The internet has become a hobbyist’s playground judging by a Pew Internet Project telephone survey conducted in February-March 2007 that found that fully 83% of online Americans say they have used the internet to seek information about their hobbies and 29% do so on a typical day. Looking for information about hobbies is among the most popular online activities, on par with shopping, surfing the web for fun, and getting news. The internet’s effect on hobbies can range from being an integral research tool for a genealogist to being a connection and communication tool for collectors, to being the very source of a hobby’s existence, as in the case of online gambling. Read More

Russell Heimlich  is a former web developer at Pew Research Center.