To be or not to be social
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SOCIAL MEDIA Ammar Yasir How many of us out there think that social media is over-rated – that ‘Facebooking’ and tweeting is nothing but a waste of time? The truth of the matter is we spend half our day “liking” pictures we don’t actually like, and re- tweeting articles we hardly read. Social media has bred a culture where it’s normal to not bond with real-life relations, yet take pride in having hundreds of virtual friends one hasn’t met in years. Why then, are the supposed “smart people” at Silicon Valley still investing in startup after startup, and product after product to facilitate people in the way they interact on social media? To understand the dimensions of social media, we need to venture back in time and see how societies functioned before the advent of internet, computers or even electricity. Back then, people had to rely on word-of-mouth. Information travelled from person to person, and anyone who was interested in the facts had to find the right person to respond to their query. This method of information retrieval and knowledge acquisition is often referred to as the village paradigm, where information- seekers’ trust (the information) which comes from someone whom they know personally. In contrast, the modern digital technique of information retrieval comes from impersonal resources like libraries – online and offline. This is called the library paradigm. If we dig deep and compare the two methods of information retrieval, we will find a lot of interesting points. | 88 | april 2011 | SPIDER To be or not to be social? When it comes to social media, there’s a fine line between social good and information overload
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Transcript of To be or not to be social
S O C I AL M E D I A Ammar Yasir
How many of us out there thinkthat social media is over-rated –that ‘Facebooking’ and tweeting is
nothing but a waste of time? The truth ofthe matter is we spend half our day “liking”pictures we don’t actually like, and re-tweeting articles we hardly read. Socialmedia has bred a culture where it’s normal
to not bond with real-life relations, yet takepride in having hundreds of virtual friendsone hasn’t met in years. Why then, are thesupposed “smart people” at Silicon Valleystill investing in startup after startup, andproduct after product to facilitate people inthe way they interact on social media?
To understand the dimensions of socialmedia, we need to venture back intime and see how societiesfunctioned before the advent ofinternet, computers or evenelectricity. Back then, people had torely on word-of-mouth. Informationtravelled from person to person, andanyone who was interested in thefacts had to find the right person torespond to their query. This method ofinformation retrieval and knowledgeacquisition is often referred to as thevillage paradigm, where information-seekers’ trust (the information) whichcomes from someone whom theyknow personally.
In contrast, the modern digitaltechnique of information retrievalcomes from impersonal resourceslike libraries – online and offline. Thisis called the library paradigm. If wedig deep and compare the twomethods of information retrieval, wewill find a lot of interesting points.
| 88 | april 2011 | SPIDER
To be or not to be social?When it comes to social media, there’s a fine linebetween social good and information overload
Forinstance, inthe library paradigm,queries are made based onkeywords (“new iPad specs”, “Androidfirmware download” etcetera). In thisinstance, the knowledge base exists priorto making the query, whereas trust is builtbased on the authority and credibility ofthe content publisher (Tech Crunch,Gizmodo etcetera).
So is the village paradigm still relevant?The answer is a resounding “Yes”. It isuseful for retrieving information in real-time, real-life situations, like for a trafficupdate or the law and order situation. Inthis case, queries are answered by
members of the community in real-time,and the authority’s reliability is based
on one’s personal affiliation with it.Keeping these facts in mind,one must understand that
though the human race isevolving technologically, it is
sticking to the innate instinctof information retrieval.
The difference is, withthe additional layer of
library-supportedknowledge base,information retrievalcan be done in real-time, and be verifiedfrom multiple sources.
This scenario may havebeen perfect 10 years ago, butconsidering the current state of the ever-growing pile of data, one has the right tocomplain about information overload.Another issue is differentiating betweenthe useful data and all the existing whitenoise – a task that is anything but easy.Of course, with technology, one has to bepatient; it always eventually catches upwith people’s demands.
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S O C I A L M E D I A
Location-basedFans of location-based social networks (LBSNs) agree that these tools have greatpotential to succeed on both commercial and humanitarian grounds. This is exactly whythe initial success of Foursquare forced social media giant Facebook to jump on the LBSNbandwagon, with its product Facebook Places. Initially, all that Foursquare offered was agame, based on the number of times a user publicly checked into his favourite places.Fast-forward a couple of months and truckloads of success across the globe, Foursquareevolved into a network that could recommend users to check out bookshops, restaurants,coffee shops etcetera, based on their interests and needs. Similarly, online deal brokerGroupon offers shopping deals via social media, earning significant profits for Grouponand its clients. Rumour has it that a similar product is in the pipeline in Pakistan.
We must also open our eyes to the humanitarian benefits of social networking, withprojects like Ushahidi, an open-source platform used to collect information. It has alsobeen used for interactive mapping and visualisation during many recent global crises.Even in Pakistan, Ushahidi came in handy during rehabilitation and rescue efforts for theflood survivors. Following Japan’s recent incidents of a devastating earthquake, tsunamiand nuclear power plant meltdown, technology giants like Google, Apple, Microsoft andTwitter assisted in rescue efforts, by providing their platforms for the greater good.Google’s Person Finder is one example.
Taking into consideration, the growing acceptance of social media in our society, andthe progress of telecommunications, it is time we plan a future where we can build or
customise existing platforms to take advantage of our understanding of the library andvillage paradigms
