Examines three claims about -mail and its implications for African-American students: e-mail (1) blends elements of oral and written language; (2) fosters a sense of community; and (3) leads to the enfranchisement of marginalized writers. Explores these claims through an extended e-mail exchange between African-American students at Howard…

Discusses problems that libraries are encountering with technological advancements in information technology, resulting in changes in the ways people interact with data and information. Topics include canceling print materials to save money and relying on electronic resources; quality and quantity of online material; user fees; inappropriate…

Considers some of the problems posed by electronic mail systems when the identity of the user is protected by the server. Suggests that high school instructors and administrators have good reason to circulate electronic messages through a central site, as students need to be protected from exploitative users and prohibited from sending abusive…

Discusses uninhibited behavior in computer-mediated communication (CMC), or flaming, and describes a study that examined the social context in which flaming occurs by analyzing messages posted during one week to four Usenet social newsgroups that represented different national and cultural groups. Results confirm that social context is the primary…

Presents issues and questions involved in online privacy from the information professional's perspective. Topics include consumer concerns; query confidentiality; securing computers from intrusion; electronic mail; search engines; patents and intellectual property searches; government's role; Internet service providers; database mining; user…

Focuses on manager behavior within a business environment related to the classification, storage and retrieval of electronic mail messages. Discusses bibliographic control and classification theory; characteristics of managers and personal constructs; the user-system context; and the use of technology to categorize and filter e-mail messages. The…

The International Telementor Center, founded by Hewlett Packard and housed at Colorado State University, facilitates e-mail mentoring between professional adults and students, under teacher supervision, in eight countries. Having an interested adult paying attention to them inspires students to improve communication skills, get more involved in…

Describes how online communication puts emphasis on students' comprehension and knowledge of argumentation and thus on how to interact with ideas and each other in a meaningful way. Asserts that they may not be equipped with such skills, and that faculty may not have sufficient skills in monitoring discussions or creating productive communities of…

Introduces a writing exercise students work on in collaborative groups. Aims to enhance students' scientific research paper writing skills and provide experience working in collaborative groups. Presents evaluation criteria for peer-group evaluation of a poster presentation, intra-group evaluation of peer performance, and peer-group evaluation of…

Describes the process of initiating an e-mail reference service in 1995 at the Ohio State University Health Sciences Library and the growth of the service through 2000. Includes data on types of patrons who use the service; types of questions and answers; and how results have led to re-evaluating all reference services. (LRW)

Presents an email correspondence activity designed to supplement existing field-based literacy teacher education experiences. Notes the intent of the strategy is to provide the opportunity for preservice teachers to encounter authentic literacy issues faced by real teachers, and to familiarize preservice teachers with the trials of being a…

Investigates the comfort and use of technology among college students. Also investigates the use of communication technologies such as e-mail and the Internet for academic and nonacademic purposes. Findings suggest that the majority of the participants were comfortable with technology and used e-mail and the Internet for academic and social…

Business students (n=80) participated in a face-to-face, collaborative writing activity, then groups of 4 worked on activities using teleconferencing software. Students saw no differences between the two methods in socialization, brainstorming, conflict resolution, or quality of work. (SK)

Examined the role of e-mail and faxing in Finland's international business communication. Surveys investigated business professionals' opinions about how the technology affected their writing practices and linguistic choices. Results indicated that the technology made their work faster, easier, and more efficient, and the amount of written…

Discusses the results of a survey of academic member libraries of the ARL (Association of Research Libraries) that investigated changes in reference services over the last three years and how electronic resources have impacted them. Topics include remote users; email reference; and live virtual reference. (LRW)