Are you bored with traditional methods of procrastination? Well push aside those pizza boxes, get out of Snood, and make way for the latest rage in high-tech time wasting -- a website packed with activities for the creative procrastinator -- The Station@Sony.com.
Due to the increasing accessibility to computers on college campuses, the Internet is becoming more and more popular among students as a distraction from their studies.
Exploring the web or playing ridiculous games such as our favorite Snood is becoming a large part of students' lives. Sony On-line is attempting to capitalize on this fact, pooling students' interests into a website packed with entertaining items.
Found at http://www.station. sony.com, the site offers games, music, shopping and a variety of news geared to the wired student. Presented as a place to "relieve stress," The Station offers activities that span a large range of interests.
The self-proclaimed mission of The Station is to give students a place to relax and relieve tension for a few minutes during a study-break.
From music to movies, video games to game shows and news to poetry, the website is bound to capture the interest of virtually any user.
A Las Vegas-like setting awaits the internet explorer when the website is first opened. Signs poke out from a three-dimensional landscape, advertising all of the different activities. Violent shapes and blazing colors bombard the user with an overwhelming selection of pathways. At first, this entrance seems intimidating, as so much information is presented in such a small space, but once the organization of the site is understood, the amount of options only serve to enhance The Station.
Among the activities available are Jeopardy! On-line, Sony shopping, a video-game room and a genuine news department.
A Soap-Opera section provides up to the minute coverage of all the
daytime shows, including past statistics, current developments and character profiles.
In "Final Distraction," the section devoted specifically to college Students, users can find a collection of goofy games aimed at wasting time, a task they perform well.
Disgruntled students can measure their stress level on the "Stress-O-Meter" by firing virtual spitballs at their professors, or beating up an electronic version of an inflated clown.
"Final Distraction" will only be available until the end of May -- coinciding with the exam schedules of most colleges and universities across the country.
While there is plenty to do at The Station, there are a few disappointing features. The tremendous download time for each connecting page makes the site somewhat tedious to navigate. These large sounds and images tend to suck speed from web browsers.
Also, the lengthy application process which must be completed in order to be able to access anything is annoying. While use of the site is free, it is almost not worth the time needed to register (of course for repeated users this becomes less of an issue).
One of best features of The Station is the Jeopardy! On-line section. Like America's favorite television game show, the site allows you to choose questions from a number of categories and values. Money is added and subtracted like normal, and your income carries from visit to visit.
Another popular area at The Station is "Armorgeddon," a fierce, shoot 'em up battle tank simulating game boasting 3D animation and a bad attitude.
The Musical Playground, a page containing all sorts of music-related trivia, facts and games, provides a world of activity for the music enthusiast.
The Station's mission as a place to procrastinate is kind of a farce. Once procrastination becomes planned, it is no longer procrastination, and the mission of the site has seemingly failed. However, The Station still retains its entertainment value, regardless of whether it fulfills its mission.
Regardless of these bothersome hitches, the site remains a good distraction, and is definitely worth exploring.
