wORLD wIDE wEB And Me

Hi guys, my name is Vedant and I am a graduate student in Information Science and Technology with concentration in Human-Computer Interaction. As far as I remember the AOL Instant Messenger was launched which got quite popular when I was in 7th grade. I used the web only for chatting with friends and making new friends. 10 years have passed since then and the web has come a long way. As of today, most of my daily activities are carried out on the computer. My work is virtually "paperless" and the web helps me coordinate all that.
Apart from that, I am also working as a Reseach Assistant. My research is about virtual worlds like Second Life and what leads people to personalize the appearence of their avatars.

How do I use internet?

I use the internet for the following:-
1. Keeping up-to-date with e-mails.
2. Doing literature search for my research.
3. Getting information about esoteric stuff, like ancient philosophies.
4. Learning guitar licks.
5. Keeping accounts and online banking statements.
6. Socializing (on the internet)...coz we r in rolla ;-)

Whether its good or not?

I think the web has more positive effects than negative effects.

Since web 2.0 has become a part of our society we don’t see ourselves knocking at our neighbor’s door to say hi the first time we move in, unlike early days when your neighbors also were your best friends. We can see that it is definitely affecting our sense community.
At the same time, we must keep in mind that none of the new technological innovation in the last century or two have arrived without any negative effects.
Web 2.0 has made the computer screen a window into a new dimension. It has changed the way we learn, indulge in entertainment and even the way we socialize.
To emphasize on my point, I can tell you a short story of mine and how web 2.0 helps us in making distant learning a better tool for acquiring knowledge. Recently I was fascinated with a Spanish Gypsy music called Flamenco. This sort of music has absolutely no notation and has been passed on from one generation to another verbally. Hence, in order to learn this form of music, one must travel all the way to Barcelona or Seville, Spain, stay there with flamenco artists and learn; which is not quite practical being a masters’ student in the US. So, one day I just log onto “www.youtube.com” and I find videos of flamenco artists give instructions to playing flamenco online. 2 months have passed and I can now play quite some Flamenco without having to travel half way across the world. Also, the process of learning was expedited because I could do it within my own time and space, no limitations at all.
In case you do not hold the same belief as me, you are welcome to post your argument and I will be more than willing to answer.