View source for Cybernaut

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A Cybernaut is an astronaut of [[Cyberspace]]. An alternative term might be Internaut, although there seems to be a subtle difference between these two terms.

==The Subtle Difference between Cybernaut and Internaut==
The following subtle distinction can be made between the terms Internaut and Cybernaut (as explained on the [http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-an-internaut.htm wisegeek] website):

*An Internaut is a veteran onliner with an academic knowledge of the Internet.
*A Cybernaut is a person adept at online gaming communities, virtual worlds, and cyberspace in general.

An Internaut is an online veteran who is ultra-familiar with the Internet, having accumulated online savvy, normally through years of online experience. An Internaut is someone who knows a great deal about the Internet and its history and politics, and who has a thorough knowledge of how to use search engines and search strings, Internet resources, forums, newsgroups and chat rooms to find information.

A Cybernaut on the contrary might be someone who is skilled within online gaming communities, virtual worlds such as Second Life, and other fantasy or role-playing worlds, without necessarily being highly familiar with the history and technologies of the web.

“Cybernaut” suits people who grew up with the Internet, while “Internaut” might be more closely associated with those who took a hand in building it or who witnessed its growth. The common thread among them, however, is that both possess an experience and knowledge of the Internet or Cyberspace that goes far beyond that of the casual user. 

A related term is [[Netizen]], or "net citizen." The term [[Netizen]] however puts the emphasis more on [[Netiquette]] and responsible web behaviour.

==Internet users according to Wikipedia==
In Wikipedia, the term "Cybernaut" redirects to "User (computing)," which is a dry technical article from which the word "cybernaut" is completely absent. This article begins: 

:"User in a computing context refers to one who uses a computer system."

The Wikipedia article points out that users employ the user interface to access a system, and that such users may need to identify themselves, for purposes of accounting, security or resource management. To identify himself or herself the user has an account (a user account) and a username (also called screen name, handle, nickname, or nick), and in most cases also a password. This process of identification is often referred to as authentication.

This dry description thus does reveal one key characteristic of the Cybernaut, which is ambiguous identity. The username may be the Cybernaut's real name, but it may just as easily any sort of pseudonym or "virtual identity". The Cybernaut may thus hide being a façade of anonymity, which provides a certain liberty or even irresponsibility. At the same time, the Cybernaut may have multiple identities, either on separate systems, or even on the same system, using [[Sockpuppet]]s which permit a single individual to appear as several different persons.

The Wikipedia article goes on to observe that "users" tend to be people who use a system without having the complete technical expertise required to run or fully to understand the system. Such users are called "end-users." Registered users are also "real users," as opposed to intrusive hackers, who are illegal users of the system. The typical Cybernaut is a skilled interet user but lacking advanced technical expertise, and who logs onto legitimate, authorised user accounts.

==Related Terms==
*[[Netizen]]
*Internaut
*Web surfer
*Superuser
*Luser

==Links==
*http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_%28computing%29
*http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-an-internaut.htm

[[Category:Cyberspace]]
[[Category:Web]]