[joefourier]

Depends on the degree of optimism, but in all I think the positives of the Internet vastly outweigh the negatives, and very much look forward to future developments. I would not trade instant audio/video/text communication with anyone across the globe, instant access to information (educational or otherwise), programs and media, and the ability to conduct fast-paced, global business from any location.

I very much look forward to future developments, which I think will come from VR & AR. Those will enable true face-to-face communication without the awkwardness of videochat, and allow people to collaborate in the same virtual environment as if they were in the same room, and that will be closer to the hyper-connectivity of cyberutopianism.

However I don't believe in the idea that a medium can dramatically change human nature for better or for worse.