I have a Facebook account

Further to my previous posts about having a MySpace account I have now joined the long line of lemmings leaping into Facebook. I have to say that so far it has proved to be a much more lively experience than the odd bit of spam (and the odd good friend) that has marked my months in MySpace. I have bumped into a number of old friends and I have also made some new acquaintances.

My move to Facebook was prompted by the fact that some of my students were doing research on social software. It seemed appropriate to have a look in at what was going on. However, this has also introduced complication in the supervisor/student relationship as I now know when the guys are out on the town, who they were with and where it all ended up. I have to say that for the most part their photos and their posting of their antics make me rather jealous.

I have particularly enjoyed the Facebook applications. Now when I add a book to my library or I book mark an interesting page on del.cio.us it pops up on Facebook and others comment on what I have read or make recommendations. This is a good example of the power of a mash-up. i have also enjoyed the fact that these applications are built by third party types rather than by facebook. A good example of what an open API can do for your business.


However, I do wondered at the sanity of a system based on a database. Facebook collects and centralises data that hitherto was either tacit, not collected or lay moldering in all sorts of locations. It is all very Big Brother 2.0 don't you think!

However, I have decided that betwixt and between is my personal blog so I will take those thoughts over to nmrg (my work blog). See you on the dark side of the moon!