Of course we can and it should be the very place to do it. There needs to be a shift in the way we look at social media. Currently everything is geared towards the early adopters, the content creators and the thought leaders but these are the minority. Once we start thinking how the 'average' user will interact with such services then we can start moving forward. - Colin Walker
Big and Good point Colin, Thanks! What seems for me hard to do is that Goedel paradox, I mean, how can we say to an ill social climate that it's ill, it should take some distance, and look from the "outside" to see the illness. - directeur
Yes you have to step outside (or at least take a step back slightly) to see the bigger picture: the illness, but social media is different to a normal social climate as it is essentially governed by the people for the people rather than by an actual government. Yes, the service creators set things up and announce their offspring to the world but like all parents have to stand back and watch their 'child' grow up. The growth of social media services are largely dictated by the 'way' they are used not just the functionality they offer; put a completely different set of people on FriendFeed than those who are here at present and you would see the service used in a different way and take a different route in its development. The chances are existing services will never go entirely mainstream but a future service that is based on the needs of the many, not of the few, would. - Colin Walker
To change the way FriendFeed operates would need a change in the way we the users are forcing it to adapt to our requirements which is why the discussion has to take place inside the service or, at least, amongst those users in another forum but why have everyone go somewhere else to discuss it when they are already here. - Colin Walker
Colin, you have my respect! This is exactly what I think too... IMHO there should be some neat tricks and tools to organize the flow. You talked about parents and children, but parent never let their little children go to the wild... alone. There's rules governing the societies in which we live. Maybe different from a society to another, but they're here. I humbly think that if technically we can't solve some issues, at least we can instaure a newer or maybe just the plain old one "netiquette"... - directeur
But different generations change the rules in society and morality even more so. How far do we try to hold back the incoming tide? - Colin Walker
I didn't meant rules that govern people lives, but those that will govern people interactions... you can't go outside and kill someone, jus because you're bored. With analogies like these we can define rules that no generation can change for they will be too "logic" to be changed anyway... - directeur
I know you didn't, but there will always be a shift with regards to what is acceptable at any given point - the internet is no exception, especially as we continue to use it in ways that don't fit any current trends or patterns. Just as society itself has to adjust to changes over time so must how we view our behaviour in any environment. - Colin Walker
The problem with one in that we are now is just like a very very vey and I mean very old civilisation where no rules, no laws, no moral exist... (I added moral with hesitation) Social networks, must obey a netiquette, maybe a revisited one IMHO - directeur
