Which is better, the Internet or a library
By Seto Ka Wing, Joanne
4D (32)
Humans are always seeking improvements. To improve, there is only one way:
obtaining knowledge. For the up-to-date world, we need an instant response. However,
things that are left behind are still useful. Which one should we choose?
Since the time when computers were invented and sold, they have been spreading
their influence in our day-to-day world. The Internet, which is the largest network in
the world, facilitates our life. We rely on the Internet for daily activities, including
searching for information and surfing the Net. As there are so many resources
provided by worldwide computer users, we can know about everything easily. By
browsing different websites and web pages, we get information by different media,
for example texts, videos, sounds, animation, etc. Undoubtedly, acquiring knowledge
from the Internet by multimedia is very appealing. Nevertheless, there are so many
people who do not know about handling computers, or even do not have a computer.
To connect to the Internet, a certain fee is required too. In fact, how many of us could
receive benefit from the Internet?
Almost everyone has had the experience of going to libraries. A library is a place
where people can borrow books. The service is free once you have a library card. You
may find your target book classified on a well-organised bookshelf in the library. The
treasure of knowledge is in the books. However, you have to read the whole book
before the due date. The books in a library are often not updated as it takes some time
for authors to edit and publish them. Also, you may not have a library nearby so you
have to travel. The only point that the Internet cannot be compared with is that books
are real and comparatively durable while the information on the Internet may change
or disappear quickly.
At present, we still need both the Internet and libraries because they can each
compensate for the other’s bad points. We cannot foresee if the Internet will replace
the library as the major method to pass on information to our offspring. Printing
books is still going on and it is not likely to terminate in the future.