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May 7, 2008

The problem with social networks

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Every social application has a lifecycle. There is a honeymoon period where excitement is present, activity is abundant, where I come back time and time again to see if someone’s noticed me and has added me as a friend. Suddenly, it becomes an obsession — wow, I’m connecting with my gal pal from kindergarten…and, OK, I’ll add the snobby cheerleader who didn’t say boo to me once in high school…but hey if she wants to be my friend, cool….and as long as I’m on here, I might as well fill it with all my stuff: my pics, my videos, my communication with all my pals. OK, after the honeymoon period there are are all these crazy applications that my newfound friends want me to be a part of. Some of them are really funny. I can decorate pics, spend way too much money on those “it’s-only-a-dollar” virtual gifts, declare my BFFs to the entire world, hug and poke and superpoke and twitter and update my mood… and be part of groups I probably will never visit again…. ..and….now…it….gets….way….tooo……boring.

This video below sums it all up! I found it on Current.com called “Social Network Wars”. After awhile, the sizzle is gone. The reach that these social web apps is misleading. They may have the numbers but the time spent is dwindling. Now the proactive user is now reactive and only visits on the odd occasion that they get an email. Maybe it’s because I have a FB account, a MySpace, a Twitter, a Friendster…and a new Ning site I just created. Don’t forget, I have a life too in the real world……

Vodpod videos no longer available. from current.com posted with vodpod

Filed Under: online, Social Networking · Tagged: , , ,
Apr 29, 2008

The courtship between Microsoft and Yahoo! isn’t going so hot…assume the honeymoon will probably be steamier.

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It’s been a volatile courtship of sorts that has lasted many a fortnight — an atypical relationship that competes with most Daytime soaps for drama and suspense, leaving its avid watchers avidly waiting to see what’ll happen next. MSFT –> the dashing knight in shining armour riding in to save the day. Yahoo! –> the damsel, who is playing hard-to-get, resisting the advances of said knight at every turn. The Knight has promised they would rule the world together, staving off the evil, monopolizing King Google, who has extended his powerful fiefdom ten-fold… and now has been reportedly flirting with the gorgeous damsel obviously for more reasons than mere interest.

Now as this saga unfolds, the dashing knight has proposed an arranged marriage with an incredible dowry should the damsel say yes (odd, isn’t the dowry normally offered by the damsel’s family?). Up until now, the damsel resisted all temptations for marriage. As an independent, self-made success story, the damsel didn’t see the need for a rescuer. She did pretty damn well on her own all these years. But as all things, the world has changed. Suddenly, the world that was her oyster decided to turn on her and make way for the younger, more nimble generation. No one told her they would be so smart, learn quickly or move so fast to keep pace…..and even bypass her own or the good Knight’s successes. Suddenly, she was eating their dust and found herself struggling to play catch-up. She tried at every turn to replicate the innovation, drive and passion that resulted in past victories. And, there were many. But now she’s actually reaching middle-age…. a cougar by many respects…. too old to marry but young enough to entertain offers.

So, the damsel and the Knight haven’t spoken over the weekend. His offer has come and gone and she awaits to see whether this play-hard-to-get game will bring her more loot. In the meantime, King Google continues to expand his kingdom, ever wary of the potential claim on his fair maiden. Will he pounce and rescue the damsel? We all know that the two together will “search” the world over. But, alas, fair Knight, you need to up your dowry for the damsel to consider your proposal even noteworthy. Otherwise, take it to her children, and force an uprising from within.

Filed Under: advertising, online · Tagged: , , , ,
Apr 29, 2008

Whistler World Ski and Snowboard Festival and Fashion Exposed… more pics

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I couldn’t resist. Kevin B., a colleague of mine, took these pics with his Blackberry. He’s the skier of the two of us so he was able to capture some amazing scenes at Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains. Overlay.TV sponsored the Fashion Exposed Show so we also managed to capture our rotating sponsor logo on the digital screen. Enjoy!

Filed Under: music · Tagged: , , ,
Apr 22, 2008

The source of all knowledge….how Web 2.0 is diluting established reference institutions

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So… I was talking to my new-found friend, David C., whose incredible wit got me through a 5-hour flight on the red-eye. I just came from a wild week at a ski and snowboard festival and he, from a librarian conference… with its own level of excitement.

Our discussion ensued regarding the plight of the library industry with the increased reliance on the web in search for information. David argued the need to establish credit to the source of all wikis, blogs, knowledge search networks and forums. Validating the sources is not enough. These same institutions have to adjust to the age of web 2.0 and move forward and integrate web resources in ways to convince the user of their value. I remember a time when encyclopedias and other reference books (regardless of their date of publish) were regarded as foundations of knowledge. Inevitably however, the world changes and the source of that information has not been able to adapt and update as quickly and with seamless efficiency as the web. The Encyclopedia Britannica hence got left behind and its pages, unturned. These days web syndication is it, posting the most current information and delivering it to the live web almost immediately.

Another disadvantage of pure information sources is the lack of of collaboration that further enhances the final product. The reality is that information is moving at lightning speed and the growth of wikis and document sharing sites only proves that the quality of knowledge is not inherent in the facts themselves but the minutiae of details that enhances the information. Facts augmented by opinion seeds collaboration, new arguments and new points of view.

The world has progressed from an established source of one –> the one defining reference from which we’ve all taken for granted as truth….to a matrixed web environment where peer to peer sharing provokes users to question established facts, hence supplement meaning. This is the perceived value that perpetuates social web. Can the library industry adjust? You tell me.

Filed Under: online, Social Networking · Tagged: , ,
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