Val Cowan Surfs the Net

PARENTS, watch your credit cards!

New research shows that more that three million children under 17 are now using the internet in the UK - and nearly half - 46 per cent - have browsed looking for something to buy.

Seventeen per cent have actually made an online purchase - usually by using their parents' credit card. The most popular purchases are games, music, tickets and videos.

The Kids.net study, by the NOP Research Group, says the number of kids online has increased by 12 per cent in the last six months.

NOP believe the increase in online shopping among youngsters shows they are becoming more sophisticated in their use of the net.

But more and more children are finding material which upset or embarrassed them on the web - a rise from 20 per cent to 33 per cent in the last six months.

Six out of 10 - 58 per cent - describe the offending material as being "rude".

Most children - 79 per cent - believe the internet helps them with their learning, and using the net for school projects remains one of the most popular applications for youngsters.

The survey also revealed that most youngsters do something else while surfing. Fifty-eight per cent listen to music, 23 per cent watch television, 13 per cent listen to the radio and 13 per cent read magazines - which is perhaps just a sign that pages are taking too long to load! One final finding from the survey was especially flattering for people like me. Apparently children generally think of internet users as clever, friendly, cool, trendy and rich - and who am I to argue?

When surfing gets you fired

I'M lucky - I can use the internet a lot at work because it's my job.

But others aren't so fortunate - like IT manager Lois Franxhi, who was sacked for using the net to find herself a holiday, and then lost her claim for unfair dismissal.

Most people with web access at work will have used it for their own personal use at some point.

But the Franxhi case has opened up a can of worms for employers and employees.

You might there's no harm in checking the latest tennis scores or having a quick look at your Hotmail account.

But if several hundred staff in a large company are all doing the same, it could work out pretty expensive for the business in terms of lost productivity.

On the plus side, using the net can help get staff used to using a computer and could act as a form of stress relief.

But it is important that employers and employees know where they stand before it gets to the dismissal stage, as in Ms Franxhi's case.

At sea with view from a bridge

PRINCESS Cruises claimed this week that their website featuring transmissions from a webcam on the bridge of one of their cruise ships was attracting 30,000 hits every day. The company, part of P&O, claims net users are spending an average of nearly 15 minutes looking at the pictures from the bridge of the Grand Princess. Apparently the peak time for logging on is lunchtime.

Images are updated every 60 seconds whether the 109,000 ton ship is at sea or in port.

When I logged on I was treated to a beautiful view of...well, nothing much, actually. That's the trouble with ships in the middle of the ocean. There's not much scenery.

Still, if you are planning a cruising holiday the Princess Cruises web pages are probably worth a look. There are virtual tours of the company's ships, information about destinations and activities ashore and an interactive calendar which allows you to find a cruise to fit your holiday schedule.

http://www.princess.com

Following the bull run

ON Monday thousands of people will gather in the streets of Pamplona in Spain for the annual bull run through the streets, a highlight of the town's annual San Fermin festival.

It is a dangerous event - between 1924 and 1997 14 people have died taking part in the run and more than 200 have been injured.

There's an official website giving details of the bull run and other festival events:

http://www.

pamplona.net/engl/

tourism/sfindex.html

School's classy site

PLECKGATE School in Blackburn has launched its own website. The site is well laid out and gives all the essential information a parent needs about the school, including its last inspection report.

Efforts have been made to lighten the content too with pages about some of the extra-curricular activities at the school:

http://www.pleckgate-school.

ukgateway.net

Is your school on the web? Let me know and it could get a mention here.

Radio Ga-Ga

RADIO GoGaGa is not a re-released Queen single, but a good little online radio station, with real DJs:

http://www.gogaga.com

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.