Is There Life Without Internet? Read On!

Nearly half of US Internet users say they could not go without the Web for more than two weeks, with many suffering "withdrawal" symptoms while offline, according to a recent survey.

The "Internet Deprivation Study" released Wednesday by Yahoo and media group OMD found many experienced life offline more difficult than they expected, because tools and services the Internet offers were firmly ingrained in their daily lives.

The survey found many Web users felt impaired in daily activities such as booking travel, checking stock fluctuations, communicating with friends and family, and paying bills when they could not access the Internet.

What is even more amazing is that it was incredibly difficult to recruit participants for this study, as people weren't willing to be without the Internet for two weeks.

Participants in the study "experienced withdrawal and feelings of loss, frustration and disconnectedness when cut off from the online world," according to a summary of the report.

"Users described their time offline as 'feeling left out of the loop,' having to 'resist temptation' and missing their 'private escape time' during the day."

Survey participants "often forgot or lost the desire to use 'old fashioned tools' like the phone book, newspapers and telephone-based customer service," the report said.

"Despite the fact that they may need to call friends to make arrangements or read the daily newspaper to find out news, participants expressed that they looked unproductive and lazy to their colleagues when engaged in these activities using traditional means."

If you think you can survive without the web, good luck.

I need to go now, my Inbox is calling!