Happy Birthday, Internet!

The Web at 25 in the U.S. -- a report by the Pew Research Center

The overall verdict: The internet has been a plus for society and an especially good thing for individual users.

Some highlights of the report:

• 53% of internet users say the internet would be, at minimum, very hard to give up, compared with 38% in 2006
• 36% of internet users say email would be very hard to give up
• 56% of internet users say they have seen an online group come together to help a person or a community solve a problem
• 67% of internet users say their online communication with family and friends has generally strengthened those relationships, while 18% say it generally weakens those relationships

“Overall, when you add up all the advantages and disadvantages of the internet, would you say the internet has mostly been a good thing or a bad thing for you?” In response to this question, 90% of internet users say that overall the internet had been a good thing for them and 6% said it was a bad thing.