At 16.38 +0100 97-09-22, Eva Ekeblad wrote:
>As the suggested ten-year life span of a setting, that Mike passed on from
>Shep White, already made me think of the upcoming ten-year anniversary of
>the x-lists (in their archived form) the question of setting is an
>interesting one for the body of communicative practices that we are
>involved in "here".
Since then the confluent and bifurcating rivulets of text precipitated by
Mike's forwarding of Shep's reading of Sarason have carved out a fertile
valley indeed in this heterogeneously co-constructed cyberscape of ours.
The event makes me almost forget what I wanted to tell you all:
This year (July 97 - June 98) I have a postdoctoral grant allowing me the
time to do research entirely of my own choice. Naturally, by accepting this
"gift from heaven" I also commit myself to producing something substantial.
So the first (and only) thing I thought of was the x-lists: This grant
meant to me that I could take a _really_ good look at learning and
development on the x-lists. So I have been deep into the x-archives all
summer, pestering Peggy, Edouard, and the rest of the x-family about
missing files. I have also discussed my enterprise with Mike C and a few
other squatters in this field of power, but I postponed "going public"
until after meeting Mike when he made a touch-and-go in Sweden last week.
(Well, actually he spent half a day visiting 5thD and a whole day
participating in a workshop, and so did I. Very interesting to meet
x-people IRL and recognize them so well from the e-communication.)
So, anyway: this is NOT a "smile you're on candid camera" message. What I
am doing right now is very much on the Seven Eleven plane: mapping the
activity in the system by mining the petrified mail headers telling me (or
anyone who cares to enter those FTP cellars) Who When What and Where. That
is: From: Date: Subject: and List:(the setting has been differently
structured in different periods of its existence, one list or a bunch). So
I'm basically counting the moose, following survival in (and of) the
population. At the same time I'm getting oriented in the local history of
this cyberscape demesne. One thing I constantly observe is what a great
resource the archive itself is for its own analysis. A goldmine of useful
concepts. A rich soil for further discussions. At the same time I realize
that I must not think the population of current participants have been
party to all those earlier discussions... Well, I won't try to anticipate
all the questions you may have.
Eva Ekeblad
Electronic Earthworm