What really happened? It was only yesterday that Hi5 and Friendster were the latest trend on the internet used by Lebanese and worldwide internet users. (MySpace didn't get famous among the Lebanese internet users, for unknown reasons.)
Moreover, it was only yesterday that chatting was the most important feature on the internet, and it is still highly used by teenagers, specially MSN and Yahoo!Messenger. But hey! there's a new guy/girl in town... Facebook!
Now, what is this Facebook? Before I answer this question, some introduction. The latest trend on the internet has become the Social aspect called Social Networking. Hi5, MySpace and Facebook belong to this Social category. They are tools that help people socialize and meet people online. Just register, then write about yourself, add your hobbies, upload a picture, and voila! you have your own page/profile, that anyone using the social website (Hi5, MySpace, Facebook) can see.
Inspite of the negative sides that Facebook has, it is still getting more popular by the day. I even know people who have become attached to it so much, that they keep the webpage of Facebook open all the time!
You can read about Facebook online, and come across people/websites claiming that Facebook is accessed by FBI and that you are spotted and followed online. In fact, Facebook does make your real life completely visible online, and it has become really, really, very easy to use.
Some even use it to lurk and follow people whom they barely know in their real lives. This actually happened with me. A person I know a little had a Facebook. When I got my Facebook, I saw the person's profile and got to know more on-line than on real life.
But why Facebook? What does it have that the rest (Hi5, Friendster, MySpace...) do not have? Well, the best thing about it is that it's clean, simple, easy to use, and best of all it has applications that you can use without leaving Facebook. Now, this is something that the rest of its competitors lack. Facebook has many applications that you can add on your profile and they are growing by the day.
What about the Christians? How can it be used by Christians. Based on my own experience, the internet is still not taken seriously by the Lebanese. It is regarded as a game, a place to pass time, have fun, socialize and chat. It is not regarded as a tool to evangelize, to spread the good news, to work on a group project, or talk about and discuss serious issues. The ones who make use of the internet and benefit from it are very few in Lebanon. Most are online for fun.
Hi5, Friendster, and MySpace were once the trend on the internet. Today they are overtaken by Facebook. Would Facebook's fate be the same? Would it be overtaken by a newcomer?
My guess is that for the coming years, overtaking Facebook will not be an easy task.
Moreover, it was only yesterday that chatting was the most important feature on the internet, and it is still highly used by teenagers, specially MSN and Yahoo!Messenger. But hey! there's a new guy/girl in town... Facebook!
Now, what is this Facebook? Before I answer this question, some introduction. The latest trend on the internet has become the Social aspect called Social Networking. Hi5, MySpace and Facebook belong to this Social category. They are tools that help people socialize and meet people online. Just register, then write about yourself, add your hobbies, upload a picture, and voila! you have your own page/profile, that anyone using the social website (Hi5, MySpace, Facebook) can see.
Inspite of the negative sides that Facebook has, it is still getting more popular by the day. I even know people who have become attached to it so much, that they keep the webpage of Facebook open all the time!
You can read about Facebook online, and come across people/websites claiming that Facebook is accessed by FBI and that you are spotted and followed online. In fact, Facebook does make your real life completely visible online, and it has become really, really, very easy to use.
Some even use it to lurk and follow people whom they barely know in their real lives. This actually happened with me. A person I know a little had a Facebook. When I got my Facebook, I saw the person's profile and got to know more on-line than on real life.
But why Facebook? What does it have that the rest (Hi5, Friendster, MySpace...) do not have? Well, the best thing about it is that it's clean, simple, easy to use, and best of all it has applications that you can use without leaving Facebook. Now, this is something that the rest of its competitors lack. Facebook has many applications that you can add on your profile and they are growing by the day.
What about the Christians? How can it be used by Christians. Based on my own experience, the internet is still not taken seriously by the Lebanese. It is regarded as a game, a place to pass time, have fun, socialize and chat. It is not regarded as a tool to evangelize, to spread the good news, to work on a group project, or talk about and discuss serious issues. The ones who make use of the internet and benefit from it are very few in Lebanon. Most are online for fun.
Hi5, Friendster, and MySpace were once the trend on the internet. Today they are overtaken by Facebook. Would Facebook's fate be the same? Would it be overtaken by a newcomer?
My guess is that for the coming years, overtaking Facebook will not be an easy task.