Changes in Online Subjectivity: Artificial Users, Subject Fragmentarization, and Multimodal Interaction

Definitions Of Important Terms

The emergence of the information society represents an important qualitative shift, with significant implications for the future development of society. It was created new platform – it is a shared and continuously re-formed new environment designed for human and human made artificial agents (named e.g. software agents, softbots or simply bots). This environment is in various fields named in different ways, e.g.: cyberspace, online environment(s), Internet-mediated environment(s), virtual environment(s), virtual world(s). Each designation emphasizes another feature or aspect which is associated with a given environment. As appropriate designation for needs of this chapter was chosen virtual environment.

The most appropriate and sufficiently general explanation of this term is that it is an environment that consists of Internet-based services mediated by computers interconnected via networks (Internet). It is in accordance with a similar approach applies for virtual conversation, teams, products, organizations, etc. For example, virtual conversation is defined as communications that take place over computer networks, in which there is an essential element utilizing ICT for mediating such communications and cooperation among otherwise physically distant entities (Davidow, 1993; DeSanctis & Monge, 1999). Virtual conversation can be dynamically changed, e.g. resources can be added or removed according to the objective – so-called switching. (Mowshowitz, 1999; Mowshowitz & Kawaguchi, 2005). Virtual teams for instance, are formed as user-selected networks using the principle of switching. Relevant individuals are chosen while others are excluded, “switched off”.