If anything showed the awesome power of the Internet to do good, it was the immediate aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks. In the first week after the disaster, six Web sites raised $57 million in disaster relief donations.

More millions came in to other sites. The amounts are staggering, considering that the largest amount raised online for any previous disaster was $2.5 million. At a time when millions of people wanted to do whatever they could to help, the Internet offered an instantaneous way for individuals to register their compassion.