Three Big Social Media Sites That Keep Getting Bigger (Well, 2 of Them, Anyway)

It's probably safe to wager on Google+ entering the list impressively

  Facebook is the dominant force in social media sites, period.  They simply have it down.  Myspace tripped up somewhere back there somewhere.  I do recall that they were quit popular once upon a while ago.  I did not use their service, but I knew a lot of people that did, and perhaps still do.  I'll temper my comments about them, because, as the list shows, they aren't doing too bad user wise.  Google has done a fair job of breaking into the market with Google+, from what I can tell.  There are things about their pages and service that I do like.  Plus, with Google+, you get the package that Google Inc. has built for all mankind to take for granted with the spoiled, affluent attitude this society has spawned.

So let's look at Flopspace, I mean Myspace.

They try, bless their hearts, they do.  I just don't like the way they operate.  My account is bombarded with crap.  Crap I don't want to see or hear.  Yes, I can get rid of it, but I don't think I should have to mess with it.

OK, I was right about Google+; Facebook's not doing too shabby, though

Wait.  I'll stop now with my bias toward MySpace and talk a bit about the setup they use for a page.

MySpace operates sideways, literally.  When you scroll your page, it goes left to right.  After you use it awhile it doesn't seem so odd.  Maybe it's just an effort to be unique.  A page is populated by boxes with different purposes or actions.  There's a double linked ring Connect to click that you use to link to things you like.  And did I mention everything is left to right?  The pages are actually large.  I mean there is a lot of content.  After you navigate awhile you get more feel for things and then it's simply a matter of linking to what you like.

Like all social sites, it's up to you to fill your page with content.  There is a direct link to Facebook and Twitter offered.  I suppose if you can't beat 'em, join 'em, huh.  You can amass libraries of music and vids to your taste, and populate your contacts with others who have similar likes.  They catalog about 42 million songs, so you should be able to find something you like.  And of course, you can bring all your friends along for the trip.

Pages for movies, causes, organizations, corporations, and of course, people

I honestly haven't used this site much, and my personal page is not very developed.  I have messed with it enough to be able to navigate well enough that I don't feel like I'm faking it just for an assignment's sake, though.

See, this woman has tailored her page to her personality

If one were to put a little time into this site, and developed it somewhat, it could be useful to a degree.  It is another tool to expand your reach across the web.  It links to Facebook and Twitter,if you want (apparently not everybody wants), so it's an expansion of your social presence.  From the images I have viewed, a couple of which I have included here, these pages are highly tailorable and can be whatever you want to make of them.

I won't hate them anymore.  Maybe.

MySpace launched in August of 2003.  The basic idea was a great idea, and if you know anything about the Internet's social side, you know what I mean  (if not, I'll pardon you while you get back under your rock, because this won't make a bit of difference to you, and I can't possibly write a comprehensive explanation of social media sites here in this blog, in the scope of my topic, and in the time I have). MySpace was bought by NewsCorp in July 2005 for $580 million.  That is a nice chunk, no matter who you are.  At its peak it employed 1600 people and it's usage peaked in December of 2008, at 75.9 million users.  Now that's not too shabby.  However, things haven't been exactly rosy for them in the time since.  MySpace's peak value has been estimated at around $12 billion, but Specific Media got it from NewsCorp in June of 2011 for $35 million! Ugh!! What the heck happened!?  MySpace currently hosts 36 million users and employs about 200.  That is a sad, sad story my friends.  Ironically, Facebook overtook MySpace worldwide in April of 2008, MySpace's peak year.

Google+ is the infant child of Google Inc.  Anything Google does usually turns out pretty well, because they don't give up until they've fine tuned their products.  Now I'm not prejudiced in favor of
Google automatically.  It's just true.  Their wide range of creations is by far the best all around package on the internet, and largely free.  And the free part goes a long way to claiming forgiveness from their users for any shortcomings.  And those shortcomings are always, without fail, addressed. 

Google is catching quite a lot of flack recently over their statistics for Plus.  It seems their definition of "stream" is quite broad, and clicking on the little red bell seen across all Google sites is included.  This has been confirmed by Google.  The issue is whether people are just trying to get rid of it or are actually sharing via Plus.  However, in fairness, competitors like Facebook also define monthly active users rather broadly.  Their figures include users of website widgets, "Like" or "tweet."  So it seems everybody might be padding their figures.  It's actually understandable though, that the current fad is to focus on Google.  Success draws such criticism.

So, skepticism aside, in May, 2013, Plus had 343 million active users.  Today, depending on what you reference, they have anywhere between that and 540 million active users.  I know that's a large margin, but such is the state of the controversy.  It is estimated that it will surpass Facebook in 2016.  Not referencing anything I have read or heard, and strictly as my personal theory, this seems like a solid prediction simply because of the massive and efficient machine that Google has become, and the support the corporation will put behind Plus.  The head of Google Plus, V. Gundotra says, "it's really the unification of all of Google's services with a common social layer", thus evidencing their corporate intentions.  It is actually a little difficult to find any solidly stated figures about Google+ anywhere, as if people are afraid of something.  From some things I have read, there are some impressive technical reasons why Plus will overtake Facebook, to do with rankings and keyword usage, but I surely can't cover all that here.

Coca-Cola collage on Google Plus

Google+ is wide reaching in its aspirations to become an all-in-one social services website, like I was saying above. 
For example, across Google+, Gmail, and Google Drive, you get 15 GB of free storage for your pics.  But, that only applies to photos bigger than 2048x2048, full size uploads.  Any photos you upload smaller than 2048px, or that you let Google+ resize, don't count against your limits. That's a goodly bit.  Although that's across services, it's still more than other storage sites. And that's infinite storage for smaller photos.  No bull.  Infinite.  Does anyone else offer infinite storage?  Nope.
So Google+ is a full  function social site, with all the features that entails; Profile, people, photos, communities, events, hangouts, pages, what's hot, settings, etc.  The layout is similar to Facebook's, but that's to be expected, as it's a simple, logical layout.  But as always with anything titled Google, it's the package that hooks, 

This one picture shows the labeled features of Plus in colored boxes.  You can literally talk to anyone on earth, and in person if you wish.  And with all your other Google services right at your fingertips, you can do whatever needs doing, be it work or pleasure.  I am amazed at how far this service has come in such a short time.  When I was a kid, the only people who could communicate so thoroughly and easily were the Jetsons.

Google+ uses the circle and square format for profile images

You know, I may be beating a dead horse, but I can't imagine a business or enterprising individual paying for services like these when Google gives them away.  With Drive, Docs, Gmail, and Plus, you are just simply covered.
I know this blog was intended as a social services piece, but I just can't seem to justify trying to break the Google services apart.  So there's my point.  Google+ is just one more tool in the Google arsenal, and will undoubtedly only pick up speed as a social force as time moves on.  Undoubtedly.  It's called web assets leverage.

And that brings us to Facebook, perhaps the creme de la creme of social sites today, but hat's today.  Their page layout is simple, yet covers all the aspects of what makes a social site your personal mirror to the internet.  What you place here reflects your image to millions of people across the world through the miracle of electrons flowing through the by-ways of cyberspace.  Of course, that's the case with the other sites I've talked about, but not to the degree of saturation that Facebook expounds.

Facebook continues to amaze with its growth

Self-explanatory facts and figures

When I started this article I honestly was thinking what an unlevel field it was. And yes, it is, but not in Facebook's favor like I was thinking then.  Folks, it's about to be Google Plus's ballgame.  That's just how it's going to be.  Yes, Facebook is cool and all and I have actually come to think of it as fun, whereas I used to think it was a bunch of hookey.  I don't go throwing my detailed information out on these sites and no one should.  Like details of where you'll be and when, and kid's information so you can brag about them and such.  It's too dangerous in the world we're living in.  But I'll leave that for another blog and get back to Facebook.

I added this graph again to stress how Plus is moving in on Facebook's domain

So to get back on point, with Facebook, you're in on their behemoth of a network, with almost as much mystery about their numbers as Google.  One statistic I saw put them at 1 billion users. Really.  Well, maybe.  I honestly couldn't say.  The most seemingly reliable figure I saw places them at around 400 million users globally, a company claim.

Facebook has a simple user interface, and is easy to edit and navigate.  As far as that goes, anyone can log onto their site, build a page in no time, and be off and running.  The service will basically walk you through.  And as with any of these sites, it's up to you to fill it up with what you like.

You have to start somewhere, don't you?

Facebook is about your music and media, and all your interests.  And sharing.

And that brings me to the main point of all social sites.  Sharing.  These sites are communities, and sharing is the center-point of all of them.  The world is now linked indelibly, for better or worse.  And with these sites we all have gained a huge responsibility.  For what content do we want to be known?  For what image and attitude do we wish the world to see as us?

No matter which of these sites is the winner of this unofficial contest to reign supreme as the purveyor of our social avatars (and there are many more than these three, many more), it is ultimately our own personal responsibility to send to the world an image that is worthy of viewing, not some dreamed up, perverted self-image of what is deemed savvy or "cool" for the moment by the media or Hollywood.

The like and dislike symbols have become iconic in today's culture

Google dominates in monthly usage and continues to grow as this territorial was takes shape