A: Scientific research has proven that children that chat a lot on internet also in personal contacts with other children are more sociable than those children that do not! They have more and better friendships in real life. Further I think that chatting all the time among adults could better be spent drinking a beer and chatting with a real person in a pub. Then, there is no hiding behind virtual personalities. — Lucie Zuiderwijk [1 comment]

A: I think it goes both ways. it depends whether you are addicted or not. For me, I found it very interesting how the nature of some of my relationships improved. Without the possible unease during a physical interaction, conversations can move smoother while chatting online. More personal and deeper subject can be approached and talked about with complete transparency. And an online conversation can take place at any time and without any need to set a specific date and moving around schedules and other engagements. When meeting someone online almost everyday, I would miss him/her if not online two or three days in a row. Even though, the spontaneity of a physical conversation is lost, in some cases it is a plus. One has the time to think about things before writing. — Libanus [add comment]

A: Definitely positive. The world has become a smaller place and it is possible to interact with a much wider scale of people. — Marcos Drake [add comment]

A: Both possitive and nagetive, like all things what humans make. There are ones whom abuse it in the negative and probably more whom use it in a postive way. — Evert [add comment]

A: I think the internet had/has an tremendous effect on our lifes. It enhanced our interrelational communication with friends, colleagues, family and especially strangers. It has become easier to convey your thoughts on forums and newsgroups, to send quick notes via email or have a chat on IRC and MSN. The quantity and speed of our communication has increased, and that doesn't mean that the quality has decreased. Communicating by the internet is a different way of communicating and I think you cannot compare the traditional (verbal, non-verbal, writing letters, sending faxes) way of communication with the new one. Users find and will find new solutions for new ways of communicating to express themselves (like using smiley's in email messages an on MSN). Especially the communication with strangers has changed and maybe therefore our identity has changed (why do we use nicknames on forums and MSN?). Many people meet new friends through the internet. Even my sister met her boyfriend/husband (she got married a few months ago) on a dating site. — Bas Leurs [add comment]

A: "Because I know one thing for sure: what is going to be made in these new media, the next decade, is going to change the way we communicate forever" (Max Bruinsma, 2000) — goran [add comment]

A: Everything is getting more impersonal. In place of going out to chat with a friend we just stay home and chat. We are doing business, we are learning, communicating and even making love via Internet. Where is our social life gone? — Iana [add comment]