Ashna+Kataria


 * __Social Networks__ **

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A Social Network is a website, or network of websites, specifically established to allow end users to communicate directly with each other on topics of mutual interest. Social networking websites function like an online community of internet users. In other words, a Social Network is a way for people to communicate with their friends and family efficiently. =====

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The [|First Social Network]site was invented in 1997. Now, in 2011, we have an abundant number of Social Networking sites available for use. These websites have amazing resources including: blogging, chat, messages, events, videos, music, profiles, groups, games, photos, and so much more. There is such a big variety of the different types of Social Networking Sites, that there is a website for almost everyone. There are common websites such as: Myspace, [|Facebook], and Twitter. There are websites for young children, like [|Club Penguin]. There are even Social Networking websites for people to find love, such as: Match or [|Eharmony]. =====

**One of the most important things about Social Networking Sites is that it can be used for marketing. Many businesses believe that Social Networking Sites are the best way to advertise.**


Even though Social Networking Sites are free and have many benefits, they have a numerous amount of drawbacks as well. One of the biggest disadvantages is a loss of privacy. Once a person puts something online, it is available to almost everyone regardless of the privacy options that are chosen. Another weakness of Social Networking Sites is that they are extremely addicting. Many people spend long hours on these websites and loose interest in their normal routines. According to Maressa Orzark, director of the Computer Addiction Study Center at Harvard University;s McLean Hospital, between 5% and 10% of Web surfers suffer some form of Web dependency. Many people become so dependent on the web that they neglet; basic human drives, nutrition, hygiene, and relationships. Lastly, an important defect of Social Networking Sites is cyber-bullying. The majority of cyber-bullying is commited on Social Networking Sites because that is the easiest way to aggravate, bother, and bully a person. It is a simple way a person to communicate with another at any time desired. This is a big obstacle in the internet, and connectivity we now see in this decade.
 * Facebook**

Facebook, the world's largest social network, announced in July 2010 that it had 500 million users around the world. The company has grown at a meteoric pace, doubling in size since 2009 and pushing international competitors aside. Its policies, more than those of any other company, are helping to define standards for privacy in the Internet age. The company, founded in 2004 by a Harvard sophomore, Mark Zuckerberg, began life catering first to Harvard students and then to all high school and college students. It has since evolved into a broadly popular online destination used by both teenagers and adults of all ages. In country after country, Facebook is cementing itself as the leader and often displacing other social networks, much as it outflanked MySpace in the United States.

//EHarmony//. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb 2011. [].
//Facebook//. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb 2011. [].

"History of Social Networks." //Articles Base//. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb 2011. [].
//Match//. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb 2011. [].

"Money Spent on AD's on Social Networking Sites." //Social Media Governance//. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb 2011. [|http://socialmediagovernance.com/blog/product-development/social-network-ad-spend-doubling-its-share-of-total-online-ad-spend/.].

//Myspace//. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb 2011. [].

"Six Degrees." N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb 2011. [].

//Twitter//. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb 2011. [].

//What is Social Networking//. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb 2011. [|http://www.whatissocialnetworking.com]. //Facebook.// []