Status-Updates=Self-Image: Summing things up in a single sentence.
Self-image on the web is a very peculiar thing. Judging from my experience with the internet over the past ten years or so, it is interesting to look back at the various ways in which I portrayed myself online. We were astounded by the methods of instant messaging. I still am! Everyone was doing it. Everyone updated their "infos" in AIM or their profiles for Yahoo and MSN messengers. Some of us had our own dumpy websites through good 'ole Geocities with the thick, neon marker-like font and little counting mechanisms to see how many people visited the site. I remember when I got my first AIM messenger. MSN messenger took my cherry when it came to online messaging, but it seemed like all the cool kids had AIM, so I got an AIM screen name, as well. It's interesting to look back at my "info" I had though AIM in the beginning. While everyone else's "info" revolved around inside jokes to their friends, song lyrics, and images made through text, my "info" was literally a little biography about my hobbies, as if the people who would be looking at it were strangers. "My name is Sarah and I like to blah blah blah." But back then, I used AIM's little search engine to find complete strangers and talk to them, and believe it or not, I still talk to more of them than I talk to my actual "real life" friends. But since then, my "info" has evolved and pretty much contains links to my various sites. And perhaps a quote or whatever.
The "info" really used to intrigue me, but now they kind of bore me. They are too personal and precious. I'm not interested in someone who is snuggling themselves into a box, I'm more interested in the now, etc. So, next my interests peaked into away messages. Still, away messages are boring with their dopey song lyrics or their automatic idle stances. And it's interesting to think that I am interested (but not really caring) in what that person is doing when they are not sitting in front of their computer or laptop.
Quite an evolution we have going on, you know? Now everyone has websites, pretty much. Only they're not hard to work for and it doesn't include any techno-savvy at all. That is thanks to the webworlds of MySpace and Facebook. I have both, as a lot of us do, but the one that is more interesting to me is Facebook. Facebook is for pretty much anyone, my own mother can probably do it (and that's saying a lot).
The reason why I'm writing about this today is because of the recent election. During the election, I went on my Facebook account to send a message and was amazed at all my "friends" constantly advertising themselves and their thoughts/philosophies concerning the election through their Facebook status-updates. I was amused and weirded out at the fact that all these people I knew were sitting in front of their computers watching the election.
It is now two days after the election and people's status-updates are still inundated with politics. But that's not why I am writing this. I want to take a look at some real-life examples of people's status-updates and just talk about them. I don't mean to deduce or poke fun at anyone, but I just want to share my observations.
It's strange how just a status-update can mimick how things happen in real life. Have you ever known someone who was sad or upset about something, and it was obvious that they wanted you to ask them what was wrong, but they say they don't want to talk about it? I'm sure we've all done this at one point or another. We have all searched for pity because face it, it's hard to be alone with yourself through hard times. There are status-updates that do this same thing. There are allusions to illness, all-nighters, migranes, broken hearts, etc. Keep in mind that most of my "friends" are my age (early 20's). Not to say that older adults don't search for pity and attention. And also keep in mind that a lot of my "friends" are students, and good ones, at that. So good, in fact, that they will garb their status-updates with all the work they have to do and possess allusions to "intellectual" and esoteric finds in studies, books, etc. But I guess my favorite is the people complaining that they need to get stuff done and they are so stressed, but then again, they're on Facebook. But I've done that too! It's all understandable and I'm not here to judge.
And I'm not really intereted in people's choices for their status-updates, but the reasons why they choose what they choose to write. Some people even feel the need to write something there. Some people will say "I don't know what to say," or "status update". It's funny! If you don't know what to say, say nothing at all, perhaps.
I understand that these status-updates aren't summing up whole lives, but just the status of a person or what their "present" is like at the moment or in the future. It would be interesting if we can further narrow it down to just one word (some people do).
I can go on and on about this and even give actual examples of my friends, but I don't want to invade their privacy, despite the fact that they billboard it onto Facebook. But this will be it for now.
Let me know what you think.
The "info" really used to intrigue me, but now they kind of bore me. They are too personal and precious. I'm not interested in someone who is snuggling themselves into a box, I'm more interested in the now, etc. So, next my interests peaked into away messages. Still, away messages are boring with their dopey song lyrics or their automatic idle stances. And it's interesting to think that I am interested (but not really caring) in what that person is doing when they are not sitting in front of their computer or laptop.
Quite an evolution we have going on, you know? Now everyone has websites, pretty much. Only they're not hard to work for and it doesn't include any techno-savvy at all. That is thanks to the webworlds of MySpace and Facebook. I have both, as a lot of us do, but the one that is more interesting to me is Facebook. Facebook is for pretty much anyone, my own mother can probably do it (and that's saying a lot).
The reason why I'm writing about this today is because of the recent election. During the election, I went on my Facebook account to send a message and was amazed at all my "friends" constantly advertising themselves and their thoughts/philosophies concerning the election through their Facebook status-updates. I was amused and weirded out at the fact that all these people I knew were sitting in front of their computers watching the election.
It is now two days after the election and people's status-updates are still inundated with politics. But that's not why I am writing this. I want to take a look at some real-life examples of people's status-updates and just talk about them. I don't mean to deduce or poke fun at anyone, but I just want to share my observations.
It's strange how just a status-update can mimick how things happen in real life. Have you ever known someone who was sad or upset about something, and it was obvious that they wanted you to ask them what was wrong, but they say they don't want to talk about it? I'm sure we've all done this at one point or another. We have all searched for pity because face it, it's hard to be alone with yourself through hard times. There are status-updates that do this same thing. There are allusions to illness, all-nighters, migranes, broken hearts, etc. Keep in mind that most of my "friends" are my age (early 20's). Not to say that older adults don't search for pity and attention. And also keep in mind that a lot of my "friends" are students, and good ones, at that. So good, in fact, that they will garb their status-updates with all the work they have to do and possess allusions to "intellectual" and esoteric finds in studies, books, etc. But I guess my favorite is the people complaining that they need to get stuff done and they are so stressed, but then again, they're on Facebook. But I've done that too! It's all understandable and I'm not here to judge.
And I'm not really intereted in people's choices for their status-updates, but the reasons why they choose what they choose to write. Some people even feel the need to write something there. Some people will say "I don't know what to say," or "status update". It's funny! If you don't know what to say, say nothing at all, perhaps.
I understand that these status-updates aren't summing up whole lives, but just the status of a person or what their "present" is like at the moment or in the future. It would be interesting if we can further narrow it down to just one word (some people do).
I can go on and on about this and even give actual examples of my friends, but I don't want to invade their privacy, despite the fact that they billboard it onto Facebook. But this will be it for now.
Let me know what you think.