Please read this whole assignment before you begin.

Computer-mediated communication and the Web make it easier for people with similar interests (ranging from scholars in specific fields, to activists, to fringe groups) to communicate with each other.  Cybercultures / virtual communities can be rich resources for acquiring knowledge and reaching out to people with shared interests throughout the world. Cyber communities can also be ways for people to engage in discussions about politic, social issues, hobbies and other interests. They communicate in various ways, including newsgroups, listservs, synchronous and asynchronous, chat rooms, Web sites (sometimes incorporating audio, video and movie clips).

Your assignment will be to investigate a cyberculture, keep a  journal of your ongoing findings and create an informal final report, to be posted on your student course Web site. Incorporate the relevant course readings, where appropriate, in your report (with appropriate documentation). Before you begin the assignment, we, as a class, will come up with ways to research cybercultures/virtual communities, define our criteria for what constitutes a cyberculture and set limits on what types of groups will be appropriate to investigate for the purposes of this course.  Most of us have heard about hate groups and other groups with questionable, and sometimes dangerous agendas who dispense their views over the Internet. We should be aware of such groups, but it may not be wise to get involved with a "malignant" group for fear of being identified with their agenda and getting unwanted material or being harassed.  I will ask you to post information about what cyberculture you are investigating. After you have finished your investigation, you will share your findings with the class in your final report - to be posted in Townhall.

The goals of this assignment are to:

• become discerning observers of online communities
• become adept at describing characteristics of online communities
• become aware of how technology shapes human interactions and vice versa
• become aware of the ethical, social and cultural dynamics of such groups
• develop an awareness of your own academic, cultural, and social interests which could benefit from membership in appropriate online communities.
• write an informal report (including documentation of information, sites, newsgroups, etc., you visited), covering the points below, using clear, descriptive examples, logical format, proper grammar, punctuation, spelling.
• share and discuss your observations.

Issues to address in your continuing investigation: (Provide detail to support your points.  Give addresses of sites, with active links.  Include citations for sources.)

1. What search engines and what key words or boolean searches did you use to find resources?  Discuss your "Eureka!" moments and your dead ends.

2. Does this cyberculture have an identifying name or label? Do they have a general name they call themselves?  (Different groups that make up the cyberculture may or may not know of another group's existence.)

3.What kind of Web sites does this culture tend to have? One Web site will not give you an accurate picture of the larger community which shares the same interests.  Include links to the Web sites in your Townhall folder.

4. Describe the various ways this culture uses to communication with one another (newsgroups, Web sites, listservs, chat rooms, etc. Be sure to include the title of each site, newsgroup or other place you investigate and include working links (URLs) to the sites you visit. Does this group have face-to-face meetings? What is their agenda/s?

5. Do they have predominant interests, themes, philosophies and styles? Describe some of the personality profiles and illustrate with examples. Is there a predominant tone in the correspondence? Explore some of the ethical, social, and cultural significance of the group.  When you joined in the culture, did you feel welcome in the group? Did anyone flame you? Is it a group you would be interested in joining? Why?  Why not? What did you learn about yourself and the people who are members of this group?

How to investigate:

If possible, interview someone who is a member of the group. Decide how many you newsgroups, listservs, Web sites, etc. you will need to investigate to get a fair picture of this group. Too many may bog you down. Too few may be misleading.  A look at one Web site is not a broad enough sample to give you an accurate picture.

Use search engines (http://mason.gmu.edu/~montecin/how-to.htm#engines) to find your resources. Many include searches of newsgroups.  Do key word searches for type of online community or group you may be interested .  Also check out this resource: http://mason.gmu.edu/~montecin/how-to.htm#news for lists of listservs and newsgroups. Here is a list of resources on cybercultures (http://mason.gmu.edu/~montecin/cyber-resources.htm).  A scholarly group which studies cyberculture is the Resource Center for Cyberculture Studies. See this brief definition of a cyberculture/virtual community.

Join some of the groups you are investigating --lurk for several days on various discussion groups, reading posts.  When you feel comfortable, add your own voice to the discussion. How are your comments received?   Develop an understanding of how the community operates. Take notes and include the Internet addresses for the places you visit so you can return. Keep a bookmark list of the sites you visit.

Final Report:
Provide an introduction which explains your virtual community. What is it called? What characteristics does it have?  What did you learn from joining in on the community? What are some of the benefits of  this group? Will you continue to engage with this community? Why? Why Not? Provide a conclusion which sums up your impressions of the virtual community you investigated and what you learned about such communities from doing this project. Also include any other observations about your learning experiences in doing this assignment - new skills, new knowledge about the Internet. What would some of the benefits be form joining this group? Give specific examples. Or is it a group alien to your interests? Why would you not be attracted to this group?

Be sure to include the full names of the sites you discuss and include hypertext links to the sites.

Organize your report into paragraphs according to the specific aspects you cover. Give examples to support your points.  For example, when you discuss the philosophies and interests of the groups, give details/proof , including quotes from the sites. Link to and describe graphics which represent their themes.

Include a paragraph on what NCC competencies you enhanced by doing this assignment.