Preface
The Purpose of the Book: Bridging Gaps
Transformations in Educational Settings
Transformations in Technology
Writing Education in the Information Age
About the Structure of This Book
Tips for Using the Book
Acknowledgements
PART I: Producing and Accessing Digital Texts	1
An Introduction to Computer-Aided Writing Activities and the Tools That Facilitate Them	2
Activity 1: Internet Literacy Inventory	4
Chapter 1
Manipulating Text	7
Composing	8
Generating Ideas and Putting Them into Words	8
Finding Something to Write About	9
Finding What You Know	9
Activity 1.1: Freewriting on Computer	10
Activity 1.2: Brainstorming on Computer	13
Activity 1.3: Deciding on a Purpose	16
Activity 1.4: Audience Analysis	18
Activity 1.5: Classical Invention	19
Activity 1.6: Inventing an Argument	19
Arriving at a Controlling Idea	23
Editing	26
Arranging the Text on Paper	26
Organization	27
Working On-Screen and on Paper	29
Finding and Correcting Mistakes	29
Final Editing: Ensuring Correctness	30
Spelling Checkers	31
Dictionaries and Thesauruses	32
Grammar Checkers	33
Formatting and Printing	34
Tables, Graphs, and Graphics	36
Reasoning with Numbers	36
Parting Thoughts	38
Chapter 2
Communicating on the Internet: One on One	39
Moving beyond the Desktop: Stepping into Cyberspace	40
Activity 2.1: Getting Started: Scavenging for Directions	40
One-on-One E-Mail: The Rhetoric of the Screen	42
Activity 2.2: E-Mail and Invention	46
Activity 2.3: E-Mail and Peer Review	46
Activity 2.4: E-Mail and Collaborative Writing	47
Chapter 3
Communicating on the Internet: Accessing Virtual Communities	49
Asynchronous Communities	50
Mail Lists	51
Activity 3.1: Joining a Virtual Community	55
Bulletin Board Service (BBS)	55
Usenet Groups	55
Activity 3.2: Accessing Usenet	57
Activity 3.3: Joining a Usenet Group	57
Synchronous Communities	58
Accessing Synchronous Communities	59
Activity 3.4: Accessing Virtual Communities	65
Chapter 4
Gathering Information on the Internet: Reaching Out and Bringing Back Resources	67
The Docuverse: Part I	67
File Transfer Protocol (FTP)	69
Activity 4.1: The Different Part	70
Activity 4.2: The Uniform Part	70
Wide-Area Information Servers (WAIS)	72
Activity 4.3: Using WAIS	72
Gopher	73
Activity 4.4: Using Gopher to Find Information	73
World Wide Web (WWW)	74
Activity 4.5: Getting Started on the WWW	76
Activity 4.6: Searches	76
Chapter 5
Constructing Texts On-Line	79
The Docuverse: Part II	79
Background: Change Is Constant (and Fast!)	80
Composing on the Web: The Basics	81
Design	85
The Effects of Links	85
Design Resources on the Web	86
Activity 5.1: Your Own Homepage?	86
Part	II
Writing Projects for the Information Age	87
Chapter 6
Assessing Writing	91
Self-Assessment	92
Process	92
Activity 6.1: Guidelines for Self-Assessment	92
Consultation	93
Activity 6.2: Seeking Help with a Draft	94
Re-vision	95
Activity 6.3: Questioning Your Own Assumptions	95
Activity 6.4: Changing the Shape of Your Text	95
Activity 6.5: Changing the Look of Your Text	97
Activity 6.6: Changing the Way You Read Your Text	98
Activity 6.7: Multiple Columns	98
Community Standards	99
Activity 6.8: An E-Mail-Based Writer's Workshop	100
Authority-Centered Assessment	101
Activity 6.9: Developing a Portfolio Method for Evaluation	102
Looking Ahead	106
Chapter 7
Building Community On-Line	107
Project 1: Building Community through Computer Mediated Communications	108
Objectives	108
Technological Requirements	108
Participant Prerequisites	108
Overview	108
Activity 7.1: Assigning Keypals	108
Activity 7.2: Composing Mail	108
Activity 7.3: Responding to E-mail	109
Activity 7.4: On-line Keypal Introductions	109
Activity 7.5: Face-to-Face Introductions	109
Project 2: Documenting the Local Landscape	110
Objectives	110
Technological Requirements	110
Participant Prerequisites	110
Overview	110
The Assignment	111
Activity 7.6: What Every Person Needs to Know about Our Town	112
Activity 7.7: The Scavenger Hunt	114
Activity 7.8: Writing the Handout	116
Activity 7.9: Revising the Handout	120
Activity 7.10: Sharing the Handouts	124
Chapter 8
Tales of Cyberspace	125
Features of Narrative	125
Characters	126
Setting	126
Conflict	126
Plot	127
Narrative Technique	127
Project 3: Tales of Cyberspace	127
The Assignment	127
Objectives	128
Technological Requirements	128
Activity 8.1: Finding Places to Begin	128
Activity 8.2: Embarking on Your Journey of Cyberspace	131
Activity 8.3: Drafting Your Narrative	134
Activity 8.4: Getting/Giving Feedback	136
Activity 8.5: Revising Your Narrative	139
Activity 8.6: Second Draft Critiques	141
Activity 8.7: Revising for Style	142
Activity 8.8: Sharing Your Narrative	142
Chapter 9
Writing to Analyze	145
Academic Writing: Overview	145
Inquiry	146
Analysis	146
Project 4: Analyzing Virtual Communities	147
Objectives	147
Technological Requirements	147
Participant Prerequisites	148
Overview	148
The Assignment	149
Activity 9.1: Finding a Community to Join	149
Activity 9.2: Investigating the Community	152
Activity 9.3: Making Sense of Your Observations	154
Activity 9.4: Social Invention	155
Activity 9.5: Writing the First Draft	156
Activity 9.6: Sharing Drafts	160
Activity 9.7: Giving/Receiving Feedback	161
Activity 9.8: Revising Your Analysis	162
Activity 9.9: Second Draft Critiques	163
Activity 9.10: Revising for Style	163
Activity 9.11: Sharing Your Analysis	164
Project 5: Writing to Read Critically	165
Objectives	165
Technological Requirements	165
Participant Prerequisites	165
Overview	165
Activity 9.12: Gathering Information	167
Activity 9.13: Setting the Stage for Reading Critically	167
Activity 9.14: Reading for Comprehension	169
Activity 9.15: Evaluating Ethos	170
Activity 9.16: Evaluating Structure, Content, and Quality	171
Activity 9.17: Evaluating Usability for Your Purposes	173
Activity 9.18: Writing Critical Annotations	173
Activity 9.19: Sharing Critical Annotations	176
Some Considerations on Using the Shared Annotations Effectively	179
Chapter 10
Writing about Issues: Analysis and Argument	181
Project 6: Analyzing Controversial Issues about the Information Superhighway	183
Objectives	183
Technological Requirements	183
Participant Prerequisites	183
Overview	184
The Assignment	184
What Is an Issue?	185
Activity 10.1: Finding Something to Write about	186
Activity 10.2: Exploring the Topic	192
Activity 10.3: Creating and Narrowing an Issue	199
Activity 10.4: Analyzing the Issue	206
Activity 10.5: Composing Your Analysis	212
Activity 10.6: Revising Your Analysis for Content and Structure	217
Activity 10.7: Revising for Style and Correctness	221
Activity 10.8: Sharing Your Analysis	222
Project 7: Arguing Controversial Issues about the Information Superhighway	223
Objectives	223
Technological Requirements	223
Participant Prerequisites	223
Overview	223
The Assignment	224
Features of Academic Argument	225
Some Considerations and Advice about Critical Thinking and Argument	227
Activity 10.9: Finding Something to Write About	229
Activity 10.10: Exploring the Issue	231
Activity 10.11: Writing the First Draft	237
Activity 10.12: Giving and Receiving Feedback on the First Draft	239
Activity 10.13: Revising Your Argument for Content and Structure	242
Activity 10.14: Sharing Second Drafts (Optional and Recommended)	246
Activity 10.15: Revising for Style and Correctness	246
Activity 10.16: Sharing Your Argument	247
Chapter 11	11
Writing in the Disciplines	249
Overview	249
Writing for a Discipline	249
Activity 11.1: Inventing the Social Science Research Report	250
Writing in the Disciplines	252
Activity 11.2: Exploring Writing in the Disciplines	252
Chapter 12
Writing for the World Wide Web	259
Project 8: Analyzing Web Sites	261
Objectives	261
Technological Requirements	261
Participant Prerequisites	261
Overview	261
The Assignment	262
Activity 12.1: Finding Professional Sites to Critique	262
Activity 12.2: Developing Evaluation Criteria	263
Activity 12.3: Evaluating Noncommercial and Academic Sites	265
Activity 12.4: Evaluating Student-Written Web Sites	266
Activity 12.5: Writing Your Website Critique	267
Activity 12.6 Revising and Sharing Your Critique	269
Project 9: Publishing Your Work on the World Wide Web	269
Objectives	269
Technological Requirements	269
Participant Prerequisites	270
Hot Web Sites for Project 9	270
Overview	271
The Assignment	271
Getting Started with the Basic Structure of an HTML File	272
Activity 12.7: Gathering Documents, Resources, and Tools	273
Activity 12.8: Tagging Your Text with HTML	275
Activity 12.9: Making Your Document More Sophisticated	276
Activity 12.10: Revising Your Hypertexts	282
Where Do You Do from Here?	284
Project 10: Constructing a Webfolio	284
Objectives	284
Technological Requirements	284
Participant Prerequisites	284
Hot Web Sites for Project 10	284
Overview	285
The Assignment	286
Activity 12.11: Arriving at Evaluation Criteria	287
Activity 12.12: Developing Selection Criteria	288
Activity 12.13: Selection through Reflection, Reflection on Selections	289
Activity 12.14: Constructing Your Webfolio	291
Activity 12.15: Sharing Webfolios: Giving and Receiving Feedback	292
Activity 12.16: Revising Your Webfolio	293
Appendix	A
Directory of On-Line Resources for Writers	295
On-Line Help for Writers	296
Writers On-Line	297
Writing on the Internet	297
Resources for Writing across the Curriculum	298
General Resources	298
Writing in the Natural Sciences	298
Writing in the Social Sciences	298
Writing in Business/Business School	299
Library and Library-Like Resources	299
On-Line Books and Journals	299
Subject Area Resources	300
General	300
Electronic Conferences	302
Humanities	302
Social Sciences	302
Natural Sciences	302
The Internet	303
Colleges and Universities	304
Internet Resources	304
Usenet	305
elnet	306
Mail Lists	306
Internet Relay Chat (IRC)	306
MUDs and MOOs	307
World Wide Web (WWW)/HTML	307
General Information about the World Wide Web	307
Getting Started with HTML	308
Complete Information on HTML	309
HTML Quick Reference	309
HTML Style	309
A Couple of Good Examples of Hypertext on the Web	310
Appendix B
Glossary of Key Terms	311
Index	315