My thoughts on…social networking sites
Before I start, I guess I should explain my absence. My monitor was giving some colour trouble, and I had to send it to the shop for a full 7 days (not counting Saturday and Sunday). Now it’s back, and showing better than ever. For the past few days I’ve been watching CNBC and I’ve been hearing all about the net worth of social networking sites like MySpace, LinkedIn, Facebook and so on, and the debates as to which will become the next Google, if any. Why are these sites so hot? My guess is because these sites feed people’s egos. And how can we talk about social networking sites without talking about MySpace, where unpopular kids and narcissistic brats can both play high school popularity contest online, posting their best ever photos on their profiles just to get comments from horny strangers of the opposite sex, or see who can get the most “friends.” I mean how can someone have over 1,000 friends?
Oh and let’s not forget the movies, bands and events that have profiles, exploiting MySpace’s audience of teens, the only demographic with 100% disposable income, a marketer’s wet dream. And all of these social networking sites have profiles that look like the land that HTML forgot. We’re advanciong towards XHTML, but these profiles feature those damn glittery GIFs and colour combinations that would make your eyes bleed. I have a MySpace profile which I am totally inactive on. How inactive? I just signed on, then decided a couple minutes later that it was a complete waste of time. I have no friends, save the omnipresent Tom, no doubt there to prevent you from realizing the harsh reality that no one really does love you. Yet still I’ve gotten two friend requests! What the hell? To date I haven’t responded. I don’t have time to waste by adding to someone’s friend count. One of their profiles was deleted. Why? I shudder to think.
That’s why Hi5 and Facebook are more my style. Clean interface, more grownups and less sex offenders, though Hi5 has made some changes in order to keep up with MySpace. Personally, I use social networking sites to link to…wait for it … ACTUAL FRIENDS. Sure, I may not have a rockstar’s amount of friends. In fact I have barely have over 100 friends, but that’s OK with me. Less crap in my inbox. So is social networking the revolution it was envisioned to be? Nope. In fact I don’t know how sitting alone at your computer checking your profile every half hour for comments helps your social skills, but it sure is profitable. I guess if I want to become a millionaire, I need to create a site where countless people can waste their time, interact with others, feeling as if they’re adding something to their lives. Funny. My blog hasn’t made me a cent to this day.
money from blogs is not easy…trust me..I’m trying all things, and it seems to be a lost cause
You talk about bad color combinations with your orange and brown here!
Love the writing though
you like hi5! I think Hi5 has a high freaky people level (at least from my observation) and how can you call a ad filed page a clean interface?
Facebook is the best social networking out there but I think they just killed it off by adding ads to the site recently
Myspace - never used it
I must be one of the few young adults on the planet who haven’t
by the way…welcome back ^_^
First, let me say welcome back Leon my favoritist blog in the whoooooole wiiiiiiiide woooooooooooorld.
Jamaipanese your on Hi5 aren’t you:P i’m no freak and i’m on it….yah sure myspace is the worse out of the lot and facebook is #1. Ads are needed to sustain a site.so you should have expected facebook to put it on sooner or later
Welcome back……you were missed….i am with you on the social networking site….just got a facebook account about 3 weeks ago and havent been back on since….maybe it is that we just dont know what it is we are missing
My daughter (age 18) says that she hardly communicates with her friends via phone calls; its all done through IM and Facebook nowadays. When they are planning an outing to the movies, they send bulletins outlining time, place, date, etc. I find it strange.
I feel so out of it.I don’t even have Hi 5,facebook or myspace.I have MSN space tho:)
hi5hi5hi5. just started on face book its noy bad but it too private by default
I too like you Leon have a ver inactive Myspace account! I went there to login just for the fun of it and couldn’t! Hi5 is more my speed and I don’t think I need more than just one of the networks. I used to add people I don’t know when I just started but it didn’t make sense, so now I just add people that I actually know!
Keep the faith Leon, I just got my first google check this month!
So, jumping into the fray, I too set up a Hi5 account. Then, I realised that I did not want perfect strangers looking at my pictures, or corresponding with me, so I took it down. Feel the world is too dangerous for that kinda stuff.
Sorry to hear yu nah get no money. Be enriched by the joy that you spread through your wonder writing (snicker…snicker)
Thanks for visiting my blog! Please come back soon….I have not found any Jamaican blogs that deal with the serious issues in Jamaica and so I decided to start my own:)).
Peace!
I have major issues with all these social networking sites. I’m on Hi5 but never actually use it. Signed up for FAcebook then realized if I really want to keep up with my friends i’d rather call, text, email or IM them.
I always wondered about adsense….
I hate MySpace, never went on Facebook although I’ve been invited and I don’t know the other. I think I will stick to blogging.
I love facebook!!! ADD MEE!!