admbws's Journal: URLs and the Stupid Internet User

I feel very privileged to use Slashdot. The overwhelming majority of Slashdot readers can see this:

http://slashdot.org/~admbws/journal/

and know instantly it's a URL of some sort.

To make things more convenient, I could even make it clickable:

http://slashdot.org/~admbws/journal/

But I constantly speak to perfectly intelligent, but computer-illiterate internet users, on ICQ, AIM, MSN etc. who do not understand the concept of URLs, clickable or otherwise.

Example:

hotgirlie69: do u have a pic?
Me: sure, it's http://www.example.com/link/to/some/image.jpg
hotgirlie69: what is that?
Me: it's a link, follow it
hotgirlie69: send me u're pic!
Me: I have! Click on this link: http://www.example.com/link/to/some/image.jpg
hotgirlie69: u havn't sent me u're pic yet

I have often spent ages and ages explaining to people, that the address I have given is a link which will be displayed when downloaded/followed/clicked on etc.

To a large extent it is understandable for a new or casual user not to recognise a URL at first, and they get it instantly when it is explained to them, as it's hardly a difficult concept! But many never grasp this idea, and continue to live under the belief that the only way to transfer files on the internet is via email.