Thoughts About the World Wide Web

I don't know if it's because of this blog or ODE or what, but lately I've been thinking a lot about online social networking sites. (Not only dating websites but others like Facebook and MySpace.) I can't help but wonder if these sites are really improving our communication with each other, or turning us all into social morons.

I'm a writer, so I love that I have so many opportunities to communicate with people via writing. Whether I'm texting, emailing, instant messaging (even though that still feels unnatural to me) or leaving a comment on someone's Facebook page... it has opened up a whole new vein of creativity in me, and it's fun!

However, I sometimes have to check myself. Is what I'm saying to these people through typed words the same thing I would say to them in person? Probably not. Is electronic communication different than our face-to-face communication would be? Without a doubt, yes. And that's fine, unless it becomes our primary form of communication.

When it comes to establishing interest in the opposite sex, the opportunities for online and mobile communication are endless. Whenever I see the little red light on my Blackberry flashing, I get a rush of excitement, wondering who was thinking of me enough to send me a message, and if that someone is someone worth getting excited about. But the problem with these little mini rushes is that I'm often disappointed. I hate discovering that the red light signified nothing other than a junk email, or a Twitter text from someone I barely know.

When I do get a message from a guy who I like, it's like opening a present. My heart pounds with every flirty word and winking emoticon. And in my opinion, that's the best part about electronic communication: The flirting. E-flirting, I like to call it. We can flirt in ways the human race has never flirted before. And that's exhilarating. But it might also be holding us back a bit.

I remember a few years ago, I liked a guy who lived kind of far away from me. We had met once at a mutual friend's house and then emailed back and forth almost every day for about a month until we saw each other in person. Our emails were fun, funny, and uber creative. We started this thing where, in every email, we had to tell each other something new about ourselves. And of course, I couldn't say something lame like, "I like chocolate." (Even though I do. Very much. Just sayin'.) It had to be more clever than that, like "I once stepped on a cat's tail in the middle of Vatican City." This guy probably thought I was the coolest, most unique chick ever. And I felt the same way about him. Except for the "chick" part.

But when we finally got together in person, the attraction quickly fizzled. Turns out we weren't nearly as cool and clever in person as we were on each other's computer screens.

And then there's the problem with revealing too much about yourself right from the get-go, especially on sites like Facebook and MySpace. Some of the things that people used to have to learn about you in a gradual process, they can now find out simply by clicking on the "Info" button on your Facebook page. In a way, this can bring you closer to a person in a shorter amount of time—there are fewer layers to unpeel—but it can also turn them away before they even get the chance to know the real you.

And don't even get me started on the jealousy (whether justified or not) that can result because of these social networking sites. I can't even imagine being an insecure teenager during this decade. I'm sure there are young girls everywhere losing their minds—even as I write—at the sighting of another girl's comment on her boyfriend's profile. The online world is like one big soap opera.

All that being said, I'm a media junkie, so I actually am an advocate for online and mobile communication. I just think it's important to be extra vigilant about what you put out there, and to not lose your sense of self.

What are your thoughts on the new age of communication? Are you for it or against it?