Frekventa användares bruk och uppfattning av webben

Abstract

The Web is becoming an essential appliance for people in contemporary society. But although the Web is easy to define in technical terms, it is much harder to describe in terms of aims and what it can afford. This paper presents a study on frequent users' usage and experiences of the Web and is based on a social constructive perspective. Notes from diaries were used in socalled stimulated recall interviews. The study was conducted with inspiration from phenomenography and resulted in the identification of four aspects of what the Web can afford: the aspect of reference; the aspect of distance eliminator; the aspect of overview; and the social aspect. The results also give a picture of usage in everyday life. The respondents’ knowledge of how to use the Web is diverse, which implies that such knowledge should not be neglected or taken for granted. Another conclusion is that a technologically deterministic view of Web usage can be questioned.