Today internet is a well recognized research tool. It provides us formal information such as news and journal articles in an instant. What I have overlooked until today was its role as a provider of informal information.
For example, my case study of a gated apartment complex near Seoul was greatly facilitated by the internet. It provided me answers to the initial questions following to my field trip which were not covered by existing formal information. Residents of the gated apartment complex have exchanged voices on gating in internet forums. The forums effectively store remarks of verbal nature by residents and their leaders which would have been soon forgotten in the pre-internet era. The main answers I extracted from the forums are as follows.
Q. What is the main reason behind this unusual gating in a Korean city and in the specific neighborhood?
A. Before gating, residents suffered vandalism and nuisances for a year mainly caused by some youth and intoxicated people spilled from a nearby commercial zone. Neighbors from outside used in-complex outdoor sports facilities and kindergartens brought children for picnic. The residents became fed up with nuisances and extra cost to repair broken equipment. Their unique gating in the neighborhood is explained by proximity to commercial zone served by metro which draws a lot of people.
(However, a new question arises because an old apartment complex even closer to the commercial zone didn't go gated. Moreover other similarly located apartment complexes are numerous in Korea but they didn't opt for gating.)
Q. Why is the door of shopping mall leading to the apartment complex left without digital lock?
A. The residents originally wanted to close that door, too. However, shop owners fiercely opposed to installing digital lock because they thought the lock would reduce inflow of residents to the shopping mall. The residents couldn't ignore their opposition because the shopping mall is a part of the complex (danji).
Q. 12 gates seemed too many for an effective control of access.
A. There were attempts to remove less important gates but the residents living close to those gates opposed to the removal not to make detours.
For example, my case study of a gated apartment complex near Seoul was greatly facilitated by the internet. It provided me answers to the initial questions following to my field trip which were not covered by existing formal information. Residents of the gated apartment complex have exchanged voices on gating in internet forums. The forums effectively store remarks of verbal nature by residents and their leaders which would have been soon forgotten in the pre-internet era. The main answers I extracted from the forums are as follows.
Q. What is the main reason behind this unusual gating in a Korean city and in the specific neighborhood?
A. Before gating, residents suffered vandalism and nuisances for a year mainly caused by some youth and intoxicated people spilled from a nearby commercial zone. Neighbors from outside used in-complex outdoor sports facilities and kindergartens brought children for picnic. The residents became fed up with nuisances and extra cost to repair broken equipment. Their unique gating in the neighborhood is explained by proximity to commercial zone served by metro which draws a lot of people.
(However, a new question arises because an old apartment complex even closer to the commercial zone didn't go gated. Moreover other similarly located apartment complexes are numerous in Korea but they didn't opt for gating.)
Q. Why is the door of shopping mall leading to the apartment complex left without digital lock?
A. The residents originally wanted to close that door, too. However, shop owners fiercely opposed to installing digital lock because they thought the lock would reduce inflow of residents to the shopping mall. The residents couldn't ignore their opposition because the shopping mall is a part of the complex (danji).
Q. 12 gates seemed too many for an effective control of access.
A. There were attempts to remove less important gates but the residents living close to those gates opposed to the removal not to make detours.
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