I searched the forums and only found a few posts/replies on internet addiction disorder. Beyond debating whether IAD is even an addiction or disorder, does anyone have any strategies to coping with this?

I've been doing some of research on the topic. This site has some helpful information, as did a few other sites. As always, many sites were completely unhelpful and only serve to sell books and software. Of the few helpful sites I found, the majority of the information related to describing the disorder, the debate on whether it is a disorder, and other anecdotal information. There wasn't much in the way of concrete suggestions to coping with it, outside of 'consult a mental health professional'.

I realize that ths is related to the many underlying causes of this behavior (for example depression). At this point, I'll settle for fixing the symptoms (ie controlling my discretionary internet usage).

Completely disconnecting the internet is not an option. As such, here's what I've come up with so far (with varying levels of success) :

1. Accountability (track my online time via stopwatch, record it, and report it daily to a friend)
2. Web filtering (blocking the sites I waste the majority of my time on)
3. Not eating in front of the computer
4. Avoiding taking 'quick' breaks on the computer (on average these breaks take 40 minutes)
5. Avoiding being at the computer for any non-essential reason
6. Setting an overall time limit and keeping track of my performance

In the 3 weeks, I've been instituting these strategies, I've found myself to be less than successful (hence the reason for posting this and motivation to finally do some serious research into this problem). If you have suggestions/strategies that have worked for you/someone else, please post them. Obviously, these strategies only address symptoms and I need do some serious introspection as to what needs my online addiction is satisfying, what triggers it, and other underlying issues. Thank you in advance for reading this and any input you may have.