Compares electronic support groups to electronic hobby groups to demonstrate the difference in terms of the rhetorical behavior of participants. Finds that some discourse characteristics and rhetorical features are common to all groups, others are unique to the special requirements of electronic support groups. (PA)

Finds that joking in computer-mediated communication constitutes a hybrid form of discourse, mingling the conventions of print and speech. Notes that students use typography and space to better capture the rhythms and inflections of oral joking, but such joking instantly organizes participants into hierarchically differentiated groups, creating…

Reports the results of a study that investigated whether faculty who use computer mediated communication (CMC) achieve greater scholarly productivity as measured by publications and numerous other prestige factors. Findings that indicate positive results from CMC are described, implications for faculty and academic libraries are discussed, and…

Discusses interactivity in distance education and outlines four models: (1) no-interactivity; (2) resource-learner interactivity and peer-peer interactivity, similar to a face-to-face classroom setting; (3) decentralized self-managed peer-peer interactivity; and (4) coordinated-decentralized interactivity. Tables and diagrams depict these…

A study of faculty one year before and four years after introduction of a local area network showed that in the first three years, electronic communication was used primarily for research and e-mail; in years four through five more teaching and service activities were added. Intended teaching uses have not materialized as expected. (SK)

Contributes to rhetorical scholarship on political discourse by surveying Web sites relevant to the 1996 presidential campaign. Argues that parodic sites sought to entertain the reader and to expose candidates' questionable or deceptive practices but that they themselves engaged in deception. Argues that they provided the illusion of political…

A study of Internet usage by large, small, and midsized businesses suggests that midsized businesses may be at a competitive disadvantage. Found that small businesses were more likely than midsized or large firms to have home pages and to reveal computer/technology programs as potential Internet services needed to improve current operations. (PEN)

USENET newsgroup topics are created, and they evolve, mutate, and become extinct in ways fundamentally different from spoken dialog. These differences can be explained partially by the asynchronous nature of electronic communication, as well as by other factors unique to such wide-scale multi-user media. (Author)

Outlines the interrelationship between telematic learning support and organizational culture of the workplace, defines occupational learning and types of organizationally generated knowledge, identifies concepts of organizational culture, and assesses the argument that telematics can effect changes in culture. Contextualizes these issues in new…

Advocates the use of online communication as a resource for meaningful research and shared observation by Montessorians. Makes suggestions regarding Web resources, purchasing a computer and hardware, obtaining Internet access, and using the Internet wisely. (KB)

Discusses research aimed at improving the educational quality of hypermedia-based computer assisted language learning systems. Focuses on a methodological framework that draws on recent developments in the field of human-computer interaction regarding interactive system design and a general constructivist approach to the design of computer-based…

Explains how written material started; describes the nature and supply of electronic documents; characterizes student practices in using paper texts and online electronic texts in higher education, including the role of reading; and considers communication and speed and informational inflation and choice. (Author/LRW)

Discusses use of the Internet by teachers for teacher mailing lists on particular academic subjects. Reports the results of email enquiries that investigated the adoption of use of the lists and then the levels of participation, and concludes that participation is very unequal and questions the cooperative character of these lists. (Author/LRW)

The Delphi technique was used to gather information from a panel of seven experts of collaborative educational telecommunications projects about successful elements of these projects as well as obstacles to success. Thirty-one items received high ratings from the panelists and had a high consensus level among the panel. Conclusions provide…

Investigates whether participants in online environments (Multi-User Dungeon) take advantage of the technological capability to be something different, or instead manipulate the online environment to reflect the world off-line. Suggests individual choice inherent in strategic use of programmed convention is not welcome behavior, and that virtual…