Overview

Some 55% of adult internet users have looked for "how-to," "do-it-yourself" or repair information online and roughly 1 in 20 internet users – about 7 million people -- search for help on a typical day. The prevalence of this activity is yet another example of the many ways online Americans use the internet to gather practical information for their everyday lives.

Using the internet as a go-to reference desk for “how-to” help naturally befits those who have “always-on” internet connections at their fingertips. More than two-thirds (69%) of internet users who have high-speed connections all around them (at both home and work) have sought “how-to” resources online. That compares to 61% of home broadband users and 55% of home dial-up users who seek do-it-yourself information.

These new findings come from a national phone survey of 1,450 adult internet users by the Pew Internet & American Life Project conducted between February 21 and March 21, 2005. The margin of error for results based on internet users in the sample is plus or minus three points.