Without the luxury of online communications, the world would be without a multitude of things we take for granted now. We would have difficulty in finding old acquaintances and classmates who moved thousands miles away. We would be unable to network with people who share similar interests or help us to network in ways we cannot do locally. We would pay to mail simple letters, photos and resumes. We would not have the opportunity to view the people we communicate with in real-time. You get the point?
While there were many online services that aided or piqued our communication needs, these are the top ten social media websites that many of us could not live without.
10. Skype - August 2003
Skpye escalates online and teleconference communications to higher levels. Combining videoconferencing, teleconferencing and instant messaging made Skype the forerunner of online audio/video communication.
9. Flicker - February 2004
Among all online photo storage website, Flicker is the most used and searched of all. People can set up accounts through Flicker to share photos from special occasions, vacations and random acts or ideas. The need to print photos are minimized, and the ease of sharing your favorite memories with friends and family worldwide can take place on Flicker.
8. LinkedIn - May 2003
For those who want the sophisticated and most exclusive competition to MySpace and Facebook, LinkedIn fulfilled those needs. LinkedIn prides itself into become the world's most trusted website exclusively for networking and job hunting. Instead of creating profiles based on a person's favorites or thoughts, professional endeavors and resumes are only allowed as an user's introduction to the world.
7. Twitter - March 2006
As the ultimate website for the self-absorbed, attention-needing maniacs, Twitter became the website for those who feel the urge to update their "followers" on whatever is on their minds in real-time. While having that same feature as Facebook, Twitter allows people to submit their updates on at least ten times the applications than Facebook.
6. G-Mail - April 2004
When people with free e-mail accounts from Yahoo and Hotmail complained about receiving too many unsolicited e-mails from porn companies to business schemes in their inboxes, Google's G-Mail system launched with a almost fool-proof method of separating the spam e-mails from the intended. Soon, the number of G-Mail accounts grown exponentially, even influencing the paid e-mail subscribers to switch to a free G-Mail account.
5. MySpace - January 2004
From CollegeClub to BlackPlanet, many websites served as portals for users to set up customized profiles with photos, color schemes and unique layouts to express themselves individually while keeping in touch with old acquaintances and networking with new friends. By 2006, MySpace boasted more than 1million account globally, especially allowing professionals of the entertainment field (e.g., musicians, comedians, models, etc.) to set up customized profiles that will allow users to easily discover their works.
4. Facebook - September 2006
Facebook became the ultimate website for social networking by 2008 at the latest. For those who did not want to pay a subscription fee on Classmates or felt that MySpace is too immature, they flocked to Facebook to keep contact with friends, network with people of similar interests and discover past acquaintances from school, work and distant relatives.
3.Word Press - May 2003
Most of the world's websites are built by using templates created by Word Press. Without this social media outlet, we would not have as much free information to read upon pop culture, how-to instructions, literature, history, personal journeys and other guilty pleasures.
2. Wikipedia - January 2001
Wikipedia is a double-edge sword for information. It serves as the most comprehensive online encyclopedia covering more topics than the Britannica could fit in many sets. The drawback to Wikipedia is that anyone can set up and/or edit pages, which means that erroneous information may be viewed.
1. YouTube - February 2005
If you want to relive acceptance speeches, infamous interviews and notable performances, YouTube is your destination. Also, who needs to file an application to become the next reality TV star when you can create your own videos and became an internet sensation on your own merit?
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