[gerrit]

Diaspora... No, no topic on mass emigration of an ethnic group of people... Diaspora is the name of a new initiative that is supposed to be a privacy-friendly alternative for Facebook, MySpace and other profile sites. The founders of Diaspora want to build an open platform for profile sites while also offering total control of your privacy and which details you wish to make public and which you don't want to. See this article for info, and also on BBC.co.uk there's an interview with the founders.


So should the people of Facebook, MySpace, Friendster and the countless networking sites be worried about this competitor? Do you believe a mass movement of users of the above sites swapping to Diaspora for the promised increased amount of privacy?


Being sceptic over profile sites in general I'm not signing up in the near future for sure, although just out of interest if these guys are really sincere about the privacy thing, I'll try to keep an eye on how this evolves...

 

[Jynxgirl]

The only reason I got a facebook was because the masses changed from myspace to facebook and I was coming over here and wanted to keep track of what people were doing. I still use myspace and hardly ever update facebook. The masses will change to something in a year or two as facebook is now getting 'old' and they will want the newest, shinies, and brightest all over again. Its just the nature of the herd of cattle to always want greener grass.

 

[dunmovin]

Diaspora... No, no topic on mass emigration of an ethnic group of people... Diaspora is the name of a new initiative that is supposed to be a privacy-friendly alternative for Facebook, MySpace and other profile sites. The founders of Diaspora want to build an open platform for profile sites while also offering total control of your privacy and which details you wish to make public and which you don't want to. See this article for info, and also on BBC.co.uk there's an interview with the founders.


So should the people of Facebook, MySpace, Friendster and the countless networking sites be worried about this competitor? Do you believe a mass movement of users of the above sites swapping to Diaspora for the promised increased amount of privacy?


Being sceptic over profile sites in general I'm not signing up in the near future for sure, although just out of interest if these guys are really sincere about the privacy thing, I'll try to keep an eye on how this evolves...

never going to happen. we all know you could steer the exxon valdiez through the security holes in internetnet explorer, but people still use it as a default browser, even after countless warnings. Like Ie those sites are established and will continue

 

[gerrit]

Well, you got a point, but then what Jynx says makes lot of sense as well. I remember when MySpace was big and everybody had one ; suddenly Facebook came and probably the initial reaction was as well "why swap when you got MySpace?". In the end the hype about MS was over and FB took over as the next hype. So if MySpace could be replaced by a new hype, why would Facebook be untouchable?

I think a lot depends on how this new networking site Diaspora is going to put things into practise. Will they try to be equally big as FB and try to basically be a copycat? Or will they just try to cater those worried about privacy and dissatisfied with FB, even when that target audience is smaller than the crowd that Facebook is serving?

In any way I wouldn't rule out Diaspora or any similar initiative yet. Bebo and MySpace at some point seemed like they would rule the internet forever, in the end it took a relatively short time before Facebook grew so rapidly that it became even bigger. Nothing lasts forever, Facebook's popularity being no exception to that I think. As said, a lot will depend on how Diaspora will present itself once it goes live: will it be mainly a Facebook copycat then it's likely to fail ; will they offer something new then they may just as well become the next hype in the networking category.

 

[Jynxgirl]

Whatever this site is, they choose the wrong name if they wanted to have a go.

 

[gerrit]

Not sure what you mean. Diaspora sounds like a universally known word, you could interpretate it as "reconnecting with long lost or far away friends" with a bit of imagination, ... and that very purpose is why networking sites got popular in the first place.

I do see for some people (depending on religion, ethnicity etc) the term may hold a negative connotation, but then does the name "Facebook" or "Orkut" make a lot of sense? It didn't stop those from becoming a big success. I think the actual product, once it's released, will get its users based on curiosity, and then if the product offers something new people will use it regardless of the name. The main thing if they want to succeed will be to either improve the existing features of existing networking sites, or to add something extra that the long-established competitors don't offer.

PS on the name: if you look at emails, the most commonly used services are Hotmail, Yahoo and Gmail. Except for Gmail none of those names make sense and the first two even sound a bit silly. It didn't stop them from becoming a success. In the end, people will accept Diaspora if it offers them something that Facebook and MySpace don't offer. The go-live should be in a few months.

 

[Jynxgirl]

Myspace was catchy name for your own little space on the web. Facebook is putting a face on your own online book.

Diaspora looks like maybe a disease?? Spora having to do with germination of plants ??

 

[jojo]

I'm on facebook but thats it! I cant be bothered with too many of these things! Will yet another one work??? Who knows, but for me part of the appeal with facebook is that its the most popular and therefore has the most people that I may want to find. My kids are on a couple of the others???? cant remember what they're called. One of them went bust not so long ago I believe?? Beebo?????? Or was it that my kids just stopped using it???????

jo xxx

 

[Jynxgirl]

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Not to be confused with diaspore (botany) or diaspore (mineral).
For other uses, see Diaspora (disambiguation).

A diaspora (in Greek, διασπορά – "a scattering [of seeds]") is any movement of a population sharing common national and/or ethnic identity. While refugees may or may not ultimately settle in a new geographic location, the term diaspora refers to a permanently displaced and relocated collective.

 

[Jynxgirl]

I knew I had saw that word before... I took alot of botany and aquatic classes my final year as I was undecided if I wanted to work on land or in the water

 

[Jynxgirl]

Who knows, but for me part of the appeal with facebook is that its the most popular and therefore has the most people that I may want to find.

Personally I am finding the online social movement means I talk to my non close friends and relatives less and less and its just online one liners.

Anyone else feel that way??

 

[jojo]

Personally I am finding the online social movement means I talk to my non close friends and relatives less and less and its just online one liners.

Anyone else feel that way??

Not really. I still chat to my close friends and family on skype, phone etc. But I find its nice just to glance at what everyone else is doing without having to engage in a long conversation! You know, those people who you want to know are ok, but dont necessarily want to chat to and being this far away, I tend to miss out on the local gossip!! - Or maybe I'm just a miserable old bag!!!!!

Jo xxx

 

[Jynxgirl]

Jojo, your a beautiful old hag

Hey, because I dont want to start a brand new thread for something so little...

Is there anything that can be done to get rid of ++++

You have pending friend requests from silentlyhappy.

It annoys the heck out of me being on my page and me not being able to decline it. It just sits there and is never ending

 

[jojo]

Jojo, your a beautiful old hag

Hey, because I dont want to start a brand new thread for something so little...

Is there anything that can be done to get rid of ++++

You have pending friend requests from silentlyhappy.

It annoys the heck out of me being on my page and me not being able to decline it. It just sits there and is never ending

Yes, but its too complicated and too late at night to explain how!!! Roughly tho, you tick its box, tick the reject option and then press go !!!!!

Jo xxx

 

[gerrit]

Diaspora can be interpretated as a longing for returning home as well, some Arabic traditional music is even using the word in its titles. Or, with some imagination: as you use the profile site to find back old friends far away, it's like using the site to get back in touch with friends you lost in a diaspora ...

I see what you mean, but I doubt a name can ruin a good product's chance of survival. It's all about what the site will offer compared to competitors...

 

[Jynxgirl]

Yes, but its too complicated and too late at night to explain how!!! Roughly tho, you tick its box, tick the reject option and then press go !!!!!

Jo xxx

LOL, oh you silly girl you. The problem is it shows on my main cp page, but once I go to the page for friends, its not there. Whatever funny business you guys did with our silent friend, made him there but not. Kind of a limbo status. How about just ban him and maybe it will disapear off my page and my ocd about it will go away. :eyebrows:

 

[Jynxgirl]

Diaspora can be interpretated as a longing for returning home as well, some Arabic traditional music is even using the word in its titles. Or, with some imagination: as you use the profile site to find back old friends far away, it's like using the site to get back in touch with friends you lost in a diaspora ...

I see what you mean, but I doubt a name can ruin a good product's chance of survival. It's all about what the site will offer compared to competitors...

I will disagree. And this is not to be mean, but after coming here to the middle east, they just seem to follow anything that america does. I dont think that name will fly in the states. A name is everything. It can make or break a product, business, or worse to say even a person. Stop naming your kid brick or blade or water.

 

[gerrit]

While I agree a name is important, can you explain how Hotmail and Yahoo ever became a success then? Because let's admit it, Hotmail sounds like teenage slang, and Yahoo is beyond silly. Nonetheless they became widely used because the product they were offering was new back then and was convincing enough that people learnt to accept the name.

A lot will depend if these folks working on the approaching release of Diaspora having something to offer that existing profile sites don't offer. That will be the make or break I think. If it's gonna be just a copy of Facebook or MySpace it's going to fail. They'll have to use a different approach, something that will encourage people to create an account rather than just stick to the FC/MySpace they're used to.




As for your question "Personally I am finding the online social movement means I talk to my non close friends and relatives less and less and its just online one liners. Anyone else feel that way??"

I totally agree and this is why I totally stopped using those profile sites. I realise I may miss out on meeting people to exchange interesting hints with, or useful discussions, but the amount of such info is hard to find when people are bombarding you with silly games, news I'm really not interested in (the one liners you refer to) ... In the end, email may be old school, but to stay in touch with friends at distance, Skype and email are still doing just fine for me.