Use and Users of Online Social Networking Services Margaret Heller January 17, 2008 WiLS Virtual Reference Best Practices Web Conference My Background Member of Facebook and MySpace before I even thought about library school. In library school I became interested in how online social networking can apply to librarians and libraries. Last year researched how students present themselves as literate. Then how international librarians are communicating through Facebook. I’m not an expert– just an informed user. Anatomy of Facebook History of Facebook Mark Zuckerberg and co-founders Dustin Moskovitz and Chris Hughes began Facebook while students at Harvard in February 2004 Name comes from paper “face books” that historically were supposed to help introduce new students at colleges. Started as something at elite college only. Now is open to anyone. Currently has well over 50 million users. Literacy on Facebook Most people use social networking sites to present a public image of themselves. This may not reflect reality, but it reflects what is important to that person! Last year I took a look at what books are the most popular on Facebook. Facebook has changed since then, but the most popular books haven’t. The focus of the research was how Facebook could be helpful to understanding the users of leisure reading collections, but it indicated that many students consider literacy to be an attractive aspect of themselves worth advertising to their friends. Most Popular Books at U of I 1 Harry Potter 2 The Bible 3 Pride And Prejudice 4 1984 5 To Kill A Mockingbird 6 Catcher In The Rye 7 The Great Gatsby 8 Lord Of The Rings 9 Angels And Demons Connections to Virtual Reference Like many Web 2.0 applications, Facebook is good at tapping into the “long tail” of interests. The most popular books we already suspected– it’s the less popular books that are important to know about to serve users. People advertise what is important to them on social networking sites. Applications are a way of advertising interests. No, libraries are not important to everyone. But in the “long tail” of interests, libraries will be important to a significant number of people who will be willing to admit that publicly. Younger people tend to be more interested in doing what everyone else is doing, and this creates instant buzz among communities of users. Questions? Contact me at [email protected].