First Words (the coughing post below doesn't count as one)

A few minutes ago, I went to Google and searched for images for the word 'web', expecting to find pictures of spiderwebs. Albeit unrealistic in present day and time, for me, the word 'web' brings to mind this:



Instead, I got pages after pages of pictures depicting the Internet and its various technicalities, such as this:



I suppose it's easy to see the resemblance between the two, but whilst one is an intricate wonder of nature, the other is a man-made phenomenon that has seeped so thoroughly into each and every one of our lives that we dare not imagine life without it.

I won't pretend to understand the technical terms wikipedia and various other websites are throwing at me now, just like I can't pretend I've retained a lot of information from my poly days. *rolls up my Business IT Diploma and locks it away regretfully* So I'm going to look at this from my own layman point of view.

With the Internet, information, entertainment, contact, obligations and work all comes at the click of the mouse (and yes perhaps some clicking on the keyboard but let's keep things simple for now and leave it at the mouse, Douglas Engelbart didn't invent something so marvelous for it to be overlooked).

At this insane hour when normal human beings are supposed to be sound asleep but I'm unfortunately quite awake, I'm heartened to be able to :

1) turn on my computer
2) connect to the Internet through wireless RIGHT AWAY
3) go on MSN to chat with other nocturnal creatures (but no I'm not one)
4) google up information about the Internet and the likes
5) login to blogger to attempt to do my weekly blog assignment
6) check up on words that I'm unsure of on the dictionary
7) entertain myself with music from haoting and imeem

All of the above, and perhaps many more unmentioned, are things that you and I do in our everyday lives. We've gotten so used to it that it all comes without thinking. Our generation have grown up WITH the Internet, and the next generation will grow up knowing next to nothing before the web 2.0 we've all embraced and grown reliant on.

The reason for the significance of the Internet? Humanity's needs for immediacy, convenience and contact. We no longer have the patience to slowly wait out the obligatory processes of everyday life, we want results and gratification at the snap of our fingers, and above it all, we need to be in constant contact with the outside world at all times if only to convince ourselves that we are not alone.

And yes the Internet does ensure that we are not alone. What with blogs and social networking sites and MSN and Skype providing their services to ensure that everyone stays connected (and get connected to even more people), with geographical boundaries and limitations of time overcomed, the Internet is therefore very much a huge gigantic virtual spiderweb spanning the surface of Earth and beyond, with every point a bookmark linking everyone and everything together.

Just in case you were wondering, I finally found one picture of a spiderweb on page 7 of the Google Image search results for the word 'web'.

Humanity is not totally lost to nature...yet.

=)