Aside from DU, what is the greatest feature of the internet?

[Fenris]

Poll question: Aside from DU, what is the greatest feature of the internet?

[madrchsod]

1. all of the above

[starroute]

2. The greatest feature is the Internet itself

Getting holistic here . . . the Internet is the physical manifestation of the noosphere. It represents the accumulated knowledge (not much wisdom yet, but we'll get there), the personality, and the playfulness of humanity. It's us looking at ourselves through a million different sets of eyes and seeing ourselves looking back. It's everything the human race is aiming for, and we've barely scratched the surface so far.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

3. As a translator, I have to say that the Internet has

revolutionized my profession.

I can work for clients in any country (the Japanese, fortunately, pay the best rates), If a word comes up that is not in any standard dictionary, I can do a search on it and find enough context to figure out the meaning or even an outright definition in a specialized glossary. If I'm translating the publicity for an art exhibit, I can go to the museum or gallery's website and see what the artworks look like, which is great, since catalogue descriptions are often written in a verbose, woo-woo style. If I'm translating a product manual, I can go to the company's website and find pictures of all the models that the brochure covers. If a non-Japanese name (Turkish pianists, anyone?) comes up written in Japanese phonetic script, I can google possible spellings until I find something that fits. I recently subtitled a TV drama, and the client sent me the whole thing as a series of video files that I could view with QuickTime. I'm on two mailing lists on which Japaense-English translators from around the world discuss tricky words and professional issues such as non-paying clients or continuing education.

I started out in 1994, just as the Internet was coming into its own, and the professional journals were still trying to convince veteran translators that yes, they really were going to need to switch from typewriter to computer.

I can't imagine being a translator in the old days.

[Parrcrow]

4. selected shopping naked

someone had to

[BritishHuman]

5. What about "grossing out your friends with sick photos"?

The ever popular game.

"Hey Bob - type <word> into Google and press I'm Feeling Lucky."

"Okay... EEEEEWWWWWWW!!!!!!"

[VelmaD]

6. Anyone who didn't pick "Free Porn"...

is lying. :evilgrin:

[Fenris]

14. That was my thought, VelmaD!

:D

[citizen snips]

7. Porn made the Internet popular.

:evilgrin:

[mopinko]

24. porn has jumpstarted

every new media. the first movies were naughty. poleroid cameras, camcorders, digital cameras, you name it.
this is a lesson for young inventors every where.

[DS1]

8. Right now, communication with others, and Internet Radio

in that order

[gator_in_Ontario]

9. All of the above, definitely! n/t

[Robb]

10. Porn drives all media.

It always has. From the printing press to film and video, and right on to the internet.

That's just the way it is. "Greatest feature" might be a little strong, but there's no denying the internet would not be what it is without porn. What drove the demand for image compression? Streaming content? Video conferencing?

"You've got a friend in poooooorn! :)

[ProudGerman]

12. yup

The Pam and Tommy video single handedly got more people to sign up for an internet connection than anything else since. I knew several people who called their telcos up simply for that.

[MrSlayer]

11. Friends all over the world.

Since I've been online (6 years) I've made friends all over the world. Canada, Spain, Sweden, Australia, Italy, Brazil and more. It's my favorite thing about the net.

[Terwilliger]

13. inter what?

oh...THAT thing

[aQuArius]

15. Being mostly anonymous

until you get caught, LOL.

[KG]

16. massively multiplayer online gaming

or porn - it's a toss-up...

[Fenris]

17. MMORPG or other?

Cuz if it's MMORPG than porn wins hands down.

[Endangered Specie]

21. Definetly... MOHAA, COD

Nothing more fun than owning and pwning people for hours on end.

[ComerPerro]

18. Research capability is edging out "free porn", but barely

LOL

Both are great features. How do I choose?

[no name no slogan]

19. pr0n is the only one that makes money

that's what was fun about the dotcom era-- the only ones to get paid were the pornographers!

Seriously, would you pay a 20% premium for a 25-pound bag of dogfood, shipped via UPS to your door?

[Endangered Specie]

Three for one:

Meeting someone interesting half a world away shopping through free porn in the nude.

[DEM FAN]

20. I'd Go With Porn. Porn..The Spice Of Life.

;-)

[camero]

22. Seeing Woody Allen dressed as Castro

Priceless

[SOteric]

23. Easy and inexpensive interacting despite great distances,

and the ability to research even the most bizarre points of data not available in standard reference materials.

[GOPisEvil]

25. What she said.

:hi:

[Padraig18]

26. WEBCAMS!

:evilgrin:

[LTR]

27. Fantasy football!!!

and porn.