Be an active participant online

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More Canadians are using all that the Internet has to offer.

That's the results of a study conducted by Rogers Cable Communications Inc., and created by Max Valiquette, a digital culture expert and researcher and president of the Toronto-based company Youthography.

Valiquette offers these tips to help people take full advantage of what the Internet has to offer:

• Don't be afraid to push your boundaries

The Internet changes faster than other media so the things you were doing or the sites you loved last year may have been replaced by something even better.

• Share with friends and family.

If you like something, the odds are you know people with similar interests. The people you share good stuff with are more likely to share with you in turn.

• Interact whenever you can

The Internet is not a passive medium. Get involved in online conversations, offer product reviews, ratings or recommendations. The Internet is driven by feedback and participation, so don't just surf - start typing back.

 

Here are some more results from the survey.
How Canadians spend their time online.

• The average Canadian spends up to 17 hours per week online.
• This increases to 18 hours per week for Canadians who are satisfied with the Internet experience and decreases to 15 per week for those who are only somewhat satisfied.

Below is a snapshot of where Canadians spend their time online now compared to one year ago.

(First number is the percentage of Canadians who did the activity one year ago, while the second number is the number of Canadians who participate in it today.)

• Communicating with friends and family (Facebook, MySpace)
85
89

• Shopping online
62
65

• Paying bills
59
65

• Downloading and listening to music
43
44

• Uploading, managing and sharing photos
39
47

• Playing online games
38
38

• Streaming videos, music, shows
24
31

• Downloading TV shows, movies, games
16
20

Percentage of Canadians:
• Watching live TV on a computer - 50 per cent
• Making video phone calls from a computer - 49 per cent
• Making and sharing videos with friends and family - 46 per cent
• Downloading and reading books online - 39 per cent
• High-quality videoconferencing by webcam - 34 per cent

More survey facts:

• Canadian men spend more time online each week (18 hours) than women (16 hours)
• British Columbians are more likely (98 per cent) to use the Internet to communicate with friends and family than Quebecers (81 per cent)
• Younger adults aged 18 to 34 are only spending a few hours more online a week at 19 hours, than Canadians aged 35 and older who spend 16 hours a week online

~ Visit www.insidetoronto.com/News/Feature/article/13071
for an article on keeping kids safe online.