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Only playing gamesEarlier an exclusive male geek preserve, online gaming has a strong female presence

For all who thought that women would scream helplessly at a mouse (yeah even the electronic one), there is some interesting news. A recent study showed that women have begun using the internet more than men. Women love to catch up with friends right?

Thanks to the huge success of social networking sites like Orkut and Facebook the ladies use this as a forum to keep in touch with old friends and establish new contacts.

Shanthi M.R., a business woman says: “Thanks to Orkut, Facebook and e-Bay, even housewives are lured by the internet.”

Ashalatha, a management student observes, “Female students use the internet more for research than for entertainment or networking. Nowadays, school and college projects are expected to be comprehensive, thus using the internet to achieve this end is nothing less than a necessity.”

Journalism student Evelyn Rajeshekar says, “Although I don’t use the internet on a daily basis, whenever I do use it, I surf the net for a good four hours at a stretch.” She uses the internet for “research and to e-mail people.”

Then there is IM or instant messenger. “Gtalk and Messenger have facilitated chatting. Chatting is quicker than an e-mail, it cuts across geographical boundaries and most importantly it is cheap,” Sumi Nagraj, a software engineer points out.

Online gaming is yet another activity that has attracted many a young woman.

All-girl online gaming programs and stations just prove that women are no longer technologically backward.

More importantly, many women are of the opinion that the internet is a gender-neutral space where they can create their own identity. According to Shanthi, “A person can be who she chooses to be and can portray herself the ways she wants to be perceived by the people she is networking with. By far, only the internet has proven to be the best means of doing so.”

Psychologist Kshama Srikanth says: “Women are making the most of the opportunities around them. It is indeed only natural that a woman feels more liberated and when she is in touch with present day technology and this has marked the birth of a new and unexpected revolution.”

Whether it pouring your heart out in a blog, shaadi websites, or the sumptuous dhokla recipe that is just a click away, the internet sure has a huge female fan following.

NEETI SARKAR

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