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The Effect of Computers and the Internet

Yvonne Chang

I am sitting in front of my computer with a cup of coffee as I am typing my writing. It is 11:30 p.m. the night before the deadline of this assignment and I am still working on it. I am being distracted from my work because my friends keep sending instant messages to me. I have to be relaxed at the same time, so I play my favorite music by using the Real player. I cannot believe that I have been sitting here for more than two hours, but I just cannot leave my computer. If you are a college student, what I described may sound familiar to you. It is amazing that how computers and the Internet affect the way we live.

First of all, computers and the Internet affect the way we communicate with one another. In the past, we often used phones or letters to communicate with people. Now, going “online” is a new way to strengthen and expand our social relationship. We talk with friends via the MSN messenger. We send birthday cards to them by using e-mail. We go to online chat rooms to make new friends who may live on the other side of the world. Computers and the Internet certainly provide us a new way to communicate with others all around the world and increase the opportunity for social interactions.

Second, computers and the Internet affect the way we learn. The Internet serves as a database containing a large amount of information. It is a resource for self-study. We go online to search for information by typing keywords on Google and to get latest news from online newspaper websites. We have access to almost all information in the world right under our fingers. Through the Internet, we can learn a lot of things at home. The Internet opens a door for us to explore the world and acquire knowledge.

Finally, computers and the Internet affect the way we entertain ourselves. The Internet entertains us by providing information about sports, games, movies, fashion, etc. We go online to check for jokes or funny stories that make us laugh. We use the MSN messenger or email to send and receive music and pictures from others. We store those files on computers and play them anytime we like. Besides, we can play online games with others all around the world or download all kinds of computer games for free. With computers and the Internet, we can make our life full of fun.

Computers and the Internet have affected us in every way, most importantly in our social life, our learning, and our entertainment. Now we have new way to communicate with others, to explore the world and acquire knowledge, and to have fun at home. It is amazing that we get so many benefits from computers and the Internet.