Mapping cyberspace: visualising, analysing and exploring virtual worlds

In the past years, with the development of computer networks such as the Internet and world wide web (WWW), cyberspace has been increasingly studied by researchers in various disciplines such as computer sciences, sociology, geography, and cartography as well. Cyberspace is mainly rooted in two computer technologies: network and virtual reality. Cybermaps, as special maps for cyberspace, have been used as a tool for understanding various aspects of cyberspace. As recognised, cyberspace as a virtual space can be distinguished from the earth we live on in many ways. Because of these distinctions, mapping it implies a big challenge for cartographers with their long tradition of mapping things in clear ways. This paper, by comparing it to traditional maps, addresses various cybermap issues such as visualising, analysing and exploring cyberspace from different aspects

Virtual Geodemographics: Repositioning Area Classification for Online and Offline Spaces

Computer mediated communication and the Internet has fundamentally changed how consumers and producers connect and interact across both real space, and has also opened up new opportunities in virtual spaces. This paper describes how technologies capable of locating and sorting networked communities of geographically disparate individuals within virtual communities present a sea change in the conception, representation and analysis of socioeconomic distributions through geodemographic analysis. We argue that through virtual communities, social networks between individuals may subsume the role of neighbourhood areas as the most appropriate units of analysis, and as such, geodemographics needs to be repositioned in order to accommodate social similarities in virtual, as well as geographical, space. We end the paper by proposing a new model for geodemographics which spans both real and virtual geographies

Building Cyberspace. Information, Place and Policy

Information and place have always been linked. From prehistoric forest and hydraulic expire to canal network and the networked knowledge economy, the space of flows gives rise to the way human beings perceive the world as well as to the objects they perceive. The historical relationship between information and place is important in understanding Cyberspace as a space of information that reshapes our engagement with the physical world

The Development and Failure of Social Norms in Second Life

This Note analyzes the development and efficacy of social norms in maximizing the welfare of participants in the virtual community of Second Life. Although some of these norms developed appropriately in response to the objectives and purposes of this virtual world, Second Life is so thoroughly steeped in conditions that have impeded the development of successful social norms in other communities that any system of social norms in Second Life will ultimately fail. Because social norms will likely,fail to successfully maximize resident welfare, regulatory schemes imposed both by the operators of the virtual world and by real-world governing institutions are needed to enhance the functioning of this particular alternative reality inhabited by millions

The Development and Failure of Social Norms in Second Life

This Note analyzes the development and efficacy of social norms in maximizing the welfare of participants in the virtual community of Second Life. Although some of these norms developed appropriately in response to the objectives and purposes of this virtual world, Second Life is so thoroughly steeped in conditions that have impeded the development of successful social norms in other communities that any system of social norms in Second Life will ultimately fail. Because social norms will likely,fail to successfully maximize resident welfare, regulatory schemes imposed both by the operators of the virtual world and by real-world governing institutions are needed to enhance the functioning of this particular alternative reality inhabited by millions

Through a glass darkly: a case for the study of virtual space

This paper begins to examine the similarities and differences between virtual space and real space, as taken from anarchitectural (as opposed to a biological, psychological, geographic, philosophical or information theoretic)standpoint. It continues by introducing a number of criteria, suggested by the authors as being necessary for virtualspace to be used in a manner consistent with our experience of real space. Finally, it concludes by suggesting apedagogical framework for the benefits and associated learning outcomes of the study and examination of thisrelationship. This is accompanied by examples of recent student work, which set out to investigate this relationship

Through a glass darkly: a case for the study of virtual space

This paper begins to examine the similarities and differences between virtual space and real space, as taken from anarchitectural (as opposed to a biological, psychological, geographic, philosophical or information theoretic)standpoint. It continues by introducing a number of criteria, suggested by the authors as being necessary for virtualspace to be used in a manner consistent with our experience of real space. Finally, it concludes by suggesting apedagogical framework for the benefits and associated learning outcomes of the study and examination of thisrelationship. This is accompanied by examples of recent student work, which set out to investigate this relationship

Virtual reality: Theoretical basis, practical applications

Virtual reality (VR) is a powerful multimedia visualization technique offering a range of mechanisms by which many new experiences can be made available. This paper deals with the basic nature of VR, the technologies needed to create it, and its potential, especially for helping disabled people. It also offers an overview of some examples of existing VR systems

Intercultural New Media Studies: The Next Frontier in intercultural Communication

New media (ICT\u27s) are transforming communication across cultures. Despite this revolution in cross cultural contact, communication researchers have largely ignored the impact of new media on intercultural communication. This groundbreaking article defines the parameters of a new field of inquiry called Intercultural New Media Studies (INMS), which explores the intersection between ICT\u27s and intercultural communication. Composed of two research areas—(1) new media and intercultural communication theory and (2) culture and new media—INMS investigates new digital theories of intercultural contact as well as refines and expands twentieth-century intercultural communication theories, examining their salience in a digital world. INMS promises to increase our understanding of intercultural communication in a new media age and is the next frontier in intercultural communication

Learning in the Panopticon: ethical and social issues in building a virtual educational environment

This paper examines ethical and social issues which have proved important when initiating and creating educational spaces within a virtual environment. It focuses on one project, identifying the key decisions made, the barriers to new practice encountered and the impact these had on the project. It demonstrates the importance of the ‘backstage’ ethical and social issues involved in the creation of a virtual education community and offers conclusions, and questions, which will inform future research and practice in this area. These ethical issues are considered using Knobel’s framework of front-end, in-process and back-end concerns, and include establishing social practices for the islands, allocating access rights, considering personal safety and supporting researchers appropriately within this contex