Check out the interesting special article in CNN.com: Online Revolution. Don't miss out their article, "The Internet transforms modern life"
I am happy myself to see that Internet is now part of modern life to people to do - tasks on Internet in every day's things. I remember a long time ago, ten years step back in 1995, when I was high school student, that year I first got new personal computer, Compaq with 125 MHZ, 16 MB RAM and least 2 GB hard drive. I still never forget about what my life looks like back in 1995. I would imagine myself the compare between ten years ago and today's:
1995: I spend lot of time reading the newspaper everyday in the morning. I even read this repeatedly later in the afternoon.
2005: I spend very little time reading the newspaper only in the morning. I tend to go the news sites on Internet most of time.
1995: I do check the weather on newspaper in the mornings and television.
2005: I check the weather on-line. I rarely check them on the newspaper and television.
1995: I have to contact my friends for the plans - through in person or on TTY phone.
2005: Contacting my friends through instant messenger and email instantly. I rarely use TTY this year.
1995: Sometimes I go garage sale, yard sale to find something goodies and cheap.
2005: One word - eBay.
1995: I subscribe the video game magazines through mail; anxious to find the reviewers and upcoming new video games. I repeatedly read the same video game magazine like 20 times a month.
2005: I still subscribe the magazines, but reduced down to 2 or 3 times repeat to read this. I tend to check tons of reviewers and upcoming new stuff of videogames on online daily.
1995: Tend to find the definitions of the word in dictionary and encyclopedia on heavy, hard books found in bookcases in our living/office room.
2005: I tend to find the dictionary of Merriam-Webster and encyclopedia of Wikipedia for free.
1995: Ask friend for the address and directions to place, and need the map book to figure it out.
2005: Ask friend for the address, and find the result of directions in Google Maps.
1995: Never own film camera.
2005: Owned digital camera, snapped over six thousand pictures since 2003, storage in my computer/external storage drive, and post instantly through Flickr. It has become as my photographer hobbyist.
After all, 10 years ago, few people imagined it wouldn't be long before you would able get a satellite picture of a city a continent in Google Maps or read the local news from three time zones away or even order pizza without talking to the folks a few blocks away or automated regularly online bills instead lick the stamp on envelope bills to send the mail.
Yet again, I still call this today as Information Age.
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