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330 Lisa J. Servon and Randal D. PinkettProject Compute is deeply rooted in its community. This connectionensures that projects reflect the interests and concerns of the community.According to Lazarus and Mora, 2000: 28): “inclusion helps ensure that onlinecontent incorporates what the community wants and will use, that contentacknowledges residents’ methods of acquiring information, and that the lookand feel of the content works with the user’s literacy and linguistic levels.”One advantage of the Internet is that it allows for two-way communication ina way that print media and television do not. Users can respond quickly anddirectly to the information posted and communicate with each other abouttopics of interest. Content-oriented CTCs exploit this many-to-many attributeof the Internet, creating space for community members to shape what is availableto them.WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT OUTCOMESTo what extent are CTCs narrowing the technology gap? Many CTCs continueto experiment with programming, and most of the existing research that hasattempted to evaluate the work of these new institutions is exploratory. Giventhe range of goals and organizational types of CTC, it is important not to judgeall CTCs by the same standards. A small access lab in a housing project willhave different goals from a dedicated training organization. In addition, mostCTCs are small, neighborhood-based institutions that have not achieved scale.A clear problem is that these initiatives tend to be fragmented, underresourced,and reliant on a charismatic leader (Graham and Marvin, 2001).Despite these issues, existing research does indicate that CTCs are fillinga critical need for populations that do not have access to computers and othertechnologies at home or work. The 1999 NTIA study reports that “householdswith incomes less than $20,000 and Black households … are twice as likelyto get Internet access through a public library or [CTC] than are householdsearning more than $20,000 or White households” (NTIA, 1999: 78). In asurvey of users of CTC services, CTCNet found that CTCs have been a valuableresource for obtaining job skills and learning about employment opportunities,have had a positive effect on participants’ goals and experiences, andhave fostered a sense of community and personal effectiveness (Chow et al.,1998).A 1997 study indicated that most CTC users do not have access elsewhere.Those that do have access elsewhere go to CTCs to use applications and equipmentthey do not have access to, for social interaction, and for the learnercenteredatmosphere. Evaluations of the California-based Computers in ourFuture Project, which studied member centers, show that these centers “arereaching groups who have normally been intimidated by technology, and