The End of Email? Information Overload

Recently I wrote about the art of writing a good email

An interesting report in the Independent suggest we are being swamped by emails.

Invented in 1971 by the computer engineer Ray Tomlinson, e-mail now controls us, rather than us it. A recent study from AOL suggested that many people are increasingly addicted to e-mail, checking their messages while in the bathroom, at church or while driving. Researchers also report that between 10 and 50 per cent of work time is now spent using e-mail, which is having a huge impact on productivity.

Another study, cited in Gail Fann Thomas’s 2006 article ” Re-conceptualising E-Mail Overload” in the Journal of Business and Technical Communication, found that the average worker had 2,483 inbox messages and 858 filed ones. This is hardly surprising. Recent figures from web portal Lycos reveal that one in 10 e-mail users in Britain receives more than 200 mails every day (including spam). As Lycos spokeswoman Stephanie Sanders warns: “UK internet users are in danger of reaching overload as they struggle to deal with out-of-control inboxes.”

 The End of Emailat independent

The interesting thing is that company’s are seeking an alternative to email. One solution is to use Wiki’s where information is stored, edited and added to. This can be a more efficient way of sharing information.