In the past I've had to rely heavily on the internet for basic basic information and life skills information. This phenomenon started during my teenaged years, part of the reason is because I was raised in a sheltered environment where I was infantilized, age appropriate information I asked for was not given to me, the wrong information was given to me, and/or if I dared ask the wrong question, I'd be maligned or scolded for "acting too big for your age" or "you're so stupid". Often relied on unreliable older siblings for advice, which often ended up causing more harm than good. I definitely contribute this phenomenon to the fact I was born female. In my family, daughters were deemed useless burdens. It was always assumed a "man will take care of her some day", and we were NOT supported in terms of gaining independence in adulthood. I'm going to hazard a guess and say MORE women in the world are raised in a situation like this than not... so many girls are half-raised in order to prime them for total crippling dependency on someone else at a later date.

My parents literally physically prevented me from having any social contact from people outside my immediate family, and they were rarely helpful with "life skills issues". Once I became an adult, I was literally too embarrassed to ask people in real life those basic "life skills" questions, since I felt automatically foolish for "not knowing already". As an adult I am still reluctant to ask random people in real life for help.

In a large scale way, having anonymous sources of information is vital for women. It's not unusual for women to be mis-directed or misinformed by "family" and "friends" and "partners" when it comes to important issues or even the silliest things. For example, some men who are knowledgeable about, say car repair, won't answer their partner's questions regarding simple car related issues on purpose, or behave in such a way that their parters won't want to ask those questions again. Some men (and other "dominant" family members) thrive on the attitude of feeling "intellectually superior" to the women who are "lower in the family hierarchy" in their minds. While sometimes this is an ego thing, other times it's also a control issue. Some men, in a domestic abuse situation, will lash out a partner who asks a basic question about car repair because they DON'T want their partners to be able to drive in the first place. They'll fly into a rage if their wives attempt to arrange a car repair, "Because that's my job as the man of the house!", and THEN when the wife capitulates and lets him make the decision... but then, he'll drag is feet about actually getting the car fixed. He knows he won't get the car fixed, but he won't actually tell his wife this... he'll drive her crazy acting like he'll get the car repaired, then make up excuse after excuse for not doing so, possibly blaming her for his lack of progress in the meanwhile.

I've always known some information online was dubious, but I have to be honest in that I've relied on it a lot for useful information, as I'm sure many others can relate. Mentioning car repairs again... seeking information online about car problems has helped prevent me from getting robbed in car repair shops. Car shops often see women as open wallets/that we are easy to exploit due to our lack of automotive knowledge, so it pays to get info before getting the work done. Being able to find reliable information online about this particular topic has saved me from crippling debt.

In many cultures, even progressive ones, there has been a long history where certain topics are deemed "male-specific", and the information concerning these topics have often been forbidden to women on some level. Women in recent history, at least in developed countries, have undoubtably relied on the internet to fill in the gaps when other people in real life couldn't or wouldn't provide answers.

As the years go by, it's become more and more difficult to find basic legitimate information about anything online. The commercialization of technology and search engines in general has made it much more difficult for women to get useful/valid information that is normally socially "forbidden" to them.

Right now, I'm trying to figure out what kind of light bulbs I need for an enclosed light fixture-- goofy, I know. However, trying to figure out exactly what specific bulbs I need, and which ones come at the cheapest price, is like pulling teeth. Any random search engine I use in which I ask "which light bulbs are appropriate for enclosed light fixtures" results in TONS of commercial websites giving "advice" that ultimately re-routes me into someone's storefront without answering my actual question. It's at the point now where this is becoming completely ridiculous! The answer to this question is probably extremely simple, yet there is no obvious reliable and non-commercial source of information to be had online... or if it's there, it's buried on page 103 of the search engine "hits". I get the general impression that LED lights aren't considered safe, but any web site I find that mentions this will only route you to a commercial website-- they won't explain WHAT the criterion are for an "enclosed-fixture-safe-lightbulb", so I can go to ANY store and simply buy what I need.

Now, there was a time when there were TONS of online forums where one could ask these questions... there was a time when amazon reviews were LEGIT. However, we live in different time. Granted, I'm sure there's a random subreddit that might discuss issues like this, but even REDDIT has lost legitimacy as of late.

I can think of so many other categories where this phenomenon is evident: medical information has also become more like this as of late. Search any woman's health issue online using normal everyday vernacular, and you WILL get routed to tons of infantilizing, commercialized, shallow and non-informative garbage. You will definitely get pushed into "free apps" that data mine you for your personal information as well.

Try to look up "domestic violence", and tell me what you see in your search results. Trust me, you will be very angry when you find what I often find: first pages of hits that are littered with articles about violence against trans women, MGTOW and INCEL links, red pill philosophy, "fake rape claims" blogs.

It's like, once the whole internet is dominated by commercial interests and AI with an agenda, where will people go for "forbidden" knowledge or information they NEED in order to make informed decisions? So many people as of late don't even try to remember basic things because they think they can simply look stuff up online. It's not as if people can consult encyclopedias anymore, either. Many bookstores have long since closed. So many libraries have become digital. So many people have tossed all their old encyclopedias in order to "declutter".

I keep asking myself, "what are we going to do in the future, when printed information sources are all gone, and nothing online is factual" and "how much will this lack of information harm women?"