With this week disrupted by the Atlanta ice storm, I’ve spent time pondering how Americans are spending time on the Consumer Internet. (I'm no gamer, so that topic's not included here.) To me, we have four tiers of Internet aptitude: 

1) The uber plugged in users of all media who seem to understand how the various newest tools fit together and who can participate in them with credibility and erudition. I think of people like Robert Scoble (@scobleizer) at Rackspace, who makes his living on such expertise. It probably helps to be in one of the centers of the Consumer Internet like San Francisco or New York where personal interactions provide added comprehension of the latest offerings on the market.

2) The early adopters in other cities with plenty of knowledge workers and who are willing to experiment with new tools that come to their attention. I know many of our readers are on Twitter with some frequency, are checking in on Foursquare now and then, and may also now be moving over to the discussions on Quora. But, when I take informal surveys at investor meetings, I find very few hands raised when I name some of these products and ask who’s tried them. That helps explain our regional reluctance to invest in these opportunities.

3) The rest of us from all interests and all walks of life who are online and have at least used eBay, email, websites, Craigslist, Facebook, Amazon, and/or smart phone apps somewhere along the way. I don’t profess to have the statistics on this, but all ages and all types of individuals who have Internet access are being touched by these widely used tools and services.

4) Those who don’t have access or just don’t care. If you are reading this you take for granted your high-speed access and all the wonders that brings your way. You’ve forgotten what it’s like to dial up and work at modem speeds. You also can afford this access. Not everyone is geographically able or financially able to enjoy what to them would be a luxury. And, not everyone has communication gifts or a bent that would stir them to jump into an online experience that involves writing, thought, and interaction. There are millions of folks to whom the TV is an adequate form of all entertainment and knowledge.

I can think of plenty of examples of all four tiers. Perhaps I’m in category 2, and I am currently finding that Quora provides very useful insights toward the uber world. There’s a good Q&A thread about Quora versus forums and you can even get insight into why Foursquare seems to be outrunning Gowalla. Both these topics have deep information that comes from people who seem to really know what they are talking about. It’s a challenge to contribute meaningfully to such discussions, but I have found plenty of topics more on my level. I get away with an occasional joke answer, but other individuals or Quora curators can easily “collapse” or edit answers they don’t find helpful or appropriate. I gave a general answer to a question about the leading angel investors in Atlanta but did not think it appropriate to name names. That one got collapsed quickly as not being at all a real answer to the topic. I got away with one that asked if this is a good time to start a tech business in the UK when I replied “only if it’s tied to the Royal Wedding.” Anyhow, if you’re still ice-bound and really bored, you can check out all my Quora participation.

Clearly the uber world is techs interacting with other techs. There appears to be very little content about matters of public interest or other subjects outside the confines of the tech universe. There are plenty of other places to opine on politics, for example.

With respect to Twitter, I have sent a meager 1616 tweets during my career there, and it’s a great way to keep up with a finite circle of friends and to follow some of the tech industry influencers. Of late I’ve found it also is an extraordinary tool for staying attuned to the PGA tour. Some golfers like @stewartcink and @bubbawatson use Twitter regularly to provide insights into their lives on the Tour; call it celebrity watching, but it’s still fun. And, it’s often an easier, quicker, and less obtrusive way to reach someone than email or phone. Twitter has certainly transcended the tech world.

Those of you who followed my tweets as I drove to and from the Independence Bowl at Shreveport will recognize some of the following observations. The people could not have been nicer, and the Bowl itself was an entertaining event even with the Jackets losing. But, I visited one McDonald’s in Vicksburg where I asked about their wi-fi only to have the cashier ask me “what is wi-fi?” Excuse me, but I thought all McDonald’s locations had ATT wi-fi now. I went to a Starbucks in Shreveport itself and thought it odd that no one there was using a laptop; one could not picture such a scene in Atlanta. The barista said their service had been out a few weeks and would be back someday; but clearly no one seemed to care. Shreveport is an outdoorsy town; even the big downtown mall on the river is anchored by a Bass Pro Shop. Hunting, fishing, and LSU football are way up on the agenda ahead of the latest Internet wonders. I was in the world of my categories 3 and 4. There’s actually a strong entertainment industry in Shreveport thanks in part to state tax incentives, but I don’t think that city is likely to launch the next big thing on the Internet.

So where does all this lead? Jump on over to Quora and ask a few questions if you want to take a peek at what’s up the ladder. You may learn something, or you may just be wasting time, but if you’re in Atlanta right now you don’t have the option of any outdoor recreation.