> On-line services enable their users to find stock quotes, send letters to government representatives, communicate in real time with scientists, download files necessary for the more efficient use of their computer, and perform numerous other tasks that cross the realms of entertainment, business and personal effectiveness. On-line services charge a monthly fee that provides basic service; additional fees are levied depending on the actual features that users invoke during their time on-line.
Users communicate with on-line services through modems hooked up to a personal computer or a terminal. Most on-line services offer local telephone numbers so that users do not have to pay for the phone call itself; the monthly fee entitles users to a given number of hours, but additional access time results in additional charges. The five major on-line services are America Online, CompuServe, Dow Jones News/Retrieval, Genie, and Prodigy (Kantor, 1994, p. 112). CompuServe and Dow Jones are aimed primarily at the business user, while America Online and Prodigy are targeted to individuals.
On-line services offer communication options through electronic mail, mailing lists and bulletin boards. These services enable individuals to leave messages or retrieve information over the course of several days, weeks or months. Real-time "chat" sessions enable individuals to carry on conversations with many people throughout the world at the same time.
In addition to direct communication, on-line services also offer access to a wide variety of information tools. The major services provide news articles from major services, libraries of newspaper and periodicals, and research works. Software can be directly downloaded to the computer used for the communication process, with the result that experienced users can avoid having to call technical support lines but can receive the files they need directly from the vendor.
Most on-line services also ...