Whither the Individual

     Many people in recent years have become concerned about sites such as Facebook and Myspace 

and there restrictions on people's creativity and its violation of personal space. These people present 

 many good points and arguments, however, I am here to defend these sites and show how they can 

actually help show our personalities and talents while also protecting our personal space.

     Social software sites such as Facebook, Myspace and Flickr allow for various types of creativity.
Many artist and photographers  use Flickr and Facebook to show of their talents. My neighbor, who is
a professional photographer, posts his pictures on Flickr to business purposes and his photos on
Facebook for personal purposes. On Flickr, he is able to show potential clients his work that he has
done at previous weddings and parties. This is how social software has enables my neighbor to expand
his buisness and show off his work. On Facebook, my neighbor uses folksonomy to tag his friends and
family in his own private photos. On Facebook, he post his private photos and also his more creative
photos. Myspace is more used for aspiring musicians. On Myspace, artists post their music for others
to listen to, and it has become a great way to introduce new fans to their music. I have witnessed this
with a close friend of mine whose band continued to gain recognition after posting songs on Myspace.
After posting on Myspace, the band was signed by a manager and was able to play larger venues.
Social software enables artists to share their art with a larger audience.

   
     "Bubbie" the grandmother who has her own cooking show on the internet, is another example of
someone who is able to to use social software and user generated content to her advantage. Now that
she can show her cooking to people form all over the world over the computer, Bubbie she feels
rejuvinated and feels motivated again to teach other to cook. This shows how the internet can
showcase creativity and talent, not destroy it.

    Many people also worry about our privacy on the internet, especially sites such as Facebook giving
away our information. Giving away this information actually might be more helpful to us than it is
hurtful. Facebook gives away information to advertisers about things such as the music we like, where
we shop, and other things we like. Facebook does not give away information such as social security
numbers or our past records. This is the information to us that we hold as important.


     This is the page that most people see daily. This page however does not change who we are as
individuals. I believe that most people do not change who they are when they are looking at a
Facebook screen. Facebook is able to give an accurate enough picture of who someone truely is
through pictures, information, and pages. Unlike Myspace, it is easy to tell if someone has created a
fake profile or fake name. Facebook has become safer through the years with its more advanced
protection and privacy settings.     

     The fear of social software destroying our creativity is a threat that we can ignore. Social software
enables us to express our creativity and talent to more people than we ever could before.