128 -- The Ochigan Daily -- Weekenc tc. Magazine -- Thursday, obey 7, 199c A2ILh hgnDiy ekn~c aaie hrdy tbr7 _99 _.h ihga al en, ec iaate=rssOtbr ,19 i__._ 1 _a. _ A.t_ _._____ _ , .. ... _ ~ ... .. . 3 U" 0 a ,a The Michigan Daily --Weekend, etc, Magazine -Sursday, October 7, 2999 B Online shoppers experience the mall at their fingertips Linking up online results in relationships, headaches By Megan Kennedy Fsr the Daily All i takes is a flip of the television switch and it is immediately obvious that the Internet is everywhere. To unearth information about virtually any product on the market, just go to fill-in-the- blank.com: Kellogg.com, budweiser.com, cocacola.com, even tampax.com. Nowadays, any product that can be bought in a store can also be purchased online. With a click of the mouse and glance at a credit card, University students can buy the world if they have the credit limit and the inclination. They can do their banking over the Intemet or pur- chase a car over the Web. They can gro- cery shop, buy birthday gifts and make travel arrangements. In the present-day technology-driven world more than ever, it is possible to polish off all those monot- onous weekly errands without ever leav- ing the comfort of one's own home. So are University students taking advantage of this luxury? Is e-commerce really as simple as it's pimped out to be on the commercials, or are there hidden costs and ramifications? What products are best to buy on-line, and which ones should be left to the old-fashioned tech- niques? To answer these questions, stu- dents might have to doa little bit of inter- net shopping of their own. The first mission might be to pick up some new clothes. Early on in the game, catalog companies such as J. Crew and Victoria's Secret naturally evolved to the availabilty of their businesses over the Internet: Land's End even has online sales reps who guide the customer over the phone to the product that they are looking for (provided, of course, that the shopper has two phone lines). In these cases, inter- net prices and catalog prices remain com- paratively equivalent. Recently, though, many mainstream clothing manufacturers have hopped aboard the interaet band- wagon and begun to sling their goods via the Web. The readiness of the market for a new "mallard green funnel neck" sweater from the Gap offered the chance to see if a good deal could be had on the Web. At gap.com the sweater was on sale for $39.50 plus $5.00 shipping and handling. However, employees answering the phone at the store's Briarwood Mall location were eager to inform callers that it was only $34.50 there. A little more shopping around at various other Internet retailers illustrates that, in general, it is almost always cheaper to go to the real store to make your clothing purchases.While it may be a little less convenient to actually get up and trek to the mall, there invari- ably tends to be a sale somewhere that makes items less expensive. Additionally, it's always an added bonus to be able to try on clothes before purchasing them. Another essential stop on the informa- tion superhighway is CDNOW.com. Here e-shoppers can search for music by genre, or pick a specific artist. Those with time to kill can listen to songs or read bios about the bands, and the top 100 discs from each genre are always 30 percent off. Music mavens in the market for just one CD may find their best bet to be a jaunt to their local record store. The price Are you thinking about law school? Do you want to collect tips from admissions deans? Plan to attend Law Day " Collect application information and explore law education options with over 90 law schools, paralegal programs and test prep services. " Attend the Law School Admissions Panel. " Visit our homepage for a list of participating schools. of shipping and handling will cost more than there is to save online. For more avid music listeners, however, CDNOW and other on-line music marketers are a much better deal. "It's difficult to control myself because it is entirely too easy" said LSA senior Amy Holland. "Just point and click! The only problem is, I don't feel entirely comfortable giving my credit card number out to any 'joe' on the net, but CDNOW has made an effort to ensure that my personal information is kept com- pletely confidential" Discs that range in price from S15.99-$18.99 average about $3 cheaper on the Web, and compulsive clicking is not a worry: No matter how many CDs are piled up on one purchase, shipping and handling never exceeds $4.97, making major music purchases much more affordable over the net. Then there's engineering junior Peter Andeer, who shops for music using less. conventional Web-techniques. An avid hip-hop fan, Pete likes to listen to local music from other areas. Short of physical- ly traveling all over the country, the only way that he can do this is from web sites such as hiphopsite.com. "To get the records I want without using the Intemet," Andeer said, "I would have to go to the record store and bug them to order the tracks for me. Then I'd have to wait forev- er until they got it in. It's a real process. This way, it's much less painless:' Recently, the computer moguls at Dell revolutionized computer purchasing over the interaet with a concept called virtual customization. Now, when a customer wants to purchase a computer, they can embark upon the Internet and pick and choose the options they want, virtually creating their own model of computer. According to Keith Elder, director of e- commerce sales at AffordableComput- ers.com, Internet sites that sell CDs and books usually only offer a couple of dol- See SHOPPING, Page 168 From Introductions to Face-to-Face With America Online (AOL), AOL Instant Messenger (AIM), ICQ, chat rooms on the World Wide Web and other similar services, meeting people from all over the world is only a few key strokes away. Initial conversations, though, aren't always necessarily for the sake of creating a relationship. In fact, some- times the seeds of a friendship are plant- ed unintentionally. "I never really go online looking for a relationship, said Aaron, an Engineering senior. "I usually do it when I'm bored. If you're up at 4 a.m., online is the easiest place to find people to talk to. Sometimes, though, I've gotten to know the people a little more and gone from there." "When I'm bored, sometimes I'll search the AOL profiles for people who go to the University or who live nearby,' said Katie, an LSA sophomore. "Ive become friends with several people that way." Meeting face-to-face, however, is a different story. "It's really nerve-wracking," Katie confessed. "They like your personality, but if they don't like your looks, will they snub you? You never know." With all the publicity indicating online sex offenders on the prowl and crimes connected to people meeting from the Internet, some are worried, while others are unconcerned. "The only way I think it would be safe to meet someone in person was if you had a concrete way of knowing if the person really is who they say they are," said Michelle. "Even then, Id only meet them in a social situation - not by myself." Aaron disagreed. "I used to think it was a risk, but if you really think about it, life is just dangerous. Is meeting someone from online any more or less dangerous from meeting someone in a bar and going home with them? People are always under the impression that the Internet is full of psychos. True, there are some, but is it really any worse than the general population? The Internet is 'anonymous,' but what do you know about that guy or girl in a bar, other than superficial things?" Endings: Happy or Bitter? Intentional or accidental, strictly online or eventually face-to-face, how do online relationships generally turn out? Like all relationships, each is unique, but an online foundation gives maintenance and breakups a different twist. See RELATIONSHIPS, Page 168 I Photolilustration iy Allison can1 Online relationships can make it easier to keep in touch. Graduate with Experience. Learn to Get Published Today! Getting Published Makes You the Expert. Writigfor Pubhlication Video or Book By Erik Bean available now at Amazon.com Getting an article published is something no one can S ever take away from you, an important complement to your degree, resume, and future. For details visit: The Online Magazine Article Writing Workshop0 o FreelanceWorkshop.com By Cortney Dueweke Daily Arts Writer Rejection: It's something everybody's experienced and nobody likes. It's what holds people back from approaching that attractive girl in bio class and keeps them from initiating a conversation with that gorgeous guy at a party. The fear of rejection is a leading contributor to self- consciousness, nerves and tension. So what if there was a way to meet people and begin relationships without jittery first introductions and awkward early conversations? As society becomes increasingly dependent on and fond of technology, more and more people have found what seems on the surface to be the perfect device with which to meet other singles - the Internet. Online relationships come with their own sets of pros and cons, problems and risks, howesver- and many students have discovered this firsthand Anonymous Appeal and Drawbacks The first and best question is "Why?" For many, the thought of sparking a romance with someone via an imperson- al machine is ludicrous. For others, the inherent anonymity is a major part of the appeal. "A lot of people find it easier to type things than to say them aloud, and you can express your emotions without hav- ing to see people's reactions," said Michelle, an LSA sophomore who, like the rest of those interviewed for this arti- cle, did not want her last name revealed. "You get to know someone from the inside out and things aren't necessarily based on physical qualities." Like Michelle, many of those who have been in online relationships are enticed by the prospect of someone admiring them for their personality instead of their looks. Unfortunately, practically anyone can easily hide their true personality behind a keyboard and computer screen. "Obviously, not everyone has good intentions,' said Michelle, "and it's easy for people to get the wrong idea about what each person has planned for the relationship" Ir~ '