What's new 2010 (archive)
Archive: 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005
December 2010 – Robert Ackland and Jiaying Zhao from Australian Demographic and Social Research Institute gave the following presentations on online social networks and hyperlink analysis using VOSON at the 2010 ACSPRI Social Science Methodology Conference:
- Social Media Network Analysis - Dr Ackland and Associate Professor Malcolm Alexander from Griffith University provided an overview of social science research using data from social media environments.
- Using Digital Trace Data to Research Social Networks and Ageing - Dr Ackland described an ARC-funded research project to study the role of online social networking in contributing to healthy and productive ageing in Australia.
- A Web Analysis of HIV Information Delivery in China - Jiaying Zhao, a PhD student from the Australian Demographic and Social Research Institute, gave a presentation on the use of hyperlink analysis conducted using VOSON to evaluate the relative performance of Chinese government websites in delivering information about HIV .
25th October 2010 - Dr Paul Henman (University of Queensland), Dr Robert Ackland and Professor Helen Margetts (Oxford University) have received an Australian Research Council Discovery Grant of $300,000 over three years for their project "The institutional structure of e-government: a cross-policy, cross-country comparison". Governments have expended vast resources on building websites, yet how government is structured on the internet is unknown. This project will map Australia's online government for the first time and assess to how websites are supporting improved government service. The study will support government innovation in web design and service delivery.
October 2010 - the early-bird cutoff for the ACSPRI Summer Program 'Online Research Methods' (Canberra, 17-21 January) is Monday 8 November. This is a week-long intensive course with particular focus on social research using digital trace data (including VOSON System and VOSON+NodeXL).
September 2010 - We removed the social networking features in the VOSON site and the links to VOSON-sns (tools for analysing networks in Drupal social network site). Now there is a separate site for demonstrating the VOSON SNSLab software (which incorporates VOSON-sns). You can access this site via the Software page (you need to sign in first).
September 2010 - A record number of students are enrolled in the two ANU masters courses that are related to the VOSON Project (and taught by Dr Robert Ackland). DEMO8086 Social Science of the Internet has 12 students and DEMO8087 Online Research Methods has 20 students: this is over twice the enrolments in 2009! These courses are offered as part of the Graduate Certificate in Social Research and Master of Social Research (Social Science of the Internet). The two courses are available in fully-online mode (as well as traditional in-class mode).
September 2010 - We upgraded the VOSON Project website to Drupal 6 so we can incorporate the latest version of VOSON-sns. We also changed the theme. A screenshot of the old site is at the bottom of this page.
June 2010 - The VOSON Data Provider for NodeXL was successfully used by around 60 students in a laboratory assignment for the IEMS 341 - Social Network Analysis undergraduate course in the Industrial Engineering and Management Sciences program at Northwestern University, which is taught by Professor Noshir Contractor.
February 2010 - The Alpha version of the VOSON Data Provider for NodeXL was released. NodeXL is an Excel 2007 template for analysing social media network data. So we now provide two ways that you can use VOSON to analyse hyperlink networks: (1) via the VOSON System (which you log into using a web browser); (2) via NodeXL. The VOSON System is a specialist tool for hyperlink network construction and analysis. NodeXL allows access to various types of social media network data, e.g. Facebook, Twitter and hyperlink networks (via VOSON). This is a great example of how e-research technologies (web services, in particular) can enable access to distributed research resources (data and tools). So, a NodeXL user in the United States, for example, will be able to access VOSON network data services (which are hosted in Australia) all from within NodeXL (as long as they have a VOSON user account, and they are connected to the Internet). For more information on NodeXL, also see Marc Smith's Connected Action Consulting Group. Also look out for the NodeXL book to be released later this year.
January 2010 - The ACSPRI Summer Program course on Online Research Methods was successfully run at the ANU, January 11-15. The course featured training in both the VOSON System and VOSON-sns. Course instructors were Robert Ackland and Susannah Sabine (student in ANU's Master of Social Research, Social Science of the Internet Specialisation).
Figure: Old VOSON Project website - decommissioned in September 2010