The video which seeded this post provides a rich source of points for consideration, both theoretical and methodological. In addition to presence, there are the notions of place and space and where ‘online’ actually is. A useful introduction to the principles of virtual ethnography and some of the ethical issues to take into account.
I’ve begun preparing for starting my PhD in October later this year. Whilst scouring the Web for articles, papers and other resources on areas I’m keen to explore, a video on virtual ethnography bubbled to the surface. (Writing the research proposal and application, preparing for interview, then the initial forays into the field following confirmation that I had been successful have all contributed to me being less prolific on here than I might have preferred. Apologies.)
During the presentation, a suggestion by Jen Ross, brought me up short; that nowadays, it’s unlikely that we can ever truly be considered to be offline. After my initial reaction of what a ridiculous notion, I immediately began to wonder how if could possibly be true, yet swiftly acknowledged that of course it was.
From the moment we first interact with the Web, as opposed to simply browsing it, we commit ourselves…
View original post 412 more words
Marginal Notes 