Krzysztof Janc

Geography of Hyperlinks—Spatial Dimensions of Local Government Websites

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to determine whether the connections in cyberspace relate in any way to borders as understood in geographical terms. This goal requires testing Toblers First Law of Geography. Analyses of hyperlinks come under the domain of webometrics, which seeks to answer the fundamental question: Is it possible to measure the Web? This study identified all websites which have hyperlinked to the websites of local authorities in the region of Lower Silesia. These websites were classified by the geographical location of the entity determining their content and thematic category. On the whole, it can be said that connections in cyberspace largely reflect actual functional borders. However, the main functional node dominating cyberspace is a countrys capital.

Visibility and Connections among Cities in Digital Space

Abstract Alongside traditional approaches to defining the positions and prestige of cities, their functioning and visibility in digital space have recently gained attention. The objective of this paper is to describe the visibility of cities and their mutual connections in digital space. This study used the Google search engine to obtain information on Google-indexed web sites concerning Polish cities. Socioeconomic data were analyzed to identify the relationships and similarities between online and offline worlds. The results support conclusions about two important problems associated with such analyses: temporal changes and the relationships between online and traditional measures describing individuals’ socioeconomic activity.

A Global Approach to the Spatial Diversity and Dynamics of Internet Domains

Abstract The objective of this paper is to describe the place of individual countries in digital space through the lens of Internet domains and specific websites. We will discuss the global geography of domains in reference to states and other entities of spatial organization, and changes in the positions of individual websites. These issues will be approached with an awareness of the significant changes taking place in the functioning of the Web, particularly cyberbalkanization. This study mainly used data from Alexa rankings, the best free source of information available on the behavior of Internet users. One conclusion is the clear U.S. dominance over other countries in relation to number of most popular domains. Despite the clear U.S. dominance, the BRIC countries—Brazil, Russia, India, and China—play an increasingly significant role in the geography of domains. The trends discussed in this article are related to the so‐called balkanization of the Internet. Regulations of its functioning and the growing importance of national websites and search engines have contributed to deepening the differences between Internet users in different countries.

How big is the digital divide between rural and urban areas in Poland

in view of the development opportunities, the rural areas have a lower potential when compared to cities and towns. this disadvantage is caused mainly by smaller population densities, greater distances from urban markets as well as information, work, education, and most other resources. Seen from the perspective of the rural areas the internet means a possibility of equal development chances between the rural and city inhabitants. access to the internet means availability of work (telework), administration, education, services offered on-line that are impossible to obtain elsewhere, of different kinds of databases, entertainment as well as contact with other users. thus, both social and economic aspects can be distinguished. these aspects can be studied in the digital divide context, which the authors try to investigate in this paper.

Związki pomiędzy światem on-line i off-line na przykładzie widoczności oraz powiązań pomiędzy miastami w cyberprzestrzeni

The purpose of this paper is to discuss cyberspatial visibility of Polish cities and their connections. The visibility of cities is determined based on the results obtained by Googling phrases connected with cities. The connections in cyberspace are approximated using the analysis of cooccurrence of terms (shared presence) connected with pairs of cities. On the basis of the research, it can be stated that the position and the connections between the cities in cyberspace are closely related to those found in the real world. The research indicates that the information analysis of Web resources can be applied to determine the significance of cities and connections between them.

Regional social structures in the European Union.

The paper aims to describe regional differentiation of social structures in Europe. In addiction, the article analyses distance between Polish regions and European ones, as well as the relation between socio-economic development. The following research paper uses the Hellwig’s multivariate classification method. The most advantageous social structure is demonstrated by the metropoles. The Central-Western Europe and the most of the Mediterranean countries have the weakest social structures. Relation between social structures and socio-economic development is positive and fairly strong. All in all, main conclusion is that poorly developed social structures in new members of the Union, inherited from the socialist system, are crucial factors determining low level of development.