Web20 Technology and Social Networking - Essay Example

Today the most popular culture is the culture of internet to the extent that people’s values, beliefs and attitudes have been altered due to the sheer amount of time they spend on the internet. If they were to look for some information or search for a book, instead of visiting a library, the first action would be to browse on the net. The internet has evolved over the years and the latest technology used is the web2.0 tool. This technology has changed the way people interact or exchange views, share files or even study. Web2.0 technology is the second generation of Web-based services and tools that emphasize online sharing and collaboration among users (Carpenter and Steiner 2005). It is also a transition from the static HTML pages to dynamic web pages that are organized and it is based on serving the web application to users. It is no longer a ‘medium’ that people visit. Information can easily flow in and out of the web services. There are various forms in which the people use this technology. Some of the frequently used applications of web2.0 technology include Blogs and Wikis, IM Chat, tagging, RSS Feeds, Google Maps and Google Docs. Photos and video sharing and social networking are the web 2.0 tools, social office suites and podcasts. Through this technology people can create websites that look like and act as desktop programs. Thus people use this technology mostly for creating their own blogs, for social networking and video and photo sharing. Blogs is the short form of weblogs and is more like a personal diary which people maintain on the internet (Gill 2004). The act of adding an entry or updating the blog is called ‘blogging’ and the one who writes blogs is known as a ‘blogger’. Sometimes blogs are characterized by their technology like Blogger, Greymatter, LiveJournal, Manila, Movable Type, or UserLand. Bolggers write about topics that matter to them and they invite comments on their postings. The contact details of the blogger is also provide so anyone interested can exchange personal emails instead of posting messages that can be read by all visitors to the blog. The posts on the blog are permanent and only the author who owns it can edit it. The Primary characteristics of a blog include: • Reverse chronological journaling (format) • Regular, date-stamped entries (timeliness) • Links to related news articles, documents, blog entries within each entry (attribution) • Archived entries (old content remains accessible) • Links to related blogs (blogrolling) • RSS or XML feed (ease of syndication) • Passion (voice). Blogging started as a pastime in America but has now evolved and is used as a platform for various purposes. Most bloggers are young and have one author whose purpose is to express personal content. Not all bloggers give their true identification on the blogs and hence it serves to maintain anonymity (Guadagno Okdie and Eno 2007). Blogging allows them the discretion to reveal only to the extent they wish to about themselves. The problem arises when they sometimes reveal more information than they wish to because anonymity can be maintained. Postings are made without concern for how others may perceive it. Employers too have access to these spaces and even though the true identity may not be disclosed, from the events described it is possible to establish the identity. Blogs are socially interactive and community-like in nature. When people comment on the postings, it forms like conversational threads and the posts that are the most insightful get the maximum comments. People blog on varied subjects that range from sports and politics to technological trends. Blogs are like conversation and hence the bloggers derive satisfaction, trust, mutual control and involvement (Xifra and Huertas 2008). As soon as a blog is updated, RSS (Really Simple Syndication) delivers information to the other bloggers that have subscribed to this blog. These are the regular visitors that have expressed interest in this blog. In educational institutions the blogs have helped to overcome the drawbacks of using the blackboard that requires registering, logging in and searching (Kim 2008). Students benefit by sharing their learning experiences. They also find it convenient to express their thoughts to their instructor. Despite all these advantages, blogs also have their pitfalls. The youth spends too much time on it and if not properly used, this can help to destroy them. Teenagers find this a way to put on a false identity and use it for socialization or for impressing others (Boyd 2007). They express their feelings, thoughts and expressions without any hesitation. This causes a threat to their emotional security as sex offenders also take advantage of posts that are expressive. Social networking is another outcome of the web2.0 technology that promotes posting information about oneself. It is a platform where people meet others with similar interests. In simple words it can be described as an online location where people can choose to create a profile and build a social network connecting themselves to other users (Lenhart and Madden 2007). It is possible to choose or refuse to network with a friend. Some of the popular social networking sites include Friendster, Linkedin, MySpace, Facebook. Forty-eight percent of teens visit these networking sites and more than once a day (Carpenter and Steiner 2005). Social networking has become popular even with the adults including librarians and professors. The software used for such sites makes it very easy and convenient for anyone to create an account where personal details have to be filled in. Once choose to remain public or private. Within a particular network different forums and communities are formed and one is free to join these groups. People from different fields derive benefit by joining such social networking sites. Some of these networking sites specify certain parameters that members must have. For instance, Facebook emphasizes that its members must be affiliated with an English-speaking university and the address that is available should be verifiable. This is primarily an education site built for and by the university students. People can even control who can or cannot view their profile. There are other facilities like choosing what should be displayed on the first page (Downes 2007). MySpace on the other hand is open to anyone and the users are free to create any type of profile and network they choose (Lenhart and Madden 2007). As with blogging, social networking also tends to be misused by the youth. There is no control over what can be exchanged and people even send out marriage proposals to someone they have just met on the internet or on these social networking sites. Technology opens doors but also invites problems. People here to create false identity and have an imagine group of people listed on their sites. Everyone wants to ‘stay connected’ and this is the cause of the problem. Thus we can see that web2.0 technology has pervaded the life of many people. They find blogging and social networking a means to self-expression. They feel connected to the society; they exchange views, opinions and information. They use these platforms to share files and photos. Both blogging and social networking are popular equally with the youth and the adults. Both provide space to the individuals to express and exchange views. However, web2.0 technology and tools have changed the culture of the people today. It has become a popular culture as it is the most common form of exchange of information, views and files. It has its own pitfalls but nevertheless, the advantages are many and it is here to stay. References Boyd, Danah. 2007. "Social Network Sites: Public, Private, or What?" Retrieved March 22, 2009, from http://www.danah.org/papers/KnowledgeTree.pdf Carpenter, Cathy and Steiner, Sarah. 2005. "Using Web 2.0 Technologies to Push E-Resources." Retrieved March 22, 2009, from http://www.smartech.gatech.edu/bitstream/1853/13640/2/236-fri-11_05.pdf Downes, Stephens. 2007. "Places to Go: Facebook." Journal of Online Education 4:1 Gill, Kathy E. 2004. "How can we measure the influence of the blogosphere?" Department of Communication University of Washington. Retrieved March 22, 2009, from http://faculty.washington.edu/kegill/pub/www2004_blogosphere_gill.pdf Guadagno, Rosanna E Okdie, Bradley M and Eno, Cassie A. 2007. "Who blogs? Personality predictors of blogging." Computers in Human Behavior. Kim, Hyung N. 2008. "The phenomenon of blogs and theoretical model of blog use in educational contexts." Computers & Education. 51:1342–1352 Lenhart, Amanda and Madden, Mary. 2007. "Social Networking Websites and Teens: An Overview." Retrieved March 22, 2009, from http://www.pewinternet.org/~/media//Files/Reports/2007/PIP_SNS_Data_Memo_Jan_2007.pdf.pdf Xifra, Jordi and Huertas, Assumpcio. 2008. "Blogging PR: An exploratory analysis of public relations weblogs." Public Relations Review. 34:269–275 Read More