ABSTRACT
This chapter uses a survey of New England undergraduates and case studies of Skype to explore how media ecologies are producing new forms of visual communication with mobile devices. It briefly traces the history of video chatting to explore why it has only recently become popular. The chapter highlights the important role of the imagination in the way in which the future was conceptualized as this influences the way in which technology is then developed. Misunderstanding of the dimensions of desired human communication practices led to funds being poorly invested and perhaps even impeded the progress of the field. The chapter then turns its attention to three emerging forms of visual communication, each of which was made possible due to changes in mobile video-chatting technologies. These new practices, which seem to be spreading, are, first, virtual cohabitation; second, virtual accompaniment; and third, the inclusion of new interactants. The rapidly emerging mobile ecological environment has created vast new interactional opportunities and many creative modes of harnessing distant interpersonal resources to address local problems. These new practices further demonstrate the way in which emotional attachment, through relationships and families, allow micro-utilization of time and attention that would otherwise not be available. In sum, then, the chapter demonstrates, through case studies and historical analysis, the manner in which the tapping of human resources has provided conversants with a rich array of options to resolve issues. These issues include not only aspects such as technological distancing but also the exertion of user agency through constructing innovative and self-determined forms of relationship building.
