4 ms·

There were a half a dozen or more "previous Facebook." MySpace, Friendster, LiveJournal, DeadJournal, etc. There were so many during the MySpace era that I've

There were a half a dozen or more "previous Facebook." MySpace, Friendster, LiveJournal, DeadJournal, etc. There were so many during the MySpace era that I've forgotten most and barely recall the bigger ones. There will be a replacement but hopefully it will look different.

danaris 4y ago
Hah, should've known I could count on HN to be super pedantic about offhand statements like that... MySpace was founded in 2003, Facebook in 2004. Yes, there was a brief period where MySpace was more "the place to be" than Facebook, but that was essentially a flash in the pan, given that Facebook has held that crown now for so many people for over a decade. To expand a bit on what I said in the GP post: In 2002-4, the early social networks all started to come online. Facebook was the only one of those to survive with any relevance. It has now existed for 18 years, and its relevance among young people is definitely on the wane. There was nothing like it before that time: Usenet, forums, AOL chatrooms, and BBSes didn't give anywhere near the same kind of connection or experience that Facebook circa 2008 did. There is no inherent reason that there must be something like it afterward. TikTok isn't really comparable to Facebook; it doesn't lend itself to the same kind of communication or connection. Twitter (which may now be dying) and its decentralized imitator Mastodon may come closest, but they don't encourage the kind of long-form posts that Facebook does, nor do they have the same ability to build out your IRL social network in the digital space that was the hallmark of early Facebook. There may, at some point, be some new company, service, or protocol that can to some meaningful extent replicate the experience of Facebook in its heyday; or that can, at least, command the attention and interest of as many people...but there's no guarantee that that will be the case, and everyone looking for X, Y, or Z to be "the next Facebook" are begging the question by assuming that there will be.
- igetspam 4y ago
  I'm not being pedantic, I'm disagreeing with you. Friendster (2002) was wildly popular. LiveJournal (1999) was huge. The things you list (Usenet, BBSes, etc) we're the precursors but they were not social media where LiveJournal was (to an extent) and Friendster is arguably the original. There was something before Facebook and MySpace and there will be something after. Facebook is neither unique enough nor important enough to hold in this level of esteem. It is and always has been derivative.

danaris 4y ago

Hah, should've known I could count on HN to be super pedantic about offhand statements like that... MySpace was founded in 2003, Facebook in 2004. Yes, there was a brief period where MySpace was more "the place to be" than Facebook, but that was essentially a flash in the pan, given that Facebook has held that crown now for so many people for over a decade. To expand a bit on what I said in the GP post: In 2002-4, the early social networks all started to come online. Facebook was the only one of those to survive with any relevance. It has now existed for 18 years, and its relevance among young people is definitely on the wane. There was nothing like it before that time: Usenet, forums, AOL chatrooms, and BBSes didn't give anywhere near the same kind of connection or experience that Facebook circa 2008 did. There is no inherent reason that there must be something like it afterward. TikTok isn't really comparable to Facebook; it doesn't lend itself to the same kind of communication or connection. Twitter (which may now be dying) and its decentralized imitator Mastodon may come closest, but they don't encourage the kind of long-form posts that Facebook does, nor do they have the same ability to build out your IRL social network in the digital space that was the hallmark of early Facebook. There may, at some point, be some new company, service, or protocol that can to some meaningful extent replicate the experience of Facebook in its heyday; or that can, at least, command the attention and interest of as many people...but there's no guarantee that that will be the case, and everyone looking for X, Y, or Z to be "the next Facebook" are begging the question by assuming that there will be.

igetspam 4y ago
I'm not being pedantic, I'm disagreeing with you. Friendster (2002) was wildly popular. LiveJournal (1999) was huge. The things you list (Usenet, BBSes, etc) we're the precursors but they were not social media where LiveJournal was (to an extent) and Friendster is arguably the original. There was something before Facebook and MySpace and there will be something after. Facebook is neither unique enough nor important enough to hold in this level of esteem. It is and always has been derivative.