The personal computer is rapidly replacing other appliances - the telephone, radio and television - as the household's tool of choice, according to a recent Burst Media survey of 13,000 web users age 14 and older. And entertainment once accessed via separate appliances is more and more being played on computers, according to the survey findings.

Some 39.1 percent of respondents 24 years and younger say the internet is the primary way they listen to music - and 9.3 percent say it will be in the future. Nearly one-third (31.2 percent) of those 24 years and younger say the internet is the primary way they play games - and 11.6 percent say it will be in the future. The same age demographic is also more likely than others (53.3 percent vs. 27.6 percent) to say they watch movies and other video programming online.

More than half of all respondents - and 76.5 percent of respondents 24 years or younger - say they listen to music over the internet. And more than half of all, and nearly two-thirds who are 24 or younger, say they play games online.

Nearly half (47.3 percent) of respondents use the internet to gather local, national or international news. Men are significantly more likely than women (50.3 percent vs. 44.3 percent) to say they use the internet to gather news.

Nearly two-thirds (65.2 percent) of respondents report using the internet to stay in contact with family and friends; among women 55 years and older, 77.5 percent report doing so.

Broadband respondents are more likely than dial-up respondents to use the internet to listen to music (58.7 percent vs. 40.2 percent), play games (53.4 percent vs. 43.9 percent), and watch movies and other video (31.7 percent vs. 17.1 percent).

Four out of five (86 percent) respondents say their daily routine would be disrupted if their home computer were taken away and not be available for one week. Some 42.1 percent say their daily routine would be disrupted "significantly."