Educating children may be the virtuous aim for buying a home computer in France, but computer games dominate actual use, says a study released last week by one of the country’s largest public polling companies, Sofres. Commissioned by Apple Computer Inc, the study shows that education ranks first among use objectives (39%), followed by work (37%), games (34%), text (22%) and management (20%). Honourable intentions nothwithstanding, education comes in only third in actual use, with 33%, trailing significantly games (47%) and work (42%). Little wonder, when 35% of the respondents’ average age was between 15 and 24. The study also found that 16% of those surveyed already used a home computer, and another 8% planned to buy one shortly.
