Review Essay: New Information and Communication Technologies and their Effect on Space

Abstract

The reviewed book is a systematic and well-written introduction to the field of information and communication technologies. Starting from WERSIG's focus on technical aspects, this paper concentrates on one dimension of the social context of technology: its influence on space. Issues of "placelessness" or "end of space" are discussed, especially in connection with the Internet; they fail, however, to recognize the various connections between "cyberspace" and real space. For example, the technological infrastructure and its spatial distribution constitute structures of centre and periphery. Additionally, contents such as Community Networks and City Guides directly refer to real space, thus adding another dimension to "the local. URN: urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs0204255