Social networking sites are all the craze right now, Friendster and MySpace being 2 popular examples that allow people to link with friends, tell the world who they are and share what they know and like. Connecting Bristol proposes to build digital communities where citizens can become more active, enjoy greater participation and be better informed about their city. How do we ensure that any technology that comes out of Connecting Bristol truly enables us to meet these ambitious goals and does so in the ways that we really want? Surely we want our new resources to be as successful for us in Bristol as these other social networks have been worldwide!
How do we know that we aren’t just building another clever and whizzy website that looks good on the surface and is technically brilliant underneath but does none of the thing we want?
The key is in understanding the range of citizens who will use the facility, how their needs and abilities differ and how best to match this with suitable technologies. Its easy to say this, but its also a huge task to get it right. MySpace is popular for 20 somethings who are very computer literate and have easy access to the Internet, however, its the culmination of many other such social networks also aimed directly at this group that have tried and failed to engage. We need something that is just as popular and successful for as many people in the Bristol area as possible.
The page linked below was written back in March 2006 and it raises some interesting points. The most import claim it makes is that the success of MySpace, currently the world’s largest and most successful (in terms of number of members) social network is directly related to the fact that it make a minimum number of restrictions on its members. It doesn’t structure what people can or can’t do or say in their information, it lets them be themselves. There is a lot in this; people don’t want to be controlled by technology, they want it to help them do what they want to do anyway both as individuals and members of a community.
http://www.danah.org/papers/FriendsterMySpaceEssay.html
I’d welcome any thoughts on how the needs of various groups in the Connecting Bristol area can be addressed so that people can retain personal ownership in their contributions but still be part of the larger network. What would make YOU feel engaged in a Bristol based social network?
Alan Parry (alan.parry@hp.com)
