"User-led content 'production' is . . . built on iterative, evolutionary development models in which often very large communities of participants make a number of usually very small, incremental changes to the established knowledge base, thereby enabling a gradual improvement to quality which--under the right conditions--can nonetheless outpace the speed of product development in the conventional, industrial model" (Bruns 1). The "Introduction" to Axel Bruns' Blogs, Wikipedia, Second Life, and Beyond: From Production to Produsage outlines theories on production that became popular at the beginning of the industrial revolution and which have held tight since that time: until now!!
Bruns makes the argument that we can no longer depend on the terms that have dominated since the industrial revolution to describe what is currently going on. Thus, he coins the term produsage, and produser. He says that the term/s "highlights that within the communities which engage in the collaborative creation and extension of information and knowledge that we examine in this book, the role of 'consumer' and even that of 'end user' have long disappeared, and the distinctions between producers and user of content have faded into comparative insignificance" (2). And as for produsers, Bruns believes that "users are always already necessarily also producers of the shared knowledge base, regardless of whether they are aware of this role . . ." (2).
The topic of social networking also comes into play and how it intersects with this concept of produsage. Bruns discusses the advantages that social software gives us, removing real-world limitations, compensating for inadequacies, and creating environments or tool-sets that are useful for collaborative behavior (3).
This should be an interesting text. I am anxious to understand this new type of production of which I believe I play a major part. I will intersperse these reading blogs with other types of reading, however, due to the length of this book. Don't want to burn out on this one.
Bruns makes the argument that we can no longer depend on the terms that have dominated since the industrial revolution to describe what is currently going on. Thus, he coins the term produsage, and produser. He says that the term/s "highlights that within the communities which engage in the collaborative creation and extension of information and knowledge that we examine in this book, the role of 'consumer' and even that of 'end user' have long disappeared, and the distinctions between producers and user of content have faded into comparative insignificance" (2). And as for produsers, Bruns believes that "users are always already necessarily also producers of the shared knowledge base, regardless of whether they are aware of this role . . ." (2).
The topic of social networking also comes into play and how it intersects with this concept of produsage. Bruns discusses the advantages that social software gives us, removing real-world limitations, compensating for inadequacies, and creating environments or tool-sets that are useful for collaborative behavior (3).
This should be an interesting text. I am anxious to understand this new type of production of which I believe I play a major part. I will intersperse these reading blogs with other types of reading, however, due to the length of this book. Don't want to burn out on this one.
RSS Feed
