web surfing

18 Stories

'Wasting Time on Internet' Now an Ivy League Class

You get an A! And you get an A!

(Newser) - If "checking social media, watching cat videos, chatting, and shopping" sounds like how you spend your time when the Man's back is turned, well, leave it to the Ivy League to figure out how to make it a chore. As Yahoo reports, the University of Pennsylvania is now...

Confirmed: Most People Have No Good Reason to Go Online

Young surfers are just killing time: Pew study

(Newser) - A new study reveals that the Internet is a gigantic, sophisticated, inter-connected network utilized by many exclusively to ... waste time. On any given day, 53% of 18-to-29-year-olds log on to the web for the sole purpose of either having fun or passing the time, according to a report by the...

Netflix Streaming Traffic Overtakes Web Browsing

Just last year, the opposite was true

(Newser) - Streaming Netflix movies and TV shows: more popular than browsing the Web? Not exactly, but it does account for more Internet traffic. A new study shows that Netflix accounts for nearly 30% of traffic into North American homes during peak nighttime hours; Web browsing accounts for less than 17%. Even...

As Economy Crumbled, SEC Staffers Surfed for Porn

One attorney spent up to 8 hours a day on sleaze

(Newser) - As the economy teetered on the brink of collapse, Securities and Exchange Commission watchdogs wasted thousands of hours surfing the Internet for pornography on government computers. One accountant tried to access raunchy sites 16,000 times in a single month, and a senior SEC attorney in Washington spent up to...

2 Much Kittehs on teh Interwebs; 1-Day Ban Planned

Can "9.9.09 — A Day Without Cats on the Internet" possibly fly?

(Newser) - Let’s face it: Cats own the Internet. But it’s getting a little much, and that’s why the Urlesque blog is organizing “9.9.09—A Day Without Cats on the Internet.” The master plan calls for cats not to be mentioned, emailed, viewed, nor blogged...

Let Employees Roam the Web
 Let Employees Roam the Web 
OPINION
Aug 26, 2009 4:37 PM CDT

Let Employees Roam the Web

(Newser) - Protecting against viruses and encouraging productivity is all well and good, Farhad Manjoo writes on Slate, but “locking down” company computers isn’t the way to go about it. Companies that “block the Web and various other online distractions on the theory that a cowed workforce is an...

Web Use Gives Brain a Boost
Web Use Gives Brain a Boost
Oct 14, 2008 3:56 PM CDT

Web Use Gives Brain a Boost

For middle-aged, regular Internet surfing is better than reading a book: study

(Newser) - Sudoku not your thing? Web surfing may help boost brain power and prevent brain shrinkage in middle-aged and older people in a way that reading books cannot, the BBC reports. By studying the brain scans of volunteers aged 55 to 76, researchers found that experienced internet users show enhanced activity...

Does Surfing Equal Reading?
Does Surfing Equal Reading?
Jul 27, 2008 2:34 PM CDT

Does Surfing Equal Reading?

Experts debate whether kids' online time is as educational as hitting the books

(Newser) - As kids spend more time on the internet and less time reading books, a debate is raging over whether online reading is as educational as the traditional kind, the New York Times reports. While the Web allows readers to quickly gobble up multiple perspectives and information, some experts worry that...

Surfers Beware: Danger Could Lurk at .hk, .cn

Those domains most likely to house ill intent, security study finds

(Newser) - A study by antivirus software firm McAfee warns Web surfers to be cautious of sites on certain domains, the AP reports, with corner-cutting registration companies often skipping security precautions. The domains .hk, .cn and .info were found to be riskiest.

Web Looks Different When You're Not Chained to Desk

Most popular sites visited by mobile users don't track with hits from home, office PCs

(Newser) - Mobile web surfers are turning conventional wisdom on its head by traveling to a different constellation of sites than those visited from workday PCs, BusinessWeek reports. The “Weekend Web” relies not on Google, Yahoo, and MySpace, but rather on Craigslist, eBay, the Weather Channel and MapQuest—and don't think...

He Gets Paid So You Can Slack
He Gets Paid So You Can Slack
Apr 20, 2008 10:55 AM CDT

He Gets Paid So You Can Slack

CollegeHumor.com editor dishes on the unlikely science of wasting your time

(Newser) - Wasting people’s time is an odd job—but it’s also a big business, writes CollegeHumor.com editor Streeter Seidell in the New York Times. Seidell spends his days wading through an “ocean” of submitted videos and other items, choosing which funny or bizarre selections deserve publication. Yet...

Phishers Adopt New Tactics to Reel In Victims

Online fraudsters turn to shorter URLs to make sites look legit

(Newser) - Internet phishers are using shorter Web addresses to make their sites seem more legitimate, says IBM's online-security division. The group observed fraudulent URLs dropping from 30-37 characters to an average of 17, reports CNET. "The fact that they felt the need to make this move suggests that they were...

Firefox 3.0 Beta Unleashed
Firefox 3.0 Beta Unleashed
Nov 20, 2007 10:12 PM CST

Firefox 3.0 Beta Unleashed

Packed with new features and stepped-up security

(Newser) - Mozilla has rolled out a beta version of its Firefox 3.0 browser, PC World reports. The new version boasts added security and a host of new features - all of which it wants user feedback on while it's in beta, before the final release. The way Firefox manages browsing...

Women Overtake Men Online
Women Overtake Men Online
Aug 23, 2007 5:54 PM CDT

Women Overtake Men Online

Women's web usage beats men's, UK study says

(Newser) - British women aged 25 to 49 are spending more time online than men for the first time ever, a significant shift that may reverberate across the Web, the Guardian reports. The stereotype of youth ruling cyberspace also takes a hit in a new study—people over 65 average 42 hours...

Nielsen to Rank Sites by View Time, Not Hits

Web minutes seen as more accurate measure of use

(Newser) - Nielsen will move to ranking web sites based on how long sites are viewed rather than how many hits a page receives. The shift will boost ratings for AOL and Yahoo, where millions have email accounts, over Google and MySpace. Advertisers will likely still pay rates based on hits, but...

Google Flunks Privacy Probe
Google Flunks Privacy Probe
Jun 11, 2007 10:33 AM CDT

Google Flunks Privacy Probe

"Don't be evil" motto questioned after search giant rated worst on web for user protection

(Newser) - Google ranks dead last among Internet sites for protecting user privacy, a new study by watchdog group Privacy International concludes. In its 6-month analysis of top e-commerce, social networking, e-mail, and search sites, PI singled out Google for what it called a "entrenched hostility to privacy," citing fuzzy...

Web Mogul Controls $300 Million in URLs

Meet Kevin Ham, the Donald Trump of virtual real estate

(Newser) - Kevin Ham rules the shadowy Internet domain name market, having amassed an online real estate empire worth over $300 million, Business 2.0 reports. The doctor-turned-tech tycoon began buying and selling URLs in the nascent days of the web; today he trades hundreds of addresses a day, sometimes for as...

Geek Uprising Shows Futility of Web Censorship

Lawyers no match for websurfers armed with anti-priacy code

(Newser) - The flash riot of Internet crusaders who disseminated the code to decrypt HD DVDs over the last few days should teach entertainment companies to think long and hard about their anti-piracy strategy, the New York Times notes. The standard cease-and-desist letters sent to websites to keep the code out of...

18 Stories