All this speculation on life without the Internet is rather interesting for the fact that who would be reading these article other than those with the Internet. Of course things get done that would otherwise be left because of surfing the world wide web, but things got left when television was the main source of family entertainment, and in fact is still predicted to be the cause of the end of the world because of the proliferation of the couch potato.
Or is that the gaming junkie with his X Box, Playstation or the current favorite the Wii. The Internet is another convenient scapegoat for all that is wrong with society, but a society that would be lost without the Internet.
As far as I am aware there are those that still tinker with cars, or any mechanical device that needs servicing. There are those that have gardens so good they show them off to anyone who will pay a small fee to charity for the pleasure, but now have the Internet to research on anything they wish.
I do recall a programme, a few years ago, when a family was asked to do without their television for a week, and pursue other forms of entertaining themselves. All went well for the first 3 days, the family did things together, indoors and outdoors, but then all this ‘quality time’ began to grate as programmes were missed and a kind of cold turkey set in. By the end of the week the family nearly knocked each other over to get back to the television and their programmes. People were horrified at this reaction, I didn’t seen anything wrong with it myself. To me it was no different to asking a football (soccer in the USA) fan to miss going to see his favorite team play, or the guy, or woman who liked going down the pub, we all have our little things in life we love to do, many of us surf the web.
I am well aware this is only a speculation, and I don’t think any of the writers of this subject are going to cancel their ISP subscription (please correct me if I’m wrong) for me I would be bereft without my world wide web, or e-mail or any of my computer passions. For as I get older I have no wish to go boozing round the pubs, I like my home comforts after I get in from work. If I want to wallow in nostalgia of some 1960’s pop culture, I go to YouTube. If I want to catch up on any TV programmes (I don’t actually) I can download them. If my grandchildren want to do their homework, (they don’t remember life without the Internet) then they are welcome.
As I write these line I realise how awful it would be without the Internet, despite all the hassle of viruses and spam, and all the other things that ail the web. Yes its interesting to speculate, I for one do not want to catch up on other things to do, if I want to do something different, like going out with my camera and photographing the countryside, I will do it. But I love to have the knowledge that I can, if I wish, share my pictures with the whole world, something I can only do with the Internet.