aTypical Joe: a gay New Yorker living in the rural South
Friday, May 25, 2007
Facebook changes
Fundamental changes at Facebook:
In discussions with multiple sources involved with the launch, we’ve come to see the platform as a highly ambitious idea, approaching the idea of Facebook being an operating system with other web apps riding on top of it. [...]
This move is more than catching up with MySpace and Bebo and what have you by adding outside widgets; Facebook has become a primary relationship and identity broker for millions of people. Now outsiders can capitalize on that information in a safe way, pulling from users’ expressed interests in their profiles, building on their stated intention to attend events, or simply giving them more dedicated tools for expressing themselves. The outside apps will be woven into a structure that’s already been built and is utilized every day.
That was yesterday. Today we have more from the NYTimes, Reuters, and Fortune. Here’s CNet video of 24-year-old Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s CEO and founder, explaining the changes.
Facebook also announced its own video application:
Users can upload and record videos directly to their profiles and send them as messages to friends. They will also be able to upload video directly from their mobile phones.
Facebook is clearly pushing the personal video angle, saying “We’ve designed the application to discourage misuse, and our users agree only to upload video of a personal nature that is about them or their friends, or created by them or their friends.” Videos will not be public or downloadable; they will only be playable by a member’s friends and networks.
Making it even more important that educators understand social networks and “mediated publics.”
