How to build Facebook without using Facebook at effective web ministry notes

How to build Facebook without using Facebook

filed under Community, Ideas, Web 2.0 by rob on 16Aug07 @ 1:47 pm EST

Facebook is fun. It’s great for connecting with people. It’s great for sharing links, videos, notes, and updates with your friends.

Facebook is also a walled garden; that is you need to join (or get inside the walls) before you can enjoy all the things it offers. I’ve also referred to it as an “private open community” (private to who you want out, open to those you want in).

One advantage to using a site like Facebook is that all sorts of goodies are provided for you when you sign up. Just one log-in and you can post notes, upload photos, email, and comment on friend’s pages.

But what if you’re like me and you don’t necessarily want to have a one-stop shop like that? Why would anyone want to manage all those pieces by themselves when Facebook does it all for you?

Because I can have more flexibility with each tool / web application / web 2.0 site.

So today I was staring at my Facebook account and started thinking about the different pieces that they put together for me. I took a screenshot of both the homepage and my profile page and added notes to what sites or activities you could do on your own to have the same, or closely related, functionality. What I didn’t mention is one place to tie it all together. I use the free google pages site. I call it my “personal portal” that has links to the main things I keep up.

So click on the thumbnails below to see what I’m talking about. Would love to read your comments!

5 Responses to “How to build Facebook without using Facebook”

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1 Blake Schwendiman on Aug 16th, 2007 said:

I think this is a very good idea. I running into similar types of questions with all of my online “homes”. Good call!
2 Jerry on Aug 16th, 2007 said:

you’re Google Pages site is very much like a Squidoo lens. Why did you choose Google over Squidoo?
3 rob on Aug 16th, 2007 said:

Google Pages is much cleaner. It was a blank slate to work with. Squidoo has stuff all over it last I looked at it. And I didn’t like it.
4 sheldon on Aug 17th, 2007 said:

Good job in getting the majority of the features but I think there is one major thing missing.

Connecting.

Sure, I could probably find you if I searched for you on Google but I think out of the people on my friends list, I searched for maybe 1 or 2. The majority were found by looking at the friends lists of my other friends.
5 rob on Aug 17th, 2007 said:

Good point, Sheldon. It does make it easier when they are all in one place. If all your friends are in the walled garden and there’s a system to find them, it’s nice.

Outside the garden there are ways to search for friends, but it is more difficult. I’ve found them using Google some, but mostly I found all my friends in the pre-Facebook time by going to one friend’s blog and looking at their blogroll. Then I’d click around and around and find people. Each one I found I’d put into Google Reader.

And honestly, that’s how I find most friends in Facebook — I don’t search, I click around other people’s friends to see who I know.

So yes, Facebook makes it easier to connect with those in the garden. And it’s a little tougher to do it outside the garden, but then again, all of these tools I’m suggesting will all be a little tougher to do.