The Computer as Medium (Learning in Doing: Social, Cognitive and Computational Perspectives)

Computers are developing into a powerful medium integrating film, pictures, text, and sound, and the use of computers for communication and information is rapidly expanding. The Computer as Medium brings insights from art, literature, and theater to bear on computers and discusses the communicative and organizational nature of computer networks within a historical perspective. The book consists of three parts: The first part characterizes the semiotic nature of computers and discusses semiotic approaches to programming and interface design. The second section discusses narrative and aesthetic issues of interactive fiction, information systems, and hypertext. The final part contains papers on the cultural, organizational, and historical impact of computers.