BTMM150 Course Outline and Assignment Links*

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The book Neuromancer will be due late in the semester. There will be a written assignment associated with it. It's a fascinating novel, but it is not a quick read. I suggest you start now. Details will come later.

WEEK 1 - January 21

INTRODUCTION TO THE INTERNET AND WORLD WIDE WEB

• - What is the Internet?
• - What is the WWW?
• - What are the Underlying Forces and Trends Shaping Cybermedia?

WEEK 2 -- January 27

UNDERLYING TECHNOLOGY AND INFRASTRUCTURE

• -Internet infrastructure
• -communications
• -digitalization

WEEK 3 -- February 3

 HISTORICAL CONTEXT

• older "new technologies"
• teletext
• videotext
• Scavenger Hunt

WEEK 4 --  February 10

CONVERGENCE

• - blurring of boundaries
• - Video bit, audio bit, text bits

WEEK 5 -- February 17

NEW MEDIA

• online "newspapers"
• magazines and "e-zines"
• a CD book?

WEEK 6-- February 24

EXAM

WEEK 7-- March 3

CYBERCOMMERCE

• -advertising
• -push vs pull
• -shopping
• -subscriptions

WEEK 8 -- March 17

EDUCATION

• -in the classroom
• -at the school
• -distance education

WEEK 9 -- March 24

ENTERTAINMENT

• games
• gaming
• promotion

WEEK 1 0-- April 1

CONNECTIONS

• -virtual communities
• -chat
• -Internet phone
• -e-mail and v-mail
• -MUDS, MOOS

APRIL 9/10 -- EXAM 2

WEEKS 11 and 12 -- April 8 and April 15

CULTURE AND SOCIETY

• -Information gaps?
• -Privacy and security
• -isolation or connection?
• -Globalization or frationalization?
• -Culture of Cyberspace: Netiquette, Hacking
• -Neuromancer Report Due

WEEK 13 -- April 22

REGULATION AND POLICY

• -Blurring boundaries
• -Who owns information?
• -Transborder issues
• -Government policy
• -Info about final project and final exam

WEEK 14 -- April 29

LOOSE ENDS, SUMMARY AND REVIEW

• The Future of Cybermedia

Final -- May 6-7

*For the purpose of this case study, selective links have been left active in the outline, as well as some on the assigment pages themselves. Most links will return a message that the page is not available of this server. (Back to top)

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07/18/97 06:16 PM