By examining this image below (thanks to Online Schools for this State of the Internet infographic), you can tell from a glance that for the past 3 years, Facebook has been the dominating SNS, boasting over 600 million followers for 2011. But I am actually more interested in the previous dark horse of social networks (until 2010), Twitter. This year, coming in second in the race for internet domination, Twitter claims 200 million followers. What made it come out of the shadows so quickly?
If I had to make an educated guess, it would be the users contribution which has given Twitter the extra push from fifth to second place. They really have defined it in regards to the array of content available, but even more-so when you consider the hashtag # and @ phenomenon. These were actually invented by the Twitter user base, which as Steven Johnson notes in this week's reading, has become a central part of the Twitter experience. It makes it easy for any user to follow a live feed about events/debates and of course directly reply to other users. This can essentially be known as "end-user innovation," whereas consumers actively modify a product in order to adapt it to their needs.
My question is, when we combine the follower structure network, link-sharing & real-time searching, have we concocted an almost-perfect social network? (In 140 characters or less ofcourse). By furthering Twitter's data scope larger than the "I had toast for breakfast" tweets, it has become more relevant to users everywhere (even i'm getting sucked in). TODAY, we can form relationships, get information on friends, family, celebrities, current news and events, advertise, share images & links...But there are plenty of reports & discussions noting that TOMORROW will be so much more. You could apply for jobs via twitter, possibly be arrested for what you post, use twitter for text-to-speak applications and even become a citizen journalist via tweets.
Online sourced links
http://www.onlineschools.org/state-of-the-internet/soti.html
http://www.news.com.au/technology/youre-hired-editor-picks-best-twitter-cv/story-e6frfrnr-1226138038420
http://www.news.com.au/technology/pair-faces-30-years-in-jail-for-allegedly-posting-false-kidnapping-reports-on-twitter/story-e6frfro0-1226130663850#ixzz1XvCYKJ93
http://www.forbes.com/sites/christinecrandell/2011/09/11/an-angel-brings-voice-to-twitter-2/
http://gigaom.com/2011/09/15/freedom-of-the-press-applies-to-everyone-yes-even-bloggers/
I don't know if it's the perfect social network, but I think it's one of the best ones if you know how to use it. If your only purpose is to connect yourself with friends and just talk about what you've just done, meeting at a certain time and not giving any relevant information..then you just don't know how to use this tool. The good thing for me about Twitter is that you can get to know what your friends are doing or thinking but also they can share valuable information and make you discover things you didn't know: music, news, movies, technology...
ReplyDeleteI agree with what Antia said. You have to know how to utilize social networks in order for them to be used to their full capacity. I think that Twitter is amazing now that it has expanded and you can job search, enter contests, among other things. I actually know a girl who won front row tickets to a concert via Twitter. So yes, just keep tweeting. (I like the Finding Nemo reference by the way haha)
ReplyDeleteHaha as Kathleen said I was also going to make note of the reference to finding nemo! I love that movie but back on topic....
ReplyDeletePersonally as I have began to use twitter and utilise all of the features and functions I have found it to be quite a useful social network (as much as I hate to admit it) I feel that it is definitely more beneficial for information than facebook. I like the use # and @ as I dont mind searching a word/ phrase to see what others have to say.
And I am gonna add my personal experience along with Elise's. It's hilarious watching tweets come up when you're watching a show. For example I watched the Emmy's on Monday and was conveniently on Twitter. Every single time someone said something funny or a mistake was made people would tweet about it. Like when Gwyneth Paltrow announced that the prompter was down and said "I guess I'll have to wing it" And the award goes to...." Everyone was tweeting "You're an actor and you can't come up with any improvisational skills other than that?"
ReplyDeleteNeed less to say it was pretty funny. Here is a link that contains some of the best tweets of the night.
http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2011/09/19/top-tweets-emmys/?cmpid=cmty_twitter_foxnews_top-tweets-emmys
Anywho the point of my story is that not only are what wanting to know what our friends are doing but we wanna feel a part of something bigger. Like the Emmys.
An almost perfect social network? Now that is an interesting concept considering that some people still view any online interactions as being anti-social. It is very interesting to see how twitter has evolved as more people get on it. Initial users seem to have a stereotypical "look at my life" attitude. Then as it grew more and more people started to tweet news and other information which in turn probably created more of a pull for future users as twitter now has "real" value.
ReplyDeleteI certainly like all the information you've found about twitter. Whether it will last will be the real question. Some would probably have said that MySpace is untouchable then Facebook came along. We shall see...
I've found Twitter more useful (even moreso than facebook) in accessing news. I get real-time updates from real journalists every five minutes or so during popular events, and it's so easy to track news stories and how fast they have travelled.
ReplyDeleteA great service for analysing trends is Trendistic, which allows you to see a graph of the popularity of a certain hashtag or key word.
I think I like Twitter to complement Facebook, in that it shouldn't really be used to make/keep in contact with all of your friends, but really just the ones who you actually care what they have to say.
Great image highlighting the market share of social networking sites. I also seem to question the importance of twitter, i will admit it is growing on me.
ReplyDeleteI tend to like how you can gain a perspective of your favorite celebrities lifestyles. It seems to feel more personal.