There is a growing body of interesting research exploring the social shaping of mobile phones, covering a wide range of topics, from new forms of communication, to the changes in time organization, the uses of public places, the display of emotions and the formation and sustaining of communities. This book evaluates the launch and adoption of mobile phones, drawing out lessons for the future. In particular, it explores how social scientists can collaborate with designers and engineers in the development of new devices and uses.

Covers a wider range of issues than other books - adding economics, history and design to social and psychological issues.

Inhalt
Introduction: Digital Revolution - Mobile Revolution?.- Mobile Telephony: Realising the Dream of Ideal Communication?.- History Repeating? A Comparison of the Launch and Uses of Fixed and Mobile Phones.- Kids will be Kids: The Role of Mobiles in Teenage Life.- An SMS History.- Emotional Attachment to Mobile Phones: An Extraordinary Relationship.- Textmates and Text Circles: Insights into the Social Ecology of SMS Text Messaging.- Appropriating Tools and Shaping Activities: The Use of PDAs in the Workplace.- Different Directions in the Mobile Internet: Analysing Mobile Internet Services in Japan and Europe.- Context Perspectives for Scenarios and Research Development in Mobile Systems.- Instant Messaging and Presence Services: Mobile Future, CSCW and Ethnography.