Software, Software Development and other Atrocities

To develop software for human systems (as opposed to machines, e.g. software to control a production line) one has to understand the nature of those human systems. Unlike machines, which behave predictably, are stable and unambiguous, people are unpredictable, unstable, ambiguous, inconsistent, moody and different (you expect two Nokia 73 cellphones look and behave the same, however even twin brothers will have different personalities). These human characteristics shape organisational environments where you find a diversity of people working under the same roof. This is also true for social software - the kind of software that facilitates social interactions over the internet, for example online communities like Hi5. Thousands if not millions of people will use such application and interact with each other in unimaginable ways.

As I mentioned in my previous post I am working on designing the structure of an online community software (I am not programming the software though. I am trying to do my best at customising the tools that I was given). So I have a task of designing software for a human process called e-mentoring. To do this I have been reading about e-mentoring (very little yet). Why? Because I need to understand what people DO and NEED to do E-mentoring.

What I have found is that e-mentors and mentees need to perform the following activities:

• Communicate with each other
• Collaborate - work on something together
• Build a relationship between them - empathise?
• Networking - look beyond the mentor-mentee relationship, build a community of practice?

From the above I gather that my job - and the job of a software developer who wants to design software for e-mentoring or similar activities - is to provide tools that allow people to perform those activities. In addition I think that the software should include features that encourage people to participate online and provide confidentiality, security and works!.

In my nice diagram (I use MS Visio by the way :P) I am showing a schema of the above. My interest of course is on the right hand side of this diagram. However, it is impossible to put software development in a bubble, without considering the system which is going to use the software. For developers this implies an understanding of the human and social aspects of the e-mentoring process (different from the technical aspects); and of course the ability to transform this understanding in working software. You will know that your online application has been a success if: (1) Mentors and Mentees were able to connect and achieve the mentoring goals (2) A community of practice is created from these interactions ???



Click on the image to see it full size

What is e-mentoring?

Mentoring is a process where an experienced individual helps another less experienced individual to identify and achieve goals. For example within an organisational environment you can have a manager helping a subordinate to improve his/her professional skills. Mentoring provides mentees with personal growth and development; and mentors with the experience of helping someone while performing their jobs. E-mentoring is doing this but over CMC (computer mediated communication). Maybe without mentor and mentee meeting in person! Cool!

To perform e-mentoring we need a “place” for people to meet online, perhaps we need an online community. An online community is a space where members can communicate and collaborate. In e-mentoring terms this means that participants can:

• (Communicate) Exchange ideas - problems - give advice - provide information
• (Collaborate) Do things online - for example: mentors helping mentees with writing their CVs

I am working in a research project that will provide e-mentoring support to unemployed women. They will be e-mentored by other more experienced women who are currently working at a senior management level. I am the geek member of the team :-) Among other things, I am in charge of designing the structure of an online community software to fit our e-mentoring needs. It is a web based application provided by a third party. I was given administrative rights, woooooohahaha. The application allows customisation of menu, creation of user accounts, roles for users, creation of resource (files) folders, discussion boards, chat rooms and questionnaires.

Because this is a research project I have to be very conscious about the software features I am choosing. I need to justify the use of each option in the software and monitor its use (for reporting purposes). I am also aware that I have to be flexible because things may need to be changed during the duration of the e-mentoring process. Therefore, I will have to check the use of the online community, respond to user feedbacks as quickly as possible and amend the application if possible.

Now, I know there is a contradiction between doing e-mentoring and doing it in an online community. E-mentoring is mostly a pair activity, it is private and confidential: an interaction between mentor and mentee. An online community is a place where you expect more than 2 people (hence the term community) to interact or socialise in an environment to which all members have access. So interactions are public to online members.

How do you reconcile e-mentoring with online communities?

Well, I think e-mentoring has two aspects. One is the one I mentioned above: pair meetings. The other one is community support. By community support I mean a group of people (other mentors and other mentees) who are going through similar experiences and who can gain from sharing their experiences with their peers. For example, mentors can receive guidance from more experienced mentors; mentors can discuss common problems in a chat room, etc. This can facilitate the creation and development of communities of practice in different fields of expertise.

From what I have mentioned, my approach to designing the structure of this e-mentoring site is, first to provide separate discussion areas for both mentors and mentees (community support) and a common area for private pair meeting.

Also, there are some tools that could be used to encourage people participate in the community. For example to provide online material on e-mentoring literature to guide mentors, to assign mentors and mentees some online tasks they can do together to encourage pair meetings, and to keep them informed of the online interactions by other members of the community via “digest” e-mails (summaries). I think these features will encourage people to go into the online community and participate.

If this works the online community will be a success. However this does not mean that the e-mentoring will work. For e-mentoring to work I think, we need the online community to work of course, but also, we need the pair to empathise: like each other and work together; and finally we need the mentee’s goal to be achieved or at least we need a mentor and mentee to be happy with the work done.

Can e-mentoring work if the online community doesn’t work? It could. Maybe if pairs choose a separate online media to meet (like MSN), but that has to be done on mutual agreement, and pairs will miss all the online support given by the community.

Implications for Software Development? A lot, but I will discuss them on a separate post.

I’m off.

You Know You're Addicted to Coding When...

Triple espresso's start tasting bland

You have nightmares about COBOL and ADA.

Instead of using MS Word, you type your essay for school in HTML using NotePad.
School? What's that?

You laugh at movies that show programmers at work.

You walk outside and wonder why the sun doesn't make a lens-flare in your eye....

You get withdrawal symptoms if you're away from a computer for more than 3 hours

(Lines_of_Code) / (Hours_of_Sleep) < (Number_of_Energy_Drinks_Consumed)

You're pressing CTRL+S every 5 minutes, in every application..

You end each line you type with ";", even plain english ones

You code your own support software for the digital camera you just bought

Your 4 year old son has seen you login and out of Windows and Linux so much that he can do it himself.

You have more groceries inside your keyboard than in your fridge.

Sit down because this one is huge...

The PhD oral exam, also known as Viva Voce or just VIVA is one of the most exciting events at the end of your PhD studies. After submitting your thesis (that blue covered bulk of more than 350 pages containing more than 100,000 words of theoretical regurgitation+some interesting conclusions+some
diagrams/tables/pictures+acknowledgments+++) you have to wait for your VIVA. While you wait you don't want to see your thesis... It took you years, blood and tears and you don't want to find any typo or mayor error. So, you leave it aside for a while to allow it to dry off (from the blood and tears). In the mean time, you go home, see your family and friends, enjoy the nice weather, the food and parties. You also look for jobs, and if you are lucky you get one.


Some people (most of them already doctors) recommended me to not over prepare. I was told that I had to read my thesis the week before and that I should enjoy the process (that last bit was my husband's idea... hehehe I just wanted to get it done with.) Ok, so the week before you read your thesis... but the week before that one and the one before before that one... you do nothing. In some cases you want to have a mock viva, so you ask your supervisor to arrange one for you. I had mine two weeks before my VIVA and didn't prepare for it. I just went there with my happy face and had a 80 min question/answer session with J a lecturer who kindly offered to read my thesis and act as a mock examiner. The session went Ok. I was surprised of how confident I felt, and of how quickly I was able to answer the questions (hello!!! it took me years, blood and tears, so I knew the answers). Anyway, the mock VIVA was fine and then I forgot about my thesis for the rest of the week.

The week before my VIVA I started a rather boring routine. I'd go to my office early in the morning, read my e-mails, do only what was urgent (i.e.nothing) and go to the school's coffee shop with a copy of my thesis, a pencil, my cell phone and my headphones. I'd seat there for the whole day reading my thesis. ZZZZZZzzzzzz. What made my life less miserable where my friends. I was lucky to have so many that they would come in turns and distract me from my thesis (yeah!) offering me support, coffees and apple juice (thanks Andrew!). To be honest I didn't do much work until the Friday before my VIVA (my VIVA was the Monday after). That Friday I read the last 3 chapters and felt that it looked like a real thesis and that there was something worth there. Not that I didn't think it was worth it, but then I really felt it. That Friday night I also went dancing, drunk a few beers and went to bed late. I spent Saturday and Sunday doing things, keeping my self busy.

Monday morning... my VIVA was at 10:30 so I had half of the morning for me. I woke up at 6:30 and went running for 30mins. (I hurt my foot a bit but it wasn't that painful.) I showered, put on my suit (yes, I looked like a CEO) had a nice breakfast and went to Uni. Then, my usual routine, checked my e-mails, and then went to the coffee shop. There I met Guja, then Andrew, then Yi, then Inga, then, then... I had to go to the meeting room. I brought with me a copy of my thesis, and my data (about 5Kg).

The meeting room was a small room with a big table and 6 chairs. When I got there, both, the internal and the external examiners were there with my supervisor. I introduced myself to the examiners and then the external examiner, who was chairing the session, started the exam.

First question: what is the argument of your thesis?
answer: skip this is if you don't care about software development... my thesis looks at how human and social issues in business organisational contexts and development environments affect software developers thinking process and how this thinking process shapes the software they produce.

So the argument of my thesis is that human and social aspects play a significant role in shaping developers work, beliefs, behaviour, interactions and working practices, and that that in turn affects the nature and perhaps the quality of the software they develop.

Developers act first based on their preconceptions of the characteristics of the organisations and people they are working for (and with) and the qualities of the development practices they know or have used. These preconceptions are background knowledge about the human and social nature of organisational environments (who use software) and the development environments (where software is produced). Background knowledge also involves developers' beliefs about how development practices provide them with enough tools to address human and social issues. Preconceptions therefore shape developers' views on new assignments, for example developing new software for a new organisation. The picture that developers build of their new target organisation and the software that is needed is first based on their preconceptions particularly their human and social aspects. In my thesis I modeled this in a recursive way as the pictures that developers build of their new assignments (organisations, people and software) will become preconceptions and influence their future assignments.

So how did I end up saying that all these preconceptions + new knowledge of human and social issues affect the quality of software? Easy... 1st. from the literature, one of the most known causes of software failure is the neglect of human and social aspects (read Warne(2003)*). 2nd. perhaps a bit of common sense... if you are developing software which are going to be used by people, you need to know the users. Human beings are unpredictable, nonlinear and ambiguos. People could hold secret agendas or have separate goals. People could easily change their minds about the software and decide to subvert it or just not use it. I think we all have seen users saying they need A one day and the next day they will tell you the never said A and that they are wating for B... and that you are already late!!. If you are not aware of these issues your software will be a disaster. 3rd. As a developer you should know that what is more difficult for you is not to learn how to design or programme software but to work with your colleagues, in a particular environment, understand your users, agree with your manager and not hate the DBA. If you are working in an unfriendly environment then your software will also be unfriendly.
--- end of answer ---

Ok... enough of this ... back to the story...

so I had like 30 or so questions like that (don't really remember I didn't count them)

After 1:30hr the external and the internal agreed that that was it. They asked my supervisor and me to go and they told us that they were going to call us in 30 mins to discuss their decision. (When I went out I found a note and flowers for me left by my husband out in the corridor... he is so lovely:)) My supervisor and I went to her office and we played with our new toys, my new cell phone Ericsson K800i and her O2 PDA. 50 mins later we were called back to the meeting room. I saw the internal examiner had a sheet of paper hand written in both sides. He started by saying there were some ammendments they would like me to do in my thesis. So we went through all the points they wanted me to change (7 in total) and at the end the examiners said I had passed (of course only if I did those corrections).

I went out of the room and said thanks and bye to the examiners. They were going out for lunch with my supervisor. They invited me but I denied the offer as I was really exahusted and just wanted to see my husband.

Now... I should end the story here because I am tired, I want my dinner and I don't want to bore you more.

Any questions???


*Warne, L., (2003), 'Conflict and Politics and Information Systems Failure: A challenge for Information Systems Professionals and Researchers', in Clarke, S., Coakes, E., Hunter, G. M. and Wenn, A. (eds.), Socio-technical and human cognition elements of information systems, Hershey, Pa., Idea Group

Hi there, I passed my PhD exam the other day and as a present my friends gave me a voucher for Currys (.... always lowering prices hehehe),

although I dont' like curry that much - if you eat one you end up smelling like the cooker!
(just kidding) -

I am really exited about this...

Now... I have a cell phone... Sony Ericsson K800i, it comes with an excellent camera Cyber-shot 3.2 Mega Pixels!!!!

Yesterday I took this picture with my K800i:

Can you see the man sitting on the balcony??? Can you recognise the shape of a human being there?????

Of course you can't!!!!

Well, there was a man there reading his newspaper... I tried to get a good shot from where I was.... about 100mts, but I couldn't.
pd: just in case you were wondering why I took a picture of a man sitting on a balcony... no comments.

I know I am being picky and that a 3.2 MgP camera is more than excellent for a cell phone anyway... but I sometimes I want to take better quality pictures from longer distances.


Conclusion: I NEED a new digital camera with a higher resolution, more effective and output pixels ... I guess I'll have to read a bit about sensor design, interpolation algorithm, lenses, focal length, focus distance, aperture, scene contrast, and stuff... but who cares if the camera looks nice and takes descent pictures??


Reflection: following the advice of some friends, monsters, freaks and geeks I have decided to not go for a (semi) pro camera... - they say a pro is too heavy. And actually that is a good point because some times you want to take spontaneous pictures and people don't want. I have more chances with a smaller camera! I hate when they make me wait to pose in an unnatural way! Or when they say I don't want the tree behind me, or I don't want cars in my photo or lets wait for these (thousands of) people to go. I rather have more natural pictures. People, cars and trees are part of 21st century landscapes.


Well, I just like to buy the PENTAX OPTIO T10



What DO You THINK???????





----------------------------------------------------------------------
UPDATE:

I have already bought a camera.
Pentax Optio L20
7.0 effective Megapixels
3x optical zoom
4x digital zooming
2.5'' non-glare LCD monitor
16 shooting modes and 15 playback modes
23MB of built-in memory + 1GB Memory Stick

It is beautiful and slick. It fits into the palm of the hand and its mine!!!

Once upon a time... I was a systems analyst and project manager. I had designed and implemented client/server applications, written all SQL you could think about in DB2 and Oracle, written Cobol code (arrrrggggggg) and had fights with the people in production and the DBA (everyone hates DBAs!). I was a friend of my colleagues and most of my users, and we used to go out often to drink, to drink or to drink.


A perfect life. I had one dream though. This client/server thingy was getting boring so I looked for others things to do and I found Business Intelligence, Data warehousing and OLAP. I proposed my boss to design a BI system for the university so I could play with all these nice graphic tools (much nicer than microfocus!). See picture: Screenshot of PowerPlay v5.21 by Cognos. (A rather old version but it is the only one I have. Also you may note that I use Windows 98, cos it's the only O.S that my 64Mb RAM Laptop can use :( ... I need a new laptop!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

A friend of mine sent me this SQL Select clause.
(The name of DB, fields and parameters have been changed)

Enjoy!

SELECT  A.AA_SEMS,
A.NU_SEMS,
A.NU_SEC_SEMS,
A.CO_DCTE_PRIN,
A.CO_SEC,
(CASE WHEN A.FG_mtr_GPO_SEC = '0'
THEN A. QT_VAC_DISP
ELSE B.QT_VAC - B.QT_ALUM_mtr
END)  AS VAC_DISP,
B.NU_GPO_SEC,
SUBSTR( VALUE(D.NO_PAT_PERS,' ') || ' ' ||
VALUE(D.NO_MAT_PERS,' ') || ' ' ||
VALUE(D.NO_NOM_PERS,' '),1,45)

FROM  (SELECT A.AA_SEMS, A.NU_SEMS, A.NU_SEC_SEMS,
A.CO_DCTE_PRIN,
A.CO_SEC, A.CO_CUR,
A.FG_mtr_GPO_SEC,
A.FG_GPO_SEC,
(B.QT_VAC-B.QT_ALUM_mtr) AS QT_VAC_DISP,
A.FG_CTL_VAC_SEC,
A.QT_VAC_mtr,
A.QT_ALUM_mtr_SEC,
A.CO_DEPC_ADM_SEC
FROM XXXXX.SECC  A
INNER JOIN XXXXX.VACT_SECC B ON
A.AA_SEMS  = B.AA_SEMS  AND
A.NU_SEMS  = B.NU_SEMS  AND
A.NU_SEC_SEMS  = B.NU_SEC_SEMS  AND
A.CO_CUR  = B.CO_CUR  AND
A.CO_SEC  = B.CO_SEC  AND
A.FG_CTL_VAC_SEC = '1'   AND
A.AA_SEMS  = :prm_nAaSEMS  AND
A.NU_SEMS  = :prm_nNuSEMS  AND
A.NU_SEC_SEMS  = :prm_nNuSecSEMS  AND
A.CO_CUR  = :prm_nCoCUR  AND
B.CO_ESPC   = :prm_nCoEspc AND
A.FG_ESTD_SEC  = '0'   AND
A.FG_ESTD_PROG_SEC = '1'  AND
A.FG_SEC_INGR  = '0'  AND
A.FG_BLOQ_mtr = '0'  AND
A.CO_CUR_REF  IS NULL  AND
A.CO_SEC_REF  IS NULL

UNION

SELECT AA_SEMS,  NU_SEMS, NU_SEC_SEMS,
CO_DCTE_PRIN,
CO_SEC,CO_CUR,
FG_mtr_GPO_SEC,
FG_GPO_SEC,
(QT_VAC_mtr-QT_ALUM_mtr) AS QT_VAC_DISP,
FG_CTL_VAC_SEC,
QT_VAC_mtr,
QT_ALUM_mtr_SEC,
CO_DEPC_ADM_SEC
FROM XXXXX.SECC
WHERE FG_CTL_VAC_SEC = '0'  AND
AA_SEMS   = :prm_nAaSEMS  AND
NU_SEMS   = :prm_nNuSEMS   AND
NU_SEC_SEMS  = :prm_nNuSecSEMS  AND
CO_CUR  = :prm_nCoCUR  AND
FG_ESTD_SEC  = '0'   AND
FG_ESTD_PROG_SEC = '1'   AND
FG_SEC_INGR  = '0'  AND
FG_BLOQ_mtr  = '0'  AND
CO_CUR_REF   IS NULL  AND
CO_SEC_REF   IS NULL   )  A


inner join XXXXX.ESPC e on
e.co_espc  = :prm_nCoEspc

inner join XXXXX.CURRI e0 on
e0.co_espc  = :prm_nCoEspc and
e0.co_CUR  = a.co_CUR and
(e0.AA_SEMS_INI_VIG*10+e0.NU_SEMS_INI_VIG
<= :prm_nAaSEMS * 10 + :prm_nNuSEMS ) AND  ((e0.AA_SEMS_FIN_VIG*10+e0.NU_SEMS_FIN_VIG  >= :prm_nAaSEMS * 10 + :prm_nNuSEMS ) OR
(e0.AA_SEMS_FIN_VIG is NULL AND
e0.NU_SEMS_FIN_VIG is NULL))   and
e0.nu_niv_CUR  = a.co_SEC/100

inner join XXXXX.DEPD e1 on
e1.co_depc  = a.co_depc_adm_SECn and
(e1.co_depc_sup  = e.co_depc or
a.co_depc_adm_SEC = XXXXX )


LEFT OUTER JOIN XXXXX.GRUPO_SECC B ON
A.AA_SEMS  = B.AA_SEMS AND
A.NU_SEMS  = B.NU_SEMS  AND
A.NU_SEC_SEMS  = B.NU_SEC_SEMS  AND
A.CO_CUR  = B.CO_CUR  AND
A.CO_SEC  = B.CO_SEC  AND
A.FG_mtr_GPO_SEC = '1'   AND
B.FG_ESTD_GPO_SEC  = '1'  AND
A.FG_GPO_SEC  = '1'

LEFT OUTER JOIN XXXXX.TRAB C ON
A.CO_DCTE_PRIN  = C.CO_TRAB

LEFT OUTER JOIN XXXXX.PERS D ON
C.CO_PERS  = D.CO_PERS


UNION

SELECT A.AA_SEMS,
A.NU_SEMS,
A.NU_SEC_SEMS,
A.CO_DCTE_PRIN,
A.CO_SEC,
(CASE WHEN A.FG_mtr_GPO_SEC = '0'
THEN A. QT_VAC_DISP
ELSE B.QT_VAC - B.QT_ALUM_mtr
END)  AS VAC_DISP,
B.NU_GPO_SEC,
SUBSTR( VALUE(D.NO_PAT_PERS,' ') || ' ' ||
VALUE(D.NO_MAT_PERS,' ') || ' ' ||
VALUE(D.NO_NOM_PERS,' '),1,45)

FROM  (SELECT  B.AA_SEMS,B.NU_SEMS, B.NU_SEC_SEMS,
B.CO_DCTE_PRIN,
A.CO_SEC, A.CO_CUR,
B.CO_SEC AS CO_SEC_REF,
B.CO_CUR AS CO_CUR_REF,
B.FG_mtr_GPO_SEC,
B.FG_GPO_SEC,
(C.QT_VAC - C.QT_ALUM_mtr) AS QT_VAC_DISP,
B.FG_CTL_VAC_SEC,
C.QT_VAC,
C.QT_ALUM_mtr  AS QT_ALUM_mtr_SEC,
A.CO_DEPC_ADM_SEC
FROM XXXXX.SECC  A

INNER JOIN XXXXX.SECC  B ON
A.AA_SEMS  = :prm_nAaSEMS  AND
A.NU_SEMS  = :prm_nNuSEMS  AND
A.NU_SEC_SEMS  = :prm_nNuSecSEMS  AND
A.CO_CUR  = :prm_nCoCUR  AND
A.CO_CUR_REF   IS NOT NULL  AND
A.CO_SEC_REF   IS NOT NULL  AND
A.AA_SEMS   = B.AA_SEMS  AND
A.NU_SEMS   = B.NU_SEMS  AND
A.NU_SEC_SEMS   = B.NU_SEC_SEMS  AND
B.CO_CUR   = A.CO_CUR_REF AND
B.CO_SEC   = A.CO_SEC_REF   AND
B.FG_ESTD_SEC  ='0'    AND
B.FG_ESTD_PROG_SEC  = '1'   AND
B.FG_SEC_INGR   = '0'   AND
B.FG_BLOQ_mtr  = '0'   AND
B.FG_CTL_VAC_SEC = '1'

INNER JOIN XXXXX.VACT_SECC C ON
A.AA_SEMS  = C.AA_SEMS  AND
A.NU_SEMS  = C.NU_SEMS  AND
A.NU_SEC_SEMS  = C.NU_SEC_SEMS AND
b.CO_CUR  = C.CO_CUR  AND
b.CO_SEC  = C.CO_SEC  AND
C.CO_ESPC  = :prm_nCoEspc

UNION

SELECT   B.AA_SEMS,B.NU_SEMS,B.NU_SEC_SEMS,
B.CO_DCTE_PRIN,
A.CO_SEC,A.CO_CUR,
B.CO_SEC AS CO_SEC_REF,
B.CO_CUR AS CO_CUR_REF,
B.FG_mtr_GPO_SEC,
B.FG_GPO_SEC,
(B.QT_VAC_mtr - B.QT_ALUM_mtr) AS QT_VAC_DISP,
B.FG_CTL_VAC_SEC,
B.QT_VAC_mtr,
B.QT_ALUM_mtr AS QT_ALUM_mtr_SEC,
A.CO_DEPC_ADM_SEC
FROM XXXXX.SECC A
INNER JOIN XXXXX.SECC B ON
A.AA_SEMS  = :prm_nAaSEMS AND
A.NU_SEMS  = :prm_nNuSEMS AND
A.NU_SEC_SEMS  = :prm_nNuSecSEMS AND
A.CO_CUR  = :prm_nCoCUR AND
A.CO_CUR_REF   IS NOT NULL AND
A.CO_SEC_REF   IS NOT NULL AND
A.AA_SEMS  = B.AA_SEMS AND
A.NU_SEMS  = B.NU_SEMS AND
A.NU_SEC_SEMS  = B.NU_SEC_SEMS AND
B.CO_CUR  = A.CO_CUR_REF AND
B.CO_SEC  = A.CO_SEC_REF AND
B.FG_ESTD_SEC  = '0'   AND
B.FG_ESTD_PROG_SEC = '1'  AND
B.FG_SEC_INGR  = '0'  AND
B.FG_BLOQ_mtr = '0'  AND
B.FG_CTL_VAC_SEC = '0'    ) A


inner join XXXXX.ESPC e on
e.co_espc = :prm_nCoEspc

inner join XXXXX.CURRI e0 on
e0.co_espc = :prm_nCoEspc  and
e0.co_CUR = a.co_CUR  and
(e0.AA_SEMS_INI_VIG*10+e0.NU_SEMS_INI_VIG
<= :prm_nAaSEMS * 10 + :prm_nNuSEMS ) AND  ((e0.AA_SEMS_FIN_VIG*10+e0.NU_SEMS_FIN_VIG  >= :prm_nAaSEMS * 10 + :prm_nNuSEMS ) OR
(e0.AA_SEMS_FIN_VIG is NULL AND
e0.NU_SEMS_FIN_VIG is NULL))   and
e0.nu_niv_CUR = a.co_SEC/100

inner join XXXXX.DEPD e1 on
e1.co_depc = a.co_depc_adm_SEC and
(e1.co_depc_sup  = e.co_depc or
a.co_depc_adm_SEC = XXXXX )


LEFT OUTER JOIN XXXXX.GRUPO_SECC B ON
A.AA_SEMS  = B.AA_SEMS  AND
A.NU_SEMS  = B.NU_SEMS  AND
A.NU_SEC_SEMS  = B.NU_SEC_SEMS  AND
A.CO_CUR_REF  = B.CO_CUR  AND
A.CO_SEC_REF  = B.CO_SEC  AND
A.FG_mtr_GPO_SEC  = '1'   AND
B.Fg_Estd_Gpo_SEC  = '1'  AND
A.FG_GPO_SEC  = '1'

LEFT OUTER JOIN XXXXX.TRAB C ON
A.CO_DCTE_PRIN = C.CO_TRAB

LEFT OUTER JOIN XXXXX.PERS D ON
C.CO_PERS = D.CO_PERS

Now, after having read this,
don't you think this is much better than writing boring essays???

From www.theinquirer.net

AN INQUIRER READER attending a conference in Japan was sat just feet away from a laptop computer that suddenly exploded into flames, in what could have been a deadly accident.
Gaston, our astonished reader reports: "The damn thing was on fire and produced several explosions for more than five minutes".
Should you witness such an event, his advice is, "Don't try anything courageous/stupid, stay away, away, away!"

"For the record, this is a Dell machine," notes Gaston. "It is only a matter of time until such an incident breaks out on a plane," he suggests.
Our witness managed to catch all the action in these amazing pictures.
"Fire extinguishers leave a mess on your suit and belongings; pack your stuff (if you can) and leave, leave, leave!" he advises.
We don't have any further details of the model of the computer in question. In light of the evidence, however, we'd suggest you avoid actually using a laptop on your lap. Ouch.

--------------------

Dell has issued a Laptop Batery Recall for all the computers that shipped between the 1st of April 2004 and 18th of July of this year. The models affected are: Latitude, Inspiron, Precision, and ...

the XPS ... noooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!

Forget about the digital camera, if you haven't bought it yet.
Now I have put my eyes on a Dell XPS M2010.

It's got an impressive design
20.1" high definition widescreen (1680x1050)
12ms grey-to-grey response time
Intel Core Duo T2600 processor - 2.16 GHz (optimized for multi-threaded applications and multitasking)
Integrated 1.3 megapixel camera
Array microphones
8 integrated speakers and subwoofer
Detachable Bluetooth keyboard and mouse
Remote control
Dual DVI out (digital visual interface)
4GB RAM
Two 120 GB hard drives
Portfolio design with integrated carry handle

The XPS M2010 is a hybrid of a desktop and a laptop. It's semi-portable, a bit heavy to carry around (over 8kg) for long periods of time but there is no problem with asking your husband or boyfriend to carry it for you ;).
Some people say it's too expensive and impractical for a laptop - but I don't care.

Although the XPS M2010 is regarded as a gaming and entertainment computer thanks to its duo processor, I guess it could make a software developer's live much easier and more fun because of its multitasking capacity. Like for example: running several projects in Ms Visual Studio .net, running an Oracle client, compiling your applications, testing them in your IIS, read your e-mails, read your RSS feeds, chat through 1, 2 or more instant messaging gateways, play your favourite music, play your videos, play an online game, etc, etc, etc.



Update: I no longer like this laptop.
-----

IIS Internet Information Service

If anyone out there is willing to give me a gift of motivation... I would like a CANON 350D

Canon EOS350Kit Digital SLR Camera Kit
8 million pixels with CMOS sensor
3 frames per second up to 14 shots
1.8" LCD
Separate RAW/JPEG image recording
Digic II Processor
E-TTL II flash system 7 point auto focus
LEXAR IGB COMPACT FLASH CARD
Lowepro REZO 140 Camera Case

plus a CANON EF90-300MM NON USM Zoom Lens (and a tripod if possible)

Hey! I finished my thesis. It's in the bindery now. Will be submitted next tuesday. Yahooooo!!!

Now, it is not as nice as it sounds,
My brain is not working, I am anxious, everyone I know is busy, as I was a few days ago!
I feel like what am I going to do now?
Still need to write my abstract, prepare and wait for my oral exam, and possibly do some changes in the thesis afterwards.

At the moment I am in a Limbo in a state of oblivion. Not a student (my status is as a retainer anyway), unemployed, no money, etc.


naah... just joking, hehehehehehehe... got ya! :p



For those of you who have already gone through this, what is your advice?


-------------------------------------




Einstein did not formulate the theory of relativity in his PhD

Years ago I designed and implemented a windows client/server-based university registration system. The system was a bit complicated as the registration process required the student to do it personally, queue according a priority based on their grades and choose modules and timetables before all the limited places ran out. (It was like a race for places.) The system would also check online whether the student could take a module depending on the student having passed the pre-requisites. There were also millions of other controls which I can't remember now.

We used Centura Builder-former GUPTA- which used a so called object oriented language: SAL (Scalable Application Language) and IBM's DB2. Although we started using Oracle, someone decided to switch to DB2 instead when we were in the middle of the development! I'm not sure that that was a wise decision as Centura hadn't been been fully tested with DB2. It had inbuilt drivers for Oracle but not for DB2, so we had to use the generic ODBC drivers which didn't have the same performance (well only at the beginning because then the DBA managed to fix the problem). We also used Micro Focus Cobol (which also claimed to have object oriented features) for batch processes. I hated Cobol. Although it wasn't difficult, it was so old-fashioned. The functions that we really used (and really needed) were the basic standard Cobol as it was done in ancient times. Never used object oriented functions. We had to use an editor to type the code and then run a D.O.S. batch to compile the application. Also when we ran the program an awful D.O.S. command window will appear showing nothing! Centura Builder was a bit nicer. It had an attractive IDE, a coding assistant and would compile and run in secs. My problem with Centura though was the fallacy of object orientation. All analysts had taken a OMT course to learn how to design object oriented applications which, they said, could easily be converted into code. OMT would also help us to standardise our designs. Basically we learned to model business rules with UML. After the course I had an idea of what class, object, method, inheritance, message, encapsulation, polymorphism, class and sequence diagrams, etc., were. We would have classes like "student" and "academic record" and methods like "show available modules" and "register". However, when we tried to implement those classes in Centura we couldn't do it in a straight forward way. Centura worked with classes like form, table, list, combobox, etc. all of which were visual classes. There was a way to implement functional classes but it wasn't as friendlier as we would've liked. At the end we had to invent a solution so we could use both OMT and Centura together. We created funtional classes in Centura (containing business rules) which were invoked by visual classes (no business rules here) which in turn where the ones that the users interacted with. This could sound easy, but it wasn't a natural way to work with Centura. After a few months of trying to do this, almost everyone desisted. No one bothered to use UML and code the business rules in functional classes. People did what they thought was more productive: coded as the programming language and time allowed them. The same happened with Micro Focus Cobol. For us it wasn't compatible with UML.

Never again did we use UML to design applications...
hmmm maybe sometimes to show the big boss what we were doing.



Disclaimer: I know I am very outdated in technology possibly antedeluvian. I've been doing a "reading and writing thousands of words in MS Word" job for 4 years! Sometimes I would draw a diagram or two in Visio. I am so outdated I have forgotten how to setup my computer!!

BTW I finished my thesis. I still need to write an abstract and print it out though :/

I learned to programme just by chance. I did my first degree in Industrial Engineering but always liked computers. At work I was in charge of the computer inventories and repairs. I also liked to install and uninstall software and to run computer workshops (also play tetris and the prince of persia). I was really enthusiastic. Seeing that, some of my colleagues suggested I should learn to programme and move to the analysis and development department. I always refused cos I wasn't a geek. I said I'd never do that.

Never say never, that's what they say.

One day I was forced to move to another department (and got a new NASTY boss (bitch!)). She decided I had to fix a library system and implement it in a few weeks. The system was implemented in DBASE (this was more than 10 years ago!). She had bought it for $***** and needed it to be operative ASAP to justify the bill. For that she didn't give a desk and computer, nor did she allow me to use a whiteboard.

I learned a bit of DBASE and read the code. I realised then that the library system was a fake. It was originally a system for a video rent store and the programmer had done a few changes so it looked like a library system (something like replacing the words "Video" with "Book" and replacing "Client" with "Student"). The system was supposed to run in a Novell Network but that application was a standalone. On top of that I never managed to run the application without crashing it.

I wrote a report noting all the flaws in the system and that I would not recommend to fix it but to write a new one from scratch. I gave the report to the tyrant... sorry my boss. She went nuts and raised her voice. Called me incompetent and other things. I felt so bad because I didn't understand her attitude at all. However as there was no one else willing to do fixing she let me start it again.

That is how I learned to programme. We chose to use Foxpro v 2.5 (like DBASE but much better) because it was the only thing we had available at that time. It had the language and the database in one place so it wasn't that hard to learn. I was assigned 2 apprentices who also didn't know Foxpro. So we learned it together.

My team and I decided that we needed to meet with the people from the library to see what they needed. Of course my boss didn't agree with that. (why should you talk to them? You must not waste your time. Time is expensive.) I met the libary director and make good friends with her. She welcomed me and my team and also gave us some computers and printers all connected to a Novell network. (don't ask me the version because I don't remember.) We also met all the library staff who were very nice and aproachable. To be honest, although I had been a user of the library I did not know much about how they did things in there. We sort of established a base camp in the library and visited them very often. We did learn a lot! (we borrowed books for unlimited periods of time, etc, etc.) (I guess what we did was a kind of ethnography1 because we spent several days there seeing students borrowing books and stuff, and sometimes helping the staff to sort out problems, ¡habla Beto!). It took us a few months (more than we thought) to finish the application and make the library staff actually use it (that was tough!). But it was worth it.

So why am I telling you this?
I guess because I hear so many stories about nasty managers and about not needing to meet your users/customers/clients whatever you call them. And I just wanted to share my own story.
But maybe the real reason is because I am bored and hopelessly stuck with my thesis (not stuck as in "stuck in the mud" but as in "lazy to think"). Distracting my mind for a while helps to keep my sanity intact.

(Saquen su línea.)

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1 Ethnography is a research method grounded in the interpretive paradigm. It demands first hand involvement with the subjects of study in the same social world where they interact. (Marshall and Rossman, 1989, p.106))

The other day I cut my left thumb when I was trying to open a fruit can. Ooouuch!! It did really hurt. Ooouuch!! Ooouuch!! Ooouuch!! I thought it wasn't a big deal, just wash my hands, suck my finger and that would do it. To my surprise I could not make it stop bleeding. I saw my finger and realised that it was a really nasty cut that went from one side of the finger to the other. I tried for 1 hr to make the bleeding stop in vain. I poured Pisco (42° alcohol spirit) over the cut to disinfect it and then put a piece of cotton and applied some pressure on it. It did not work. (A little piece of advice: I would recommend you to not waste your pisco in such things. Never never never NEVER. Use it wisely. DRINK IT!)

Well, after a while my husband and I decided to go to the NHS centre opposite our place. (It was a Saturday so we knew that my GP's was closed.) At the NHS centre a guy told us that we had to ring the call centre before they could do something. So we did that. Actually my husband did it because I was busy with blood in my finger. He talked to someone on the phone. Gave this person my details. This person then faxed my details to the lady (receptionist) who was in front of me. Absurd! No wonder why the NHS is in trouble...
The receptionist got my details printed on a paper and asked me:

Receptionist: so, what is your problem?
I: I cut my finger with a fruit can and I can't make it stop bleeding.
Receptionist: Ok, go to the waiting room and a doctor will see you in a sec.

After 10 minutes a doctor came and asked me to follow him. "Good!" I though. "After all the NHS is not that bad, this will be over soon."
I went into the doctor's office and sat on a chair. (See diagram). The interview went like this:

Doctor: What happend?
I: I cut my finger with a fruit can and I can't make it stop bleeding.
Doctor: When was that?
I: about an hour ago

I then showed him my finger which I had wrapped with cotton and band aid. I thought he was going to see it but instead he said:

Doctor: can you uncover your finger?
I: (shocked because he wouldn't touch my finger) Ok (I unwrapped all the stuff I had on my finger)
Doctor: hmmm
I: (Looking at him) How does it look doctor?
Doctor: I think you should go to the Hospital. We can't help you here. You may need stitches and we don't have the implements. Can you go there?
I: (shocked again because it was more serious than I thought) I guess so. I mean I have to. Haven't I?
Doctor: Yes. I am sorry we can't be of more help.
I: no worries. Thanks anyway.

My husband and I went home and called a cab. 20 mins later we were in the casualty department. We went to see the receptionist:

Receptionist: What is your name?
I: (I gave her my name)
Receptionist: (with a big question mark in her face) sorry?
I: (I spelled my name, then I spelled it again and then..., I spelled it again.)
Receptionist: your address?
I: (I gave her my address)
Receptionist: your telephone?
I: (I gave her my telephone number)
Receptionist: who is your GP?
I: Dr. XXXX
Receptionist: what is your problem?
I: I cut my finger with a fruit can and I can't make it stop bleeding.
Receptionist: Ok, go to the waiting room and someone will see you soon.

My husband and I went to the waiting room and sat next to a drunk guy who smelled like hell. We couldn't stand it so we moved, closer to the TV. They were showing the Portugal v Iran football match. The match finished and we were still waiting... Nothing interesting on TV, nothing interesting to read... boring! At that moment I realised that my finger had stopped bleeding and I wondered if I could go home. But then I remembered what the doctor said about needing stitches. So I stayed. (Good I stayed, because a while after my finger was bleeding again.)

2hrs 15mins later, a nurse called me. Her name was T'Pol (not real name of course) and told me that I could see a doctor if I did not want her to see me. I said I didn't think I needed a doctor so we went to her office.

T'Pol: How do I pronounce your name?
I: (I said it veeeeeery slowly)
TPol: Where are you from?
I: South America
T'Pol: you speak spanish, don't you? My husband is learning spanish. He wants to go to Spain on holiday to practice his spanish, but I want to go to Croacia instead.
I: Oh! (:/)
T'Pol: but I think you speak a different spanish from the spanish spanish, don't you?
I: not really, just different accents. (actually we speak better spanish than the spanish but I didn't want to go there)
T'Pol: the other day we met some mexican guys and they were teaching us some words.
I: oh (:/) (thinking: yeah, chilli con carne, tortillas, quesadillas and tequila)
T'Pol: well, lets start this, tell me what happened? (she grabbed a form and a pen and started writing)
I: I cut my finger with a fruit can and I can't make it stop bleeding.
T'Pol: when did that happpen?
I: 4-5 hours ago.
T'Pol: are you taking any medication?
I: No
T'Pol: are you alergic to any medicine?
I: No (thinking: only the NHS waiting room)
T'Pol: hmmm, show me your finger.

She put on rubber gloves and touched my finger!
(I guess nurses are allowed to touch fingers... hmmm, I don't know... )

My finger was all covered in blood but it had stoped bleeding. T'Pol examined the cut, made me move my finger and asked me if I could feel something when she touched it. I did what she said and said I could feel her finger. She then said that I didn't need stitches, in fact she wouldn't recommend stitches in any case as she thought that part of the finger had sensitve skin. T'Pol proceeded to clean the cut, then applied paper stitches and put a huge bandage on my finger. She said I had to keep it clean and dry for 5 days.

T'Pol: is that Ok?
I: Yes (moving my finger and seeing that the bandage wasn't uncomfortable)
T'Pol: you can go now
I: Thank you T'Pol, Bye (thinking: I'm freeeeeeeeee to do what I want any old time, yes, Yes, YES, YEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSS)

I met my husband in the waiting room and we left.

Later that evening we met some friends and one of them asked me "what happened to your finger?" and I said: "I cut my finger with a fruit can and I couldn't make it stop bleeding....."










Last Update: My Finger 23 June

Despues de casi 4 años de estar haciendo este doctorado al fin veo la luz al final del tunel. Todavía esta muy chiquita pero al menos la veo. Hace 3 semanas que le entrege el borrador de mi tesis a mi supervisora, ver foto, y me sentí muy aliviada.






Mi supervisora me devolvió el borrador con las correcciones la semana pasada. Me dijo que en general estaba bien y que solo habian correcciones menores. -pucha en realidad me relleno la tesis de comentarios, ni una hoja se salvó - espero completarlas en 2 semanas más.

Algunos de los comentarios que me hicieron k... de risa:

• I'd be inclined to ban you from using the word "this" (or their or them)
• Need to note that your perception was common place (not just you being stupid!!)
• Another very long intense paragraph --> ¡¡no sabe lo que me costó!!!
• Relate is a rather weak word in this context --> (de repente si la pongo en bold mmm)
  

Si alguna vez se deciden a hacer un doctorado piensenlo MUY BIEN. Es una experiencia enriquecedora, aprendes un huevo, si lo haces en Inglaterra aprendes a escribir en ingles, puedes viajar por Europa, etc. PERO ¡¡dura mas de 3 años !!! ¡¡tu vida social se va al car... !!! los unicos amigos que conservas son los que pones al costado en tu ventana. Ellos no se van simplemente porque no pueden moverse. (Los pueden conseguir en las cajas de cereal).

De izquierda a derecha, fila de arriba, ahi tienen a Mojo jo-jo, mi des-estresador en forma de cerebro, Dee Dee, Buttercup, Grim, un puto oso que no se como se llama, fila 2, un oso de peluche, una serpiente, dos muñecas chinas, un pulpo en una barca, una estrella en una barca, un tigre, un caracol en una barca, un lagarto en su carro verde, un oso en su carro amarillo y Sponge Bob en una barca. (Tengo mas pero no entraron en la foto- cortesía de Coco Pops)


Otra cosa es que luego de tantos años de estar estudiando ahora me toca pensar en que voy a hacer despues. Yo quisiera buscar un trabajo de consultora de software. Pero estoy recontra-super-archi desactualizada. ¡¡Estoy estudiando desde el 2000!! (MBA y Doctorado). Y solo toco la computadora para escribir en Word, mandar correos-e en Outlook, hacer dibujitos en PowerPoint y Webbear en la internet con Firefox, ... ahhh y escuchar música. Así que creo que me tocará tomar algunos cursos de programacion para Dummies.


mmm, a ver.... pensando en voz alta.... las áreas de consultoría que me interesarían son desarrollo en Web definitivamente de software social. Me parece una área que tiene mucho potencial y mucha demanda. Si quieren saber algo de software social chequeen esta entrada mía de hace meses: http://clk0.blogspot.com/2005/05/social-software-in-business.html
(tienes que saber inglich, ahh, y no esperes el super artículo, solo unas gárgaras de Listerine con algunas ideas que se me ocurrieron).

Foros en línea, weblogs, wikis, MSN, Skype, etc., son software social. Tu groupware, tu workflow son también software social (aunque usados en ambientes organizacionales, relativamente pequeños en comparación con la totalidad de la web). Sitios como MySpace.com, Youtube.com, iFilm.com, Flickr, etc., también. Son estos últimos los tipos de sitios web que me están llamando la atención últimamente (no solo porque son un vacilón, sino por su naturaleza (en castellano, por lo que son detrás de todo el vacilón), no solo por las opciones-software que ofrecen, sino por las comunidades que se crean alrededor) . Hasta ahora me ha parecido que su exito es producto de la pura purita suerte. Alguien tiene una idea y la suelta en la internet. Si le va bien, pues que bien. Si no, la descarta y continúa con la siguiente. Quizas yo pueda hacer algo allí y tener algo de suerte.

Se aceptan sugerencias.

Introduction

Electronic conversation has been possible since the creation of computer networks. The invention of the Internet has boosted its popularity to the extent that nowadays millions of people use CMC[1] to communicate. From a linguistic perspective, we can see that new forms of interaction are being developed, some adapted from writing, and face-to-face conversations; while some are being created especially for electronic environments (Greenfield and Subrahmanyam, 2003). Researchers are being encouraged to find out how people communicate and develop relationships through the internet. In this regard some people see CMC as an “impersonal medium” (Parks, 1996, 2) and a “socially-impoverished domain” (Baym, 1995, 26) as none of the linguistic strategies used are as efficient in conveying meaning as in written or oral speech. In contrast with this, others see online participants adjusting themselves to the limitations of the written environment and looking for “conversational coherence”(Greenfield and Subrahmanyam, 2003, 728). Although the latter perspectives recognise CMC as a useful tool they do not explain how people adapt to it. What is needed then is an insight into these settings to explain how understanding is possible and to see how other social practices interact with language. Numerous linguistic studies have used the concept of speech community to identify its members and the language they speak. This approach, however, has been limited to linguistic variables. In this essay the concept of Communities of Practice is explored as an alternative to study online-conversations as it may give the tools to understand how the online-linguistic strategies are developed in a process of negotiation among the members of the community. Before this, the limitations of CMC will be reviewed.

CMC and its limitations

CMC is “a hybrid form of interaction” or “written conversation” (Marcoccia, 2004, 2). CMC could be considered as a new kind of register[2], which possesses characteristics of both written and spoken speech. These characteristics appear in different degrees depending on the online setting that is being used (i.e.: e-mail, chat rooms, etc.). Although CMC possesses advantages like reduction of time and financial constraints and the loss of geographical boundaries (Folkman Curasi(2001, 367); Parrish (2002, 3); Sweet (2001, 2)), its limitations, especially the linguistic ones, contribute to the lack of understanding of this media. Some limitations are:

1. The lack of visual and social cues, often present in face-to-face conversations limits the interpretation of texts to the written statements (Sweet, 2001, 40). “Cues signal the nature of the context”, they give the participants an idea of who and where are the others, their characteristics and the relationships between them(Jacobson, 1996, 463) . In CMC indications about the participants’ physical appearance, age, gender, position and the physical appearance of the setting are lost(Sproull and Kiesler, 1986, 1497). Visual signals like nods from an addressee to indicate understanding, agreement or disagreement are also missing.

2. Problems with conversation structure. Online conversations follow different ordering rules than in normal conversations. In face-to-face conversations, people negotiate their turns with cues, showing the others when they can have control of the floor[3]. Turns are also organised by adjacency pairs which are logical sequences that people expect to be followed (e.g. a question followed by an answer). In CMC many people can be typing at the same time and not see the new messages that are arriving. Their messages are posted in the order in which the server receives them (this depends on speed and broadband). Additionally, there could be several parallel conversations taking place at the same time (Parrish, 2002, 10). The result is several threads of conversations overlapping with each other. The overlap causes that turn, which should have followed another one, to appear after several lines. In between there can be turns from other people participating in the same conversation or in others. It is difficult then for the inexperienced, to deduce to which conversation a particular turn belongs and what its place (order) in that conversation is. Although this phenomenon appears more often in synchronous conversation it is also true for asynchronous conversations. Replies of e-mails can carry copies of the previous turns which are not necessarily in order.

3. Interaction is slower than speech, even in situations like chat rooms. Typing and reading are slower than speaking and hearing. Messages are “complete and unidirectional” (Crystal, 2001, 30). Other participants have to wait until we send them. There is no simultaneous feedback (Crystal, 2001, 30). A “speaker” does not know if the “listeners” are following what is being said until a reply is sent. The consequences of this are the mentioned problems with conversation structure and hence the difficulty in following a thread of conversation.

After reviewing these limitations, it becomes unclear how people manage to communicate and perform activities online. As a result, some questions arise: how do participants understand each other? How do online conversations convey comprehension? How can goals be achieved and relationships developed in online environments? Certainly, the answer is not restricted to linguistic terms. There are other factors playing a role in the construction of linguistic forms within online environments, as for example, the personal interests of each individual, personal backgrounds, IT literacy, age, etc. So far, the studies guided by the traditional approach: speech communities have been limited to linguistic interactions. Eckert and McConnell-Ginet (2000) in their paper on language, gender and power propose the use of a new theoretical framework to analysing language: Communities of Practice. It allows the connection of different theoretical abstractions, social and linguistic (e.g. gender and language) that can give a wider perspective. Following this trend, this essay discusses the usefulness of this concept in the study of online conversations.

The old and new perspectives

Let’s compare both perspectives before. A speech community is defined “by participation in a shared set of norms” (Labov, 1972, 121), being these norms mostly related to language use. It has proved to be “a productive and useful tool for research into the orderly heterogeneity of language in its social setting.”(Holmes and Meyerhoff, 1999, 173) The problem is, however, that it does not direct “attention to what people are doing as they engage with one another” (Eckert and McConnell-Ginet, 1999, 190). For example, it does not take into account the intentions or purposes of an online conversation. It also assumes that the speech population is heterogeneous and focuses only on the language use of central members (e.g. people who speak Standard English).

Community of Practice (CofP) is a concept developed by Lave and Wegner (1991) as part of a “Social Theory of Learning” (Holmes and Meyerhoff, 1999, 174). A CofP is defined by membership and by the practice in which members are engaged (Eckert and McConnell-Ginet, 2000, 490). The purpose of its introduction to a theory of learning was to explore the concept of learning as a social process. Members of a CofP learn while they perform community activities and while they negotiate the way those activities are to be performed. As language is also a “social practice” (Bucholtz, 1999, 210) we can presume that members also acquire “sociolinguistic competence” (Holmes and Meyerhoff, 1999, 174) as they practice. Unlike speech community, these definitions alone may give us the opportunity to link language use with other social practices. In the case of online communities these could be, helping others and solving conflicts. Holmes and Meyerhoff (1999) mention three dimensions of a CofP:

1. Mutual Engagement: quantity and quality of interaction, it is the “basis for the relationships that make the CofP possible”.
2. Joint Enterprise: a process of negotiating practices and goals.
3. Shared Repertoire: of resources for negotiating meaning, this includes linguistic resources.

There are two more features of CofP which are worth to mention. CofP recognises diversity and conflict among its members. There are core members who are totally engaged with community’s practices and peripheral members who are in the process of becoming full members(Holmes and Meyerhoff, 1999, 174). Finally, it recognises ambiguity in its practices as a “condition of negotiability”. Members do not always interpret meanings in the same way. Therefore social processes become difficult to handle but “dynamic, always open-ended and generative of new meaning” (Wenger, 2003, 84).

Conclusion: Communities of Practice and online conversations

As CofP acknowledges differences within communities it could be a useful tool to explain how the different linguistic styles of the online members blend to create a style for the whole community. Mutual engagement allows members to learn the linguistic repertoire and to participate in the negotiation of new ways of expressing themselves. The concept of joint negotiation could help to explain how such new ways of chatting with multiple, parallel, overlapping and slow conversations and a lack of visual cues, is not wrong but different; as it was negotiated by its members. CofP’s acknowledgement of ambiguity in community practices and their processes of negotiation could explain how people understand each other and develop relationships and therefore could clarify how meaning is conveyed in online conversations. A perspective like this would respond to movements which try to redesign online conversations so that they look more like oral conversations. See Smith et al (2000) paper on Conversation Trees and Threaded chats. It is an attempt to design a chat program that supports the “turn-taking structure of human conversation” that does not result as expected.