Social network site showdown

Social networking is a hot recent phenomenon sweeping the globe. From Facebook and twitter to Friendster and myspace, internet users are spoilt for choice when it comes to entering the world of social media. Think of social networking as a subset of the larger all-encompassing category of “social media”. While social media only allows you to be both consumer and producer of online content, social networking is specifically meant to connect people over the internet. Similar to how one has a network of friends in real life, social networking is just the extension of that real life network concept into the digital realm.

The names "Friendster" and "Facebook" should be familiar to most modern individuals who have computer access. The focus of today's blog is a small "compare and contrast" between the two famous social networking sites.

1) First impressions

- This is Facebook's greeting page

Simple hues of blue, a detailed "registration sheet" for new members and meaningful and effective image showing the concept of an online social network: connecting people from all countries across the globe irregardless of geographical distance. There is even a brief description of what Facebook does. The impression is a down to earth professionalism and an unpretentious taste that will appeal to anyone

Basic colors of green and white are accompanied by two supposedly cute, but badly rendered, manga styled characters in weird costumes. The images change every few hours, giving a lot of variety. While not as "wordy" as Facebook, nor as dull thanks to the pictures. Unlike Facebook, in which the registration requires 7 different details, Friendster just requires 1 for now, thus making signing up for newcomers more hassle free. The problem is the little blurb which describes what friendster is. Friendster is described as a "gaming destination" and ends with "come and see what all the fuss is about!". The impression is a more juvenile one as compared to the professional air of Facebook. One gets the feeling that this is more for the kids.

2) interface

Today, the user interface of Facebook and Friendster are not too different. It is better not to say who copied who. Both have similar widgets like a status update, a wall, picture albums, a friends finding option, games; Even the layout is rather similar. The difference is the respective "emphasis" of each site. Facebook tends to place emphasis on the personal profile and the friends finding. On the other hand, friendster emphasises more on meeting new people and keeping up with friends through the games. The focus is on fun whereas Facebook's focus is more on the actual "networking". Also, the ads that pop up for both sites are a little different.

3) Ease of use

Both Facebook and the current incarnation of Friendster both have relatively "newbie friendly" formats. Again, this could be the case of one copying the other in an effort to gain popularity. Both websites also enable 3rd party applications. The "friends finder" search functions seems to differ though. Facebook seems to have a stronger privacy protection system in that you may only add friends whom you already know or are friends of someone that you are already friends with. In other words, there has to be a form of connection, no matter how trivial, before you can add a new person. Friendster on the other hand allows one to find friends and add friends more easily using its search function. You can search up strangers with similar interests and add them as friends.

This concept can be seen as either an advantage or disadvantage of Friendster over Facebook. It is an advantage as it allows one to expand their social network of friends faster with the simple search engine. On the flip side, this shows that there is less privacy protection on Friendster since any old stranger can just add you as their friend without knowing you personally. Because information about your interests are so readily available via a search engine, this allows people to use that information readily. Perhaps they could be advertisers looking to target people with similar interests, or even stalkers.

Overall

Despite their similarities, Facebook seems to be winning out due to its sheer popularity. Its number of users have surpassed Friendster's despite Friendster coming before Facebook. In the end, numbers is what counts when it comes to a social network. Facebook shows more potential while Friendster is still stuck with that rather juvenile stereotype.