Purpose: Keeping track of users' communication activities in web-based environments has always been considered a complex task. It requires tracking systems that are capable of efficiently tracking users' activities and producing tracking data that can be useful to various users. The objectives of this paper are two-fold: to present an approach for…

Individuals influence each others' decisions about cultural products such as songs, books, and movies; but to what extent can the perception of success become a "self-fulfilling prophecy"? We have explored this question experimentally by artificially inverting the true popularity of songs in an online "music market," in which 12,207 participants…

In this article, the author talks about Twitter, a micro-blogging Web site, and how librarians can use Twitter to interact with students and to monitor actual usage of library services. He shares what he has learned from twittering with library users. He learned that Twitter expands the reach of research assistance. With students using the social…

This article presents the results of a mixed-methods study of the Adult Literacy Education Wiki. Two research questions framed the study: (1) What do participants report they have learned by contributing to the wiki? and (2) What is the nature of participation and collaboration in the wiki? A key finding of the study is that the wiki does not…

Most research on text-based synchronous computer-mediated communication (SCMC) in language learning has used output logs as the sole data source. I review interactionist and sociocultural SCMC research, focusing in particular on the question of technological determinism, and conclude that, from whichever perspective, reliance on output logs leads…

Drawn from a recent ECAR research study, this article addresses the importance of five CI technologies to various academic areas in research and in teaching and learning at present and how survey respondents think the importance of these technologies might change in the near future. (Contains 2 figures, 2 tables and 7 notes.)

While students are increasing their use of emerging technologies such as text messaging, wikis, social networks, and other Web 2.0 applications, this is not the case with many university faculty. The purpose of this study was to assess faculty's awareness of the benefits of Web 2.0 to supplement in-class learning and better understand faculty's…

The study examined the use of computer-mediated communication (CMC) among individuals involved in a conflict sparked by the appointment of an administrator as president-designate of Gallaudet University in 2006. CMC was defined to comprise forms of communication used for transmitting (sharing) information through networks with digital devices.…

Web 1.0 never left. It's just a term that refers to cyberspace before 2002. People mark the shift from Web 1.0 to 2.0 with the dramatic collapse of Web-based companies whose phenomenal growth was based on the profit potential of a new customer: the Internet user. Generally, Web 1.0 sites have a commercial focus. On the other hand, Web 2.0 reverses…

Trying to understand the complexity of computer-mediated problem-based learning environments is not easy. Sociocultural theory provides a theoretical framework for understanding such environments because it emphasizes the socially situated nature of learning and the critical role of tools in mediating learning. To examine how different aspects of…

This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of students' epistemic belief and the instructor's discussion-facilitating strategies on interaction and satisfaction in online discussion. It was predicted that the effects might vary depending on whether epistemic belief, one of the personal characteristics of learners, corresponds to epistemic…

Some people learn better through viewing and listening, and some people simply do not like to read. In this society, there seems to be a move away from text, or, at least text as people have defined in the past. Moreover, mobile devices such as laptops, PDAs, and cell phones make video and audio incredibly easy to imbibe. So how do libraries…

The authors describe the development and delivery of a team-building exercise in an online organizational behavior undergraduate course. Qualitative data of student perceptions, collected at the end of the course, revealed both positive and negative reactions to various aspects of the team-building exercise. Based on these reactions, the authors…

Despite the hype, IP convergence does not happen overnight. Navigating the IP convergence market is not easy. Some network equipment makers are taking traditional voice over IP (VoIP) product lines and rebranding them as unified communications offerings. But beware: While closely related, VoIP and UC are not the same. Generally speaking, VoIP…

Not that many years back, portals were nothing more than splash pages from which users could click on links to navigate a school's web-based resources. Today, however, they are much more: single sign-on gateways that easily enable users to do everything from pay tuition and view transcripts, to purchase parking permits, and sell used books. Still,…