One of the most fascinating revolutions in American history has to be the e-mail revolution

One of the most fascinating revolutions in American history has to be the e-mail revolution. It has changed the lifestyles of many people around the world, especially Americans. Even though there could be an argument that this revolution has helped us in our lives, it has many negative aspects especially in the private life.

Many companies rely on the internet, but basically the e-mail aspect of the internet. That is how many CEO 's of major companies send out memos, and other important materials to managers and employers. It is a much easier tool to use then making phone calls, and especially much cheaper then sending regular mail to everyone 's homes. As far as the business aspect of this e-mail revolution, many people can call it a success, even though e-mail does have it 's downside as well.

E-mal has really destroyed the English language for many people, especially the pre-teen to teenager zone. Words like "LOL" (Laughing at Loud), " Cuz" ( Because), and other words that people are too lazy to write in full. These words, and the grammar along with it is destroying the minds of many young people, especially when a 12th grade English teacher receives a term paper with these type of words in them. That is something that is a very scary thing to think about, especially because the number of people writing this slang type of language is on the rise each year.

How reliable can the internet really be? As the article by Roy Rivenburg shows, you cannot trust the reliability of the internet and e-mailing people. This article basically points out that when it comes to making sure someone receives something very important as soon as possible, e-mail should be a last resort. It is also risky, especially at a time when computer hacking/e-mail hacking is at an all time high. E-mal and computer hacking is connected because hackers hack your IP address, which is what your ID is on the internet, and then they can view everything that is stored on your own computer. A delay can actually be deadly if you use it in a dire emergency, as the following example shows you:

(1)"From: B Company

To: Allied Command HQ

May Day! We 've just captured the enemy 's secret anti-aircraft headquarters but need IMMEDIATE REINFORCEMENTS or we could be driven out.

From: Mail Delivery Subsystem

To: B Company

Delivery failure: Error code 255: Messenger did not reach intended recipient due to system delays. Please try again later. "

This shows that the army needed reinforcement and they chose to send the order via e-mail, and it could have cost them dearly because of the "Delivery failure: Error Code 255" message, which you would only get using e-mail.

This proves that you cannot rely on e-mail if there is something that can be categorized as a "ASAP" type of thing, to the point where you would need a reply fast. Telephone is a much better thing to use when it comes to making sure you get your answer quickly, and you make sure the person gets your message when you need that person to get it, while with e-mail you would experience "downed servers" and "system failures"

Reliability has been addressed as a negative impact on your life in the public/business field. Now, probably the most important subject to address would have to be how the e-mail revolution affects you in your private life. For a single person, after a hard day at work, that person would go home and probably end up using the internet for countless hours. This person can be lonely and really doesn 't have a social life. It can be because this person is shy in front of people, or just doesn 't know how to interact with people face to face. On the internet though, you could feel more comfortable because you are using "IM 's" (Instant Messaging), where you don 't know how the person looks, and the other person doesn 't know how you look. You feel less shy about yourself, and you can be more outgoing to the person your chatting with, rather then for example with the person you work with.

But, it is a far more darker phase to enter especially when you begin to make up your own person of yourself. As Sherry Turkle writes,(2) " A woman in her late thirties who just got an account with America Online used the fact that she could create five "names" for herself on her account as a chance to "lay out all the moods I 'm in- all the ways I want to be in a different places on the system." Sadly, many people end up doing that, and far worse things. Married people do this, and end up getting divorces with their spouse, because they create their own persona, and they completely change for the worse more then 50 % of the time. They begin to feel that their lives that they live outside the internet is worthless, meaningful, and that they can make the fantasy life they have on the internet into a reality. This really hurts a person psychologically, mentally, and physically.

This side of the e-mail revolution can really destroy somebody like I just explained, and it is a side that is happening all too often these days. Now, people meet on internet cafes, and especially on sites like "Love.com", "Match.com", and other sites that help people find a mate. I believe that this very wrong to do, because there is really no way to protect you if you do decide to meet this person, and this person ends up being the opposite of what you expected this person to be. This is ever so dangerous for teenage girls as well. There are predators that use the e-mail revolution against the public, and many of these sick predators sadly succeed in luring underage girls by the internet.

The e-mail revolution has its really good side to it, but also has its extremely bad side. It affects us in our public life, and especially in our private life. Some people know to not let the net effect of the e-mail revolution control them, but the majority of people let this e-mail revolution control not only what they do in public, but also their private lives. The e-mail revolution is still not good to use when it comes to reliability. Many different problems can occur with the server, and the e-mail you want sent out "ASAP" won 't be sent out. While the e-mail revolution is great to use as a hobby type of thing, it shouldn 't be used as a mean of trying to become the person you wish you were. That, is one of the most dangerous things you can do to yourself because you will beat yourself up each and every day.

In conclusion, even though the e-mail revolution has made our lives easier, I don 't believe that its worth the risk of alienating yourself from reality. This has really dampened many people 's lives, and made having a true social life more difficult for many people to have. Plus, the e-mail revolution has taken away the traditional ways of communications, such as the use of the telephone and especially letter writing. The e-mail revolution also affected the verbal outlook of many young people, especially those in the middle school/ high school level.

Work Cited

) Roy Rivenburg. Not Exactly the Most Reliable Way to Run a War, IMHO. The Los Angeles Times, May 1, 2001.

2) Sherry Turkle. From Life on the Screen, Identify in the Age of the Internet. Copyright 1995.

Cited: ) Roy Rivenburg. Not Exactly the Most Reliable Way to Run a War, IMHO. The Los Angeles Times, May 1, 2001. 2) Sherry Turkle. From Life on the Screen, Identify in the Age of the Internet. Copyright 1995.