Survival by the Net

Apart from the Internet 8212; and deliveries ordered using it 8212; the four will have no other contact with the outside world, though interested Internet users will be able to check how they are faring via a website on which regularly updated snapshots will be posted.

The study is being conducted by Helen Petrie of the University of Hertfordshire, an expert in human-computer interaction. 8220;Everyone is talking about the Internet, but no one has put it to the test like this. The results promise to be fascinating,8221; said Petrie.

Thefour 8212; men and women aged from 30 to 67 8212; were selected for their varied ages and levels of Internet experience. They were among hundreds of volunteers who responded to an ad placed in a national newspaper on behalf of MSN, Microsoft8217;s Internet service.

The successful applicants were promised their own PCs and Aring;ldquo;500 to spend on items such as food, clothes, CDs and even microwave ovens for survival by Internet. MSN8217;s product manager, Nickie Smith, commented: 8220;There8217;s been a huge explosion of interest in online shopping over the last six months. We wanted to put the current Internet services to the test.8221; Last year Britons spent Aring;ldquo; 406 million on Internet purchases, double the amount spent in 1997.