Readings are subject to change. Please always check the online syllabus.

CS 6470: Design of Online Communities

« class homepage

Readings and assignments are subject to change.

Week Date Topic Readings & Online Sites
1 1/6 Introduction  
  1/8 Community: Face to Face and Online Reading: Online Sites:  
2 1/13 Third Places Reading: Online Site: Due:
1/15 Research Methods Reading: Online Site:
3 1/20 Research Ethics Reading: Recommended: Online Site: Please do not miss this class. If you do miss this lecture, you must watch a video of class and meet with the TA.
1/22 Ethics Continued:
Disguising Subjects in Published Accounts
Reading: Due:
  • Obtain ethics certification via the online course, if you do not already have certification.
Please do not miss this class. If you do miss this lecture, you must watch a video of class and meet with the TA.
4 1/27 Design Factors Reading: Online Site: Due:
1/29 Theory of Identity Reading: Online Sites:
5 2/3 Identity Online Reading: Online Site:
  • Second Life
    Note: it takes a while to 'understand' this site. Please reserve at least 2-3 hours for exploring it.
Due:
2/5 Gender Online Reading: Online Site:
6 2/10 (asb in Charlotte) Growing Up Online In Class:
  • Watch PBS Frontline documentary film, "Growing Up Online" (2008) and discuss afterwards
Online Site:
  2/12 Constructionism Reading:
7 2/17 Deviant Behavior Reading: Recommended:
  • "Banished!" and "Who Let the Nazi In?" (chapters 7 and 8) in Cyberville by Stacy Horn, pp. 157-220. (electronic reserve)
  • "The Purple Guest" (Chapter 3) in "My Tiny Life" by Julian Dibbell
Online Site:
  2/19 Governance Reading: Recommended: Online Sites: Due:
  • HW: First interview transcript
8 2/24 Guest Lecture Richard Weil
Community Relations Director
Fusion Fall/Cartoon Network New Media

Online Site:
  2/26 Social Roles Reading: Online Site: Due:
  • HW: Second interview transcript
9 3/3 Participation and Lurking Reading:
  • "Lurker demographics: counting the silent" by Blair Nonnecke and Jenny Preece. Proceedings of CHI 2000, April 1 - 6, 2000, The Hague, Netherlands, pp. 73-80.
  • "Alone together?": exploring the social dynamics of massively multiplayer online games by Nicolas Ducheneaut et al. Proceedings of CHI 2006. (electronic reserve)

Recommended:

Online Site:
3/5 (asb at SIGCSE) Leadership and Hosting Reading: Recommended: Online Site: Due:
  • HW: Third interview transcript
10 3/10 Virtual Architecture Reading: Recommended:
  • "How did My Garden Grow" (Chapter 5) in "My Tiny Life" by Julian Dibbell
Online Site:
  • SF0
    Note: Actually signing up for the site and trying it is optional. If you do so, pease do not do anything unethical, illegal, or that defaces property. Use good judgement.
Recommended Online Site:
  3/12 Online Privacy Reading: Recommended:
  • "Privacy policies as decision-making tools, an evaluation of online privacy notices." by Carlos Jensen and Colin Potts. Proceedings of CHI 2004. (electronic reserve)
Online Site:
  • Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) on Privacy (browse)
  • Read the privacy policies of two online sites you use. List your sites on the wiki, making sure no one else in the class has picked your sites. Come to class prepared to discuss those policies.
11 3/17 & 3/19 Spring Break (no class)  
12 3/24 The Social, the Technical, the Political Reading:

Online Site:

  • Jumpcut Uploads are disabled, but you can browse and remix existing content.
3/26 (asb at Radcliffe) No class TA available during class to answer questions about projects.
13 3/31 Community Study Presentations Due: Note: If you will be absent for any of the presentation days, please notify the TA before this date, so we can schedule your presentation on a different day. I expect several people may be at CHI on 4/9.
4/2 Community Study Presentations, cont.
14 4/7 Children & Controversial Information Online Reading: Online Sites:
  • From this list of Internet filters, pick two filters and see if you can use the developer's website to figure out how they work and what criteria they use for filtering.
  • Club Penguin
4/9
(guest lecturer Andrea Forte)
Wikipedia and the nature of "truth" Reading: Online Sites:
15 4/14 Guest Lecture by Lynda Mitchell, founder of kidswithfoodallergies.org Reading: Online Sites:
4/16 Online Cooperation and the Open Source Movement Reading: Online Site: Due:
16 4/21 Design Presentations  
4/23 Design Presentations, continued + Final Exam Review  
17 4/27 Final Exam 11:30 am - 2:20 pm
Final Exam Schedule

Readings and assignments are subject to change.

« class homepage