Students who have successfully finished this module have an overview of current and future concepts of digital communities, specifically of the architectural aspects they are based on. They have acquired a deep understanding of both low and high level aspects of decentralized OSN services and are able to apply the various concepts for creating novel OSN platforms.
The module starts with an introduction to the fundamentals of digital communities and an overview of historical and contemporary online social networks (OSN) and the technological challenges and problems they face. The second part of the module discusses architectures, standards, and protocols of the social web with a clear focus on decentralized and distributed online social networks. This includes architectural concepts for federated, peer-to-peer, and blockchain-based online social network architectures as well as the standards and protocols implemented for inter-platform communication and collaboration. For example, architectures and protocols of various peer-to-peer systems and Blockchains are analyzed and discussed. The third part of the module focuses on decentralized identity management (IDM), discussing various aspects of IDM and existing established and novel services, such as the Domain Name Service (DNS), the Ethereum Name Service (ENS), or Distributed Identifiers (DIDs) and the concepts of verifiable claims. Finally, the module gives an introduction to graph theory, followed by methods and applications of network analysis. The module aims to present a holistic view of the different parts, discussing historic, current state-of-the-art, and novel standards and systems. If applicable, scientific literature (papers) and live coding examples are used during the lecture.
The following course is mandatory for the module: | |||||
Course | Type | Number | Turnus | Language | SWS |
Digital Communities | IV | 0433 L 707 | WS | English | 4 |
Digital Communities (IV): | |||
Effort | Multiplier | Hours | Total |
Presence | 15.0 | 4.0h | 60.0h |
Preparation/ Postprocessing | 15.0 | 8.0h | 120.0h |
The effort of the module adds up to 180.0 hours. Thus, the module comprises 6 credit points.
The topics of this module are taught in a classical lecture, which also envisages a related discussion between students and lecturer. Selected topics are further covered in an exercise course with frequent assignments. Each assignment contains several problems, which are to be solved by the students. During practical lessons, the solutions are then presented and discussed.
Desirable prerequisites for participation in the courses:
Mandatory: basic knowledge of computer science. Desirable: knowledge of graph theory and linear algebra, basic programming skills.
Mandatory requirements for the module test application: Leistungsnachweis: DigitalCommunitiesPrio (Beschränkung der Zahl der Teilnehmer)
Grading | Examination | Language | Duration |
graded | Oral exam | English | 30min |
The following number of semesters is estimated for taking and completing the module: 1 semester.
This module can be started in the following semesters: Winter semester.
The maximum capacity of students is 50.
Enrollment for this course takes place during the first week of the semester. The details of the enrollment procedure are announced during the first lecture.
A script will be provided in electronic form and accompanying material such as research papers, homework, links and presentation slides will be available via the online forum.
This moduleversion is used in the following modulelists: