Time and the Internet at the Turn of the Millennium

Abstract

Recent reflections on the possible changes which the Internet may have on our concept of time have focused on notions of `timeless time' (from Castells), `absolute time for everybody' (from Negroponte), and `virtual time'. A more considered view of temporality, drawn from sociology and anthropology, as well as the history of the establishment of consensus on time keeping, can provide more insight. We take a view informed by research on six dimensions of temporality which govern organizational practices to show how the Internet can be understood in terms of temporal behaviour.