21W785 - Class Information

What is 21W785?

Communicating in Cyberspace (21W785) is a new class at MIT that focuses on the undefined place called "cyberspace." It is one of the first classes of its kind both at MIT and nationwide.

The MIT Humanties Guide gives the "official" description for this class:

Analysis and authoring of cybertexts. Games, MUDs, World Wide Web homepages, multimedia essays, and other kinds of digital communication are studied in terms of traditional theories of rhetoric to articulate elements of the new cyber-rhetoric for digital/multi/hyper-media. Techniques of creating cybertexts for the communication of ideas and information. Study of the history and theory of contemporary computer communication. On the basis of this analysis, students design their own cybertexts for display and discussion. No prior knowledge of programming necessary.

But, what is this class really about?

The main objective of the class is "analysis, design, and implementation of various forms of digital communication based on team collaborations". The specific topics covered include:

Team roles in multimedia development (writer, programmer, designer, video or audio)
Developing multimedia applications
Web site design and implementation (especially storyboarding and planning)
Writing in the electronic age
Review of existing Web sites (selected by students)
CD-Rom Reviews
Guest lectures by people in field of electronic publication and Web technology

This is the first time that this class is being taught at MIT. The previous experience of first group of students varies tremendously. Some of the students have worked on commercial multimedia projects and World-Wide Web sites, while others have not even begun their own home pages. The range of experience level has allowed for a lot of peer learning.