“I didn’t have a life until I joined the Internet. At least here I have friends to talk to. In high school I didn’t have anybody,” said Hobbes, a nicknamed user on lowa State’s Internet Relay Chat (IRC).

The IRC is an Internet service accessible to any lSU student. It allows people from all over the country, typically through universities, to talk via computer to one another using nicknames.

Hobbes said he chose the nickname because he likes the comic strip “Calvin and Hobbes.”

“A lot of people single me out to talk to just because of my name, but I have a lot of people I already know that I talk to,” Hobbes said.

Hobbes, who attends a California college, said it is easier for him to talk to people over the computer because he is too shy to talk to people in person.

“These people have no idea who I am or what I look like in real life. I can be anyone or anything I want to be,” Hobbes said.

Hobbes invests a lot of time into his Internet hobby.

“I average about three to four hours at a time. The most I’ve ever spent on the IRC is about eight hours, though,” Hobbes said. “I stayed up all night just wandering around and talking. I did take a nap for about a half an hour, but I couldn’t quit. It’s like I finally had a social life.”

Hobbes’ addition may not be an uncommon ailment.

Jane Bost, a counselor at the University of Texas’s Mental Health and Counseling center, explained to the Dallas Morning News the dangers of Internet addiction.

“The Net has a real seductive, mesmerizing effect. People get into this stuff, and hours later they emerge without a sense of how long they were on-line,” she said. “If you really are an addict, and it’s taking over your life, it throws you out of balance.”

Bost said many students who end up addicted often first encounter the Internet for educational purposes, get confused, and end up “goofing off.”

Nathan Kinkaid, an ISU mechanical engineering major, said he had to use the Internet to find information for a class. “I think we were using Netscape. We had no idea what we were doing, and we ended up looking at the Batman homepage,” Kinkaid said.

Kinkaid said he doesn’t use the Internet for anything except e-mail. “I personally couldn’t find a single educational use for the Internet. I’m sure there are some, but I couldn’t find them.”

Christopher Gummert, a ISU journalism major, said he also views the Internet as strictly entertainment.

“To me, the Internet is a lot like cable. I just switch around looking for nudie chicks. It can be a lot of fun, but I’ve never used it for anything educational,” Gummert said.

Gummert said he is not an Internet addict, but he does admit to spending quite a bit of time just having fun. “I e-mail my friends who go to colleges that are too far to call. It’s a convenient way to keep in touch,” he said.

Mark Griffiths, a psychologist at the University of Plymouth, surveyed Internet users and found that out of 100 people who responded, 22 said they receive a cocaine-like “rush,” and 12 said that computer chat lines help them relax.

Aaron, an ISU sophomore, who asked that only his first name be used, could be considered an Internet addict. “I’d like to think that I only average two or three hours at a time, but my roommates would probably tell you different,” he said.

Aaron said he has friends he regularly talks in talk groups, but he also likes to participate in “netsex.” Through netsex the user can have sexual conversations with other Internet users over the computer. “It’s a harmless way to have sex,” Aaron said.

Internet use has interfered with both Aaron’s social and educational life. “Once I stayed on for about five or six hours and ended up skipping class. And one time I was late to a broomball game with my friends because I was talking with a girl I’d known from a previous netsex encounter,” Aaron said.

Not everyone who uses the Internet is addicted. Bost said some warning signs for Internet addiction include:

* You start neglecting your work or school.

* You spend significantly less time with your local friends.

* You would rather talk with people on-line rather than face to face.

Bost also urged Internet users to keep work and recreation separate. You should force yourself to pass up a fun site when you are on-line for work, she said. When it comes to e-mail, Bost said to scan the subject lines reading the most important now, and saving the rest for later.

Bost said Internet use can be a “step up in interaction” for shut-ins and introverts, “But it risks people getting stuck there and not using their new skills in the rest of their world.”