why? :(
Sadly Maurice wasn’t lying about the beedogs…. http://www.beedogs.com/
I like the way it claims to be the premier repository for online pics…well see for yourself. I doubt they have much competition
February 27, 2008
February 26, 2008
Why the Internet scares governments?
I came across this article on msn. It gives a good insight as to why governments arn’t so keen on embracing the internet and associated technologies. It also gives a brief outline on Pakistan’s decision to ban YouTube.
To read the article click HERE
Barack Obama even social network’s!
He has set up his own social networking site for all fundraising volunteers and staff
http://my.barackobama.com/page/user/login?successurl=L3BhZ2UvZGFzaGJvYXJkL3ByaXZhdGU=
Even potential Presidents blog!
Web 2.0 Technologies.
Web 2.0, the latest iteration of the internet is where users stop being passive viewers and begine to actively partake and contribute to the internet. Web 2.0 can have different meanings to different people, to some it is just a social networking site such as Bebo. To others its different technologies that combine to form a true information highway, one that flows both ways.
This includes
- Blogs
- Wikis
- Tagging
- Media sharing
- Audio/Video blogging and podcasting
- RSS
Traditional HTML was never reactive enough for Web 2.0 where the internet is used as a platform. Now, AJAX (or Asynchronous Javescript and XML) is used where when a page is loded only small amounts of information are passed back and forth from the server thus allowing a greater level of dynamic content within a webpage. For example, expanding a menu on a page would not cause the page to be reloaded over and over again. This mimics the responsiveness found in traditional desktop applications and is much more “natural” and speedier.
In competition to AJAX is Macromedias Flash which allows multimedia to be quickly downloaded and played within a page. This however requires a browser plug-in though most people already have it.
The usefullness of Flash is readily apparent, just look at YouTube.
Social Networking Business Model
In the most basic sense, a business model is the method of doing business by which a company can sustain itself — that is, generate revenue.
Social networking sites make their money in various ways. Online dating sites such as Udate and Match measure their revenues in 6 figures every month. Monster.com is profitable, in that companies pay to search for potential employees. The fact is that people pay for search when they want quality information.
Facebook still makes most of It’s money from targeted advertising… displaying relevant advertisements to users dependant on their interests. http://www.facebook.com/ads/
However as an additional income generator , you can now purchase “gifts” to send to your friends. This months featured gift is “Fresh Air” at 250,000 units for a price of $1. That’s a lot of one dollars, for something that doesn’t cost them a cent! Even worse there is many young and old that will fork out for this. I guess that’s how they generate at least a portion of their income.
Stanford University have actually created a module to teach students on how to create Facebook applications and how to analyse the information they collect from users. Its big business!
http://venturebeat.com/2007/09/10/facebook-to-take-over-stanford-classroom
Here is a video of Tom Anderson the founder of Myspace, talking about how myspace became successful. Its interesting when he describes initial marketing campaigns weren’t successful and word of mouth added most value to myspace.
Dave McClure in his blog - Master of 500 Hats, has posted an interesting Slideshare of the metrics and business models for a fictitious start up Scottish Pirates. Describing the process of acquiring new users right through to generating revenue.
The original social network game
This is where is gets a little crazy. Kevin Bacon of the six degrees of Kevin Bacon game fame (also an actor) has launched his own social network,
Funny skit on how facebook can “take over your life”
Found this on youtube and thought it funny!
Social Implications of Social Networking
There are very serious repercussions to online social networking sites if you are not careful. Sites like Myspace and Facebook are an excellent medium to catch up with old friends and meet new people with similar interests but they can also be a hindrance to you both personally and professionally. Social Networking is a service that can be both used and abused.
One of the most important implications of social networking is that whatever you post online is a permanent record. All those photos of you partying with friends, stupid pranks captured on video, negative comments, and intimate secrets that you write have your name stamp on them. It’s commonly known that employers from all areas (not to mention potential partners and university recruiters) use these sites to get an overlook of who you are as a person.
Social networking sites can provide a great platform to meet people with common interests and to share advice. However, it can also provide an open invitation to predators, those who seek personal information for identity theft and other scams, and those thousands of companies seeking to market their products and services to you. It is important to be as careful meeting strangers online as you are meeting them everyday offline.
Another danger social networking brings to its users is time wasted. You can’t replace any of those hours spent online reading jokes, watching videos, or engaging in frivolous conversation. Spending time on your friends’ pages is never as fun as being together in person. Wasting time complaining about your bad day at university online is never as productive as actually doing your assignment.
Research from Global Secure Systems (GSS) and Infosecurity Europe 2008 suggests social networking sites - such as Facebook, MySpace and Bebo - are costing UK corporations close to £6.5 billion annually in lost productivity. Which sounds an impossibly large figure, but here’s the maths:
The poll was carried out amongst 776 office workers, who admitted to spending at least 30 minutes a day visiting social networking sites whilst at work, that’s a minimum of 10 hours a month which equates to 3 weeks of every year with two respondents who were so hooked that the spend 3 hours visiting these sites everyday. The end result is potentially billions of pounds in lost productivity maintain GSS, plus the extra demand on bandwidth which is an additional cost to a business in terms of efficiency, maintenance and resources.
Social networking is not all bad however, corporate social networks such as LinkedIn can open leads to new opportunities or jobs. Facebook groups such as Microsoft with its 28,937 members allows you to network with people with the same interests opening the possibilities for research projects. Bebo, Facebook and Myspace allow you to connect, share photos and video with friends you might not see often. But it is important to be careful, keep profiles safe and private and know that all information you post is forever. If you don’t want your granny to know, don’t post it online!
DIY Social Networking.
There are a myriad of technology types utilised within the (virtual)world of social networking.
When most people think of social networking they think of Bebo or Facebook, however, this barely scratches the surface of what is out there.
Being facetious, we can describe the internet and everything that exists in that netherworld as social networking technology.
After all Tim Burners-Lee envisaged the internet as a resource where like-minded geeks (scientists) could share information with each other. Not much different from modern sites today, except in presentation and spelling.
If we take a modern site such as Bebo, we can see that rather than being a discrete system it is an amalgamation of social networking software and technologies that have evolved over the years.
For example, we have the ability to post a blog and chat with other users as well as provide other information in the form of videos, photos, etc.
However, as with many things in life, a jack of all trades is a master of none.
If you want to send messages to your friends you can do that via an instant messaging system. If you want to share files (legally of course) then you can do so via dedicated peer-to-peer and file sharing programs.
Of course, it is the functionality, features, and ease of use (as well as “coolness”) that brings in subscribers.
Perhaps one of the most interesting forms of social networking is within MMORPGs and more recently other online game genres. Here users can have a greater “virtual presence” within a virtual society and some excel here, more so than in the real world.
It is perhaps easier to think of these as not games but, as a social networking system with greater presentation (3-dimensional and real-time simulation).
In essence, social networking technology is communication technology whether discrete systems or systems that provide a gateway to the various routes of communication between internet users.
What is the result of all this technology? Information, and information is power as Robin Morgan said.
That is why if you strip away all the fancy layers of media players, photo galleries and message boards, at the heart of a social network site is a big database that stores information, updates it, adds to it and deletes it.
If you are a free spirit and feel like taking on the big names of social networking or perhaps find that unexploited niche market, here is a comparison of some social network software platforms and their capabilities –
http://www.techcrunch.com/wp-content/wlsn_comparison_chart.html
Risks and negative issues in technology, opportunities and benefitial issues
Risks/Negative issues
A useful article in the independent on Sunday recently highlighted a few social implications of facebook/bebo users
-No control over who views often highly personal information on your homepage eg. prospective employers/collegues…
-Risk of poor character representation. More importantly, how safe is your personal information…eg home address,telephone number
-Potential for harassment or identity theft or worse? See youtube video posted yesterday on this site for rape case as a result of Facebook harrassment. Easy access to information, people often forget social network sites are in the public domain.
-Much irresponsible use of social networking sites, a potential to forget that this is communication with real people without the barriers of face to face social convention. As (very) young people make up a majority of users, can they really act responsibly with this technology? No doubt the cases of harrassment/stalking will continue to rise if unchecked. De-personalises (is that a word?) communication
- Facebook has come under fire for its use of advertising on the site. No way of knowing what company holds your information…
-Facebook very hard to leave. Must delete every comment, post, application to really leave the network
-Social networks are a distraction, do they really contribute to the sense of an online community? Do they really provide any insight in to the modern world or is there too much information to obscure any real trends in society?
-A fad…Facebook and Bebo are slowing down, have they had their day? Too commercialised? Growing sentiment that this is the case. Social networking sites are in fashion now, wait for the backlash.
-They are difficult to negotiate due to the number of pop-ups and advertising space. Heavy corporate investment, does this dilute their validation as a forum for free speech and the sense of community?
-Evidence that many people spend more time on their social networking site than they do with people in the real world. How can this be healthy? Social networking sites are designed to be fun and easy to use, are they becoming addictive?
-These sites arguably over-valued. Can one networking site be worth more than the GNP of a small country? Bubble will inevitably burst.
Opportunities/Benefitial issues
-Business-wise a success story. Myspace, Bebo, Facebook valued in the billions
-Opportunity to gauge trends in the market through use of online applications, advertising, quizzes etc
-An opportunity for people to communicate with others as they have more time to think about what they want to express. Obviously as it takes more time and effort to post something about yourself there is an opportunity to confidently convey yourself to the world.
-Fan-sites popularity, meet people with mutual interests and hobbies. At a business level bands can create newsletters and communicate directly with fans eg. Myspace phenomenon of acts like arctic monkeys, kate nash, libertines. Adds to the hype and offers a community orientated experience for fans who do not even need to meet to communicate.
-Will the bubble burst for this technology? No concrete evidence that it has or will. As users drive the popularity of these sites their scope is potentially limitless.
-Offers cheap communication between people on opposite sides of the globe on their own terms. No expensive phone calls. Applications available allow the sending of online cards, gifts etc. If these gifts could be traded in against sites, there could be a new business potential. Eg send an online card with a £20 amazon voucher “inside”. People keep abreast of friends’ travel and work news when a few years ago this would have been impossible/expensive.
-Example of Second Life. Total immersion in another virtual life, interesting from a social anthropological perspective. Online community growing all the time. Social networking sites could offer a version of this immersion in the future.
-For many just a harmless way of keeping in touch with old friends…the casual user
