September 23, 2004

Web Withdrawal

Yahoo! has released the results of a fascinating survey showing serious "web withdrawal" for people deprived of Internet access. The Internet Deprivation Study concludes that for some people, carrying on a normal routine without the Web is almost impossible, because the Internet's tools and services have become firmly ingrained in their daily lives.

Regardless of age, household income or ethnic background, all participants in the ethnographic research study experienced feelings of loss, frustration and disconnectedness when cut off from the online world. Users described their time offline as "feeling left out of the loop," having to "resist temptation," and missing their "private escape time" during the day.

Well, one can only experience withdrawal if one is addicted. I love the Internet and obviously am actively connected almost always. But there's a time and a place for everything. Web withdrawal is as bad as heroin withdrawal only because some folks have succumbed to the temptation of the wickedness of cyberspace.

Seriously, you can't be "wired" all the time. With a little down time, there's no addiction and no withdrawal. Some of these users should get psychological counseling, IMHO.

 Posted by glenn

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