Text C. SOCIALIZING ON THE INTERNET

Over the past two decades, as the price of the computing has plunged, the personal computer enabled people to be more productive and gain better access to information. Now, as the price of communications falls, the PC makes it easier for people to reach each other, too.

Electronic inboxes are flooded with e-mail. Electronic “chat” and community participation are on the rise. Chat is a fascinating phenomenon. It takes place in imaginary “rooms”, where like-minded people congregate.

Typically, people type messages back and forth; usually to correspondents they’ve never met in person. Numerous people can communicate with each other simultaneously, and there are no long-distance charges the way there would be with a telephone. Compared to a telephone conversation, the technical quality of chat seems low. But it’s a raging success despite its limitations because the human drive to connect with other people is so strong.

Actually, the fact that people must type their messages – and can edit what they say before firing back a reply – is an attraction of chat. A version that allowed voice communication was a flop. Perhaps, people were intimidated when they had to speak in a nice, intelligible fashion.

Chat rooms are filled with all kinds of people who appreciate or need the convenience of socializing from home – easily, safely, and without getting dressed up.

“We’ve had a breakdown of neighborhoods in many societies, with everything becoming generic,” one student of chat rooms told. “People are looking in cyberspace for new avenues of self-expression.”

Although I don’t get to spend much time in chat rooms, I know people who do. One is a friend who is passionate about Beanie Babies – the craze for miniature stuffed animals. She spends an amazing amount of time chatting about them and trading them online.

A Microsoft manager who designs tools for online socializing told she had started researching chat rooms and soon found herself engrossed for two or three hours a day – to her utter surprise. “You end up having very real relationships,” she said.

Anonymity is allowed in most chat rooms. Some allow people to make up a new name for themselves every time they visit, a practice which can lead to rude or irresponsible behavior because there are few repercussions for antisocial activity. When people must use a consistent name, even a fictitious one like “Sissy” or “Metal X”, they build a reputation they protect with responsible behavior.

Chat and other forms of socialization on the Internet are bound to evolve. The specialists are intrigued by efforts to create “virtual worlds”, imaginary spaces in which participants choose a visual image to represent themselves. These “avatars”, as they are called, sometimes resemble the person but frequently don’t. People can approach each other and make conversation, or retreat to a corner to be alone or eavesdrop.

(After Bill Gates)

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I. Read the text ‘Socializing on the Internet’ and find the English equivalents to the following words and word combinations.

Получить доступ, облегчить, испытать подъем, единомышленники, встречаться лично, отправить ответ, быть сильно увлеченным, удивительное явление, по сравнению с чем-либо, стремление человека, быть наполненным чем-либо, способы самовыражения.

II. Find in the text the information about chat rooms. Why do many people appreciate them?

III. Think over the questions you would like to ask Bill Gates. Write them down. You may send your questions to Bill Gates by e-mail. The address is: askbill@microsoft.com.

IV. Make up the plan of the text. Retell the text according to your plan.

V. Read the following text and say what your opinion of the problem is.

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