Google Wave and Ulmer: "Heureucs rather than Hermeneutics"

As I first saw the name of the book "Internet Invention", I thought it was some book talking about the Internet, culturally or techonically. As I read more, I found this book is more than just talking about the Internet, but the pedgagogy , or "the writing" with the approach of "electracy" (P.5). What is the meaning of electracy? I checked the webster dictionary, but found nothigng from there. Is it something related to the electric techonology? Why Ulmer call it as an approach rather than a tool? As I read more carefully, trying to make sure if it is the meaning as I guessed. Ulmer said "...I use the website as the medium of instruciton and learing in courses ranging from freshman general education composition courses...(p. xii)", which I think kind of explained the meaning of electracy: first, it has to be applied with the meidum of the Internet, the web; second, it has to be in some instruction or learning process. Or, maybe I should call it digital teaching. However, its meaning is more than these. Ulmer explained further that the purpose of using this approach is "trying to invent" (he also called it 'heuretics') rather than "interpret" (or "hermeneutics", as he called) (p.4). Then to invent what? What is his argument in this more than 300 pages' book? On page 6, he said "...the imaging condition of the spectacle therefore has a positive side, which is that the new media culturepotentially supports and could be designed to augment and enhance individual and collective creativity: that a wired community in princile may be fundamentally 'creativogenic' (p.6)".



So it seems pretty clear that it is a book talking about the application of new media in pedagogy (mainly English or Compostion). No offense, but I am not sure if I should call it an instructive book at this point of time because I checked the comments from readers and got some of these words "If purchasing for a class, I wish you the best of luck an advise you to develop an "Ulmer filter"; if you hang onto his every word, you will surely miss the central points to lead you to complete the project. If you are purchasing for your own personal edification, I simply cannot imagine why. I hope you enjoy media theory. (see amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Internet-Invention-Electracy-Gregory-Ulmer/dp/0321126920)".


Anyway, using google wave in/after class is an updating experimental practice to this book.I introduced this useful tool to some of my firends after the class. They all said they would try it but the funny thing is the friend who introduced it to me said he would not use it anymore. Any emerging thing has to experience the process from the weak to the strong, and the criticism is unavoidable. Google wave is a case in point. As a matter of fact, it is a good conceptual extension to the email, web forum, bolg, and discussion board, etc., even in practice they kind of have similar function. Also, compared with the chatting tools like MSN, Skype, OICQ, it does not require the conversation sides have to be online at the same time. People wrote down their ideas in google wave and leave. Then other people come, read what their group members wrote, add comments or anything they want to say, and leave. Then any other members could come and read and the starter could response them too. Conversation has been recorded for the future reference in text form. Even msn, skype and oicq has the same function in recording people's conversation in text, they could not do it so well as google wave does. Therefore, google wave is especially suitable to be used in the group projects that needs a lot of texts.