Now that I've read how they work....

I am still in awe of how quickly these social network sites have grown-- how someone simply had an idea and the whole thing took off! I would still like to "lurk" a bit first, especially now that I know nice people (like John B.) do that! I am really curious to check out the sites, but somehow I'm too shy, or nervous, to do so--the way I used to be too shy to talk to people in person! I don't understand why this is, but I am really nervous about weird people doing weird stuff with my name and/or photo, etc., if I were to put these in the wrong place on the web. When I googled my own name, however, the only two accurate matches to myself that came up were my NIU teaching intern information, and a link to an honor I received from NIU's Communication dept. (under my full name), and I guess I'd like to keep it that way. I like Cornell's guidelines for their students, especially their basic conclusion to follow a " 'Golden Rule.' Don't say anything about someone else that you would not want said about yourself." Another interesting notion, that danah boyd pointed out in his/her comparison of MySpace and Friendster, was how MySpace adapted to its users: "Basically, MySpace evolved with its users, building a trusting relationship, figuring out how to meet their needs and cultural desires, providing them with features and really trying to give them what they were looking for. Friendster did not - it fought its users hand and foot, telling them how to behave." Since I've never been on either site, the information d.b. provided throughout his/her? essay/blog has made me feel more comfortable about going to MySpace. I'm more likely to experiment with using these sites now. I guess it's just that being scared of that which you don't understand phenomenon. If only I had the time...