Introduction
I admit that I am neither the most sociable nor am I the most active person when it comes to socialising. It is not that I don’t care about other people, but it is only a fact that it is not in me to ‘talk that much’; the other way of saying this is I am not so much of a vocal person. For instance, I would rather sit with a group of people and listen to whatever they have to say about how their day went. Because for all I know if they ask me about mine, all I can blurt out is the usual “It’s awesome!” and so it goes on. For me, presence is two sides of a matter: chatting online is different from ‘being there’. Social networking websites has made communication easier for people like me.
In the next few paragraphs, I will be relating the impact of online social networking services to the entire society – How it promoted social efficiency, and how it produced the wonders that worked for the social and the not-so-social people, like me, to easily interact and communicate with others (Kopomaa 2000).
Background
For the purpose of this assignment, I will be drawing most of my knowledge based on my experience of using various social networking websites, including the ones that were recommended for the students to explore.
Facebook is now known to be one of the largest social networking website amongst the people of today. It not only allows people to easily connect with others around the world, but it also presents users with the most abundant and entertaining features. One of this, is the ‘wall’ provided in each user’s profile page, where people can post messages for the user to see. It can transmit virtual actions to other users; the earliest one is known to be the ‘poke’. It allows users to update their ‘status’ to inform their friends of their current condition. It also provides a photo application where people can upload unlimited photos and share it with others to see. As days and months passed, more and more applications are developed and can be added to ones user page, all of which can be used to interact with other users on facebook. This is by far, in my opinion, is its most appealing aspect.
Last.fm is a music community website that allows users to build musical profiles based on the music they listen to, from the website’s streamed radio stations or from the user’s portable music player or computer. It records every detail of the song the user is listening to and generates recommendations pages, which links users to more songs of the same genre, as well as other users that have similar music taste.
Twitter is another social networking website that mainly provides instant messaging services. One can post ‘updates’ and messages of up to 140 characters to the Twitter website itself, via sms, or other-third party applications such as facebook. These messages, also known as ‘tweets’ are sent to all other users who have signed up to received them. Users may receive these tweets via the Twitter website, sms, rss, email or through an application.
Flickr is an online photo sharing website that allows users to upload photos and share them with other people online. It allows users to organise images by using tags to categorise the photos so it will be easier for other users to find.
Focus: Social Efficiency
The proliferation of social communication devices in the age of information technology is a blessing to the hopes and desires of the modern individual. Many of this social communication software not only provide interactivity, but also, mobility that allows users to have a sense of control over the complications of modern life. The hit of modern technology today is something known as social networking that offers the possibilities of letting people of all ages associate with one another across the miles or better yet, just across the room!
Perhaps, the roots for which made social networking websites click is the fact that it contributes to social efficiency by instantly connecting people, and thus, gradually and effectively generates various and specific online communities wherein people can move around freely. Social efficiency maybe described as the amount of interaction among individuals, while having sole control and freedom to engage in social activities whenever one wants (Williams 1982). I would like to elaborate these issues on the following paragraphs.
Instant Connections
Imagine 50 years ago; back when mobile phones, computers, the internet and all other social networking services are still waiting to be discovered, when there was no easy means of transmitting messages from one place to another. Back then and from the longest of time, paper is considered to be one of the most remarkable social medium. With a pen, it can convey and communicate thoughts and ideas, which is probably its most distinctive attribute. People then started to use paper as a social medium by sending letters to and from faraway places. It has served its purpose well, but after all these years, it is rapidly becoming obsolete, in terms of its use as a social conveyor (Koelsch 1995).
In this modern day and age, printed words and pictures are easily transported to new multimedia technologies, in this case, Web 2.0, particularly the various social networking tools that have been made available for all to use. It eliminates all the hassles of writing a message down on a letter, letting people run around to send them, and waiting for several long days to receive them. For instance, I would only have to rely on facebook or twitter to send my simple regards of ‘Hi! How are you doing?’ or greeting to a friend who is celebrating his birthday; no need for the purchase of a card and the trouble of mailing it over, no waiting on to receive them, in a shorter term – instant! The same thing goes for Flickr. By uploading images, I am able to immediately share it with other people miles away from me.
Making connections with other people this way is fast and convenient. Personally speaking, talking to people on facebook or twitter is easier because there is no need for physical contact and the tools are readily being provided for. If facebook tells me that it is the birthday of someone I hardly know and hang out with, then I would eagerly write a birthday greeting on that person’s wall, for the simple reason of ‘why not? It’s just writing on the wall.’ In addition, I would feel better for being nice that I care to greet that person. So in a way, social networking websites provide the opportunity and enforce people to actively socialise, even when they do not feel like it.
Instant Communities
In the Web 2.0 environment, social networking websites unites people together, thus, gradually forming a community where different people can relate with each other and be able to share the same interests, regardless of temporal and spatial constraints (Anderson 1983). Electronically participating and communicating with others through these social networking systems stimulates sharing of compound practices and customs, which gives the individual a sense of being part of a community (Rennie 2006).
Facebook, Twitter, Last.fm, and Flickr are specific communities that allow individuals a space to belong to. Each community consists a network of friends and the existence of combined interests as well as constant participation that makes each community active.
The aforementioned social networking websites serve as a meeting place for people to share and discuss interests. By interacting in this manner, it gives out a sense of belonging and a strong relation to the people you hardly even know. For instance, Last.fm and Flickr has given me the opportunity to share my interests and in return, know about what other people’s interests are—what type of music they listen to, what songs they are into now, etc. Likewise, Flickr allows me to look into my friends’ life by looking at the travel photos they have uploaded. In reflection, this allows me to look at myself anew—I would feel proud of myself, the-not-so-actively-social individual, for actually care to look at what other people are up to. The cause for actually bothering to know how other people’s lives are going, what they’re interests are, etc. branches from the reason that I actually belong to this community. By registering, in these networking websites, I immediately became a member of this social community; therefore, interacting with others is seemingly a necessity to continue to exist.
Conclusion
The contribution of social networking websites to the society is undeniable. Its function is nearly impossible to face-out from each individual’s lives. The attraction of these tools lies in their ability to provide stimulation, enjoyment and satisfaction through ‘instant-ness’. People who are not used to actively socialising with other peers become explorers, in a sense that they start to voluntarily participate and begins to react to whatever stimulus each community presents (Jallinoja 1991).
I admit that I am neither the most sociable nor am I the most active person when it comes to socialising. It is not that I don’t care about other people, but it is only a fact that it is not in me to ‘talk that much’; the other way of saying this is I am not so much of a vocal person. For instance, I would rather sit with a group of people and listen to whatever they have to say about how their day went. Because for all I know if they ask me about mine, all I can blurt out is the usual “It’s awesome!” and so it goes on. For me, presence is two sides of a matter: chatting online is different from ‘being there’. Social networking websites has made communication easier for people like me.
In the next few paragraphs, I will be relating the impact of online social networking services to the entire society – How it promoted social efficiency, and how it produced the wonders that worked for the social and the not-so-social people, like me, to easily interact and communicate with others (Kopomaa 2000).
Background
For the purpose of this assignment, I will be drawing most of my knowledge based on my experience of using various social networking websites, including the ones that were recommended for the students to explore.
Facebook is now known to be one of the largest social networking website amongst the people of today. It not only allows people to easily connect with others around the world, but it also presents users with the most abundant and entertaining features. One of this, is the ‘wall’ provided in each user’s profile page, where people can post messages for the user to see. It can transmit virtual actions to other users; the earliest one is known to be the ‘poke’. It allows users to update their ‘status’ to inform their friends of their current condition. It also provides a photo application where people can upload unlimited photos and share it with others to see. As days and months passed, more and more applications are developed and can be added to ones user page, all of which can be used to interact with other users on facebook. This is by far, in my opinion, is its most appealing aspect.
Last.fm is a music community website that allows users to build musical profiles based on the music they listen to, from the website’s streamed radio stations or from the user’s portable music player or computer. It records every detail of the song the user is listening to and generates recommendations pages, which links users to more songs of the same genre, as well as other users that have similar music taste.
Twitter is another social networking website that mainly provides instant messaging services. One can post ‘updates’ and messages of up to 140 characters to the Twitter website itself, via sms, or other-third party applications such as facebook. These messages, also known as ‘tweets’ are sent to all other users who have signed up to received them. Users may receive these tweets via the Twitter website, sms, rss, email or through an application.
Flickr is an online photo sharing website that allows users to upload photos and share them with other people online. It allows users to organise images by using tags to categorise the photos so it will be easier for other users to find.
Focus: Social Efficiency
The proliferation of social communication devices in the age of information technology is a blessing to the hopes and desires of the modern individual. Many of this social communication software not only provide interactivity, but also, mobility that allows users to have a sense of control over the complications of modern life. The hit of modern technology today is something known as social networking that offers the possibilities of letting people of all ages associate with one another across the miles or better yet, just across the room!
Perhaps, the roots for which made social networking websites click is the fact that it contributes to social efficiency by instantly connecting people, and thus, gradually and effectively generates various and specific online communities wherein people can move around freely. Social efficiency maybe described as the amount of interaction among individuals, while having sole control and freedom to engage in social activities whenever one wants (Williams 1982). I would like to elaborate these issues on the following paragraphs.
Instant Connections
Imagine 50 years ago; back when mobile phones, computers, the internet and all other social networking services are still waiting to be discovered, when there was no easy means of transmitting messages from one place to another. Back then and from the longest of time, paper is considered to be one of the most remarkable social medium. With a pen, it can convey and communicate thoughts and ideas, which is probably its most distinctive attribute. People then started to use paper as a social medium by sending letters to and from faraway places. It has served its purpose well, but after all these years, it is rapidly becoming obsolete, in terms of its use as a social conveyor (Koelsch 1995).
In this modern day and age, printed words and pictures are easily transported to new multimedia technologies, in this case, Web 2.0, particularly the various social networking tools that have been made available for all to use. It eliminates all the hassles of writing a message down on a letter, letting people run around to send them, and waiting for several long days to receive them. For instance, I would only have to rely on facebook or twitter to send my simple regards of ‘Hi! How are you doing?’ or greeting to a friend who is celebrating his birthday; no need for the purchase of a card and the trouble of mailing it over, no waiting on to receive them, in a shorter term – instant! The same thing goes for Flickr. By uploading images, I am able to immediately share it with other people miles away from me.
Making connections with other people this way is fast and convenient. Personally speaking, talking to people on facebook or twitter is easier because there is no need for physical contact and the tools are readily being provided for. If facebook tells me that it is the birthday of someone I hardly know and hang out with, then I would eagerly write a birthday greeting on that person’s wall, for the simple reason of ‘why not? It’s just writing on the wall.’ In addition, I would feel better for being nice that I care to greet that person. So in a way, social networking websites provide the opportunity and enforce people to actively socialise, even when they do not feel like it.
Instant Communities
In the Web 2.0 environment, social networking websites unites people together, thus, gradually forming a community where different people can relate with each other and be able to share the same interests, regardless of temporal and spatial constraints (Anderson 1983). Electronically participating and communicating with others through these social networking systems stimulates sharing of compound practices and customs, which gives the individual a sense of being part of a community (Rennie 2006).
Facebook, Twitter, Last.fm, and Flickr are specific communities that allow individuals a space to belong to. Each community consists a network of friends and the existence of combined interests as well as constant participation that makes each community active.
The new virtual communality also has a room for self-realisation. Interaction is rapid and superficial, yet in certain social relations it can have a long personal history and may both maintain and strengthen close ties. The connections of the past are endlessly present in creating each moment in the present time (Kopomaa, 129).
The aforementioned social networking websites serve as a meeting place for people to share and discuss interests. By interacting in this manner, it gives out a sense of belonging and a strong relation to the people you hardly even know. For instance, Last.fm and Flickr has given me the opportunity to share my interests and in return, know about what other people’s interests are—what type of music they listen to, what songs they are into now, etc. Likewise, Flickr allows me to look into my friends’ life by looking at the travel photos they have uploaded. In reflection, this allows me to look at myself anew—I would feel proud of myself, the-not-so-actively-social individual, for actually care to look at what other people are up to. The cause for actually bothering to know how other people’s lives are going, what they’re interests are, etc. branches from the reason that I actually belong to this community. By registering, in these networking websites, I immediately became a member of this social community; therefore, interacting with others is seemingly a necessity to continue to exist.
Conclusion
The contribution of social networking websites to the society is undeniable. Its function is nearly impossible to face-out from each individual’s lives. The attraction of these tools lies in their ability to provide stimulation, enjoyment and satisfaction through ‘instant-ness’. People who are not used to actively socialising with other peers become explorers, in a sense that they start to voluntarily participate and begins to react to whatever stimulus each community presents (Jallinoja 1991).
The privatization of our way of life is at the present very much characterised by temporal and spatial changes (Kopomaa, 129).
Social networking tools makes interaction and communication easier because it transcends time and space. It grants users a lot more by providing instant and continuous access that allows users to flexibly and instantly participate around a community, which heavily contributes to social efficiency.
References
Anderson, Benedict (1983). Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism. London: Verso.
Jallinoja, Riita (1991). Modern Life: Signs of the Times and Practice. Helsinki: Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seura.
Koelsch, Frank (1995). The Infomedia Revolution: How it is Changing Our World and Your Life. Canada: McGraw-Hill Ryerson Limited.
Kopomaa, Timo (2000). The City in Your Pocket: Birth of the Mobile Information Society. Helsinki: Gaudeamus.
Rennie, Ellie (2006). Community Media: A Global Introduction. Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield Inc.
Williams, Sir Bruce (1982). Living with Technology. Sydney: Commercial Printing House Pty. Ltd.
5 comments:
Hey,
I dont really understand your title, yes a petty thing to pick at but it bugs me. Why is it Instant Instant Instant?
Given that your opening line is "I admit that I am neither the most sociable nor am I the most active person when it comes to socialising" maby it should have been Social Ninja or something. Is there some reasoning I have missed to the relevance of this title that others may also miss?
I agree with you!!! Because of times passed, the connection between relatives and friends will follow the product invent in particular period to communicate with others.
I like how you lead the reader from the history to modern. ^^
Good~
Good use of references. I like how you have identified how social networking software facilitates communication and can lead to better social behavior (writing a birthday greeting on someone’s wall). I can relate to the sense of belonging in online communities. I felt more involved with the social software when I was part of a group.
Being a ninja is enough. A "social ninja" sounds pointless to me.
I find that given the right facilities, anyone can thrive socially in any environment. In person it's up to your personality and your current relationship with any particular person(s). The tools you mentioned sound like catalysts that encourage people to continue socialising.
Sure seeing someone gives a different feel but the virtual tools help "fill the void". Great work!
@ alan - is the title in reference to the convenience and speed?
I really liked the part about Social Efficiency - this is part of what I like the most about the tools that I use - the fact that I can catch up with people quickly and in my own time whenever I have a spare moment - this is what makes social tools great.
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