ICS 131: Social Analysis of
Computerization
Lecture 5:
Social Aspects of
Technical Issues II
Announcements
• First set of short assignments ready for
pickup.
Feedback on first set of short
assignments
• On the whole, good.
• Summaries - not just rephrasing of
abstract/conclusion.
• Also, make sure to tie second paragraph
back to the reading.
• Technical points - please staple the papers,
have the summaries in the correct order,
spell check first, include student ID.
Comments
• If students agree/disagree with the author, they should be specific
on the idea/issue being contended, and also explain why they
agree/disagree, rather than just stating it in general.
• If students make a claim, they should try to explain/justify their
claim, rather than just stating it.
• Ferris - Lots of people referred to the author as "he" when a quick
Google search would have turned up the opposite.
• In a few cases, either the Simon or Slashdot (more often) summary
was missing entirely.
• Insulting the author's intelligence is rarely part of a good critique.
• Reaction paragraphs should respond to the substance of the topic,
rather than the writing style.
General Questions?
• Also, specific questions can be asked in the
discussion section.
A Note on Subjectivity
• The topics of this course are very
subjective.
• Each of you will have your own opinion.
• The goal is to have a *well considered*
opinion, and be able to argue for (or
against) that (and other) opinions.
Long Paper Assignment
•
The first longer paper for ICS 131 will give you the opportunity to analyze the
social aspects of a recent technical innovation. Please pick a technology that
has been popularized within the last ten years, briefly describe the technology,
and analyze the goals, assumptions, stakeholders and impacts of the
technology. The paper should be approximately 1500-2000 words in length.
Using the UCI Library and its online resources, you should find at least three
papers, articles or other sources that relate to the topic and cite them in the
body of your paper using the ACM style. At least one of these sources should
not be an online source, but rather one that you found in the library itself. You
are encouraged also to reference any readings that have been assigned for this
course that are appropriate to the topic you choose; however, there must be at
least three references that are not part of the course readings. The paper should
use standard formatting – Times style font size 12 or Arial/Tahoma style font
size 10, 8.5x11 in. paper, 1” margins.
Long Paper Assignment
•
A draft of the paper is due in class on Thursday, April 27. This draft should be the full
1500-2000 words in length, and should cover all of the above issues. This draft will be
commented on and returned to you at least a week before the final paper is due. This
draft will count for 30% of the overall grade for the paper.
•
The final paper is due in class on Thursday, May 11. The final version should reflect
any changes suggested in the comments made on the draft.
Follow-up from last week
Canada (2001 Census Information)
Source: http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census01/Products/Analytic/
companion/rel/contents.cfm
- Total Population: 30,007,094
- African: 2.2%
- Latino/Hispanic: .7%
US (Source: US Census 2000)
- Total Population: 281,421,906
- African: 12.3%
- Latino/Hispanic: 12.5%
11.3% African American
11.4% Latino/Hispanic
Follow-up from last week
• Among the 1999 recipients of computer science bachelor
degrees from Ph.D. granting institutions in US & Canada,
only 4% were African-American and 4% Latino/a. Such
low numbers are found elsewhere, as African-American
and Latino/a students together make up less than 7% of the
high school advanced placement computer science testtakers nationwide. In 1999, only 7 California AfricanAmerican female high school students took the AP CS
exams (out of a total of 455 female test takers), 24 AfricanAmerican males (out of 2501 males), 21 MexicanAmerican females and 52 Mexican-American males.
Source:
http://www.tcla.gseis.ucla.edu/divide/politics/margolis.htm
l
Today
• Software usage
• Networking
Today
• Software usage
• Networking
Key Ideas
• Many factors affect how people adopt and
use software packages beyond the
functionality of the software itself.
• Understanding these additional factors can
help you make software that works well and
is used by a lot of people.
How today is different from the
lecture on code (last week)…
• The code lecture was primarily about
how/why people write code.
• This lecture is primarily about how/why
people use code.
Trying something vs. adoption
• Factors that influence how someone first
undertakes a certain behavioral pattern
(such as software use) do not correlate fully
with factors that determine whether or not
that behavioral pattern becomes habitual.
Structure
•
•
•
•
•
Topic
What it means
Good part
Bad part
(Note: I’ll just be giving examples. You
should be able to think of many more for
each topic.)
Factors that Affect Whether
People Try a Software Package
•
•
•
•
•
•
Advertising
Word of Mouth
Bundling
Expected Functionality
Social Implications
Access
Advertising
• Learning about it from TV/Radio/Product
Placement/magazines/etc.
• Good part - expose willing purchasers to content
that will make their lives easier/better.
• Bad part - paid for by companies who are legally
obligated to increase shareholder value, rather
than to make purchasers lives easier/better.
Word of Mouth
• Learning about something from friends, family,
etc.
• Good part - trusted source, first-hand experience
• Bad part - Limited scope, since people only share
what they already know with people they already
know. (Works fairly well coupled with people’s
exploration of software functionality.)
Bundling
• Comes pre-installed on a computer.
• Comes with another software package that
the person actively acquires.
• Good part - Exposes people to software for
which they may have a use, or that
integrates well with other packages.
• Bad part - Increases cost/size of software
package you actually need. Distraction.
Expected Functionality
• Derived from advertising, word of mouth,
packaging.
• Good part - helps people use things the right
way
• Bad part - Largely limited by what people
already know or can learn in 30 seconds or
less.
Social Implications
• Will this make me cool/efficient/effective?
• Will it allow me to integrate with other
people like me?
• Good part - allows people to reflect their
personality in their software choice
• Bad part - may not correlate with greatest
functionality (“This is the way we’ve
always done it around here!”)
Access
• Is it in the right language? Is it made for the
correct platform/OS? Can I afford it? Do I have
the necessary capabilities (net, etc.)? Is it available
for purchase near me? Can I try a demo? Does it
integrate with my lifestyle?
• Good part - Makes coding easier/cheaper when it
doesn’t have to be universally accessible.
• Bad part - Makes fewer (and less diverse) people
able to use it.
Adoption
• Many of the same factors apply again here,
but also…
– Usability
– Functionality
– Unexpected Benefits
Usability
• Can I get things done in an efficient and
enjoyable manner?
• Design - Herbert Simon - producing
preferred situations (is it better than the old
way?)
Functionality
• Is the real functionality as good as (or better
than) the expected functionality?
Unexpected Benefits
• E.g., Roomba as cleaning partner
Startup Cost of a New
Technology
• Both a barrier to adoption and a cause of
irrational persistence.
Combining software packages
• Source of originality/complexity
• Suites - made to work together
Today
• Software usage
• Networking
Today
• Software usage
• Networking
Key Idea
• Computing underwent a significant social
shift as computers moved from being
primarily self-contained to primarily
networked.
Before the 1990s
• Computing
–
–
–
–
Business
Academics
Games
Hobbies
After the 1990s
• Communicating
– Email
– WWW
– Networked games
• (as well as computing)
Ease of Information Exchange
• Benefits?
Ease of Information Exchange
• Drawbacks?
Increased Complexity
• Benefits?
Increased Complexity
• Drawbacks?
Information Overload
• The rise of search technologies
– Yahoo
– Google
• Previous search technologies
–
–
–
–
Social Networks
Librarians
Card catalogs
Others?
Communication
•
•
•
•
One to one - conversation
One to several - storytelling
One to many - broadcasting
Many to many - WWW
Practice Quiz
• (Not a real one… just a warm-up for today.)
• Snowy Tree Crickets are surprisingly bad at
synchronizing with each other. True or
False?
• Raise your hand if you think you know the
answer.
Practice Quiz 2
• List three metaphors that are commonly
used regarding computer systems.
• Raise your hand if you think you know the
answer.
Topic for Discussion
• Pick a software package of your choice.
• Question:
– Aside from functionality, what factors of that
software influence its distribution and
adoption?
• Discuss with neighbors - 5 minutes.
Today’s guest speakers are...
LINDSEY, DANIEL STEPHEN
MAZZOCCO, DAVID STUART
ALLRED, SCOTT M.
CHEN, ALEXANDER TSU HAW
HO, TED
MACHADO, JOE ERIC
MADDALONI, PAUL ANTHONY
PHAN, ANH NHAT
TETREAULT, MONIQUE MARIE
YUN, JING HUI
GEE, JEFFREY DOUGLAS
…come on down front!
Thursday’s class
Ethics and Reliability
Readings
Baase, Ch. 10
Dill et al.