Analyzing CMC content for what?

Computer mediated communication (CMC) refers to communication between individuals and among groups via networked computers. Such forms of communication can be asynchronous or synchronous and serve a wide variety of useful functions ranging from administration to building understanding and knowledge. As such there are many reasons for interest in analyzing the content of CMC. Foremost among these is the opportunity that the written text is able to offer for various types of analysis. Others have to do with the need to understand human communication patterns in this medium, their conventions, form and functions, the nature of the subtext within it, and how people derive meaning and understanding in such contexts. The papers in this special section of this journal have attempted to closely examine the subject of CMC content analysis. It includes examination of what is involved in the analysis of CMC content, schemes and frameworks for analyzing them, and knowledge building within such contexts.