Dissertação (mestrado)—Universidade de Brasília, Faculdade de Comunicação, Programa de Pós-Graduação, 2015. / Submitted by Ruthléa Nascimento (ruthleanascimento@bce.unb.br) on 2015-06-26T14:55:31Z No. of bitstreams: 1 2015_NataliaBotelhoHorta.pdf: 5546880 bytes, checksum: f2259894d7c99e2e367e7daa861f7b20 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Raquel Viana(raquelviana@bce.unb.br) on 2015-07-03T12:31:55Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 2015_NataliaBotelhoHorta.pdf: 5546880 bytes, checksum: f2259894d7c99e2e367e7daa861f7b20 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2015-07-03T12:31:55Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2015_NataliaBotelhoHorta.pdf: 5546880 bytes, checksum: f2259894d7c99e2e367e7daa861f7b20 (MD5) / Esta dissertação intenciona investigar o meme da internet, um fenômeno cultural que se estabeleceu na rede como uma forma de comunicação, baseada na recriação excessiva, coletiva e paródica de imagens, textos verbais, vídeos, entre outros, que se espalham de forma viral. A partir de uma perspectiva semiótica, na leitura de Charles S. Peirce, Iuri Lotman, Mikhail Bakhtin e Ludwig Wittgenstein, o trabalho procura compreender o fenômeno como uma linguagem da internet. Mais que um suporte físico passivo para a transmissão de mensagens, a web é entendida aqui como um meio de comunicação, uma esfera sígnica na qual a comunicação e a geração de sentido são possíveis – na qual a cultura torna-se possível. Dessa esfera emerge o meme, que nesta pesquisa é tomado como uma forma de expressão e concepção de mundo que apresenta certa regularidade, sua “gramática”. Assim, também delineamos na presente investigação as categorias que compõem essa linguagem (e forma de pensamento) e as dinâmicas estabelecidas em seus jogos de significação. / This dissertation intends to explore the internet meme, a cultural phenomenon that has been established on the Web as a communication mode, based on excessive, collective and parodic recreation of images, verbal texts, videos etc., which spreads virally. From a semiotic perspective, based on Charles S. Peirce, Iuri Lotman, Mikhail Bakhtin e Ludwig Wittgenstein, this work aims to understand the phenomenon as an internet language. The Web, therefore, is more than just a material passive information carrier. In this dissertation, it is understood as a mean of communication, i.e., a sphere of signs, where the communication process and the generation of meaning are possible – where the culture becomes possible. From this sphere emerges the meme, which in this work is conceived as an expression manner and a way of apprehend the world that has its regularity, its “grammar”. This research establishes the categories which compose this language (and way of thought) and the dynamics set in its meaning games. / Este trabajo propone investigar el meme de la internet, un fenómeno cultural que se estableció en la red como una forma de comunicación, fundamentada en la recreación excesiva, colectiva y paródica de imágenes, textos verbales, videos etc., que se difunden de manera viral. A partir de una perspectiva semiótica, en la lectura de Charles S. Peirce, Iuri Lotman, Mikhail Bakhtin y Ludwig Wittgenstein, la investigación busca comprender el fenómeno como un lenguaje de la internet. Más que un soporte físico y pasivo para la transmisión de mensajes, la web es entendida como un medio de comunicación, una esfera de signos en la cual la comunicación y la generación de sentido son posibles – donde la cultura se hace posible. De esa esfera emerge el meme, que en este trabajo es comprendido como una forma de expresión y concepción de mundo que presenta cierta regularidad, su “gramática”. Así, también definimos en la presente investigación las categorías que componen ese lenguaje (y forma de pensamiento) y las dinámicas establecidas en sus juegos de significación.

Submitted by Joel de Lima Pereira Castro Junior (joelpcastro@uol.com.br) on 2016-07-23T21:31:21Z No. of bitstreams: 1 VeríssimoSantos.pdf: 1335864 bytes, checksum: 3909b6f6a708baeb3cba0132516f4f67 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Biblioteca de Administração e Ciências Contábeis (bac@ndc.uff.br) on 2016-07-27T16:19:25Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 VeríssimoSantos.pdf: 1335864 bytes, checksum: 3909b6f6a708baeb3cba0132516f4f67 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-27T16:19:25Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 VeríssimoSantos.pdf: 1335864 bytes, checksum: 3909b6f6a708baeb3cba0132516f4f67 (MD5) / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior. / O fenômeno da corrupção abala os valores republicanos, gerando o descrédito da sociedade com relação à democracia. Por isso, é necessário fortalecer os instrumentos de controle da administração pública, principalmente aqueles que são franqueados à sociedade exercer na fiscalização do uso dos recursos públicos. Com o avanço das tecnologias de informação e comunicação, a transparência se destaca como uma importante ferramenta de ampliação do controle social, favorecendo o acesso à informação, a interatividade com os poderes públicos e o governo aberto. No Brasil, a Lei Complementar n° 131/09 veio favorecer o aumento da transparência na gestão pública, alcançando todas as esferas de poder, com a obrigatoriedade de divulgação da execução financeira e orçamentária dos entes federativos em tempo real na Internet. Neste estudo, apresenta-se um histórico das recentes iniciativas legislativas e governamentais de promoção da transparência pública através da Internet no Brasil. Tendo como referencial a Teoria da Agência, que está na base de desenhos institucionais favoráveis à accountability, este trabalho pretende verificar o nível de transparência dos portais eletrônicos oficiais dos municípios do Estado do Rio de Janeiro com mais de cem mil habitantes. O objetivo é avaliar se tais entes federativos estão cumprindo as exigências legais, vale dizer, os requisitos determinados pela chamada Lei de Transparência. O conteúdo, a série histórica e frequência de atualização e a usabilidade desses portais foram os parâmetros utilizados para a análise dos sites. A partir da obtenção do Índice de Transparência dos municípios, foi possível estabelecer um ranking dos municípios fluminenses mais transparentes. / The corruption phenomenon affects republican values, generating the discredit of society concerned to democracy. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen the control instruments of public administration, mainly those ones used in the supervision of public resources. Due to the improvement of information technology and communication, transparency stands out as an important tool for expanding social control, facilitating access to information and the open interaction with government. In Brazil, Complementary Law No. 131/09 increased transparency in public administration, reaching all power spheres by requiring mandatory real-time disclosure of financial and budget execution of federative entities on the Internet. This study presents some historic of recent legislative and governmental initiatives to promote public transparency through the Internet in Brazil. Taking as reference the Agency Theory, which is the basis of institutional designs favorable to accountability, this work intends to verify the level of transparency of official municipalities homepages of the state of Rio de Janeiro with more than one hundred thousand inhabitants. The aim of the work is to assess whether such federal entities are complying with legal requirements, that is, the requirements determined by the so-called Law of Transparency. The content, the history, update frequency and usability of these portals were the parameters used for the analysis of the sites. Through the Transparency Index of the municipalities, it was possible to establish a ranking to determine what are the more transparent municipalities in the state of Rio de Janeiro.

M.Ed. (Educational Psychology) / “Surfing Safely” was an educational initiative created by the researcher aimed at equipping Grades 7, 8 and 9 learners and their parents with sufficient knowledge to understand and appreciate the benefits and risks of electronic media, particularly the Internet, smart-phones, iPods, iPads and other Internet-based devices. It aimed to educate learners collaboratively with the teacher on how to use the Internet safely, adjust security settings, and how to deal with involuntary exposure to objectionable materials. This was directed at empowering children to take control of their use of the Internet, learning how to cope with unwholesome exposures online, and knowing how to report such incidents to appropriate authorities. The focus of the researcher was on vulnerable learners in particular. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the programme was effective overall as an educational initiative in changing the way learners perceive and use technology. It had five aims by which change was measured: self-mastery; rewards and risks of technology; addiction to the Internet or cellular telephones and time wastage; online interpersonal relationships; and Internet safety. The educational value of the programme is also studied. This research was conducted within a theoretical framework informed by critical theory, with a focus on empowerment (Mouton, 2004) and bio-ecological systems theory within the ambit of an holistic community approach. Developmental stages were thus applied according to the African context, as will be elucidated in the study (Nsamenang, 2009; Turkle 2007). Throughout this research, the role of the researcher was to take a proactive stand in research and social policies within the community in which s/he was involved (Perkins, 1995, in Seedat, Duncan & Lazarus, 2003). A quantitative research approach with a quasi-experimental design was implemented. A one group pre-and post-test only design was selected to collect data, in the form of a Likert scale questionnaire. It asked the respondents to rate their change of awareness and behaviour from before as well as after the implementation of the programme. All 142 male and female learners who were purposefully selected were in Grades 7, 8 or 9 at a private Jewish day school and attended all six sessions of the programme...

The research addressed the factors contributing to the success or failure of an Internet-based communication web site in assisting business-to-business companies to create, establish and/or enhance sustainable customer relationships. To achieve the outcome, a web site was designed, developed, delivered and evaluated to assist a business-to-business company to create, establish and enhance a sustainable corporate image as perceived by their primary clients. The design, development and evaluation of the web site consisted of the following sub-processes:  A review of relevant literature: firstly to reflect upon communication through the wired world, and secondly to determine how the information revolution influences the way people think, work and live.  A survey of the literature dealing specifically with new strategic marketing perspectives, in order to identify the demands placed on a company's business strategy by the new strategic marketing perspectives, and to determine what these strategies are.  A survey of the literature dealing with information design and the web usability of Internet-¬based programmes with a view to designing and developing a web site for a business-to¬ business company which complied with various design specifications that influence the effectiveness and accessibility thereof.  Finally, designing and evaluating the web site to identify potential usability problems. The three evaluation methods used were paper prototyping, machine prototyping and usability testing. The rationale being to identify major usability problems and to obtain measure from intended users and a usability expert on the effectiveness, efficiency and user-interface satisfaction of the web site. The web site was used as basis for compiling a survey questionnaire to test the degree to which respondents strongly agreed or disagreed with statements on the following features of the web site:  Communication  Relationship building  Customer service  Design  Usability The questionnaire also covered aspects on computer and Internet usage experience, access and literacy of the respondents. The survey questionnaire was sent to the target population of primary clients of the participating company, the group of intended end users. The empirical results obtained indicated that employing good information architecture that is based on customers' needs, as well as the iterative development of a web site could assist a business-to-business company to create, establish and enhance a sustainable corporate image as perceived by their primary clients. / Thesis (DPhil (Information Science))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Information Science / unrestricted

The purpose of the study was to assess the effectiveness of banner advertising on the World Wide Web, as well as to explore and analyse the attitudes and behaviours of internet users towards banner advertising. The research objective was to determine, why people do not click on banners and to find ways in which advertisers can make banner advertisements appeal to consumers more effectively. Outcomes of the research suggested which features advertisers should avoid when developing clickable banners. An extensive literature review was carried out in order to highlight important aspects of historic research. The analysis conducted on this topic indicated that a gap exists in the area of public attitudes towards clickable banner advertising and the reasons why people avoid clicking on banners. To address the above questions, peoples’ attitudes towards banner and other Internet advertising were investigated through focus group interviews and surveys. The findings suggest that the main reason for the ignorance surrounding clickable banners was the low involvement between the product or service being advertised and the viewer’s interests. Other reasons included the high annoyance level of banner advertising and the threat of viruses that some banners may pose. Conclusions of the research recommend narrow targeting and personalisation of banner advertisements, constant rotations and replacements of banners to avoid burnouts as well as trustful and original appeal and content. Other important findings included: • The majority of people are indifferent towards banners, • People with less than three years of Internet experience tend to click more than people with more than three years of Internet experience, • Females showed more “clickable behaviour” than males, • People are more likely to click on banners which present interesting information, are bright and animated or promote catchy phrases for the surfer, • People prefer to see banners located on the top of the page or on the right side of the page, • Pop-ups are the most noticeable and are possibly the route cause of what triggers people to become annoyed or dislike banner ads, Findings of this research have high social value. If advertisers would take into account the results of the current study, they would be able to create more effective banners, which could effectively be redirected to the appropriate target market. This will enable them to cut their costs. Furthermore, online users would enjoy a more polite and friendly online environment, where their interests will be taken into account, which would diminish the current gap between customers and advertisers.

The aim of this masters thesis is to identify, in which phase of adoption of Internet of Things (IoT) application areas of concept Smart City are nowadays Czech regional cities, what is their outlook to 2025 and also identify in which dimensions of concept Smart city, supported by IoT technologies, perceive Czech regional cities the greatest potential. Based on information obtained from the studied materials, the concept of Internet of Things (IoT) is described, along with a detailed description of one of its application area, namely Smart City. This area is further divided into specific dimensions, that cover specific application areas which can, through internet technology, support things in a special way. With these insights, the questionnaire (built on identified IoT application areas of smart city) was developed. Thesis should be beneficial for all towns in the Czech Republic, because it provides a comprehensive view of individual IoT application areas of concept Smart City including information on which of these IoT application areas are currently focusing regional cities, and on which they want to focus to the future. On the other hand, the survey results could also be beneficial for commercial entities, which focus on IoT implementation in cities. These entities will be able to recognise which IoT products are currently best for cities.

Många självklarheter i vårt digitala samhälle är beroende av Internet för att fungera. Allt från smarta dörrar för hemtjänster, till självscanningsapparaterna på ICA, till nyare bilar, moderna tillverkningsrobotar, telefoner och affärssystem. Den här licentiatavhandlingen reder ut vad Internet är, hur det styrs och vad det har för praktiska konsekvenser. Tidigare forskning finns bland annat inom telekommunikation där Internet liknas vid andra telekommunikationstjänster, så som kabel-TV eller mobiltelefoni, och inom digitalisering både inom management och informationssystem där Internet i det närmaste tas för givet som teknisk infrastruktur. Här tar jag en ansatts där jag förklarar Internet ur ett kombinerat tekniskt och organisatoriskt perspektiv. Studien är principiellt uppdelad i tre delar. Den första delen fokuserar på att begreppsmässigt hitta ett sätt att diskutera Internet utan att essentiella aspekter faller bort, såsom styrningen eller konsekvenser av den tekniska designen. Jag landar i att Internet är både ett tekniskt och ett organisatoriskt fenomen. Tekniskt i bemärkelsen att det handlar om digital paketbaserad kommunikation (dvs att olika paket kan ta olika väg och att det inte finns ett beroende på en viss specifik väg, eller “krets”), vilket kan särskiljas från exempelvis kretskopplad kommunikation (dvs en specific väg från sändare till mottagare) eller rent analog kommunikation. I denna tekniska dimension är Internet förhållandevis likt klassisk telekommunikation såsom kabel-TV och mobiltelefoni, och förlitar sig på best-effort paketbaserad kommunikation. I den andra dimensionen, styrning och organisation, är Internet ett explicit bottom-up fenomen som styrs med andra principer och ideal än klassisk telekommunikation. Till sin utformning är denna minsta möjliga koordination som krävs för att möjliggöra koordinering av de tekniska unika identifierare som behövs för att Internet ska fungera (dvs idag DNS- och BGP-flororna av protokoll för användning av namn och nummer på Internet). Båda dimensionerna, de organisatoriska och tekniska, följer samma designprinciper, och generellt är det meningsfullt att se Internet som en ekologi av aktörer snarare än en organisation i strikt teoretiska termer (exempelvis finns ingen tydlig övergripande strategi, organisationsnummer eller löneutbetalare). Det är dessa designprinciper, som ligger väl i linje med systemarkitektursprinciper för datorsystem, som är orsaken till Internets lager-design där man (generellt) inte ska bry som om vad som händer på andra lager än sitt eget (beskrivet som “separation of concerns” eller i dubbel negation “high cohesion” i texten) samt att ha en minimalistisk ansatts till koordinering och enbart koordinera eller skapa beroenden mellan enheter (både tekniskt och organisatoriskt) när det verkligen behövs (beskrivet som “minimum coordination” eller “low coupling” i texten).  Den andra delen fokuserar på hur Internet kan socialt påverkas eller förändras till något annat, eller till något med en annan funktion sett som en styrd organisation. Jag använder begreppet social robusthet, som motpol till teknisk robusthet som i hur man tekniskt kan förstöra Internet, för att diskutera dessa aspekter. Slutsatserna här mynnar ut i att Internets explicita bottom-up och problemsuppdelnings-design gör det märkbart svårt för någon att medvetet påverka Internet för att ändra dess beskaffenhet, och dessutom visar jag att även om man praktiskt lyckas ta över de formellt beslutande råden (exempelvis ICANNs och IETFs styrelser) så finns det inga formella eller praktiska hinder för att bara ignorera dem (dvs switching costs för just ICANN eller IETF är låga, om än tekniskt omständligt med att konfigurera om rötter och routing-tabeller, och betydligt enklare än att gå från IPv4 till IPv6 då utrustning kan behöva ersättas och därmed en betydligt högre switching cost). Med andra ord, det är enklare att byta ut Internets koordinerare än att byta ut Internet mot något som fungerar annorlunda. Däremot är den rådande politiska världsordningen ett hot mot Internet, eftersom den regelstyrda och koordinerade världsordningen inte längre är lika självklar som den varit tidigare.  Den tredje och sista studien fokuserar på nätneutralitet, dvs rätten nätverksoperatörer har att fånga värde i andra dimensioner än trafikmängd, som en praktiskt effekt av hur Internet styrs och fungerar. Det primära praktiska bidraget är att nätneutralitet inte får ses som enbart en reglerings och lagstiftningfråga utan det är mer relevant att prata om i termer av nätneutralitet i praktiken. I den bemärkelsen är lagstiftningens vara eller inte vara mindre intressant än praktisk nätneutralitets vara eller inte vara och en tyngdpunktsförskjutning i den offentliga debatten hade fört diskussionen närmare hur Internet fungerar. Sammanfattningsvis ger Internets designprinciper att marknadskrafter, och ej direkt reglering, ska möjliggöra nätneutralitet. För att förtydliga, tanken är att det ska finnas konkurrens inom de flesta nivåer eller lager, och att det är av vikt att det finns konkurrens rakt igenom så att en kundvilja för paketneutralitet på tjänstenivå även påverkar nätägar- och infrastrukturnivå, så att det är användarnas efterfrågan som leder till nätneutralitet (om den användarviljan finns). Dock kan det mycket väl vara så att man som användare inte är intresserad av nätneutralitet och då ska tjänsteleverantörer, nätägare och infrastrukturoperatörer inte heller tvingas vara neutrala genom lagstiftning då det går stick i stäv med designprinciperna. Inte heller ska en grupps vilja kring nätneutralitet påverka andras möjligheter att välja. Genomgående identifierar jag två kolliderande världsbilder, den distribuerade regelstyrda och koordinerade ordningen i sitt perspektiv med sina förkämpar, och den mer integrerande och suveräna världsordningen med sitt perspektiv och sina förkämpar. Rent praktiskt uppfyller Internet en önskad funktion i den tidigare men ej i den senare, då Internet designmässigt är byggt för att tillåta snarare än kontrollera och bestämma. Exempelvis finns det inte inbyggda (tekniska) mekanismer i Internet för att till exempel möjliggöra statlig övervakning eller kontroll av material som finns tillgängligt, och då ligger det mer i statens intresse att ha kontrollerade telekommunikationstjänster, såsom kabel-TV, mobiltelefoni och liknande lösningar där man inte helt enkelt kan lägga på ett “extra lager” för att uppnå kryptering, anonymitet eller tillgång till andra tjänster. I texten använder jag perspektiven tillsammans med teknologi, marknader och byråkrati för att fånga upp dynamiken och strömningarna i Internet-ekologin och jämför med tekniska samhällsförändringar, som exempelvis järnvägsnät, postverk och finansiella marknader. Jag konstaterar att Internet har varit styrt av teknologiskt baserade värderingar, till skillnad från de andra exemplen som i huvudsak har utformats av dynamiken mellan byråkrati och marknad. I denna mån förelår jag att teknologi kan användas som strömning och motperspektiv till den klassiska uppställningen med byråkrati och marknad för att beskriva fenomen i digitaliseringens tidsålder. Avhandlingen sätter även pågående trender i ett bredare perspektiv mot både organisation och teknik, och trycker på vikten av att förstå delarna var för sig och tillsammans för att på ett rikare sätt måla upp helheten. / The modern society is to a large extent Internet-dependent. Today we rely on the Internet to handle communication for smart doors, self-scanning convenience stores, connected cars, production robots, telephones and ERP-systems. The purpose of this thesis is to unbundle the Internet, its technology, its coordination, and practical and theoretical consequences. Earlier research has, in telecommunications, focused on the Internet as one of many potential telecommunications services, such as cellphones or cable-TV, and the management and information systems field has by and large treated the Internet as black-boxable infrastructure. This thesis explains the Internet from the combined perspectives of technology and coordination. This text contains three empirical studies. The first is focused on conceptualizing and discussing the Internet in a meaningful way using both technology and coordination frameworks. I unceremoniously conclude that the Internet is both a technological and a coordination phenomenon and neither of these aspects can be ignored. The Internet is technological in that it concerns digital packet switched digital communication (as opposed to circuit switched) or purely analog communications. The technological dimension of the Internet is similar in its constituency to classical telecommunications networks, and has best-effort mechanisms for packet delivery. In the other dimension, coordination, the Internet is an explicit bottom-up phenomenon minimally coordinated (or governed) by other ideals than classical telecommunications networks and systems. At its core this least necessary coordination concerns technical unique identifiers necessary for inter-network communication (in practice today manifested as naming with the DNS protocol suite, and numbering with the BGP protocol suite). Both dimensions follow similar design characteristics; the design of the technical Internet is similar to the design of the coordination of the Internet. These design principles, which are well aligned with software design principles, is the cause of the Internet’s layered design (“separation of concerns” in practice) and minimal view of coordination (the “least coordinated Internet”). In general terms it is fruitful to view the Internet and involved actors as an ecology, rather than one organization or entity in need of governance or control. The second study looks at the social resilience of the Internet. That is, is it possible through social means to change what the Internet is or can be viewed as. I use social resilience as a counterpart to technical resilience, i.e. resilience to technical interference. In essence, the bottom-up and separations of concerns design of the coordination aspect of the Internet minimizes possible influence of actors intent on mission disruption. I also practically show that even a take-over of the central councils have little effect the constituency of the Internet, since these councils are not invested with formal powers of enforcement. This thesis suggests that the cost of switching from ICANN and IETF to another set of organizations is quite low due to the nature of the coordination of the Internet, compared to for example, switching all equipment to IPv6 capable equipment. However, the current political situation is a threat to the current Internet regime, since an international and rule-based world order is no longer on all states’ agendas. The final empirical study focus on the practical and theoretical implications of the Internet on the case of net neutrality. The primary contribution is that de facto and de jure net neutrality differ in practice, and as such de facto net neutrality deserves more attention. Also, I suggest that any regulation, either for or against net neutrality, is problematic, since such regulation would interfere with the inherent coordination mechanisms of the Internet. As such regulation should focus on providing the necessary markets for Internet function given the coordination and design of the Internet. As a net neutrality example, net neutral Internet access options should exist as part of a natural service offering if wanted by customers, not due to direct regulation. Throughout the thesis I identify two colliding world orders, both in terms of digital communication networks and terms of organizing society in general: the rule-based and coordinating order with its champions, and the integrated or sovereign order with its champions. In practical terms, the Internet can be considered a want in the former (the distributed perspective), but not the later (the integrative perspective), since the Internet lacks inherent (technical) controls for surveillance and content control which are necessary in a world order where borders are important. Regardless of if that importance stems from state oversight or intellectual property rights legislation. I use these perspectives together with technology, markets and bureaucracy to catch the dynamics of the Internet ecology. I then compare these dynamics with other technological and societal phenomena, such as railway networks, postal services and financial markets. And conclude that the Internet (as conceptualized in this thesis) can best be explained by technological values, in opposite to the other examples which can best by explained by the dynamics of markets and bureaucracies without any real influence of the values of technology. As such, I suggest that the classical frame of markets and bureaucracy can fruitfully be expanded with technology to better explain the Internet and similar digitization phenomena. This thesis puts current trends in a broader perspective based on technology and organization, where the two perspectives together better can draw the full picture in a rich fashion.

A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of a degree of Masters of Arts in Library and Information Science from the Department of Information Studies at the University of Zululand, 2002. / The Internet has been described as a collection of sprawling computer networks that link millions of computers used by tens of millions of people all over the world (Leedy 1997:66). From an initial few hundred computers, the Internet has grown exponentially enabling users to communicate with each other and share information. Libraries have embraced the Internet in order to deliver improved services and extend and expand the scope of what they offer. The purpose of this study was to explore and examine, through a comparison, the use of the Internet for teaching, learning and research by academics and students at the Universities of Zimbabwe and Zululand. It was also to explore how their libraries could contribute towards achieving this aim. The survey method was largely used in which both qualitative and quantitative data was collected. Two sets of questionnaires were distributed, one to academics and students, and the second to professional librarians in the two institutions. Interviews were also conducted with IT divisions. Data was then analysed using the SAS programme and Microsoft Excel. The study found out that there were high computer and Internet skills among the respondents, both among academics and students, and librarians. The Internet was used in both institutions, for study and work purposes. Among the resources used, e-mail and the web were the most used by the majority of respondents. The study found out that there was no recognisable difference between Internet use and academic discipline, between and within the two institutions. This was contrary to studies in literature reviewed where Sciences were found to use the Internet more than Humanities. No significant differences were also noticed when Internet use was analysed by level of study and status of faculty academics. The study however established that the Internet had changed the information seeking behaviour of the majority of respondents in all categories. There was evidence of use of others services like telnet, electronic journals and other library OPACs by librarians for work purposes. There was however a poor link between librarians and their users with regards to use of Internet resources. The study also highlighted rather similar problems facing the two institutions in terms of Internet accessibility. Access was a major concern, due to inadequate provision of computers and existing connection to the Internet. The need for more formalised training in the use of Internet resources and the creation of awareness among academics and other potential users were also highlighted. Despite these problems, the study revealed that there is a great potential for Internet use and appreciation among academic librarians and users in the two institutions. Recommendations were put forward, among them, the need for management in the two institutions to make resources, both financial and materially available in order to sustain Internet use programmes and initiatives that are already in place.

Communication right is a form of copyright to regulate the communication of works, performances, and phonograms on an interactive on-demand basis by wire or wireless means. China has introduced its 2006 Network Regulations to protect communication right from the Internet Service Provider (ISP)’s infringement, with regard to ISP’s each functional role as content provider and non-content provider of access provider, host provider, and information location tool provider. This thesis will examine whether the Chinese protection of the communication right concerning ISP’s infringement is adequate to permit effective action against any infringement of the right, according to the WIPO Internet Treaties-standard. The method employed in this dissertation is to analyse the protection of the communication right with respect to five closely interrelated key issues that require elucidation in sequence, which are the framework of the right, the reproduction during the communication, the technical protection, the rules of limitations and exceptions, and the enforcement of the right. During each analysis, the relevant provisions of both the WIPO Internet Treaties and Chinese Copyright Law will be analysed. Afterwards, a comparison between the relevant provisions will be made to examine whether the Chinese protection satisfies the minimum standard of the WIPO Internet Treaties. As the WIPO Internet Treaties do not define the extent of the concrete protection at a national level, a further analysis, which is based upon the study of the Chinese legal practice, will be made to examine whether the Chinese protection is adequate to permit effective action against ISP’s act of infringement of the right. After the analysis and comparison, this thesis will assert that the protection of the communication right concerning ISP’s infringement under Chinese Copyright Law still remains inadequate, due to the legislative disadvantages within the three-level copyright system. This thesis will identify those disadvantages, with respect to ISP’s different functional roles, and make a concrete proposal for legislative reform.

Diploma Thesis Summary The Internet and the copyright - the scope of liability of the individual entities and ways of protection against the piracy This thesis is focused on liabilitiy of the individual entities occurring on the Internet and piracy issues. It is primarily an analysis of how individual subjects may be responsible for violations of copyright rules. The aim of this thesis was not complete processing of all relevant aspects of piracy and the resulting responsibilities, but in particular to highlight the most topical issues discussed. I chose the topic because of personal interest to study the dynamically developing field of information technology law and intellectual property law. The work is divided into eight chapters, each dealing with a problem with this topic. The first two chapters talk about Internet in general and the ability this the Internet law to push through the Internet. Mentioned are mainly questions the legitimacy of law on the Internet, the reasons for the existence of the Internet law and especially the importance of copyright protection. Part three charts the formal sources of copyright in the digital era adapted to works of authorship. The focus of relationships on the Internet are issues of determining jurisdiction and applicable law, as described in Chapter Four....