Net Locality: Why Location Matters in a Networked World

"Gordon and Souza e Silva posit that human understanding of location must refer not just to physical spaces but also to Web-based information linked to these spaces. They consider this information intrinsic to the cultural and social construction of space...They explore personal, social, and cultural implications and consequences of this "networked locality," including impacts on social interaction, urban living and community, and conceptions of privacy. Endnotes and references appear at the conclusion of each chapter. Summing up: Recommended. All levels/libraries." (Choice, 1 October 2011)

“Net Locality is a superb and thought-provoking guide to the merging of communication, information and location.”

Steve Jones, University of Illinois at Chicago

"If anyone still believes in the death of distance, now there is a definite response. Gordon and de Souza e Silva not only confirm that place continues to matter, they also dismantle the old physical/virtual dichotomy and clarify the relationship between bits and atoms.”

Marcus Foth, Queensland University of Technology

“Services such as Facebook Places, Foursquare, Glympse, Loopt, WikiMe, GeoGraffiti, and Google Maps and dozens of others mean that we can attach information to locations, discover new dimensions to the world around us and engage in social networking via mobile devices, recalibrating our privacy as we go along.  Gordon and de Souza e Silva’s work helps us to understand how location-based services will change our daily lives."

Rich Ling, IT University of Copenhagen