Thing 6: Social Networking

Social Networking: the explosive communication forum.

I made some comments in the Thing 2 entry about Facebook still having a strong tendency toward the personal.  I came from a small, prominent, Massachusetts undergraduate program that was not one of the earliest connective nodes on the Facebook network, but was right behind on Wave Two.  I have been on Facebook for over seven years (eeek... normally, here, I would tell myself to get a life, except for that that is the purpose of social networking, is it not?), and know the site pretty well.  Although, since its change from the .edu connection to the international juggernaut of social networking, much has changed.  Information that once seemed unlikely to leak out now much be carefully weighed, guarded, and tagged for public, private, or semi-private viewing.

For me, Facebook still has those collegiate undertones, and I intend to keep my Facebok account personal.  In light of this, I have been working on establishing a profile on LinkedIn, which, if you are unfamiliar, is a popular professional networking site.  Also in light of my wanting to keep my Facebook account for personal connections, I investigated some of the other social networking options presented by Kathryn Otto in Thing 6.  I took a hop over to Gather, which advertises itself as "Social Networking with Substance".  Despite its claims, however, I was greeted at the homepage by a news article entitled "US Airways Lets Man in Women's Underwear Fly".  Yes...very substantive, Gather.  I thought three things: 1) Oh, the irony--this coming from the "Substantive" Social Network, 2) Would not this be more of a story if US Airways prohibited this gentleman from flying?  3) I must get out of here before I get sucked into actually reading this.  So, friends, my startling experience on the Gather homepage frightened me away enough to consider sticking with LinkedIn for professional development.

I am but a person, however.  What of a library or archives?  It makes sense to have a Facebook page for visibility, but, also, to not expect a lot from it.  Personally, I am hesitant to "Like" things on Facebook, because sometimes it can end up exposing your interests and making you an advertising target.  Identifiable personal information is usually kept private, but I can see how the thought tracking bots might make some uncomfortable.  But, then again, bots are tracking Google searches, and visited sites, and cookies, downloads, and everything else.  So, there that is.  If I were marketing a facility or institution, I might opt to make a personal profile for the institution, as opposed to a page (or at least in addition to a page).  There is likely to be much more interaction this way.  Friends > Likes, I say.

I bopped around Big Tent for a bit.  It seems like a worthwhile service, for sure.  However, on the connectivity scale, there is likely to be little advantage gained from opting for BigTent at this time, due to its comparitive size.  In a couple of years, it could explode.  Who knows.  You can connect Big Tent to Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube, though, which definitely gives this site some real growth and usability potential.  It seems like a useful tool for connecting people within a group (forums, calendars, file sharing, alert/notification options).  I wonder what potential it has for pulling in (new) outside users or connecting users across different groups.

I am interested in creating a Facebook presence for the small historical society at which I work part-time, but I need some approval before this occurs.  I may seek it next week.  Until then, I'm a one-woman show on Facebook and one of two administrators behind a rugby team's social networking presence.

The question of the line between personal and professional in social networking is a challenging one.  In fact, there is a discussion currently occurring within the ALA group on LinkedIn about keeping these genres separated.  It seems to be the general consensus that an account should be used for professional or personal use, not both.  This can be tricky when your professional organization goes up on Facebook, for example.  Then-- refer back to my hesitation about "Liking" things on Facebook--you might find folks that like your organization in real life, and don't like it ("Like" it) on Facebook because they want their Facebook accounts kept personal.

One last point: whatever the medium for your social networking escapades, be sure to check the privacy policies, and adjust the settings to suit your preferences.  Facebook, notoriously, changed the defaults on privacy settings without notifying users a couple of years ago.  It created an angry mob of folks, sitting quietly in their respective computer chairs.  That was a joke.  But seriously, you can end up with a Google search-able profile, openly available, with all of your content exposed, if you don't pay attention.  There are even settings for programs that your "Friends" use accessing your information, unless you reset them!  No one with a Facebook account for personal use wants that.  So just be careful!  After we create new accounts, let's make sure to check the privacy settings.  Facebook's explanation of theirs is here .

Happy networking!

Bee