Open discussion: Google does Social Networking

Submitted by Travis Valentine on 5/15/08

This past Tuesday, Peter Whoriskey wrote a thought-provoking article in the Washington Post about Google's new social networking service, Friend Connect. Here at NDN and NPI, we're very interested in new tools like these, so we wanted to open up the blog to hear what others think of Friend Connect, keeping in mind the issues Whoriskey presents.

Some of us at NDN have already weighed in with our opinioin in the comments section, but we want to hear what you think. So, if you'd like to add your voice, you can post a comment. If you don't already have an existing account, you can register by clicking here.

If you have any trouble doing this, please don't hesitate to contact me at tvalentine@ndn.org. I'll be happy to help, especially if it means that we'll hear from you!

(Note: if you click on the link to register and it takes you to an empty page, that means you already have an account. E-mail me at the address above if you need help finding your username.) 

Comments

Submitted by Travis Valentine on 5/15/08.

Even though they are commonplace to everyone I know, I see the argument that Facebook and MySpace are walled sites. So it's hard to see how this will be different from the other things Google has done: provide a very popular service or idea to anyone who wants it, anywhere, at any time. And since it is Google, the other businesses that build social networks into websites and organizations may have seen their moment in the spotlight.

Also, this will really show the strengths (and weaknesses) of social networking on the whole and add a much deeper meaning to internet connectivity, and therefore to the argument of the global communications network. It's something else to think of the internet as a means of connecting people directly to each other on a personal level, not just to information.