| Myspace |
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MySpace is a , 2006 .). Note that this is based on exceptionally intense usage by a relatively limited number of visitors, many more than five English language sites have a higher "reach" measurement, that is they are visited by more different people each day. MySpace has outstripped competitors such as MSN Spaces , Friendster and LiveJournal to become the most popular English-language social networking website with higher traffic and just over 75 million registered accounts. It has become an increasingly influential part of contemporary Teenage Culture , especially in the Anglosphere . MySpace has 250 employees and projects a 2006 revenue of US$20M. 1 HISTORY Prior to the creation of the current, 2005 .. Prior to that use, MySpace.com was home to a web design firm. , 2006 . The current MySpace service was founded in July 2003 by , 2006 .. The creators of MySpace have hosted many parties in Hollywood , Jacksonville , Miami , Orlando , New York City , Chicago , Boston , San Francisco , Seattle , Hawaii , and McAllen, Texas to support the site. MySpace is also home to various independent musicians, who post songs directly on their profile. These songs can also be uploaded onto other profiles. Because of the high popularity, mainstream musicians have entered this trend as well. CDs of independent music are sold in various establishments. In February 2006, amateur filmaker David Lehre released '' The MySpace Movie '' a short film which quickly became an Internet Phenomenon , registering over 6 million hits in the first three months following its release. David Lehre - MySpace: The Movie . It was also featured in a popular internet show, Pure Pwnage , where in episode 10 the main character Jeremy loses his girlfriend and logs on to MySpace in an attempt to rationalise the world's pain. (The entire piece of the show features a song called "Get out of MySpace", and the entire piece is used as a stab against MySpace users) Also in this month, most of the BBC Radio 1 DJs have set up a profile and are mentioning it very frequently. This is somewhat controversial as the BBC usually avoids any mention of individual companies. In the United States, the influential Major Label Music Network , a Myspace group that networks major level recording artists (and indy or unsigned acts) with major level industry executives, companies and major level professionals, also includes highly influential U.S. commercial radio stations KROQ and WAAF , both of whom maintain profiles on Myspace, as do popular U.S. DJ's in the group. CONTENTS OF A MYSPACE PROFILE Each profile contains two standard " also can contain sections about standard interests, such as music, television, books, and movies, as well as specific personal details, such as marital status, physical appearance, and income. Profiles also contain a Blog . A part of customizing one's MySpace is uploading images onto their site. One of the images can be chosen to be the "default image," the image that will be seen on the profile's main page and as the image that will appear to the side of the user's name on comments, messages, etc. MySpace has also recently added the option to upload videos as well. There is also a count of the friends the user has. A total of eight friends, or the "Top 8," are shown directly on the profile, with a link to a page which lists all of the user's friends. The "Top 8" became vigorous as people lost or gained friendship, because they were to be seen on someone else's. Below this is the "comments" section, wherein the user's friends may leave comments about the user for all viewers to read. Most users tend to leave comments that are viewed by all to be personal, leaving the whole MySpace network to read their business. MySpace profile layouts can have the entire look changed with many different editors available from other websites. For example; one can change their "Top 8" to show any number of friends, or hide the feature. Using HTML and CSS , the colors, background and foreground images, table style, scroll bar style and color, could be changed to suit their preference. One can also add music to their profile either by visiting an artist's page and choosing a song from MySpace's music player, or using a customized music player or embedded media file. CRITICISM OF MYSPACE Accessibility There are often accessibility problems on users' profiles, stemming from the fact that MySpace is set up so that anyone can customize the layout and colors of their profile page with virtually no restrictions. As most MySpace users are not skilled Web Developers , this sometimes causes some problems. Poorly constructed MySpace profiles have been known to freeze up Web Browser s due to malformed CSS coding, or as a result of users placing many high Bandwidth objects such as videos and Flash in their profiles. MySpace in educational settings Many schools and public libraries in the US and the UK have begun to restrict access to MySpace because it has become "such a haven for student gossip and malicious comments"Curriculum Review, October 2005. ''Schools race to restrict MySpace''.. Some private schools have even attempted to ban their pupils from accessing MySpace at homeThe Daily News, Washington, , 2006 .. In 2006, Del Mar Community College blocked all access to MySpace. Network administrators cited network strain from excessive MySpace traffic as the reason for blocking the social network. According to Del Mar's chief of technology, MySpace was consuming 40% of the college's daily internet bandwidth, impeding on the college's web-based courses http://news.tmcnet.com/news/-myspacecom-del-mar-block-access-voip-/2006/04/24/1601159.htm. MySpace and professionalism Chicago Tribune's RedEye printed an article concerning MySpace and an individual's search for employment. It was argued that young college graduates compromise their chances of starting careers because of the content they post on their accounts. For instance, a visitor does not need an account to browse for users using information that is readily available on resumes and applications, such as a zip code and age. A potential employer can utilize information provided by the applicant on MySpace's browse component. Thus, the employer may not hire a highly qualified candidate because he or she maintains an account suggesting rambunctious behavior. Moreover, employees were said to be putting their careers at risk because they maintain blogs that criticize their respective companies and organizations. MySpace and business There are many people who are making careers out of promotion on MySpace. From bands, to celebrities, to exotic car dealers, many people have found MySpace to be an invaluable tool for advocating their goods and services. There are automated tools known as Bots to help aid in increasing ones reach on MySpace, which have proved to be very effective, yet very annoying for some less commercially focused MySpace users. Security Because some kids do not know better, they will post information such as their home address, phone number, or last name. This information, when put in the wrong hands, can put a person in danger of being found by an Online Predator . As a result of this, Fox says that they will post public service ads warning children of those dangers. Profiles where the user's age is set to 14 or 15 years are automatically private. Other users of Myspace do not have the option to restrict their profiles. Viewing the full profile of or messaging someone under the age of 16 is restricted to their direct MySpace friends only. According to the MySpace.com Terms of Service, lying about one's age to make one's profile private defeats the purpose of social networking and is considered fraud. Any profile caught doing it will be deleted. Instead, MySpace.com suggests removing restricted information from public view. Restrictions on new accounts MySpace restricts the accounts of new users without first warning people of this when they sign up. For the first seven days, a new user is prevented from posting in groups or on the message boards. MySpace claims that this is needed to prevent spam. SEE ALSO REFERENCES |