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Do you use the Web to find specific material or just to surf and see what's there?

Usually when I sit down at my computer, I have some idea of what I want to do on the Web. If I am using the Web for school, I will most likely want to find specific material for research purposes, e-mail a professor or something along those lines.

If I am using the web for my own amusement, I still have some idea as to what sites I will visit. I have signed up for a few social networking sites, as have nearly all people in my generation who have computer access, so I check those when I go online just for the sake of going online. I will also check my e-mail and if any news stories interest me, I will click on the link and briefly scan the article. I also love to shop online and I get e-mails from many different websites where I shop alerting me of sales and special deals. I sometimes buy things on eBay and this summer, I wish to learn how to sell things on eBay as well. The Internet is a great tool for keeping in touch with the people in my life and I do this through the aforementioned social networking sites (such as Facebook) and e-mail.

However, I have occasionally clicked around, surfing the web at times. It is very easy to start out by clicking on one link and ten minutes later, you will be on a completely different site and not be able to remember where you started or how you got there. After I have done this in the past, I have felt guilty for wasting my valuable time, so I try to stay on course with what I wish to do online when I sit down at my computer.