Imagine that you move into your new dorm room only to find that your internet connection isn’t working. Do you feel a little frustrated, mildly anxious, or totally panicked?

If you chose Option C, you might just be an internet addict. Don’t laugh—a growing number of doctors believe that internet addiction is a serious problem, one that’s on par with established dependencies like alcoholism and compulsive shopping. There’s even a brand-new internet rehab center in Fall City, Washington called reSTART that aims to cure netheads of their wicked ways in just 45 days by reconnecting them to “the real world.” Ironically, the treatment center is located less than 20 minutes away from Microsoft’s corporate headquarters in Redmond.

So far, reSTART has treated a grand total of one patient: 19-year-old Ben Alexander, who says that he used to spend up to 17 hours playing World of Warcraft before he checked in. Ben’s paying a whopping $14,500 for the privilege of participating in rehab activities like “Discovery Quest” and “Weekly Shopping/Planning” (seriously, look at reSTART’s sample daily schedule). That’s more than the price of tuition for PA residents at Penn State’s flagship campus. Read More »

Dear Internet,

Happy (alleged) Birthday! I hope this letter finds you well and spyware free. It’s been 40 years since you first transferred data between computers and look how far you’ve come! Just this morning, I Googled “cat playing piano” and, within seconds, you provided me with a scintillating YouTube video that made me giggle and set the mood for the day.

I would like to take this time to tell you how much I cherish you, Internet. You have given me a place to unleash my inner-stalker, and you let me do it in the privacy of my own bedroom (which is much less shady than the white van I used to camp out in).  For this, my dignity and I thank you. I sleep peacefully at night knowing Facebook and Twitter will be there in the morning. It’s better (and at times more satisfying) than having a boyfriend.

Without you and Craigslist, I would never have bought that T.V. from a complete stranger. He later asked me on a date and, if things go well, I will name our first-born child after you. Even if it doesn’t end in an Interweb love child, you’ve thoughtfully provided me with a back-up plan. Online dating. You’ve made it so I can type in my criteria, and almost instantaneously I will find my soul’s perfect mate. If I could make it so, I would have you as the maid of honor at my eHarmony union.

Internet, you let me watch my favorite television shows online on those days when I’m just too lazy to leave my bed. And that happens often. When I do finally decide to come out of hibernation, you will tell me the exact weather so I can plan my outfit accordingly and then give me the directions to guide me on my way. You cater to my every whim both at home and on my phone, and there is nothing that will keep you from me (besides forgetting to pay my bill sometimes). Read More »

"Hey, mama - did you get that text I just sent?"

I am, without a doubt, addicted to technology. I spend 10 hours a day in front of my computer and the minute I step away, I’m checking my email/Facebook/Twitter/IMs/stock market reports from my iPhone. (Note: stock market reports are a real downer these days.)

When I’m out with friends, I’m constantly checking to see if anyone has texted/emailed/called. Or looking things up on Google maps. Or getting Yelp reviews for anything and everything we might be doing over the course of the evening.

And, obvi, I’m uploading pictures and status updates the entire time.

I have a problem and I know it. My addiction to technology is taking over my life and, despite the fact that I am always an email or text (fromlastnight) away from anyone, all this “connection” is really ruining me. I can’t even go to the bathroom without my phone anymore. And, yes, that’s a true statement.

I know I’m not alone, so this week I asked the CollegeCandy writers to share their personal peeves with technology. What are yours?

Kathryn – University of Wisconsin-Madison: People who have really personal cell phone conversations in really public places. I definitely do not want to hear about your latest sexcapades and either does the rest of the room. I’m embarrassed for you.

Anna – Northeastern University: I hate when people have to research online reviews on everything, from the restaurant they want to get dinner at to the movie they want to see. Nobody can be spontaneous anymore!

Read More »

In this digital age, we are never apart from the ones we love, at least not for too long.  With smart phones, texting, Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, Skype, and SMS updates, we are just a press of a button away.  We are closer to other people than we have ever been before.  Even long distance relationships don’t seem that long-distance anymore.

But between new couples and old, is all this technology really bringing people together, or is it driving us apart?

While new technology is an awesome time-waster (among all the other fabulous things it does), the fact that it makes everyone so accessible is a little scary, not to mention the lack of mystery, chase, and boundaries between us all. We’re texting/IMing/Gchatting guys before we go out with them. And before that, we already know their favorite books, movies, quotes, hometown and birthday. We know what they’re doing, when they’re doing it… without ever asking them. Read More »

We have a lot of freedom here in the wonderful U.S.A. Freedom that people around the world would die for. Freedom that people around the world do die for. But do we appreciate that freedom? Not as much as we should. In fact, being that we’ve been raised to be independent and fearless females, there are a lot of freedoms we have that we don’t recognize often enough.

Tomorrow we celebrate Independence Day and in honor of that, I’m going to enjoy my freedom from my diet and eat 2 hot dogs I asked the ladies of CollegeCandy what freedom they appreciate most in their lives. Me? I love the chance to share my opinions with the world. And to eat ice cream for breakfast now that my parents aren’t watching me.

What about you? Read More »

After rolling out of bed this morning I immediately flipped open my Mac Book and signed online. (What? How else are you supposed to begin the day?) And that was when I got the worst news of my life: Google wasn’t working.

I started packing up all my non-perishable items (read: 2 cans of tuna, a bottle of Boones and a bottle of water) to move into my neighbor’s Y2K bunker. Surely the world was coming to an end. I mean, if Google wasn’t working, how would anything else? I was shocked, I was upset, and I was really scared.

I began to imagine my life without Google. A sad, information-less life.

1. I would have no idea how to get anywhere: Before I got Google maps on my iPhone, I got lost in Detroit more times than I can count. And I live in Ann Arbor. How I ended up in Detroit, I’ll never know. How I got out alive is also a mystery. Google maps is. my. life. Without it, I probably really would die.

2. I would have had to blindy talk to someone without knowing anything about them: Whenever I meet someone, the first thing I do is Google them. I don’t even know how to communicate with people without knowing their online history first. How am I supposed to carry on a meaningful conversation with someone if I don’t know where they are from, that they were the captain of the math team in high school and that they were once interviewed for the local news story on the great Quiznos vs. Subway debate.

3. I’d have to leave my house and actually go to the library to write papers: And I don’t even know where the campus library is.

4. I‘d have to figure out another way to find out what people are saying about me: What? You don’t Google yourself? How else am I going to know what people are saying about me if I can’t look myself up online? Eavesdropping is so 20th century.

5. I’d never know just what a whale erection looked like: Not sure why we wanted to know, but we did. If Google was gone, I’d never know.

Thank God everything is back up and running. I’m not sure how long I could have lasted with only one bottle of Boones. I may now return my regularly scheduled self-Googling.

When you think of internet dating, you probably think about your best friend’s 59 year-old father and his many (failed) attempts to meet “the one” on Match.com.  Even if we were dismally lonely, I highly doubt most of us would allow ourselves to get so far as to post our own profile for the viewing pleasure of a middle-aged audience.  But what if the dating site was geared towards college students?

Now don’t get me wrong, people can still do shady s**t even if they are a 22 year old Dartmouth student.  The first “dating site” I saw that was remotely geared towards college students was the Craigslist personal ad section.  No offense to any of the upstanding gentlemen on Craigslist, but I think it’s a little odd to post an ad for yourself on the same site that you advertise the cactus that your roommate peed on at your last house party.  Plus, as we all know, thanks to the “Craigslist Killer,” it’s not exactly the safest way to meet people.

So what’s a lustful but “sick-of-all-these-douche-bags” kinda girl supposed to do?  Well StudentLove.com has the answer.  (It may not be the right answer, but it’s an answer.)  In order to join their dating site, you have to have an .edu email address, so it does a pretty job of keeping out the Scary Larrys.  But just because it’s there doesn’t mean it’s necessarily a good way to pick up the hotties.  Here is my oh-so-technical analysis of StudentLove: Read More »

People can learn a lot about you from your Facebook profile. By considering your favorite movies, pictures, quotes and the things other people write on your wall, it is quite easy to get a good idea of who you are as a person. And knowing that, many of us are extremely careful about what we throw on there.

And I’m not talking about taking down all those drunk pictures from the Jell-O wrestling tournament so you can get that job with the government you’ve been coveting. I’m talking about leaving those up to show anyone and everyone who is looking that you are one cool girl who happens to enjoy wrestling in gelatin.

Your Facebook picture is especially important. It’s the first thing people see when they look you up, not to mention the fact that it comes up next to every wall post, Facebook message, chat, update, etc., that you do on that damn website. Naturally, you are going to put a lot of thought into your photo of choice. It needs to be a good representation of who you are, be it an artist, a class clown, or any other type of person.

I spend a lot of time on Facebook (is there a 12 step program out there?!) and I’ve noticed that of the 38 million people using the site worldwide, there only 6 basic types of photos that people post on their profile: Read More »

Let’s face it: we all make stupid decisions. Like choosing a fifth over a review session, or bringing that guy home…who stole our iPod in the morning. That’s part of college life… and a big part of what makes it so memorable. But there are some choices that have longer lasting repercussions; things we do now that will haunt us later. Coed Magazine covered the 10 things guys will regret when they’re 40 and it got us thinking. They hit on a lot of biggies, but there are some things that we ladies have to worry about that weren’t included.

So here are the 11 things from your 20’s you will most definitely regret when you’re 40. Read More »

When the Internets talk, I listen. Really. Think about how easy the Internet makes it to discover new music.  Almost as easy as it is to find porn (but not quite as easy. It is way too easy to find porn on the Internet).  Sometimes when I’m bored, I just browse the Internet to discover new bands and I’m constantly shocked by how many artists and bands I’ve never heard of until I see or hear them online. And then fall instantly in love with them.

So, Internets, I thank you. Thank you for bringing us more than porn. Thank you for introducing me to this week’s new releases. Read More »