'Ello? 'Ello? (anybody there?)
I note that people are joining up, or begging for invites to, the new social network Ello, which is being marketed as the alternative to FaceBook after FB suddenly decided to crack down over the Real Name issue (sigh). (At the moment it looks pretty much like crickets and tumbleweeds over there, it's all stark mimimalism and white space, but what do I know. It is after all still in beta and invite-only.)
There has already been a certain amount of critique:
Goodbye, Ello: Privacy, Safety, and Why Ello Makes Me More Vulnerable to My Abusers and Harassers
No, I am not interested in joining your proprietary social network
The social networks we already have are not giving us what we want. We’re turning to the new thing because it’s new, not because it’s good
Do I want/need yet another social space online? I feel that I'm already pretty much maxxed out on places I hang out and chat with friends, ascertain what's new on the Rialto, etc.
My main space is DW - increasingly more of a salon than an agora, now that the latter function seems to be much more happening on FB and Twitter - and LJ since I still have legacy people there who haven't made the jump and aren't likely to.
FB is a mishmash of DW/LJ people (some no longer active in those places), academic/professional connections, family, etc etc; ditto, pretty much, Twitter (not so much family, for some reason). G+ doesn't seem to be particularly happening - I am still getting circled by total strangers, I skorn this practice utterly.
More niche sites where I have a presence are academia.edu and GoodReads.
I did have a Diaspora login but haven't visited it for a very long time and have forgotten my details.
I haven't updated my professional blog for months.
Do I really want another place, however cool and happening? Not really. If there does come about a mass exodus there of people I'm connected to I can rethink then. This entry was originally posted at http://oursin.dreamwidth.org/2158626.html. Please comment there using OpenID. View
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