Can the popular social networking website really help you to be a better friend?
You may not have a Facebook webpage but you will almost certainly know someone who does. Facebook is the number one website in the new internet revolution, that is ‘Me Media’ webpages where you generate the content. Facebook and similar sites, such as MySpace, hi5, Bebo and Flickr, are all networks which encourage users to interact with one another, but Facebook is different because of the social community atmosphere that it promotes. Unlike MySpace, no one else can view your page unless you have acknowledged them as your ‘friend’ and so users are protected from wider viewing. You are notified of any activity between your network of friends and given ‘mini news feeds’ about their lives as they update their pages.
Managing friendships
In May 2007, the site pioneered the idea of opening its API (application programming content) to outside developers, which means that anyone can create a programme to engage with Facebook users and help them to ‘manage their friendships’: post photos and videos (8.6m are uploaded everyday), remember birthdays, send ‘gifts’, sell things, announce events, import quotes from the Bible, famous people, your favourite films, whatever. At the time of writing there are 3,879 different applications available.
