Introduction to Humanities Computing

Spring 1999

Lecture Four

Important distinctions

Algorithm

integrated circuit

floppy

plastic rodent

Program

microprocessor

stiffie

mouse

Know your generations 1st

vacuum tubes 2nd

transistors 3rd

chips 4th

microprocessors

Changes

How do computers change communication?

What do computers not change?

Change? How we communicate

Internet, E-mail, WWW, Chat, MUDs, IRC What we communicate

Multimedia, Procedures, Agents Where we communicate

Home Office, Virtual Spaces When we communicate

Asynchronous Communication, Chat Pace of communication

Pace

More ways = Faster?how

where

when

what

More places = Faster?

More times = Faster?

More types = Faster?

Cost

More ways = cheaper?how

where

when

what

More places = cheaper?

More times = cheaper?

More types = cheaper?

Theorum

most content-relatedglitches

incomputer-mediated communication

result fromthe confusion of

one-to-many communication with

one-to-one communication

it is impossible to know your audience

once and for allso

the big innovation wrought by

computer-mediated communicationincrease in

feedback * response * follow-upexpectations

Alluquère Rosanne StoneThe War of Desire and Technology at theClose of the Mechanical Age (1995)

See Chapter Five “Agency and Proximity”for an engaging history of the CommuniTree BBS

Network Varieties

Pay close attention to how Stone portrays the link between the physical and virtual.

Communication networks

Semaphores Postal Service Rail network Telegraph Phone network Couriers TV Networks Internet

LayersSome of the layers involved in connecting computing machines :

Physical Layer - Cables, Routers, NIC (Cards)

Software Layer - Protocols and Packets

Service Layer -WWW, E-mail, Gopher

LANs

Local Area Network

Network Cards

Cable

Networked DevicesFile Server Net Printer

Shared DevicesPersonal Computers

WANs

Wide Area Network

CAnet (Canada Wide)

Onet (Ontario Wide)

McMaster Backbone

Internet (US nets)

Togo Salmon LAN Other Buildings

Other Universities

Movement of Information

Packets1. Your file is divided into lots of small packets.

2. The packets are addressed.

3. The packets are sent out.

4. Packets are reassembled into a file

IP = From: and To: TCP = How many packets, order

Information

Shapes of Connection

Daisy Chain Star Ring

Remember the selection from Alluquère Rosanne Stone.What kinds of mental spaces do these formations evoke?

Topologies

Daisy-Chain

Star

Ring

Modems

Mainframe

Terminal

Star

Modems

Mainframe

Daisy Chain

Ring

Modem

Operates via telephone line connection Modem changes

digital bits into analog signal

and vice versa See demo on Computer Confluence CD

What can you do with network?

Share a Mainframe - Terminals Share a File Server Swap Files (FTP) Send Electronic Mail Join Discussion Groups Publish and Read Information

(Gopher, WWW)

Application Server

File Server

E-mail Server

WWW Server

List Server (Listserv)

How do you connect?

Direct Connection (You have an IP address)

Through an Access System (muss)

Terminal Mainframe (Access System)muss.cis.mcmaster.ca

Internet

Internet Machine

Internet

Stretch...

What is the impact of Moore’s law on bandwidth?

Moore’s LawIn 1965, Gordon Moore, Chairman of Intelpredicted the power of a silicon chip of the same price would double about every eighteenmonths for at least two decades.

Bandwidth Basicsphysical medianetwork trafficsoftware protocolsnetwork connection

Bandwidth & Processing Speedthe third element in network growth

isStorage Space

Which of these depends upon

processor speed ?

End

simple concepts when connected

appear to become complex