The document discusses the history of social networking from its origins on bulletin board systems (BBS) in the 1970s-1990s to early social networking sites like Classmates.com, SixDegrees.com, and AsianAvenue.com in the late 1990s. It then covers the launch and popularity of seminal social networks from the early 2000s onward, including Friendster, LinkedIn, MySpace, and Facebook. The history shows how social networking evolved from text-based computer discussions to profile-based networking on prominent today.

2. •Students should understand the basis of SN.
•Aware of the actual purpose of SN
•Know the history of SN

3. Social networking didn't start
with Facebook.
We examine the history
of social networking,
from BBSes to Friendster
to Diaspora.

4.  Social Networking is a focal point for Social Interactivity.
 Initially , computer networking was envisioned as a military-centric
command and control scheme.
 But as it expanded beyond just a privileged few hubs and nodes, so too
did the idea that connected computers might also make a great forum for
discussing mutual topics of interest, and perhaps even meeting or renewing
acquaintances with other humans.

5.  It started with the BBS. Short for Bulletin Board System,
these online meeting places were effectively
independently-produced hunks of code that allowed users to
communicate with a central system where they could download
files or games (many times including pirated software) and post
messages to other users.

6.  Accessed over telephone lines via a modem,
BBSes were often run by hobbyists who carefully
nurtured the social aspects and interest-specific nature
of their projects – which, more often than not in those early
days of computers, was technology-related.

7.  Moreover, long distance calling rates usually applied for
out-of-towners, so many Bulletin Boards were locals-only
affairs that in turn spurred local in-person gatherings.
 And voila, just like that, suddenly the antisocial had become social.

8.  The BBS was no joke.
 Though the technology of the time restricted the
flexibility of these systems, and the end-user’s experience,
to text-only exchanges of data that crawled along at glacial
speed, BBSes continued to gain popularity throughout
the ‘80s and well into the ‘90s, when the Internet truly kicked into gear.

9.  CompuServe, a service that began life in the 1970s
as a business-oriented mainframe computer communication
solution, but expanded into the public domain in the late 1980s.
 CompuServe allowed members to share files and access
news and events. But it also offered something few had ever
experienced – true interaction.

10.  Not only could you send a message to your friend via a newfangled
technology dubbed “e-mail” (granted, the concept of e-mail wasn’t
exactly newfangled at the time, though widespread public access to it was).
 You could also join any of CompuServe’s thousands of discussion forums to yap
with thousands of other members on virtually any important subject of the day.
 Those forums proved tremendously popular and paved the way for the modern
iterations we know today.

11.  But if there is a true precursor to today’s social networking sites,
it was likely spawned under the AOL (America Online) umbrella.
In many ways, and for many people, AOL was the Internet before
the Internet, and its member-created communities (complete with searchable
“Member Profiles,” in which users would list pertinent details about themselves),
were arguably the service’s most fascinating, forward-thinking feature.

12.  There was no stopping the real Internet, and by the mid-1990s it was moving
full bore.
 Yahoo had just set up shop.
 Amazon had just begun selling books, and the race to get a PC in every
household was on.
 And, by 1995, the site that may have been the first to fulfill the modern definition
of social networking was born.

13. Though differing from many current social
networking sites in that it asks not
“Who can I connect with?”
but rather,
“Who can I connect with that was once a
schoolmate of mine?”

14. • Classmates.com proved almost immediately that the idea of a
virtual reunion was a good one.
• Early users could not create profiles, but they could locate
long-lost grade school chums, menacing school bullies and maybe
even that prom date they just couldn’t forget
• It was a hit almost immediately, and even today the service boasts
some 540 million registered accounts.

15. That same level of success can’t be said for SixDegrees.com.
The site sprung up in 1997 and was one of the very first to allow
its users to create profiles, invite friends, organize groups, and
surf other user profiles.
Its founders worked the six degrees angle hard by encouraging
members to bring more people into the fold.
Unfortunately, this “encouragement” ultimately became a
bit too pushy for many, and the site slowly de-evolved into a
loose association of computer users and numerous complaints of
spam-filled membership drives.
SixDegrees.com folded completely in 2000.

16. • Next in line was AsianAvenue.com, founded in 1997.
• AsianAvenue.com was followed in 1999 by BlackPlanet.com.
• Both have survived to this very day, with BlackPlanet.com in particular
enjoying tremendous success throughout its run.
• Indeed, according to current parent company Radio One,
which acquired Community Connect and its sites in April of 2008,
BlackPlanet.com presently attracts in excess of three million unique
visitors every month.

18. Launched in 2002

19. • Friendster displays the pathways connecting two people, new feature
that attracts.
• CEO Jonathan Abrams actually refers to his creation as a dating site
that isn’t about dating.
• Just a year after its launch, Friendster boasted more than three million
registered users
.

20.  Launched in 2003.
 a networking resource for business people who want to
connect with other professionals.
 In fact, LinkedIn contacts are referred to as “connections.”
 Today, LinkedIn boasts more than 175 million members.

21.  Launched in 2003.
 It does so by tempting the key young adult demographic with music,
music videos, and a funky, feature-filled environment.
 Still popular in USA.
 Has over 500 million users.

22.  Founded in 2004 as a Harvard-only exercise and remained a
campus-oriented site for two full years before finally opening
to the general public in 2006.
 Over 1 billion users to date.
 Secret of success - its memorable, descriptive name.
 Facebook promotes both honesty and openness

29. Low costs
o Social networking for personal and business use if free.
It is an easy and cost effective way to reach your consumers
and people in your network.
· Builds Credibility
o For business purposes, connecting with your customers on
a personal and professional level will make them loyal to
your company and brand.
· Connections
o Connecting with people in your friends’ networks or your work
Networks will benefit you in the long run. It will help you gain
connections which may be useful in the future.

30. Lack of anonymity
o Social networking usually requires you to input your name,
location, age, gender and many other types of personal
information.
· Scams and harassment
o Being online you are at risk to face cases of harassment,
cyber-stalking, online scams and identity theft.
· Time consuming
o If you are new to social networking, learning the process
Can be very time consuming.