Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Virtual reality – The Evolution of Social Networking


After the first ever social networking sites surfaced on the internet in the 90’s, there has been no looking back ever since. Online communities’ sites such as Theglobe and Tripod had chat rooms as the only interactive chat forum available. Classmates.com (1995), SixDegrees.com (1997, the earliest sites that focussed on connecting with unknown persons across the globe) were perceived as too advanced for their time. What began as a step towards online connectivity, technology has changed the face of communication altogether. The more recent sites such as Orkut, Facebook, Twitter, and Flickr among many others have created a whole new meaning to communication. The world has definitely shrunk with the multitude of networking options at hand and the tech crazy generation we have become today is proof of this fact. Social networking has become more of a necessity these days and the days of SMS – ing and calling have become passé. People sit in the same classroom and chose to chat, scrap, poke and tweet rather than have a verbal conversation! But the question is what’s in store for the future?
Leo Laporte, a broadcaster who runs the popular TWiT network of technology pod casts, calls the phenomenon of people addicted to social networking sites as "the social silo," and he doesn't think it can last much longer. "People are pouring all this content and value into individual sites," says Laporte, "but they aren't going to want to keep dealing with Facebook, Twitter and in order for the social web to move forward, the separate ecosystems which make it up need to unite."
The recently launched Google Wave, an open platform for real-time communication and sharing media, is aimed directly at this ‘social silo’. The Wave-based system will be accessible by anyone to whom the user has granted permission for access. The philosophies of openness and accessibility are baked right into the tool. If Google Wave revolutionizes the web as it is expected to, a single web-login is all that we will need soon.
The whole host of social networking choices includes sharing pictures via Flickr, video calling through Skype and Gmail, business networking through LinkedIn among many others. The mobile phone has evolved cutting edge technology that has enabled online communication via mobiles too. Experts say, the future lies in ‘mobile social networking’, especially with the launch of the iPhone. An upcoming, undisclosed application is under way that would enable all iPhone users to connect and users can scroll through nearby iPhone users, and set filters for men, women or age ranges and create a network.
As technology advances, so do the risks of online security. With the free availability of information and personal details on the web, users need to be aware of the potential of these online networking sites. Site administrators and security services have a great task at hand in evolving secure servers and back end systems. Craig Schmugar, in his research article ‘The future of social networking sites’ states: In May 2007, Facebook launched the Facebook platform, which allowed third-party developers to author and market applications to Facebook’s 20 million active users. One year and 50 million additional users later, more than 20,000 Facebook applications have been developed, with 95 percent of the user base having run at least one application. These applications pose additional risks—as users may have a false sense of security because of the applications’ association with a site they trust, Facebook.com. Yet the vast majority of these applications are released by developers without prior review by the site. In January 2008, Facebook banned the application Secret Crush after it was reported to have led users to install Zango adware.
The future holds a highly customized web experience that requires very little direct user input. Web 1.0 was driven by site administrators and Web 2.0 was driven by user-generated content, the future of social networking lies in user and content relationships augmented by user-tailored content. Social Networking 3.0, the third generation of social-networking technology has hit the Web, and it's about content as much as it’s about contacts.
Social networking today, is more than just making friends and online interactions. It has evolved as a platform for business networking, publicity, online communities and forums, discussion boards and the creating your own personal space – blogging. The ever expanding arena of social networking is looked at as the future of the internet and at the pace the web is rapidly expanding and adding functionality, these sites are revolutionising the internet.

4 comments:

  1. Great article.. very informative.. but u need know that one cannot read black letters in a dark green background.. what is this maaa.. i'm verrrrryyyy upset with u :P

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  2. I like it..lots of interesting things i dint know before...Good work child!!

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  3. this ws well formed.. n yes security is a concern...id prefer 2 knw more on mobile securities..cz it duzn hav da best firewalls i knw...bt as a whole..its pretty gud...!!

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  4. Very nice and useful info provided .. helps people like me understdn networking and securities better ..thank you !!

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