B@sic lexicon for advanced learners of English
We now live in the midst of a historical communications revolution which has been brought about by the information technology (IT) offered by the so-called information superhighways. Cyberspace has originated a parallel, virtual reality, a sort of second skin that is already redefining our lives and will do so even more in the years ahead. Turning your back on it will make you electronically illiterate. If the invention of the telegraph managed to put one town in contact with another, if the telephone allowed home-to-home communication and if mobiles permit person-to-person interaction, finally the Internet makes communication between everyone possible. When you log on to the net, you are getting connected to a new, decentralised, democratic system of human interaction: the World Wide Web.
To surf the net you need, first of all, to install a browser (Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Explorer are the most popular) in your computer. You also need to have a local server provide you with a phone or fibre-optic cable line, which will give you access to the Internet. Once you get connected, you have several options at your disposal: surfing the World Wide Web in order to look for a particular web site; sending electronic messages to your friends or pen-pals all over the world from your own e-mail box; joining a chat line or a news group to talk, in writing, with other net users in real time; or videoconferencing by using a web cam.
To look for a web site you simply need to type its address (www…) and press the enter key on your keyboard; you can go to other related pages by clicking on the links that most pages offer. If you are looking for the address of a new web page, you can do so with the help of one of the searchers or search engines available. If the web site proves to be of interest, you can either download it and print it on your printer or select and memorise it with a bookmark as one of your favourites. E-mailing is also child's play. After opening your mail box and checking whether you have new mail, you can reply to your messages by typing a new text and, when finished, pressing or clicking on the send key. Your electronic letter will be delivered in a matter of seconds.
As the number of net users grows day by day, so does electronic commerce. Nowadays you can do lots of e-business on the net: setting up your own company; selling or ordering goods by computer (CDs, books, airplane or concert tickets); etc. Likewise, you can find a job; found an association; register at a university; do computer graphics; show your art to a world-wide audience or design your own homepage.
But Internet can also turn addictive if abused by those who forget that virtual communication is no substitute for face-to-face contact. Spending long hours logged on to a chat line, for instance, poses the risk of forming shallow on-line relationships instead of making new friends. Recent psychological surveys have shown that Internet addiction is becoming a new pathology in Western societies. Surfing the net for hours on end might bring about a significant decrease in socialising and lead to depression and loneliness. So, beware! Using the Internet can be great fun and a new way to learn English, but don’t get hooked on it. cmg1998
