Week 2: Asynchronous Communication (Email, Mailing Lists, Usenet, and Forums)

This week we'll look at some of the more traditional forms of asynchronous communication that form the basis for computer-based collaboration: electronic mail, mailing lists ("listservs"), and group communication environments like Usenet and web-based forums.

Week 2 Lab Assignment: Compare Email Systems

Most RIT students have at least two different email accounts--their "official" RIT account on the Exchange server, and their personal email. Many also have a work account.

I'd like you to compare and contrast the features of RIT's Exchange email system with two other email systems. If you don't have another email account besides your RIT account, it's easy enough to set up an account with GMail, Yahoo! Mail, Hotmail. You can also use a work account, or an email account provided through your ISP.

Things to consider would include (but are not limited to):

• Methods of access (for example, RIT's email system allows you web access, IMAP client access, and Exchange client (Outlook or Entourage) access, each offering different levels of features
• Filtering/sorting/searching mechanisms
• Archiving capability
• Contact management
• Junk mail management

Keep in mind that some aspects of the functionality are defined by the server (e.g. the Exchange server at RIT), and others are a function of the client (for example, Outlook, Entourage, and the web interface all offer different functionality).

Week 2 Readings: Asynchronous Communication

• Anderson, T., & Kanuka, H. (1997). On-Line Forums: New Platforms for Professional Development and Group Collaboration. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 3(3).
• Ducheneaut, N., & Bellotti, V. (2001). E-mail as habitat: an exploration of embedded personal information management. interactions, 8(5), 30-38.
• Erickson, T., & Kellogg, W.A. Knowledge Communities: Online Environments for Supporting Knowledge Management and its Social Context.
• Fisher, D., Brush, A.J., Gleave, E., & Smith, M.A. (2006). Revisiting Whittaker & Sidner's "email overload" ten years later.
• Shirky, C. (2003). Social Software and the Politics of Groups.
• Smith, M. (1999). Invisible Crowds in Cyberspace: Mapping the Social Structure of the Usenet. In Communities in Cyberspace: Perspectives on New Forms of Social Organization. London: Routledge.