Showing posts with label Facebook. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Facebook. Show all posts
Thursday, 8 August 2013
A bad day at Social Media’s Black Rock.
From the Facebook-ing (and, now, strangely silent) Spanish Train Driver, to Twitter declining to stand up against social bullying, to the Wikileaks soldier likely to spend the rest of his days behind bars, it’s been a bad July for our burgeoning social media channels. The reputation management teams must be working overtime!
Monday, 3 June 2013
Dan Ferrett - My Top 3 Websites
Just some sites that Idealogy people are visiting that tick their boxes.
Dan Ferrett - Office Manager
www.facebook.com
I use this every single day. Great for keeping up to date with what's going on with my friends at home and abroad and also for keeping 'in' with my favourite brands.
www.digitalspy.co.uk
Great for keeping up-to-date with all the celeb goss and going-ons in the world...trashy but true!
www.geocaching.com
It's like one great big treasure hunt! Lots of fun and a great way to kill a few hours over the weekend. I'm always on the lookout for caches wherever I am...even when I'm abroad!
Posted by Dan Ferrett
Monday, 3 December 2012
No quarter given…. (or, where did those 3 months go?)
My name is Dan Ferrett (“go on, I dare you! It’s not like I haven’t heard them all before…) and in August I joined Idealogy as their new Office Manager.
Well, that was what the job description said but can I just say that my first 3 (and a bit) months have literally flown by. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that I would be involved with and in so much, so quickly. Having said that, I wouldn’t change it for the world!
Well, that was what the job description said but can I just say that my first 3 (and a bit) months have literally flown by. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that I would be involved with and in so much, so quickly. Having said that, I wouldn’t change it for the world!
Monday, 27 August 2012
Social Influence: Don’t Forget The Direction
Despite the recalibration of Klout’s score system, their results are still a little askew…
Influence is currency in the world of the social brand. It’s not about how many followers you have - it’s about how you can influence them.
Influence is currency in the world of the social brand. It’s not about how many followers you have - it’s about how you can influence them.
Monday, 20 August 2012
The web space we're invading!
Just some sites that Idealogy people are visiting that tick their boxes...
Richard Sprinks - Developer
Wolfram Alpha
http://www.wolframalpha.com/
e.g. http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=Halley%27s+comet
Nice site that calculates complex search queries using every language
Lulu
http://www.lulu.com/
Great site for publishing content in print or digitally
Museum of Me
http://www.intel.com/museumofme/
This only works well if you have a lot of Facebook content, but it's a great idea
Posted by Idealogy
Monday, 13 August 2012
Has The Pinterest Bubble Burst?
Now the hype has died down, are brands still making the most of Pinterest?
A few months back, the blogosphere was so tightly packed with tales of Pinterest, there wasn’t enough room to swing the proverbial cat. Since then, we’ve all had a little time to cool down and reflect, and we’re not so sure this pinning thing is going to pose a long-term threat to the big boys.
Granted, social networks are hardly elitist by nature. But the fact that Pinterest requires you to be invited 'unto its domain' is sure to partly undermine the inclusivity that we link to the ‘social brand’. Then again, does this approach make PInterest more exclusive and - dare we say - exotic, than its all-inclusive rivals? If so, how could this affect the way brands and readers interact?
Unlike on Facebook or Twitter, where bashing out a dose of semi-corporate goodness is quickly becoming an art form, we’re not sure there’s a good way to ‘Pin’ something well. A nice picture could just as easily go viral via the usual suspects than on Pinterest, so why the extra channel? And if it’s not nice enough, why bother pinning it?
Perhaps the best way for brands to use Pinterest is to simply get creative. Unbound by character limits, users are free to enjoy the glorious serendipity provided by Pinterest. Who knows which Pinboards you’ll stumble across? Peugeot have certainly raised the bar with their interactive jigsaw puzzle. So is there a case for “build it, and they will come”?
There are clearly pros and cons when it comes to Pinterest. They may not bring forth the revolutions like its predecessors have, and longevity could prove to be an issue. But for now, it seems to be where the highly engaged consumers are, so it may also need to be where the brands are.
Posted by Idealogy
A few months back, the blogosphere was so tightly packed with tales of Pinterest, there wasn’t enough room to swing the proverbial cat. Since then, we’ve all had a little time to cool down and reflect, and we’re not so sure this pinning thing is going to pose a long-term threat to the big boys.
Unlike on Facebook or Twitter, where bashing out a dose of semi-corporate goodness is quickly becoming an art form, we’re not sure there’s a good way to ‘Pin’ something well. A nice picture could just as easily go viral via the usual suspects than on Pinterest, so why the extra channel? And if it’s not nice enough, why bother pinning it?
Perhaps the best way for brands to use Pinterest is to simply get creative. Unbound by character limits, users are free to enjoy the glorious serendipity provided by Pinterest. Who knows which Pinboards you’ll stumble across? Peugeot have certainly raised the bar with their interactive jigsaw puzzle. So is there a case for “build it, and they will come”?
There are clearly pros and cons when it comes to Pinterest. They may not bring forth the revolutions like its predecessors have, and longevity could prove to be an issue. But for now, it seems to be where the highly engaged consumers are, so it may also need to be where the brands are.
Posted by Idealogy
Thursday, 28 June 2012
Richard Sprinks - My Top 3 Websites
The web space we're invading!
Just some sites that Idealogy people are visiting that tick their boxes...
Richard Sprinks - Developer
http://www.wolframalpha.com/
Nice site that calculates the complex search queries using a every language.
http://www.lulu.com/
Great site for publishing content in print or digitally.
http://www.intel.com/museumofme/
This only works well if you have a lot of Facebook content, but it's a great idea.
Posted by Idealogy
Wednesday, 21 December 2011
Some Simple Christmas presence...on Facebook
Since January 2007, Facebook has had an average of 250,000 new registrations per day and there have been over 52,000 apps built on the platform.
There's no getting away from it - with more than 800 million active users, these days it's vital for B2C brands to have a Facebook presence. It's the perfect environment to drive engagement and discussion between people, communities, and brands of all sizes.
There's no getting away from it - with more than 800 million active users, these days it's vital for B2C brands to have a Facebook presence. It's the perfect environment to drive engagement and discussion between people, communities, and brands of all sizes.
Thursday, 27 October 2011
Do you need Facebook or Twitter? pt.2
The You Tube Example
Understanding your Internet audience is one of the hardest things to do. While in the business world there is a lot of structure and business models that can work each and every time, in social media your work is always reflexive. This of course has some similarities with the principles of marketing and PR, but you’ll find there isn’t time to spend a month looking at figures, trying to work out how to improve your next mail out AND it means that traditional marketing techniques can fail!
It’s the here and now that dictates the break-neck speed in which you need to react, interact and direct your activities, as well as something more than a transparent offer.
Understanding your Internet audience is one of the hardest things to do. While in the business world there is a lot of structure and business models that can work each and every time, in social media your work is always reflexive. This of course has some similarities with the principles of marketing and PR, but you’ll find there isn’t time to spend a month looking at figures, trying to work out how to improve your next mail out AND it means that traditional marketing techniques can fail!
It’s the here and now that dictates the break-neck speed in which you need to react, interact and direct your activities, as well as something more than a transparent offer.
Thursday, 20 October 2011
Do you need Facebook or Twitter? pt.1
Writing a blog about Social Media for business is actually a fairly easy exercise – and I’m not trying to be flippant about it.
People want to know the basics such as; do I need Facebook or Twitter? How do I get more followers? And so on, but while these are good questions they only really scratch the surface of something that’s ultimately much larger and sophisticated than it appears.
People want to know the basics such as; do I need Facebook or Twitter? How do I get more followers? And so on, but while these are good questions they only really scratch the surface of something that’s ultimately much larger and sophisticated than it appears.
Thursday, 18 November 2010
Geek Mythology - Social Network review
“The value of a social network is defined not only by who’s on it, but by who’s excluded.” - Paul Saffo
Before I start I would like to point out that I’m really not a big social networker. Some may even say I’m a little social networker. Truth is I’m a simpler, more visceral creature who, call me old fashioned, enjoys socially engaging with people and real friends through conversation and the occasional letter. I’m not afraid to admit I even have notelets.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a total digital dodger and yes I do have a Facebook page. I fit into the thirty-something category of men who enjoy the occasional COD Deathmatch with 10 year old American kids and has more DVDs and Blu-Rays than is both necessary or sanitary. No surprise then that I have a passion for film. In fact most of my online social activity is spent on movie blog pages such as theonering.net and Harry Knowles’ brilliant aintitcoolnews.com. I find this more engaging than throwing cyber sheep, virtually ‘poking’ someone or reading some twit’s tweet... but here I am, so now who’s the twit?
It is because of my fascination with all things cinematic that I was asked to write a piece about the film Social Network…which is brilliant by the way!
Balancing a thin line between drama and comedy Social Network sees a solid return to form from director David Fincher after his visually stunning but somewhat flakey Benjamin Button. In it we follow the questionable inception and creation of Facebook. It’s ensemble cast includes Jesse Eisenburg (Adventureland and Zombieland) Andrew Garfield (brilliant Brit thesp who’s just signed to play the new Spiderman), Justin Timberlake (Black Snake Moan and apparently quite an accomplished singer. Who knew?!), Rooney Mara (soon to play Lisbeth Salander in Fincher's adaptation of the The Girl with a Dragon Tattoo Millennium Trilogy) and Armie Hammer, a revelation as both of the Winklevoss twins with the help of some astonishing digital trickery from Lola VFX (the technical wizards behind Brad Pitt's incredible transformation from 90 to 9 in Benjamin Button).
Based on Ben Mezrich’s non-fiction book ‘The Accidental Billionaires’ and adapted into a screenplay by Aaron Sorkin (Charlie Wilson's War and A Few Good Men) it is worth noting that no Facebook employees, including founder Mark Zuckerberg, were involved in the project.
Sorkin's script never misses a beat and is both engaging and informative from the off; like a Shakespearean Greek tragedy (or should that be Geek tragedy), this is history being retold for our entertainment. In this retelling the geeks are filled with elegant prose and sardonic wit. A far cry from the clicks and whistles I’m used to deciphering from the geek community.
In 2003 Harvard Undergrad and computer programming genius Mark Zuckerberg got dumped by his girlfriend, but rather than drink himself into a stupor he sat down at his computer and began working on his revenge masterpiece Facemash - a simple concept in which fellow female students were rated against each other. The site became an overnight viral success with 22,000 views in less than four hours that crashed the Harvard servers. This popularity inspired Zuckerberg to create a unique social networking experience and in a fury of blogging and programming, what begins in his dorm room soon becomes a global social network and a revolution in communication. Six years and 500 million friends later, 26 year old Mark Zuckerberg is the youngest billionaire in history. But at what cost? His success leads to both personal and legal complications. As the film's tagline suggests, “You don’t make 500 millions friends without making a few enemies”.
Social Network explores the moment at which Facebook (originally Facemash and then TheFacebook before finally dropping the ‘the’) was conceived through the warring perspectives of the super-smart students who each claimed to be there at its inception. The film moves from the halls of Harvard to the cubicles of Palo Alto to capture the fledgling days of this culture-changing phenomenon, and the way in which it both pulled a group of young revolutionaries together and then split them apart.
In the midst of this chaos is Mark Zuckerberg, the brilliant Harvard student who conceived the website. Zuckerberg's spite and inability to socially interact (clearly a sign of Asperger’s syndrome but which is never fully explored) fuels his dogmatic determination to prove himself academically superior and for no other reason than because it would be ‘cool’. He never intended for his creation to make him a multi billionaire, only seeking the recognition not the wealth.
Then there are the Machiavellian Winklevoss twins Cameron and Tyler, identical twins and Harvard classmates who asserted that Zuckerberg stole their idea and then sued him for ownership of it. Initially briefing Zuckerberg with helping them programme their Harvard Connection website and inadvertently giving Zuckerberg the lightening bolt he needed for his creation. Zuckerberg never did complete their Harvard Connection website nor did he use any of the code they gave him. For the Winklevoss twins this was about power through popularity; how a social networking website could bolster their reputation, climb Harvard's elitist social hierarchy and move them out of the shadow created by their father. Zuckerberg now had that power but had no way of harnessing it.
Add Justin Timberlake's brilliant turn as the Napster creator Sean Parker who brought Facebook to Silicon Valley’s venture capitalists. Sean is a man driven by the financial rewards genius can generate, In one scene telling Zuckerberg of Roy Raymond, the man who in 1977 created Victoria’s Secret and sold the company five years later for $4 million. By the early 1990s the company had become Americas most successful lingerie retailer topping over $1 billion in revenue. In 1993 Roy Raymond committed suicide jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge.
Finally there is the fresh faced Eduardo Saverin, Zuckerberg's once close friend and Harvard roomy who stumped up the $1000 cash Zuckerberg required to start his venture - as Facebook grows he becomes further ostracised from the business. His character is by far the one you most sympathise with but is ultimately the less interesting.
Each has his own narrative, his own version of the Facebook story in this multi-level portrait of 21st Century success - both the youthful fantasy of it and its finite realities as well.
You never really do get to bottom of the truth but in Fincher's and Sorkin's tale of geek mythology it never really matters. As the credits roll the Beatles track ‘Baby your a rich man’ asks the question “How does it feel to be one of the beautiful people?” - a question Zuckerberg could never truly answer and why would he, he’s from the logged in, left out generation that knows little of beauty and even less so of feeling.
In an industry where ideas are the heart of the business, what price do you put on a truly original idea? And is there really such a thing as an original idea?
The television, arguably one the 20th Centuries greatest technical achievements has changed the world forever in terms of the communication of thoughts and ideas to the masses. Though many consider the idea of the modern television to be the brainchild of John Logie Baird, it was actually down to the scientific breakthroughs of several luminary individuals. The beginnings of mechanical television can be traced back to the discovery of the photoconductivity of the element selenium by Willoughby Smith in 1873, the invention of a scanning disk by Paul Gottlieb Nipkov in 1884 and finally John Logie Baird’s demonstration of televised moving images in 1926.
What John Logie Baird was able to do was to bring that communication experience into the homes of the masses. Now a century later Zuckerberg has been able to bring his own communication experience into the dorms of every university in the western hemisphere and 500 million users globally. According to insidefacebook.com “If Facebook were a country, it would now be the 6th most populous in the world.”
Which I guess is kinda ‘cool’.
References:
imdb.com
empireonline.com
wikipedia.com
Posted by David Birch
Before I start I would like to point out that I’m really not a big social networker. Some may even say I’m a little social networker. Truth is I’m a simpler, more visceral creature who, call me old fashioned, enjoys socially engaging with people and real friends through conversation and the occasional letter. I’m not afraid to admit I even have notelets.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a total digital dodger and yes I do have a Facebook page. I fit into the thirty-something category of men who enjoy the occasional COD Deathmatch with 10 year old American kids and has more DVDs and Blu-Rays than is both necessary or sanitary. No surprise then that I have a passion for film. In fact most of my online social activity is spent on movie blog pages such as theonering.net and Harry Knowles’ brilliant aintitcoolnews.com. I find this more engaging than throwing cyber sheep, virtually ‘poking’ someone or reading some twit’s tweet... but here I am, so now who’s the twit?
It is because of my fascination with all things cinematic that I was asked to write a piece about the film Social Network…which is brilliant by the way!
Balancing a thin line between drama and comedy Social Network sees a solid return to form from director David Fincher after his visually stunning but somewhat flakey Benjamin Button. In it we follow the questionable inception and creation of Facebook. It’s ensemble cast includes Jesse Eisenburg (Adventureland and Zombieland) Andrew Garfield (brilliant Brit thesp who’s just signed to play the new Spiderman), Justin Timberlake (Black Snake Moan and apparently quite an accomplished singer. Who knew?!), Rooney Mara (soon to play Lisbeth Salander in Fincher's adaptation of the The Girl with a Dragon Tattoo Millennium Trilogy) and Armie Hammer, a revelation as both of the Winklevoss twins with the help of some astonishing digital trickery from Lola VFX (the technical wizards behind Brad Pitt's incredible transformation from 90 to 9 in Benjamin Button).
Based on Ben Mezrich’s non-fiction book ‘The Accidental Billionaires’ and adapted into a screenplay by Aaron Sorkin (Charlie Wilson's War and A Few Good Men) it is worth noting that no Facebook employees, including founder Mark Zuckerberg, were involved in the project.
Sorkin's script never misses a beat and is both engaging and informative from the off; like a Shakespearean Greek tragedy (or should that be Geek tragedy), this is history being retold for our entertainment. In this retelling the geeks are filled with elegant prose and sardonic wit. A far cry from the clicks and whistles I’m used to deciphering from the geek community.
In 2003 Harvard Undergrad and computer programming genius Mark Zuckerberg got dumped by his girlfriend, but rather than drink himself into a stupor he sat down at his computer and began working on his revenge masterpiece Facemash - a simple concept in which fellow female students were rated against each other. The site became an overnight viral success with 22,000 views in less than four hours that crashed the Harvard servers. This popularity inspired Zuckerberg to create a unique social networking experience and in a fury of blogging and programming, what begins in his dorm room soon becomes a global social network and a revolution in communication. Six years and 500 million friends later, 26 year old Mark Zuckerberg is the youngest billionaire in history. But at what cost? His success leads to both personal and legal complications. As the film's tagline suggests, “You don’t make 500 millions friends without making a few enemies”.
Social Network explores the moment at which Facebook (originally Facemash and then TheFacebook before finally dropping the ‘the’) was conceived through the warring perspectives of the super-smart students who each claimed to be there at its inception. The film moves from the halls of Harvard to the cubicles of Palo Alto to capture the fledgling days of this culture-changing phenomenon, and the way in which it both pulled a group of young revolutionaries together and then split them apart.
In the midst of this chaos is Mark Zuckerberg, the brilliant Harvard student who conceived the website. Zuckerberg's spite and inability to socially interact (clearly a sign of Asperger’s syndrome but which is never fully explored) fuels his dogmatic determination to prove himself academically superior and for no other reason than because it would be ‘cool’. He never intended for his creation to make him a multi billionaire, only seeking the recognition not the wealth.
Then there are the Machiavellian Winklevoss twins Cameron and Tyler, identical twins and Harvard classmates who asserted that Zuckerberg stole their idea and then sued him for ownership of it. Initially briefing Zuckerberg with helping them programme their Harvard Connection website and inadvertently giving Zuckerberg the lightening bolt he needed for his creation. Zuckerberg never did complete their Harvard Connection website nor did he use any of the code they gave him. For the Winklevoss twins this was about power through popularity; how a social networking website could bolster their reputation, climb Harvard's elitist social hierarchy and move them out of the shadow created by their father. Zuckerberg now had that power but had no way of harnessing it.
Add Justin Timberlake's brilliant turn as the Napster creator Sean Parker who brought Facebook to Silicon Valley’s venture capitalists. Sean is a man driven by the financial rewards genius can generate, In one scene telling Zuckerberg of Roy Raymond, the man who in 1977 created Victoria’s Secret and sold the company five years later for $4 million. By the early 1990s the company had become Americas most successful lingerie retailer topping over $1 billion in revenue. In 1993 Roy Raymond committed suicide jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge.
Finally there is the fresh faced Eduardo Saverin, Zuckerberg's once close friend and Harvard roomy who stumped up the $1000 cash Zuckerberg required to start his venture - as Facebook grows he becomes further ostracised from the business. His character is by far the one you most sympathise with but is ultimately the less interesting.
Each has his own narrative, his own version of the Facebook story in this multi-level portrait of 21st Century success - both the youthful fantasy of it and its finite realities as well.
You never really do get to bottom of the truth but in Fincher's and Sorkin's tale of geek mythology it never really matters. As the credits roll the Beatles track ‘Baby your a rich man’ asks the question “How does it feel to be one of the beautiful people?” - a question Zuckerberg could never truly answer and why would he, he’s from the logged in, left out generation that knows little of beauty and even less so of feeling.
In an industry where ideas are the heart of the business, what price do you put on a truly original idea? And is there really such a thing as an original idea?
The television, arguably one the 20th Centuries greatest technical achievements has changed the world forever in terms of the communication of thoughts and ideas to the masses. Though many consider the idea of the modern television to be the brainchild of John Logie Baird, it was actually down to the scientific breakthroughs of several luminary individuals. The beginnings of mechanical television can be traced back to the discovery of the photoconductivity of the element selenium by Willoughby Smith in 1873, the invention of a scanning disk by Paul Gottlieb Nipkov in 1884 and finally John Logie Baird’s demonstration of televised moving images in 1926.
What John Logie Baird was able to do was to bring that communication experience into the homes of the masses. Now a century later Zuckerberg has been able to bring his own communication experience into the dorms of every university in the western hemisphere and 500 million users globally. According to insidefacebook.com “If Facebook were a country, it would now be the 6th most populous in the world.”
Which I guess is kinda ‘cool’.
References:
imdb.com
empireonline.com
wikipedia.com
Posted by David Birch
Wednesday, 22 September 2010
Another tool in the box
We're expanding our tool set and from next week D-Media will be able to speed up it's development of desktop AIR applications and web-based Flex applications with the arrival of the new Adobe FlashBuilder 4. The ability to interface with and create apps for social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter will be enhanced too, and what with Apple's recent decision to support iPhone authoring straight from Flash CS5, next year could prove to be very interesting.Posted by Paul Skinner
Friday, 30 July 2010
Facebook Credits – is currency a step too far for the Social Network site?
As most people will have probably read, the social network platform Facebook is aiming for a full launch of its virtual currency Facebook Credits in September. It’s a move that could lead to it becoming the default online currency rivalling leaders such as PayPal.
All of this comes on the heels of the debate about whether the site should stay true to it’s purpose, resisting the temptation to carry too much external advertising, however attractive the proposition might be to an audience of over 400 million active users. So maybe the step into virtual currency isn’t such a leap of faith after all. When you look at the statistics, it’s not difficult to see why - 50% of active users log on to Facebook in any given day. Each Facebook user has, on average, 130 friends and users spend over 500 billion minutes per month on the site. Where do they find the time?
So, here’s the skinny – credits will be aimed at virtual goods like games but will eventually let consumers buy anything, including physical goods. Accounts will be topped up with any credit card and charge a merchant 30% commission.
A Facebook spokeswoman has commented “We are continuing to look at ways to extend our virtual currency via a test with several developers. The test started in May 2009 and is exploring ways for people to use their Facebook Credits with third-party applications and games on Facebook.”
Other industry observers have commented, “The real opportunity is within Facebook Connect. If it can integrate with that, it will mean a much broader network of sites can implement the currency. Another opportunity is for advertisers to incentivise people to engage by offering Credits in return for interacting with branded content or ‘liking’ the brand within Facebook”.
Since Facebook first announced that it would be implementing Facebook Credits last year, many app developers have been unhappy about the proposed 30% that it plans to charge for each transaction. So, the concerns are very much part of the Reputation Management challenge.
Facebook needs to be very clear about it’s focus. Its responsibility (and it is just that) is to provide 100’s of millions of disconnected people around the world a safe, secure and intuitive environment for them to connect and share. Now, arguably the largest online community anywhere is being asked to believe in that environment becoming a commercial melting pot.
Sounds a little too hot to dip the social networking toe into. Or is Facebook about to become an anti-social network? Watch this space…
Posted by Simon Johnson
Credit to NMA for comments used.
All of this comes on the heels of the debate about whether the site should stay true to it’s purpose, resisting the temptation to carry too much external advertising, however attractive the proposition might be to an audience of over 400 million active users. So maybe the step into virtual currency isn’t such a leap of faith after all. When you look at the statistics, it’s not difficult to see why - 50% of active users log on to Facebook in any given day. Each Facebook user has, on average, 130 friends and users spend over 500 billion minutes per month on the site. Where do they find the time?
So, here’s the skinny – credits will be aimed at virtual goods like games but will eventually let consumers buy anything, including physical goods. Accounts will be topped up with any credit card and charge a merchant 30% commission.
A Facebook spokeswoman has commented “We are continuing to look at ways to extend our virtual currency via a test with several developers. The test started in May 2009 and is exploring ways for people to use their Facebook Credits with third-party applications and games on Facebook.”
Other industry observers have commented, “The real opportunity is within Facebook Connect. If it can integrate with that, it will mean a much broader network of sites can implement the currency. Another opportunity is for advertisers to incentivise people to engage by offering Credits in return for interacting with branded content or ‘liking’ the brand within Facebook”.
Since Facebook first announced that it would be implementing Facebook Credits last year, many app developers have been unhappy about the proposed 30% that it plans to charge for each transaction. So, the concerns are very much part of the Reputation Management challenge.
Facebook needs to be very clear about it’s focus. Its responsibility (and it is just that) is to provide 100’s of millions of disconnected people around the world a safe, secure and intuitive environment for them to connect and share. Now, arguably the largest online community anywhere is being asked to believe in that environment becoming a commercial melting pot.
Sounds a little too hot to dip the social networking toe into. Or is Facebook about to become an anti-social network? Watch this space…
Posted by Simon Johnson
Credit to NMA for comments used.
Monday, 19 July 2010
The importance of Self – or, why we need to keep social networking in perspective
Remember how we all used to value ‘me-time’? How we craved a long, leisurely soak in the bath, with the door locked and, for company, all we had were our personal concerns for the effects of Aloe Vera salts on our skin. Remember the last time you said, “Tonight, I’m going to catch up on my correspondence!”
Oh, how the pendulum has swung the other way. Social networking has become de rigueur – and if you are unsure what that means, just hook up to Wikipedia, the social encyclopaedia, where it says "necessary according to etiquette, common sense, protocol or fashion." In other words, if you’re not on, you’re out!
Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, YouTube, Bebo, Blogger, Google Buzz, Linkedin, and Windows Messenger – the list is seemingly endless. The drain on our personal time and the gain to our self-importance knows no end. So, what do we do in the mornings, when we wake up and consider the potential for the new day? Do we go and brew a refreshing mug of mint tea and stare wistfully at the dawn, the miracle of each morning? Do we sit in the garden and make a list of the projects, the possibilities for the next stage of our personal journey?
No! We log on.
We measure our personal value by how many ‘friends’ have posted messages on our wall overnight. We bask in the glow of forgotten school friends emerging from the mists of time to request space in our unique white noise laden universe. And with every message, each reminder of our past glories, or invitation to name a friends new pet iguana, our regard for our personal reputation ramps up another notch. Again, with the benefit of Wikipedia’s ill regulated, knowledge for the masses platform, it’s easy to access the marker – Self Importance: Excessively high regard for one's own importance or station; conceit.
So there it is; the final word on the matter. Conceit. It’s all we have as a measure for our personally engineered self-image. An image framed by the number of friends we can claim, the amount of photographs that we are ‘tagged’ in, the number of secrets we have blatantly trumpeted to the best friend of our son’s third, and now ex-girlfriends’, family’s Latvian relative who recently spent 3 days in London having been diverted to Stanstead when a cheap flight to Riga was cancelled due to fog! How did they get my name? Who cares? We’re happy to share!
So, it’s time to get some perspective. Time to kick out against the cult of the individual. Time to rediscover all the things that time ‘spent on-line’ have consigned to the list of “if I’ve got time’ – like actually talking to people and rekindling relationships and taking in the joys of the setting sun rather than staring at a screen saver.
But let’s not over react – social networking does have a place. It’s great to have conversations with daughters who long ago moved overseas, so staying in touch tends to be expensive and intermittent. It’s good to keep in contact with people you might not want to spend an evening with, but happy to keep at arms length through the magic of the internet.
But is it really the indicator of our own self-engineered status. I suspect not. If you want to find out, switch off a few of your ‘must-have’ accounts. Several interesting things will happen. The sun will still shine. The birds will still sing. And people will still try to get in touch with you.
If they don’t, were they worthy of taking up a valuable part of your day in the first place?
Now, that’s self-importance!
Posted by Simon Dover
Oh, how the pendulum has swung the other way. Social networking has become de rigueur – and if you are unsure what that means, just hook up to Wikipedia, the social encyclopaedia, where it says "necessary according to etiquette, common sense, protocol or fashion." In other words, if you’re not on, you’re out!
Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, YouTube, Bebo, Blogger, Google Buzz, Linkedin, and Windows Messenger – the list is seemingly endless. The drain on our personal time and the gain to our self-importance knows no end. So, what do we do in the mornings, when we wake up and consider the potential for the new day? Do we go and brew a refreshing mug of mint tea and stare wistfully at the dawn, the miracle of each morning? Do we sit in the garden and make a list of the projects, the possibilities for the next stage of our personal journey?
No! We log on.
We measure our personal value by how many ‘friends’ have posted messages on our wall overnight. We bask in the glow of forgotten school friends emerging from the mists of time to request space in our unique white noise laden universe. And with every message, each reminder of our past glories, or invitation to name a friends new pet iguana, our regard for our personal reputation ramps up another notch. Again, with the benefit of Wikipedia’s ill regulated, knowledge for the masses platform, it’s easy to access the marker – Self Importance: Excessively high regard for one's own importance or station; conceit.
So there it is; the final word on the matter. Conceit. It’s all we have as a measure for our personally engineered self-image. An image framed by the number of friends we can claim, the amount of photographs that we are ‘tagged’ in, the number of secrets we have blatantly trumpeted to the best friend of our son’s third, and now ex-girlfriends’, family’s Latvian relative who recently spent 3 days in London having been diverted to Stanstead when a cheap flight to Riga was cancelled due to fog! How did they get my name? Who cares? We’re happy to share!
So, it’s time to get some perspective. Time to kick out against the cult of the individual. Time to rediscover all the things that time ‘spent on-line’ have consigned to the list of “if I’ve got time’ – like actually talking to people and rekindling relationships and taking in the joys of the setting sun rather than staring at a screen saver.
But let’s not over react – social networking does have a place. It’s great to have conversations with daughters who long ago moved overseas, so staying in touch tends to be expensive and intermittent. It’s good to keep in contact with people you might not want to spend an evening with, but happy to keep at arms length through the magic of the internet.
But is it really the indicator of our own self-engineered status. I suspect not. If you want to find out, switch off a few of your ‘must-have’ accounts. Several interesting things will happen. The sun will still shine. The birds will still sing. And people will still try to get in touch with you.
If they don’t, were they worthy of taking up a valuable part of your day in the first place?
Now, that’s self-importance!
Posted by Simon Dover
Friday, 19 March 2010
Social Networking vs. Browsing… And the winner is!
Facebook finally outstripped Google for visitors last week. Its been coming for a long time and they’ve finally done it! Facebook is now the most visited site in the US beating Google into second place.
Those of us in the industry who watch this sort of stuff, had predicted this moment for some time, but even so, its crazy to think that more people visit Facebook, a social network site, than use Google’s search engine. Really? So what we’re saying is that, actually, we catch up with each other, play games, watch videos, check messages, browse photos and personal profiles and generally hang out with our friends, family, colleagues and old school friends more than we search for stuff online!
Well, I suppose when you say it like that, it makes perfect sense… Congratulations Facebook
Read more here.
Posted by Simon Johnson
Those of us in the industry who watch this sort of stuff, had predicted this moment for some time, but even so, its crazy to think that more people visit Facebook, a social network site, than use Google’s search engine. Really? So what we’re saying is that, actually, we catch up with each other, play games, watch videos, check messages, browse photos and personal profiles and generally hang out with our friends, family, colleagues and old school friends more than we search for stuff online!
Well, I suppose when you say it like that, it makes perfect sense… Congratulations Facebook
Read more here.
Posted by Simon Johnson
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