The Internet has become an important conduit for information, with a strong role in business, education, and entertainment. More and more people are gaining the ability to access the Internet by means of a home computer and a modem. Increased access has also brought a number of concerns for parents, who often are not as computer-literate as their children and who have learned that the Internet provides access not only to huge databases of information, useful software, business applications, and games but also to some sites of a more adult nature, including sites where one can download pornographic images, bulletin boards of adults discussing sexual mattes, and even areas where pedophiles either meet on line or seek to meet children by means of the computer. This has produced calls for something to be done by the government, whether that be open censorship or something less draconian. One of the ways to address the issue of possible obscenity on the Internet and the fear that it would be harmful to children would be to impose a ratings system. While there are a number of limitations and problems with such a procedure, and while a ratings system is not a complete solution to the problem, it is an idea that would provide parents with more needed information while not infringing on the rights of adults to have access to whatever services they want.
The Internet differs from on-line services such as Prodigy or CompuServe in a number of respects, though there are also similarities. The services already in existence can be connect the user to numerous databases through a variety of carriers. Interactive computing is found in places like the Internet, a loose agglomeration of computing networks that enables the user to access vast amounts of information from sources all over the world. The so-called information superhighway in theory will expand the possibilities and bring them to more people in a form that is easier to use. Pare...