Cory Doctorow has written an interesting blog-post about how social networks have their own 'red button' for self destruction. There comes a moment that you get too many friends, which is unavoidable when you accept all the friend requests a person receives. While in theory services like Facebook are great to keep track of contacts, in the end you'll have people on there who you're not really befrienden with. Which causes an exodus to the next network to start over again.
The main problem is that you have to mix too many people together and can't distinguish between those close to you and those you met once on a party. While it's not-done to remove someone from your friends list it's something that we should start with. People have to be aware that you can't be befriended with everyone you know. There is a gap between the strong and the weak ties that you have. And this is for everyone, every single one of us. We shouldn't be hurt if we're not part of a person's inner circle because, if it wasn't for Facebook and other social networks, we wouldn't know either.
Sources: InformationWeek
Wednesday, November 28
Where's the Money in the Blogoshere?
According to Alex Iskold there can a lot of money be made on the long tail in the blogosphere, but not when one is in it. A lot of the blogs online have a small amound of readers, and any way to capitalize on those readers just won't make enough revenue to create a living out of that. Possibilities like Google's Adsense depend on large amounts of traffic to be profitable.
He says it's a circle, companies depend on the long tail to exist, but if the long tail collapses .. what will happen then?
Sources: Read/WriteWeb
He says it's a circle, companies depend on the long tail to exist, but if the long tail collapses .. what will happen then?
Sources: Read/WriteWeb
The All-Seeing Eye ... of CSI
The wondercops of CSI know everything, and if they don't they just go to your twitter account to see what you Have been doing. Sometimes it's just that easy.
I wonder when pictures and/or videos of people killing others will be on Facebook, tagged and ready to incriminate the certain someone. Considering people are already getting fired over booze-filled pictures I guess that future isn't too far away.
Sources: Mashable
I wonder when pictures and/or videos of people killing others will be on Facebook, tagged and ready to incriminate the certain someone. Considering people are already getting fired over booze-filled pictures I guess that future isn't too far away.
Sources: Mashable
The Online Library
A couple of universities from all over the world (US, China, Egypt & India) are part of a joined venture to digitize books. Already 1.5 million books are available to anyone with a working internet connection.
Reddy says:
This can be said of almost anything. The rise of the internet as a world, not parrallel with ours, but embedded within it has made it a lot easier to spread information around our little globe.
I wonder what will happen with books as a medium. Myself, I still enjoy to flip the pages of a book, to touch the paper, the smell of an old book, the fact that you can immerse yourself in a stack of flattened woodpulp. Reading books on the computer doesn't come anywhere near that.
Source: Physorg
Reddy says:
The economic barriers to the distribution of knowledge are falling.
This can be said of almost anything. The rise of the internet as a world, not parrallel with ours, but embedded within it has made it a lot easier to spread information around our little globe.
I wonder what will happen with books as a medium. Myself, I still enjoy to flip the pages of a book, to touch the paper, the smell of an old book, the fact that you can immerse yourself in a stack of flattened woodpulp. Reading books on the computer doesn't come anywhere near that.
Source: Physorg
Robotic Legs & Cars
Monkey brain signals have been mapped by electrodes and are able to control robotic legs on the other side of the world.
While these legs don't control themselves like the cars did in "Darpa's Urban Challenge". This was a race where robotic cars had to finish a course and overcome traffic situations, the kind we deal with every day. The cars had to be completely autonomous, without outside interference/help.
We're not there yet, but robots do seem to become a lost smarter and it won't take that long anymore before they'll be playing an active party in our everyday lives.
Source: NewScientist, Darpa
While these legs don't control themselves like the cars did in "Darpa's Urban Challenge". This was a race where robotic cars had to finish a course and overcome traffic situations, the kind we deal with every day. The cars had to be completely autonomous, without outside interference/help.
We're not there yet, but robots do seem to become a lost smarter and it won't take that long anymore before they'll be playing an active party in our everyday lives.
Source: NewScientist, Darpa
The Mobile Web
According to Yahoo the mobile web will be here in about 10 years and in emerging markets the first contact people will have with the internet is through their phones.
The reason why internet on our phones hasn't been popular here 'yet' is because of the gatekeepers function and actions of the providers. The sim cards in our phones are each tied to only one operator. Now, if phones would be able to get on the internet, and use wireless networks to call (like Skype) then the mobile network operators will be outdated. There are already phones to call with Skype, just imagine them being even more mobile.
Sources: Last100
The reason why internet on our phones hasn't been popular here 'yet' is because of the gatekeepers function and actions of the providers. The sim cards in our phones are each tied to only one operator. Now, if phones would be able to get on the internet, and use wireless networks to call (like Skype) then the mobile network operators will be outdated. There are already phones to call with Skype, just imagine them being even more mobile.
Sources: Last100
Tuesday, November 27
Our demise: Global Warming, Oil ... and Ubiquitous Computing
According to William Gibson (writer of the famous novel Neuromancer) one of the biggest challenges that we humans face in the present is Ubiquitous Computing.
This is perfectly visible in the amount of possible ways we can get on the internet: through our home computers, laptops at the airport/train station/coffeeshop, smartphones, pda's ..
The virtual world doesn't run parrallel with ours, but is completely intertwined. It is ever-present and will only be playing a bigger part in the lives of each and every one of us in the coming years.
Source: RollingStone
One of the things our grandchildren will find quaintest about us is that we distinguish the digital from the real, the virtual from the real. In the future, that will become literally impossible. The distinction between cyberspace and that which isn't cyberspace is going to be unimaginable.
This is perfectly visible in the amount of possible ways we can get on the internet: through our home computers, laptops at the airport/train station/coffeeshop, smartphones, pda's ..
The virtual world doesn't run parrallel with ours, but is completely intertwined. It is ever-present and will only be playing a bigger part in the lives of each and every one of us in the coming years.
Source: RollingStone
The Long Tail in Facebook Applications
Tim O'Reilly published a report about the Long Tail that exists in Facebook user applications. While this reports dates from May 2007 it will no doubt still be true today. There are only a small number of applications that have the most users (Superwall and TopFriends for example).
He identifies that the application's goal is to get into the very small head where most activity takes places. Applications have to be able to exist for a longer amount of time. A way to demonstrate this is the low selling price of the application 'Advent', which is only usable 4 weeks out of every year. And thus as a very limited life.
Sources: O'Reilly Radar, Mashable
He identifies that the application's goal is to get into the very small head where most activity takes places. Applications have to be able to exist for a longer amount of time. A way to demonstrate this is the low selling price of the application 'Advent', which is only usable 4 weeks out of every year. And thus as a very limited life.
Sources: O'Reilly Radar, Mashable
On Demand Television
The big UK tv houses (BBC, ITV and Channel 4) will collaborate early next year to provide the viewer with an online on demand video service. Each of these houses currently has their own online service.
No doubt this content won't be available for everyone. The current BBC iplayer features DRM and doesn't work outside of the UK. Which is a shame for all us lovers of Brittish comedy who don't live there.
Sources: BBC News, Through Mashable
No doubt this content won't be available for everyone. The current BBC iplayer features DRM and doesn't work outside of the UK. Which is a shame for all us lovers of Brittish comedy who don't live there.
Sources: BBC News, Through Mashable
Sunday, November 25
Digital Property
A 17 year-old Dutch teen has been arrested after stealing about 4000 euros worth of digital property on the popular chatting service Habbo Hotel. After luring their victims in revealing their passwords the virtual burglars stole the furniture and moved them to their own places.
The crime is considered to be theft due to the fact that the furniture was paid for with real money.
It reminds me of the time that I played World of Warcraft on a regular basis. Occasionally people would sell their characters for multiple reasons. This was something that was not allowed by Blizzard .. saying that the characters were still their property. Those selling the characters would say that they were not selling the characters, but their time.
Additonally there are also the 'goldfarmers' who are farming money to sell later to players who won't want to take the time to collect it themselves.
A BBC report about this on YouTube: World of Warcraft - BBC News Coverage, Chinese Gold Farming
Sources: BBC News
The crime is considered to be theft due to the fact that the furniture was paid for with real money.
It reminds me of the time that I played World of Warcraft on a regular basis. Occasionally people would sell their characters for multiple reasons. This was something that was not allowed by Blizzard .. saying that the characters were still their property. Those selling the characters would say that they were not selling the characters, but their time.
Additonally there are also the 'goldfarmers' who are farming money to sell later to players who won't want to take the time to collect it themselves.
A BBC report about this on YouTube: World of Warcraft - BBC News Coverage, Chinese Gold Farming
Sources: BBC News
Virtual Worlds
If we would have to believe 'Mondo 2000: A User's Guide to the New Edge' we would run around virtual worlds already using headmounted displays to navigate through those worlds. AS we all know, that hasn't quite happened just yet. These heads up displays, or projected environments are still very much like science fiction for those of us who are not working in the military. For example the latest fighter pilot helmets that display all the information inside the helmet, allowing the pilot to look around while at the same time having those important numbers right in front of their nose. And at the same time effectively reducing the necessity of the tradition HUD (Heads Up Display).
While virtual worlds are steadily increasing in popularity, from the early MUDS to the now booming MMORPG's (massive multiplayer online role playing games) or any game feature a multiplayer part. Whether it's offline or online, ... there are plenty of possible worlds to choose from. We can be knights, thieves, elves, orcs (Ultima Online, Everquest, Dark Age of Camelot, LotR online, Warhammer, Lineage, World of Warcraft), space pilots (EVE Online) .. or just explore the familiarity of a place that resembles our own reality (Second Life).
There are limits in how far we can be submerged in those worlds. Allthough there are a lot of stories about addiction to Online gaming we're not yet 'in' there. We are still limited by the 2d screen in front of our eyes.
Navigating online worlds is still very unefficient. We could be considered to be spoiled by the very basics of hyperlinks, clicks leading us directly to where we want to go. Having to walk around a virtual library to look for a book would seem rather pointless and a waste of time. Why else would the internet slowly be replacing libraries now? There are vast amounts of information available with a single mouseclick. Having to navigate a 3d world would be too cumbersome to be efficient, to be 'time-saving'. Having a totally immersive experience might not always be what we are looking for.
Sources: CNet
While virtual worlds are steadily increasing in popularity, from the early MUDS to the now booming MMORPG's (massive multiplayer online role playing games) or any game feature a multiplayer part. Whether it's offline or online, ... there are plenty of possible worlds to choose from. We can be knights, thieves, elves, orcs (Ultima Online, Everquest, Dark Age of Camelot, LotR online, Warhammer, Lineage, World of Warcraft), space pilots (EVE Online) .. or just explore the familiarity of a place that resembles our own reality (Second Life).
There are limits in how far we can be submerged in those worlds. Allthough there are a lot of stories about addiction to Online gaming we're not yet 'in' there. We are still limited by the 2d screen in front of our eyes.
Navigating online worlds is still very unefficient. We could be considered to be spoiled by the very basics of hyperlinks, clicks leading us directly to where we want to go. Having to walk around a virtual library to look for a book would seem rather pointless and a waste of time. Why else would the internet slowly be replacing libraries now? There are vast amounts of information available with a single mouseclick. Having to navigate a 3d world would be too cumbersome to be efficient, to be 'time-saving'. Having a totally immersive experience might not always be what we are looking for.
Sources: CNet
Attitude poll about the internet (and cyborgs?)
463.com and Zogby internation released the results of a poll about the attitudes of about 20.000 people concerning the internet. The questions concerned a wide range of subjects ranging from implants to God and significant others.
Two interesting answers were:
So while we're hesistant about subjecting our own brains to implants it is ok for our kids so we can keep an eye on them?
Sources: 463, (Through Read/WriteWeb)
Two interesting answers were:
- Implant the Internet in Your Brain. Americans may love the Internet, but most
are not prepared to implant it into their brain, even if it was safe. Only 11% of respondents said they be willing to safely implant a device that enabled them to use their mind to access the Internet. Interestingly, men were much more willing than women. Seventeen percent of men said they were up for it while only 7% of women wanted to access the Internet using their mind.
- Kids Chips.
While most Americans don’t want the Internet implanted in their brain, they are more willing to insert a chip into a child 13 or younger to help track them if they are lost, abducted, or just tend not to be where they are supposed to be. Nearly one in five Americans said they would do so to track a child’s whereabouts. Interestingly, there was no difference in opinion among parents who had younger children and those who did not.
So while we're hesistant about subjecting our own brains to implants it is ok for our kids so we can keep an eye on them?
Sources: 463, (Through Read/WriteWeb)
The Citizen Journalist Toolkit
According to Reuthers this kit contains everything a Citizen Journalist would need to survive in the world of newsmaking: a phone (the N95) that's able to go online and has a built-in GPS, a tripod for video interviews, a microphone and a charger working on solar power. How much good that will do in our cloud-covered part of the world is beyond me. But for the citizen journalist operating in the sunnier regions of the world it might be more appropriate.
Sources: Reuters, Nokia
Sources: Reuters, Nokia
Wednesday, November 21
Web 2.0 too clean?
Who can argue that the web 2.0 hype caused websites to look 'too' clean, too shiny and a feeling of plastic all around.
Identity is important. Therefore style and content should go hand in hand to give the surfer the feeling that what you're offering or saying is more unique than the colour/plastic look.
So here some tips:
How to destroy the web 2.0 look.
Identity is important. Therefore style and content should go hand in hand to give the surfer the feeling that what you're offering or saying is more unique than the colour/plastic look.
So here some tips:
How to destroy the web 2.0 look.
Does 'Media' equal 'News'?
Is the expression 'The Media' simply another way of saying the News?
- I think not.
Media is the plural of medium, which is a means of conveying a message, a means of communication. A tool which we use many times a day. These media include anything from television, to newspapers, magazines, the internet protocol, billboards etc. There are many more messages being transmitted towards the viewer or the listener than just the news. This includes entertainment, advertising, to be short, any message sent by a sender to a receiver. These receivers can be be many in the case of a few to many model (traditional broadcasting like television or newspapers) or a many to many model (like the internet).
If we continue this line of thinking we are all part of what is commonly referred to as the 'media'. In this age of the internet and the endless possibilities to share our opinions, stories and rants through blogs (There are so many free services like Google Blogger, or Wordpress ...), social networking tools (MySpace, Facebook, Friendster, ...), instant messengers (MSN Messenger, AIM, ICQ ...), short message updaters (Twitter) and Wiki's (with for example wikipedia) ... We're all our own publishers, senders of information and sharers of thoughts.
Monday, November 12
Facebook Employees know what you are doing.
While Facebook doesn't allow the publishing of profiles. They themselves can look at any of them and see everything a user does or who's profile he or she visits.
We users can only see those people's profiles who are our friends. But we shouldn't forget that there's an allseeing eye watching over us. There's a lot of information in these profiles about every user and should we trust coorporations to keep our information safe?
A top US intelligence official says that citizens should change their notion of privacy to match that of their governement. Privacy should be regarded as a framework as a system of laws, rules and customs. Instead people should focus on how the information, that will be gathered anyway, will be safeguarded.
There are fragments of each person spread all over the world. Personal data in governement computers concerning every part of your life. Information about your financial status in banks and financial institutions. And now information about your personal status in the Facebook database.
While Facebook is obviously not the only party we should realise that everything we do can be watched. When will that time come that some people will be able to see everything at once ...
Sources: Valleywag, Ars Technica
We users can only see those people's profiles who are our friends. But we shouldn't forget that there's an allseeing eye watching over us. There's a lot of information in these profiles about every user and should we trust coorporations to keep our information safe?
A top US intelligence official says that citizens should change their notion of privacy to match that of their governement. Privacy should be regarded as a framework as a system of laws, rules and customs. Instead people should focus on how the information, that will be gathered anyway, will be safeguarded.
There are fragments of each person spread all over the world. Personal data in governement computers concerning every part of your life. Information about your financial status in banks and financial institutions. And now information about your personal status in the Facebook database.
While Facebook is obviously not the only party we should realise that everything we do can be watched. When will that time come that some people will be able to see everything at once ...
Sources: Valleywag, Ars Technica
Friday, November 9
Online identities
Rheingold:
and Mark Poster:
Both in "Cyberspace, Cyberbodies, Cyberpunk", p. 90
If we relate this to Facebook where we have all the information of the other persons if they are added to our friends list? In how far would we communicate in the same way as we did when we had an anonymous nickname and avator, not linked to our identities in Real Life. If everything can be linked to our person, will this decrease a sense of need for personal expression? Will opinions that don't agree with that of the general public be closed down in fear or repercussions?
There is something that could be said about the safety of anonimity. That you can say what's on your heart, without having to think about the future and outcomes that are impossible to be foreseen at this moment .. Here comes to mind the posting of pictures where you're drunk, partying, smoking pot or just anything that might conflict with future interests of companies or other entities.
The need for pseudonyms might be greater then we think.
"... are relationships and commitment as we know them even possible in a
place where identities are fluid? ... We reduce and encode our identities as
words on a screen, decode, an unpack the identities of others."
and Mark Poster:
"Without visual cues about gender, age, ethnicity and social status,
conversations open up in directions that otherwise might be avoided."
Both in "Cyberspace, Cyberbodies, Cyberpunk", p. 90
If we relate this to Facebook where we have all the information of the other persons if they are added to our friends list? In how far would we communicate in the same way as we did when we had an anonymous nickname and avator, not linked to our identities in Real Life. If everything can be linked to our person, will this decrease a sense of need for personal expression? Will opinions that don't agree with that of the general public be closed down in fear or repercussions?
There is something that could be said about the safety of anonimity. That you can say what's on your heart, without having to think about the future and outcomes that are impossible to be foreseen at this moment .. Here comes to mind the posting of pictures where you're drunk, partying, smoking pot or just anything that might conflict with future interests of companies or other entities.
The need for pseudonyms might be greater then we think.
Sunday, October 28
Flock
There is something quite strange with being able to check on your friends updates, browser flickr, and stumble through YouTube in the same browser window. For this I installed the beta version of the browser Flock, the browser with a social flavour. We'll see how this turns out and if this changes my online behaviour.
Blogged with Flock
Saturday, July 7
Meeting 6/7
Results of the meeting with Gavin on 7/6/2007.
- Questionnaires have fundamental problems. Identify those problems and keep account of that fact while doing the research.
- It is important to keep ethics in mind when doing research. Add a statement to the questionnaire telling the questionnaire is only for 18+ and that everything will stay confidential.
- It is important to look after yourself and the people who participate in the survey. Be reflexive in everything you do. Ask yourself questions and try to find the answers to them.
- What is going to happen with the questionnaire? What are the different steps that have to be taken to insure a valid end result?
- Give the subjects the right not to answer certain questions (*Other).
- Create a specific research question from which you can draw multiple hypothesis.
- Think of the research in 3 parts: "this is what I want", "this is what i have", "this is what i learned". The most important is the first part, since it leads to the second, which ends in the third.
- Consider the option of a follow-up of the questionnaire: for example in-depth interviews. This means including the possibility at the start of the questionnaire.
- After the research is complete, which are the ways it can be taken further? Be reflexive in thinking of ways or paths which could still need more research.
- Did you get everything you wanted to find out?
- Is there a specific time people are more prone to fill in questionnaires?
- How can the results of the research be put back in the community? Website, publishing etc.
Books:
- "Cyberculture Reader" - Communities in the abstract (chapter)
- "A social history of the media"
- "Cyberplay"
Wednesday, July 4
Questionnaire
Why do people start facebooking in the first place. What attracts to these pieces of online networking software? Is it friends, the coverage in the news, hearing people talk about it ... ?
So question I should ask in my questionnaire should be:
So question I should ask in my questionnaire should be:
- Age
- F/M
- Profession
- Friends
- Family
- Collegues
- Read about it
- Other: ...
- A couple of times a day
- Once a day
- Once every few days
- Once a week
- Less
- Shorter than 15 minutes
- Between 15 and 30 minutes
- Between 30 and 60 minutes
- More than 60 minutes
- Where do you access the Facebook site most often?
- At home
- At work
- At the library
- Other: ...
- Since when are you a member of Facebook?
- What do you expect from an online networking service like Facebook?
- Answer every question with a number from 1 to 5:
- 1: Strongly agree
- 2: Agree
- 3: Neutral
- 4: Disagree
- 5: Strongly disagree
- I use Facebook to stay in contact with people who are family.
- I use Facebook to stay in contact with people I consider to be close friends.
- I use Facebook to stay in contact with people I consider to be friends.
- I use Facebook to stay in contact with people I consider to be friends but rarely see.
- I use Facebook to stay in contact with people I know but (almost) never see.
- I use Facebook to meet new people.
- When I'm on Facebook I check the profiles of people who are family.
- When I'm on Facebook I check the profiles of people I consider to be close friends.
- When I'm on Facebook I check the profiles of people I consider to be friends.
- When I'm on Facebook I check the profiles of people I consider to be friends but rarely see.
- When I use Facebook I check the profiles of people I know but (almost) never see.
- I use Facebook to share pictures with my friends.
- I use Facebook to share videos with my friends.
- I add everyone to my friends list, whether I know them or not.
- I stay in contact with everyone on my friends list.
- I use Facebook to arrange meetings in person.
- I often look at my own profile.
- Answer every question with a number from 1 to 5:
- 1: Very often
- 2: Often
- 3: Regular
- 4: Not often
- 5: Never
- I send private messages to people I often see.
- I send private messages to people I rarely see.
- I send private messages to people I never see.
- I tag all the pictures I upload.
- I poke people on Facebook.
- I write notes on Facebook.
- I send gifts on Facebook.
- I create events on Facebook.
- I join events on Facebook.
- I join groups on Facebook.
- I actively participate in the groups I've joined.
- I use third party applications.
-
- When do you check out other peoples profile? (rank in order of importance)
- After a private message sent by someone.
- After you've been poked.
- After you see a message from their profile in your news feed.
- After you see them in your friends list.
- Other: ...
- What are the aspects of Facebook you like the most?
- Have you ever considered leaving Facebook? If so, why?
Virtual Communities
From "Communities in Cyberspace"
While strong ties can be maintained online, when does your network become too big to sustain those strong ties without losing your face-to-face strong ties. In the end, when you a problem, would you rather know that someone out there is thinking about you, trying to help you, or have someone near, a close friend for whom it's easier to support you.
When do you spend too much time online, spreading your time over a lot of people, maintaining the weak ties, and the occasional strong one, while, in a way, neglecting those ties that are closest to you.
Out of personal experience I know that once you start 'facebooking' it can easily become a sort of addiction. Trying to see what people are up to, checking everything out, hoping for new messages from your friends. While it is a great way to stay in contact with those you can't meet every so often, or even less than that, it's a timesink.
Additionally, with the rise of 'applications', little pieces of software users can use, coming from third parties, increases the interactivity within the online communities. There are many new ways to keep in contact with people you know, besided text messaging .. ranging from book and movie recommendations, to superpokes, horoscopes etc...
“Several writers have expressed fears that high involvement in virtual community
will move people away from involvement in real-life communities, that are
sustained by face-to-face, telephone and postal contact. [...] Such fears are
misstated in several ways. For one thing, they treat community as a zero-sum
game, assuming that if people spend more time interacting online they will spend
less time interacting in “real life”. Second, such accounts demonstrate the
strength and importance of online ties, and not their weakness. As we have seen
in the previous section, strong, intimate ties can be maintained online as well
as face-to-face.” (p.181)
While strong ties can be maintained online, when does your network become too big to sustain those strong ties without losing your face-to-face strong ties. In the end, when you a problem, would you rather know that someone out there is thinking about you, trying to help you, or have someone near, a close friend for whom it's easier to support you.
When do you spend too much time online, spreading your time over a lot of people, maintaining the weak ties, and the occasional strong one, while, in a way, neglecting those ties that are closest to you.
Out of personal experience I know that once you start 'facebooking' it can easily become a sort of addiction. Trying to see what people are up to, checking everything out, hoping for new messages from your friends. While it is a great way to stay in contact with those you can't meet every so often, or even less than that, it's a timesink.
Additionally, with the rise of 'applications', little pieces of software users can use, coming from third parties, increases the interactivity within the online communities. There are many new ways to keep in contact with people you know, besided text messaging .. ranging from book and movie recommendations, to superpokes, horoscopes etc...
Friday, June 29
Applications
Related to the previous post an additional thought has sprung up: how does the rise of applications on Facebook influence the amount of time spent/lost on the site? There are so many things that can be incorporated in your profile that it can be doubted that a visitor of your profile will look at all of it. So is it a way of showing yourself to the world, or a confirmation of yourself for yourself? Almost all these applications have the ability to send messages to the news feeds of other people. So where can the line be drawn between letting people know what you did, or are up to, and in a way 'spamming' yourself, broadcasting yourself to other people. One to many ...
Thursday, June 28
Quote
"The popular mythos tells us that network are powerful, global, fast,and= Quote sent to me by Gavin.
inexpensive. It’s the place to meet friends and carry on business.There, you'll
find entertainment, expertise, and education. In short,it's important to be
online. It ain't necessarily so. Our networks canbe frustrating, expensive,
unreliable connections that get in the way of useful work. It is an overpromoted,
hollow world, devoid of warmth andhuman kindness." pg233
It's interesting to think about the fact in how far social networking takes time away from day to day social activities. Sure, you stay in contact with people you barely see and you know what they are up to. But by spending time online you have to spread your available time over a lot more people. Does day to day social activity suffer from this?
This can lead to interesting questions for the questionnaire:
- How many times do you check your account?
- How long do you usually stay on these sites? (this questions is better answered by consulting internet activity tracking companies - need to be looked into)
Friday, June 22
Facebook Tools
- Groups
A characteristic of being a member of a community is the feeling of belonging, to be part of a greater whole. In Facebook this is created by the use of groups. People can join many groups who they feel they should, or can, be part of. These can be situated around education, work, interests, groups of friends, travels etc... Each of these groups have their own 'wall' and small forum where members can post and talk to each other.
My personal experience is that this function is underused. It started my first research question about "why do people leave/join these groups so fast". From what I've seen most of the groups function as tags which are visible in the users profile. These groups can be joined and left again very fast and the amount of actual interaction going on there is minimal.
It shows that a lot of the interaction, besides checking profiles and sending short messages, still happens offline.
- Events
People can organize events and use their friends list to create invites. These events are based on real-life events. They are a link between the online world and it's network capabilities and the offline strengthening of bounds through interactions. The event site will feature a list of people attending or not, giving more information to possible participants.
- Photos / videos
Each user can upload pictures and videos to his or her profile. These can then be tagged, which creates a link to the profile of those persons in the picture. By notifications the persons will be notified of it and the pictures will show up on their profile. There is no more need to go harvesting pictures from other people's computer (if you're happy enough with the lower quality and size). Compromising pictures can be untagged by the person who's in the picture.
- Notes
Notes function as a blog option. People can write in their notes and publish them so other people can read them. It shares the basic functionality of a blog.
- Poke
Users can poke each other. Basically it's a way to say 'hi' and let them know you're thinking of them. You can relate this to giving a miscall using mobile phones: in certain cultures it means the same as the poke.
- Private messaging
Users can send each other private messages which will appear in the recipients profile's inbox. It shares the same functionality as email, except that it actively links the profile of the sender to the message.
A characteristic of being a member of a community is the feeling of belonging, to be part of a greater whole. In Facebook this is created by the use of groups. People can join many groups who they feel they should, or can, be part of. These can be situated around education, work, interests, groups of friends, travels etc... Each of these groups have their own 'wall' and small forum where members can post and talk to each other.
My personal experience is that this function is underused. It started my first research question about "why do people leave/join these groups so fast". From what I've seen most of the groups function as tags which are visible in the users profile. These groups can be joined and left again very fast and the amount of actual interaction going on there is minimal.
It shows that a lot of the interaction, besides checking profiles and sending short messages, still happens offline.
- Events
People can organize events and use their friends list to create invites. These events are based on real-life events. They are a link between the online world and it's network capabilities and the offline strengthening of bounds through interactions. The event site will feature a list of people attending or not, giving more information to possible participants.
- Photos / videos
Each user can upload pictures and videos to his or her profile. These can then be tagged, which creates a link to the profile of those persons in the picture. By notifications the persons will be notified of it and the pictures will show up on their profile. There is no more need to go harvesting pictures from other people's computer (if you're happy enough with the lower quality and size). Compromising pictures can be untagged by the person who's in the picture.
- Notes
Notes function as a blog option. People can write in their notes and publish them so other people can read them. It shares the basic functionality of a blog.
- Poke
Users can poke each other. Basically it's a way to say 'hi' and let them know you're thinking of them. You can relate this to giving a miscall using mobile phones: in certain cultures it means the same as the poke.
- Private messaging
Users can send each other private messages which will appear in the recipients profile's inbox. It shares the same functionality as email, except that it actively links the profile of the sender to the message.
Communities
By reading about communities I realise that Facebook in itself is not a community. It's basic function is providing the users with the tools to create and maintain their own custom, ever changing, communities. These books are not recent though, and they talk about older forms of internet activities: newsgroups, forums etc. Recent evolutions, of which Facebook is part of, incorporate a lot more information about the identity of each individual user. While years ago you might have been talking to a mere nickname, now you talk to a 'real' person, of which you can see a lot of information.
From personal experience I think that these online social networking sites try to combine the online and face-to-face relationships to another level. All the people in my own friends list I actually know, and have met troughout time. For me it's a way to keep in contact with those people that are not close to me in terms of geography. In the last couple of years, by studying abroad, I have met a lot of different people from all over the world. The fact that we have added each other as friends on Facebook has made it easier for me to keep contact with them. At the same time the system provides me with updates if my friends add pictures, comments, change their profile etc ... so I'm constantly up to date with the current affairs.
One drawback I see so far is that it requires time to update your profile. So I only know a lot of those people who regularly update their information and share that information with the rest of the people they know. It's the user who has to update his profile for the system to spread out.
Relationships can be divided in being weak ties, and being strong ties. Social software like Facebook makes it easier to collect the weak ties, and keep them in your friends list, and also keep updating the strong ties, making it harder for them to disappear.
From personal experience I think that these online social networking sites try to combine the online and face-to-face relationships to another level. All the people in my own friends list I actually know, and have met troughout time. For me it's a way to keep in contact with those people that are not close to me in terms of geography. In the last couple of years, by studying abroad, I have met a lot of different people from all over the world. The fact that we have added each other as friends on Facebook has made it easier for me to keep contact with them. At the same time the system provides me with updates if my friends add pictures, comments, change their profile etc ... so I'm constantly up to date with the current affairs.
One drawback I see so far is that it requires time to update your profile. So I only know a lot of those people who regularly update their information and share that information with the rest of the people they know. It's the user who has to update his profile for the system to spread out.
Relationships can be divided in being weak ties, and being strong ties. Social software like Facebook makes it easier to collect the weak ties, and keep them in your friends list, and also keep updating the strong ties, making it harder for them to disappear.
A new start
I will be using this blog to map out the progress I make on my research project, using this as a research diary, required by the uni besides the actual research.
What are the recent changes about my project? After meeting with my project supervisor, Gavin Stewart, I started thinking about certain changes in the subject. Where the initial idea was to find out how people use groups within the greater network of Facebook it's now developing in a different direction. The big question, the one that surrounds the whole theme, is if social networking software makes people more social...
Personally I think that social software's main reason for existence is to strengthen existing bounds between people, making it easier for persons to stay in contact. Sites like Facebook make your network more visible, with for example pictures and updates from your friends, so that you are constantly updated on the current situation of your network. This is a big difference between the old 'technologies' of the adress book and the phone book. Now all information is in one place, easily accessible at any moment, if you have an internet connection.
The most important aspects of my research that I have to adress at the current time are:
- Methodologies: How am I going to do the research, what are the appropriate methods to find out the answers for my research question? The current ideas are doing a questionnaire with the option of follow-up questions to get more details out of certain answers people might give.
- Sampling: Contacting people on Facebook, using the site's search engine to look for people within one network, London, and within the age limits of 18 and 25. I will then have to use a sequence of numbers to decide who will be contacted or not. This sequence will have to be random and will come from the internet site random.org.
- Refinement: "Does social software make people more social" is a question with a very wide focus. What is 'social' exactly. The question will probably evolve in something more specific along the lines of "How do the available tools on Facebook influence the relations with your friends?"
- Tools: Facebook features different tools for people to explore and use to contact their friends. Examples of this are the walls, poking, presents, tagging of pictures, commenting on pictures, and then there are the multitude of applications developed by third parties. All of these provide a way of communicating with your friends, directly or indirectly.
- To do:
Refine research question, create pilot questionnaire, drawbacks and advantages of the used research methods, background reading.
What are the recent changes about my project? After meeting with my project supervisor, Gavin Stewart, I started thinking about certain changes in the subject. Where the initial idea was to find out how people use groups within the greater network of Facebook it's now developing in a different direction. The big question, the one that surrounds the whole theme, is if social networking software makes people more social...
Personally I think that social software's main reason for existence is to strengthen existing bounds between people, making it easier for persons to stay in contact. Sites like Facebook make your network more visible, with for example pictures and updates from your friends, so that you are constantly updated on the current situation of your network. This is a big difference between the old 'technologies' of the adress book and the phone book. Now all information is in one place, easily accessible at any moment, if you have an internet connection.
The most important aspects of my research that I have to adress at the current time are:
- Methodologies: How am I going to do the research, what are the appropriate methods to find out the answers for my research question? The current ideas are doing a questionnaire with the option of follow-up questions to get more details out of certain answers people might give.
- Sampling: Contacting people on Facebook, using the site's search engine to look for people within one network, London, and within the age limits of 18 and 25. I will then have to use a sequence of numbers to decide who will be contacted or not. This sequence will have to be random and will come from the internet site random.org.
- Refinement: "Does social software make people more social" is a question with a very wide focus. What is 'social' exactly. The question will probably evolve in something more specific along the lines of "How do the available tools on Facebook influence the relations with your friends?"
- Tools: Facebook features different tools for people to explore and use to contact their friends. Examples of this are the walls, poking, presents, tagging of pictures, commenting on pictures, and then there are the multitude of applications developed by third parties. All of these provide a way of communicating with your friends, directly or indirectly.
- To do:
Refine research question, create pilot questionnaire, drawbacks and advantages of the used research methods, background reading.
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