Use Internet wisely

I love the Internet. I have loved it since my first online experience, back in those early, primitive days when AOL was the only online portal available to the public.

The Internet was filled with scientists, which is where it really all began, college professors, and other intelligent computer users--geeks if you will. God I love geeks! Every time I logged on to the Internet, I learned something.

Today, the Internet is becoming a horror. My email inbox is choked with jokes, inspirational messages, words of wisdom, and political rants with a large percentage that amount to no more than the latest Fox News BS.

ENOUGH ALREADY!

The Internet helped elect our President, because he and his handlers were bright enough to tap into the technology available to them. And that practice was not lost on every nut ball and wacko from Alaska to Mexico who wants the next taxpayer-funded gig to make them rich.

With so many political wannabes online, learning is much more difficult and I no longer have faith in things I read.

The result of having everyone use the Internet, the result has diluted information resources and watered-down content. Advertising is worse than it has ever been with startling windows that pop up from seemingly nowhere just to startle and annoy me. They are never in an obvious place, so it is difficult to know how to turn them off. I usually just hit the mute button on my keyboard until I can find which of my multiple windows contains the offending ad and where it is located.

Even my beloved Google is no longer what it was. Being number one no longer means much as far as quality is concerned. Too many people who think they are writers who are more interested in search engine optimization and correct keyword placement than research. Plagiarism runs rampant online. Worse yet, the content that writers steal and copy is often times incorrect.

I'm tired of email jokes by well-meaning friends. So many of them think they understand my sense of humor. I hate to admit this, but my sense of humor is often times commensurate with what is going on that day. What I may get a kick out of one day may annoy me to the hilt the next. For the most part, I just don't have time to read jokes all day. I am a writer. I use my computer for work, not jokes. Besides, if I want to read a joke, I will Google 'jokes' where I will find just what appeals to me at the time. Funny, I never do that. Maybe I don't have time for jokes!!!

Then there are those inspirational messages with the beautiful music and glittery shapes. If I needed inspiration, I would turn off the computer and read a book or watch TV or look out the window. If I wanted to see NASA photos, I'd search 'NASA.'

My inbox is filled with newsletters, correspondence, and other items that are essential to me. There is no room for jokes and well-meaning inspiration.

But the worst is the political crap. I consider myself a student of politics. I love it. Trouble is, most of the junk that is sent to me is from people who know nothing about politics, and brazenly claim to hate it. So send me political emails?

One word of advice; if you don't like politics, don't forward political rhetoric to me and above all, don't send me spam that is verifiably wrong.

One last message...

If my inbox is any example of the kind of election season we are going to have, I cringe. We get the government we deserve. But I don't deserve it. Do me a favor, if you are not bright enough to understand the issues, don't vote.

MySpace and Facebook, treasured communication tools

I just had a conversation with a friend on Facebook about the benefit of social media.

For me, MySpace and Facebook present an opportunity to "reach out and touch someone," just like the slogan in the 1980's for long distance phone giant AT&T. Ma Bell is still an important part of everyday life, but she has her competition today. Personally, I'd rather do my reaching out through cyberspace.

For my part, I enjoy how social networking sites like MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter, all of which I use, has allowed me to connect to others in a way that not long ago wasn't even possible.

My family is small. Like many families, we aren't very good at keeping in-touch. We have even slacked off on that annual Christmas card exchange, once a time-honored tradition. Also, my husband and I have recently moved to another state, so we left behind many good friends and family.

Communication is so important. MySpace and Facebook have allowed me to link with cousins I haven't seen in years. I've re-connected with friends from our former neighborhood. I've even found some friends from high school that I haven't even thought about in years. Just seeing their names and an updated picture of them, brings me back to those carefree days of my youth. Memories long buried have come flooding back. I've begun regular communication with my brother who I rarely see.

My children have accounts, so we can supplement our phone conversations, with our on-line chats. I can see pictures of my grandkids readily, thanks to the advancement of digital photography and the ease of sharing. It is like being a part of their lives in a way that might not have been possible any other way.

I know there are drawbacks, but for me, social media has been a communication tool and a very positive experience.

Disappointed in Classmates.com

I'm very disappointed by Classmates.com

I just love the internet! Since the days of playing Trivia online at Q-Link with the Commodore 64 in the early 1980's, I have been enamored with the global potential of linking with others via computer. The internet has done so much for what Q-Link dubbed the 'People Connection.'

Then in the early days when AOL was about the only way to access this brave new world, and then by the painfully slow dialup connection, the internet was filled with free games, free software, free access. Call me old, but I remember how NetZero advertised its free access?

One of those free sites was Classmates.com. It was very cool to sign on and link up with old friends from high school. There were names buried in the back of our conscious minds that we hadn't even thought about in years and never dreamed we would be in touch with again. It was so long ago that it was hard to even remember if the names we saw were friend or foe. It really didn't matter. It was just nice to recognize their name. And then to put a face to that name was even more satisfying--like a memory test that we've passed with flying colors.

While I have thrilled at meeting new friends and now revel in connecting with those who had somehow slipped out of my daily life, the internet has had its disappointments.

At the risk of sounding like Michael Moore in his latest movie about the negatives of Capitalism, I am disappointed in how everyone and their uncle wants my money I don't have. I get annoyed with all the marketing that is done online, and I get frustrated by how what used to be free online is now charging a fee. But, the one thing that I really am appalled by is the road taken by Classmates.com.

I was once a real fan of Classmates.com, but no more. Not only was this a free site when I joined it, but I even told friends about it. It was a wonderful website. But instead of using advertising on the site to pay its bills, the site uses other 'tactics' to try to entice membership. I can't believe anyone falls for it.

I get emails all the time that say, so-and-so signed your guestbook and if you want to know who it is, give us money. Call me cheap, but I refuse to pay for such a thing, especially when there are other and better ways to achieve the same result. Facebook has done a far better job in connecting classmates than Classmates.com. I have really enjoyed my Facebook connections from high school. Reconnecting has been wonderful on so many levels.

Shame on you Classmates.com.

Internet writing

Internet writing

As a former journalist I have some real concerns about internet writing. It seems everybody's doing it, but is everybody qualified to do it? This should be of concern all internet users.

Not only is it difficult to earn decent pay by writing on the internet, but I see another problem as well.

Catering to Google

I am a big fan of Google. I too have my Google adsense account and try to use the proper meta tags. I want to please Google too. After all, it is Google that hosts this blog. But, it seems that writers are more interested in how Google perceives your work than facts and information internet readers are seeking. This is akin to newspapers catering to advertisers instead of their loyal readers. And look what happened to them. Google is a business. It should cater to advertisers, but writers should not.

Folks seem to be more interested in SEO (Search Engine Optimization), page rank, and visibility, than they are about checking facts.

Citizen Journalists

For example, I came across an article this morning, written by a citizen journalist, on one of those writing sites that touts 'write what you know.' The article was clearly her opinion. What she said could be construed as being detrimental to the person she wrote about. I hope he doesn't sue. Clearly her opinion, the article was presented as if it was fact, in a newspaper style. Now, I've been known to have strong opinions myself, but only with supporting evidence and an opposing viewpoint.

Her story was later picked up by a blog that quoted her, giving false credibility to her story.

I've also come across researching issues only to find the same misinformation copied over and over and over again.

A call to internet writers

Consider this a call to all internet writers -- check your facts before you publish anything. Is the information you are publishing reliable enough for your child to use in his/her term paper?

I love the internet and I don't want to see it filled with garbage. What we write lasts forever. I have found the internet to be an incredible resource. I would hate to see it tainted with bad information. Let's all band together as writers and do whatever we can to ensure that what makes it to the internet is responsible, factual, and legitimate.

Internet responsibility

I have been doing a little on-line writing lately, which requires learning about new things and researching issues of which I have very little or no knowledge. I love learning new things. I treat learning as almost a hobby. But it is vital to be able to trust what I know.

I am troubled by some things I have discovered.

The Internet often mirrors real life -- the good and the bad. My personal and professional experiences over the last 25 years have shown me that if a lie is told often enough, it is often taken as fact. That has certainly been a hallmark in the State of Illinois' quest to build the Peotone Airport, my personal poster child for things amiss.

The internet was begun by a bunch of geeks and scholars. Today, all people have embraced it.

There is an influx of on-line writing, citizen journalism, blogging, new website, and a general on-line presence. On-line writing sites encourage everybody to try their hand at writing. They advertise that you can earn money by writing what you know. That is great!

But in doing so, individuals get caught up in a competition with other writers to write more, and even earn more. The result is often more quantity than quality. Those stories written by wannabe journalists are placed on the internet for the world to see, for young students to use as research projects, or for other writers.

Some writers simply regurgitate Wikipedia articles, put their name to it and go on to the next project. They give little thought to the reality that wikipedia is a work in progress. Often times, wiki writers get their information the same way, from something that has been posted to the internet. They think it is fact, but it may not be.

New articles may not be 100% accuracy. Then along come an eager new writer anxious to score another article. They are more intent on satisfying their google page rank and parroting incorrect information than doing more digging to verify what they are writing. And like the old game of telephone, on and on it goes until nothing can be trusted for accuracy. I don't want to see that happen.

I love the Internet. It has been one of my favorite developments in the 20th century. It offers scads of information to teach new things, or in my case, replenish some of what I've forgotten. It offers new opportunities, potential for earnings, introduced new careers, and countless other things. I would hate to see it become tainted by too much bad information.

So, in the same context as real life, we must take responsibility for everything we write. If internet users are going to act like journalists, we must behave like journalists - dig, dig, dig for the truth.

The same goes true for users of social networking sites like MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, and others. Know that what you write, could last forever. Make sure it is what you really want to say. Use good common sense, do your research, be responsible, and think before you write. If that is done by all users of the internet, this medium will continue to be the wonder that it is.