The days of receiving Legos and in-line skates as gifts during the holidays are long gone, as technology continues to dominate consumer interests.

And as they have for the past few holiday seasons, electronics continued to be big sellers at major outlets such as Best Buy and Circuit City throughout December.

Palm Pilots, DVD players and video game consoles were top sellers for both stores.

“We had a very good December,” said Circuit City Stores, Inc. spokesman Jim Babb. “Electronics were very big with a lot of folks.”

Microsoft’s Xbox and the Nintendo GameCube, two new video game consoles, sold well with consumers, he said.

Sony’s PlayStation 2, launched last year, also remained popular with shoppers.

Babb said digital cameras, cell phones, DVDs and video games were also popular with consumers.

The surge in electronics is not a surprise to many.

And the growing popularity of various electronics is something that has been developing for years, said American Thought and Language Professor Gary Hoppenstand.

“They call it the nesting syndrome,” he said. “People are really staying home more now, so what people have done is center entertainment and social life more on home than out of the house.”

Hoppenstand, an expert on popular culture, said the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, while not to blame, are a factor in the trend.

And feelings of control over entertainment are important to many after the attacks, he said.

“The more we can control our entertainment, the more popular it will be,” he said. “We have less control at the theater because you might have a rude person sitting behind you or crowds to deal with.”

Finance sophomore Brian Shea received a DVD player for Christmas and is enjoying the switch from VHS.

“It’s working out for me,” he said. “It’s just that the picture quality is far superior.”

Although Shea said he enjoys the benefits of emerging technology, he said he will not soon forget his childhood toys.

“I’m glad it seems to make our life better,” he said. “But there ain’t nothing wrong with a good Lincoln Log now and then.”

And Hoppenstand said there could be major changes with how movies are viewed in the future.

“The possibilities of direct beam film to home is something that could happen in the next 10 to 15 years and could put the theaters out of business,” he said. “Some people argue that the theater is a social experience, but I think today people are less into that.

“People are turning more inward than outward.”

Hoppenstand said this could have negative implications.

“We’re becoming isolated islands in our community - disengaged except for computer technology, and that’s going to occur more and more,” he said. “People will do more interaction through the computer, and I don’t really see that as a good thing necessarily.”

But some popular electronics have been a source of help for students.

English junior Shannon Roehm received a Palm Pilot for Christmas and is enjoying her new found form of organization.

“I’m still getting used to learning it and programming it and stuff, but it’s pretty useful,” she said. “It’s nice to have.”