examines second wave and post-second wave feminist writing about the possibilities of (contemporaneously) new information and communication technologies. A number of texts by key authors, including Shulamith Firestone, Valerie Solanas, Cynthia Cockburn, Donna Haraway and Sadie Plant, are examined in light of the social and political context of their time of writing as well as in relation to ‘mainstream’ information society theorists such as Daniel Bell and Manuel Castells. The main focus is on how these authors understand the transformative potential of technologies, and attention is drawn to the swings between optimism and pessimism about the role of technology for a feminist political agenda. The role and nature of manifestos are also explored, and the question of whether it is time for another feminist technology manifesto is raised. The article concludes by posing some methodological and theoretical challenges of developing an anti-essentialist (in relation to both gender and technology),...
TL;DR: In this paper, a case study of a Canadian Community Wireless Network (CWN) is presented, and the relationship between the geek-public of WiFi developers and the community public of local people is discussed.
Abstract: Drawing on community expertise, open-source software and non-hierarchical organizational strategies, community wireless networks (CWN) engage volunteers in building networks for public internet access and community media. Volunteers intend these networks to be used to reinvigorate local community. Together the following two purposes create two distinct mediated publics: to engage volunteers in discussing and undertaking technical innovations, and to provide internet access and local community media to urban citizens. To better address the potential of CWN as a form of local innovation and democratic rationalization, the relationship between the two publics must be better understood. Using a case study of a Canadian CWN, this article advances the category of ‘public’ as alternative and complementary to ‘community’ as it is used to describe the social and technical structures of these projects. By addressing the tensions between the geek-public of WiFi developers, and the community-public of local people us...
TL;DR: There is evidence that there may be a selection bias occurring in which those with the greatest well-being problems are the ones searching online for health information, which suggests that particular types of Internet use may mediate gender disparities in mental health.
Abstract: Research investigating the impacts of computer and Internet use is increasing; however, few sociologists explore how this use may impact on mental health outcomes. The authors use data from the 2004 General Social Survey to examine the relationship among gender, computer and Internet use for health purposes and mental health. Their findings are mixed in that computer and Internet use are both positively and negatively related to mental health. They find evidence that there may be a selection bias occurring in which those with the greatest well-being problems are the ones searching online for health information. When computer and the Internet use variables were included in the models, the effect of gender on likelihood of experiencing poor mental health was attenuated, which suggests that particular types of Internet use may mediate gender disparities in mental health.
TL;DR: The aim is to explore the laptop's increasing presence in the sites of music, from cyberspace to live venues, as well as the relationship between music and mobile computerized space, and to argue that the laptop is a place-holder for conflicting meanings about what belongs in music.
Abstract: In this article I address some images, categories and open-ended trajectories of the laptop in music production. The aim is to explore the laptop's increasing presence in the sites of music, from cyberspace to live venues, as well as the relationship between music and mobile computerized space. Implicit in the article is the claim that the laptop is a neglected device, but that close attention to its position in cultural networks and everyday settings is one way of examining some possible ways into the complex entanglements and layerings of mobile space. The first part of the article explores the laptop as the archetypal nomadic machine of the digital age, inserted into mobile networks, hubs and flows. The laptop mediates mobility and by doing so not only serves macro-processes of social and economic change, but also opens up creative possibilities for the musician beyond the studio and the home. The second part of the article examines the role of software in activating the laptop's capabilities. The grow...