This is 21st century. This age is becoming modern, lives are becoming hectic and people are becoming more and more reliant on technology. And when technology can ease up your life and save on your precious time then why would anybody not love it and refrain from using it? With every passing day, we find launching of a new gadget or a new invention which is supposed to make our life simpler and better but these gadgets are also creating a virtual world alongside. And this virtual world has become so prevalent that many of our routine activities have elevated (or degraded) form the real world to the virtual world. Internet has proved to be a big boon for this. In some ways it has helped, while in some other it is catastrophic. But this is going to remain a debate till the time mankind and technology exist concurrently. Meanwhile we check out 10 ways how things have made their way from real to the virtual world.
10. Shopping
Unpleasant weather, no mood for strolling down the streets or in a mall, lack of time but still can’t let go off shopping. So, what to do? Well, shop! Right over there, sitting on your couch with your laptop. Online shopping has made our lives so much easy. You can view literally hundreds of options with a few clicks and save oodles of your time and effort. And everything, yes everything is available online. From apparels to electronics, furniture or utensils, you can jiggle through unlimited options, book them on your shipping address, pay by your card or can even have a COD (Cash On Delivery) and your desired product will reach you in shortest possible time. Also you can avail much more discounts and schemes on the stuff online which are not available when you visit the actual showroom.....
9. Trading
Frazzled at seeing the amount of useless stuff you have gathered in the past few months? Thinking of putting a garage sale? But it takes so much effort no? Relax and sit down. You can buy, sell or rent the things you want without even getting up from your couch. Yes again it is online! There are websites where you can trade your appendages with ease. If you are selling anything, you need to click the picture of the product, enter its specifications and then wait for buyers. Or if you are buying then go through the various options and bag your favorite items in a click. More and more shops, companies and associations are coming with their websites and Facebook pages these days that have made the trading experience implicit. The marketing strategies for such companies has also changed over the time where now they stress more on the virtual marketing.
8. Mailing
The anticipation of receiving a letter or a mail and fondly sitting by your window waiting for the postman is a memory to be cherished. The holiday season starts and everybody used to get busy with buying cards for their dear ones and posting them. And when we used to receive a mail from our family or friends, then the charm it brought to our faces was amazing. But do we still do that? Not after we got introduced to the Electronic mail or the E-mail. Our ways of connecting with our people are becoming more nimble than we know. And mailing is also a part of it. Be it documents, personal letters or greetings, people have become reliant on their mailing website rather than the humble postman.
7. Banking
When was the last time you visited your bank? I think I visited mine some 8 months ago. Yes, I’m pathetically lazy but really what’s the need? When your bank is providing you with the facility of online banking where you can check your account balance, transfer funds, keep a check on your transactions and do practically everything you need a bank for. Then why not get away with the headache of visiting your bank. Also with latest android and OS versions in your mobile phone, one can get an official application for their bank downloaded for free and start banking on the go.
6. Games and sports
During my growing up years, hide and seek, badminton, hockey were some of the games that we used to play every evening outside our houses. But I doubt hide and seek is barely played by anyone today. All I find kids and youngsters playing is games on their computers or mobile phones. Need for Speed, Vice City and Temple Run is what keeps us engrossed most of the times and outdoor games and sports are becoming less favored.
5. Learning
Want to learn a foreign language or improve your culinary skills? There’s no need to burn a hole in your pocket by enrolling into unnecessarily expensive courses when you can learn some, in the comfort of your house. Internet had made the learning experience easily accessible for all and also virtual. One can get online tutorials for practically everything they want to learn. Be it a one time video or picture slide show or a few months long online course. Where earlier once your kids’ summer vacations start, you would look for hobby classes to put them into but now you can simply make them learn craft work or even dance through the virtual media.
4. Talking
The very basic human activity has also taken a virtual form. Speaking to your friends in person is changing to speaking to them over phone. With the latest 3G technology call rates are becoming cheaper and you can even video chat through your cellphone. So when your friend or a family member is living in some other city or you simply have not got enough time to go and meet them, dialing their number seems to be an uncomplicated task. And you can be connected for as long as you want and talk to them the way you had been doing sitting in front of them.
3. Dating
Earlier we used to fix up our single friends with other single friends and they would go on a blind date to find out if their personalities click. But internet has provided us with an alternative solution. Today, in numerous dating websites are present out there and this generation is using them quite habitually. And it’s a pretty simple and clutter free process. You just need to create an account on any such website or simply on any social networking website and you are all set to go. You can meet new people or your own friends, chat with them and date them before taking your relationship to the real world.
2. Hanging out
Hanging out with your friends over a coffee or for a gossip session is something that can’t be done virtually right? I think you are mistaken. Not just chatting and mailing but there are also virtual hangouts people are engaging in! Popular social networking websites are the primitive medium for such hangouts. The Website Google+ by the networking giant Google has a feature that is named “Hangout” only. Friends can chat, share pictures and can even video chat and a number of people who are in real present at distant locations from each other get connected by computers and can enjoy a nice virtual time together.
1. Friendships
Friendships, yes even friendships have taken their way from real to the virtual world and I can’t really argue on how unsound it is but the trend is picking up fast. Nobody calls each other for birthday wishes anymore unless you are too close a friend with them. All it is about these days is wall posts, picture sharing, electronic greetings, instant messaging and video chats. People are finding and enduring friendships through social media and actually meeting and spending time together is becoming less prevalent. Blame it on the lack of time or the surplus amount of technological facilities obtainable at the reach of our hands but we have lost a major part of lives to the virtual world.
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