Suitable for students, teachers, designers, and scholars interested in using ethnographic methods, this title provides practical and detailed techniques for ethnographic research customized to reflect the specific issues of online virtual worlds, both game and nongame.

"What does 'being there to know there' mean in the virtual world? 'Not much, ' I used to think! Maybe 'virtual ethnography' was an oxymoron? This book changed my mind. Most surprising is how the authors' distillation of ethnography for virtual worlds reveals its essential and classical features. This book renews the craft of ethnography for all of the social sciences in virtual and physical worlds alike, making us think differently about both."--Paul Willis, author of Learning to Labor: How Working Class Kids Get Working Class Jobs

"This might be the best thing I have ever read about ethnography. I love this book."--Lori Kendall, author of Hanging Out in the Virtual Pub

"Written by a very authoritative team, this is a distinctive guide, rich in practical advice grounded in the authors' experiences."--Christine Hine, author of Virtual Ethnography

"I would . . . enthusiastically recommend this book to people interested in virtual world and other digital media ethnography--not just as a handbook of method--but as a compilation of the collective wisdom of these four very experienced and highly respected ethnographers--and as a thoroughly good read."---Jeni Paay, Computer Supported Cooperative Work