Advantages of E-Pal Correspondence
E-pals ("internet friends", "key pals", "E buddies")
Fast and more frequent communication
How many e-mails can you send and receive while a single snail mail reaches your pen pal? The answer is close to as many as you can handle! If you want to get in touch with your pen pals as frequently as possible and/or if you want to hear back from your pen pal ASAP, e-mails are for you!
Ease of mailing
What do you need when you write a postal letter? In addition to pen and paper, you need a stamp and a place to send the letter from. With email on the other hand.. You can send mails as long as you have access to a computer with an internet connection and now you can also mail from your handheld organisers or cell phones! You can also send mails faster, not only because many people can type faster than they hand-write, but also because one e-mail tend to be shorter than letters due to its nature. In short, if you have a easy access to the Internet, e-mails may be more convenient for you.
Depending on which website you use, email friendships can be extremely safe. You don't even need to give people your email address if you register your profile on a site like this one (Sorry, had to give us a plug). The website will act as an intermediary between both penpals until they feel comfortable enough to give each other further contact details. This is extremely useful for young children and elderly people that may seek more security. Of course, the answer to this security problem for penpallers is that they can get a P.O. Box, but this will be at a price.
Economy
It depends on the country, but snail mails tend to be more costly than emails. Usually most countries charge around $1 USD for each international postal stamp. You will also need to buy pen and paper, especially if you are particular about the choice of stationery. Also, if you want to send presents to your pen pal, the postage is quite large. In contrast to this, email is usually free. People that access email are usually doing so from work, school a library etc. And if you are using email from home, its normally a free service attached to having an internet connection.
