The Internet

Do you know which multiuser network has revolutionized the world? I introduce to you this network, the internet; no other computer network can touch this, because it is simply the best.

The internet has many advantages such communication and e- commerce however this global network has a few disadvantages such as its viruses and theft of bill payment and personal information.

Transition: Now let us explore the first advantage of this global network: communication

Usually it takes days, weeks, months or even years for a letter to be delivered. The internet has however revolutionized communication with the introduction of emailing; now it is possible to send a message to any part of the world within the matter of seconds".

From updating your status on Facebook to tweeting with your friends on twitter. Social networking has transformed the means by which we communicate, enabling us to share multimedia and personal information with friends.

Another popular emerging form of communication is IRC: Internet Relay Chat. The book Log on to It defines this as a real-time system that lets you talk with as many people as you like, grouped together in channels, using text based chat". Modern, Internet-wide, based messaging clients have been developed that offer many more features than just instant messaging, the most popular are Yahoo Messenger and Windows Live Messenger.

The internet as also provides videoconferencing. Buzzle.com defines Videoconferencing as a form of technology in which two or more individuals are able to communicate with each other using two way video transmissions. It has provided new means for people to communicate especially corporate entities and the education sector.

Transition: let us look at the second advantage, e - commerce.

With the introduction of e commerce the business industry has evolved. The article "What is e-Commerce" from Ezine Articles state that e - commerce is the "use of web based systems to support buying, selling and customer service.There are many companies offering products and services on the internet. One just has to select or bid for a particular product, perform some financial transactions and the product will be delivered to their front door.

"Having looked at the advantages of the internet, we will now seek to uncover the disadvantages of this network.

The personal information of internet users is being made vulnerable to theft and misuse due to various illegal methods and practices. The New York Times article What's Russian for 'Hacker'? " states that In 2005, Russians broke into the State of Rhode Island Web site and then brazenly proclaimed that they had swiped credit card information from 53,000 transactions". This goes to show that there are hackers out there that are able to perform these