Entertainment media at home: looking at the social aspects

Abstract

Introduction Historically, experiences of computing and computational devices themselves were largely restricted to the office. In recent years, however, there has been a proliferation of other kinds of domains and usage practices. From forms of public and urban computing, virtual/real gaming, mobile handsets, wireless infrastructure and even the ever present visions of smart-homes and digital lifestyles, increasing computational technologies and experiences thereof have found their ways into new domains. These nascent ubiquitous computing technologies have brought with them the potential for remarkable change. However, these new domains also suggest new challenges and new dilemmas. For instance, any exploration of the role of new information and communications technologies in the home highlight some of the critical disconnections between the ways in which such technologies are produced and the ways in which they are consumed, naturalized and rejected. Clearly, the home is far too broad a topic for a single Copyright is held by the author/owner(s).