Originally published at Apollo Lemmon. Please leave any comments there.
Social networking is becoming a backbone of internet culture. The spark of connecting with others online can be endlessly rewarding, and exemplifies the value of the internet. Much of my interactions online are now done through various social networking sites such as Facebook, Live Journal and Zaadz. Social networking has a long way to go before it works smoothly, though.
The main trouble right now, I believe, is a lack of interoperability between the networks; it’s annoying and time-consuming to have to visit dozens of sites to keep up with what my friends are doing rather than looking at one page. Each site is offering a dynamic community and great features, but none is without some area it’s lacking in. I hope a decentralized method of interaction between the sites will arise. Some sites, such as Wink, are moving toward a decentralization of the social networking space, and that gives me some hope. So far decentralized social networking is in infancy, sadly.
Lifehack has a marvelous article on “That Whole Social Networking Thing” that addresses some other strengths and pitfalls we encounter in social networking.
I’d also recommend taking a look at “Hobnobberry 3.0” over at MediaSpin.
So for now I’m using a handful of social sites daily and keeping up with about a dozen more from time to time. I’d like to share some of my favourites. If you’re using any of them, feel free to add me as a friend there. My profiles can be found by clicking on the orbs for each network. I’ll try to keep this list comprehensive of all my social network activity. If you just want an overview of how I’m being social, check out my Wink profile. There’s a miraculous energy in that We space, isn’t there?