Tired of Facebook? Check Out 4 Social Networking Alternatives
It will be difficult to compete with the social networking juggernaut that is Facebook, as everyone from your mom to your pet dog to your kindergarten teacher is jumping on the FB bandwagon in larger and larger numbers. Despite the company’s accusations of privacy infringement, social networking enthusiasts still flock to the site as if it is the only one in existence. The truth is, however, that there are hundreds of similar social networking sites out there that are more secure and dynamic. And many of these alternative sites have tens of millions of users, too. Here are a few you may want to look into.
1. Diaspora
Diaspora is relatively recent social network that has garnered much media attention in the past year. It is only now beginning its alpha stage, so it isn’t quite up and running yet. The neat thing about Diaspora is that it’s completely decentralized and “open-sourced”, meaning there is no central hub, ala Facebook, that stores all your info. You control all your information, and in the spirit of open-source, users can further develop the site and its capabilities on their own. For more details, check out the NYTimes article that ran earlier this year on Diaspora and its founders.
2. OneSocialWeb
Although Diaspora has received more media attention than has OneSocialWeb, OSW is further along developmentally and uses the same basic concept of decentralization combined with open-source. It envisions enabling users to transport their data over various already existing social networks.
3. Orkut
Powered by Google, Orkut began as an invitation-only site but is now open to all users. Some of Orkut’s unique capabilities include being able to categorize friends by level of closeness and being able to see who has viewed your profile. What’s more, Orkut is app-free. Although Orkut has several million users in the United States, it is most popular in Brazil and India.
4. FolkDirect
Launched in June 2010 and now fully up and running, FolkDirect is a breath of fresh air on the social networking scene, as its main focus is user privacy. There are neither advertisers nor third-party apps that can potentially access or mess with your data. FolkDirect also has additional blogging tools so that users can maintain their own blog on the site, for private or public viewing. What’s more, FolkDirect has a question-answer system similar to Yahoo! Answers.
While it is yet to be seen if any of these sites will ever achieve the popularity of the Facebook behemoth, they offer an alternative if you’ve decided you’ve had enough of the Facebook madness. That so many new sites are popping up over the past few years indicates that now we have more choice in terms of social networking than ever before, which is always a good thing.
This guest post is contributed by Alvina Lopez, who writes on the topics of accredited online colleges . She welcomes your comments at her email Id: alvina.lopez @gmail.com.
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Except orkut remaining 3 are new to me…..
But you can also add twitter, Myspace, plurk and ibibo.com
– Sudharsan @ Technoskillonline
Blogging tips recently posted..5 Firefox Addons for Cricket Lovers – Get Updates while you Work
Twitter: mani0993
says:
Nice list
It seems Orkut is loosing control day by day 
Mani Viswanathan recently posted..Bangalore buses goes Online with ICE
Twitter: netchunks
says:
Well Orkut has already lost control in most part of the world…the people hardly use it
I never try these before, just using Facebook, Twitter and Myspace.
Hello Android recently posted..DOCOMO To Launch Galaxy S On October 28
Twitter: netchunks
says:
I too only use Twitter and Facebook…I think these above ones are good alternatives if you are in search of something new besides Facebook and Twitter
I don’t even use Myspace, only Facebook and Twitter to do all my social networking these days.
Justin Germino recently posted..Movie Review- Justice League – Crisis on Two Earths
Twitter: netchunks
says:
Hello Justin,
Well I too do not use any other social networking sites besides Twitter and FB…they are the real thing behind the social media phenomenon but well i think the above sites are good for people who are too much worried about issues surrounding Facebook like privacy and downtimes
shivachettri recently posted..Windows 8 – Just 2 Years Away
Twitter: _robinsonc
says:
Folkdirect appears an instant script. The site breaks in google chrome and doesnt look great.
Nice list by the way.
Robin recently posted..BatchPhoto Discount Coupon – 10 OFF
Twitter: netchunks
says:
Thanks for the comment Robin, Most probably it may be….The developers of Folk Direct are I am sure working on the fix
shivachettri recently posted..Why Should You Recycle Your Mobile Phones
Folkdirect works great for me using Google Chrome – I see on their Facebook Page they were updating stuff last night, so that might account for the error you saw? I broke away from Facebook about a month ago and started on ‘FD’ with just the friends I actually KNOW
Their site works very well and is nice ‘n speedy now. I’ve tempted all my family over there from Facebook finally
Nice little network goin’ on now.
Twitter: swamykant
says:
I have not tried anything apart from Orkut in this list
Swamykant recently posted..How To take a Backup copy of All Your Facebook Data
Twitter: netchunks
says:
Hmm..Same here dude
shivachettri recently posted..Why Should You Recycle Your Mobile Phones
Quite interesting! Sometimes policy of such networking giants becomes unfriendly, so it is very important to know the alternative ways to communicate with friends. Thanks for the information, I have never even heard of these websites, I think, I’ll try some)
Twitter: webmaisterpro
says:
I have never try 3 of those four networks, but I will create accounts as soon as possible. It seems that social marketing is great way to make money online.
Carl recently posted..New trends in the SEO reseller market
Thanks for these social sites! I know about Orkut, but the others are new. I will go and check them out. It may be nice to be involved elsewhere as well.
Rika Susan Siding Samples recently posted..Porcelain Tile VS Ceramic Tile Video – The Kaska Ceramic Tile Difference
Twitter: rohitbatra14
says:
Orkut has grown up old then facebook….other 3 are new one…will try them for sure….thanks for sharing…:)
Rohit | Ipod Touch 4G recently posted..Real Football 2011 Ipod Touch 4G Games Review
Strange..I know only two of them.Orkut, falling down daily.Alexa rank reduced to 122 for orkut.
Harneet Singh recently posted..Protecting Against the Rampant Conficker Worm
I heard Orkut before. However, I’m clueless with the other social networking sites. Undeniably, Facebook is still the most popular social networking site now. No wonder why there are more new users per day joining in FB network.
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IN INdia mostly people are bored of oRKUT
gona try the other soon…great article btw..very helpful !!
Good call with folkdirect.com – cool site, thanks for the suggestion
Agreed
It’s great, I’m a folkdirector now since October, all good
I had not heard of any of these before. I can’t wait to check them out and see what they can offer against facebook. I am getting tired of all the muck in it.
i hate orkut but i havent tried other social sites i will give a try to these sites.
Great article thanks. I think FB will eventually follow the path of Geocities and MySpace in exchange for another SN. I manage social media marketing campaigns for multiple clients yet don’t even have my own FB account.
John Kohl recently posted..Get YouTube Views
Finally some worthwhile alternatives to Facebook! I’ve tried Orkut before and was impressed. The only downfall is that all my friends are still on Facebook so it was quite lonely at the start of using Orkut.
Twitter: swamykant
says:
I am completely a stranger to OneSocialWeb and Folkdirect. Orkut is the best alternative for indians.
Swamykant recently posted..20 Best and Highly Addictive Games On Facebook
Folkdirect.com is worth a go – and if you’re a gamer there are championships, battles etc too. And blogs, live group chat (with just your friends if you want)… and it’s quick.
It will be interesting to look at these sites too. Hey, I might find in here some friends from long ago which I never did find in Facebook. Thanks for sharing!
Claire recently posted..HP Pavilion dv7-4272us Best Deals Sale Price
Twitter: Jajodia_Saket
says:
Seems like I have heard this Orkut word somewhere… :p
Just kidding I just open my Orkut a/c to post the blog post links other wise I don’t touch Orkut…
Saket Jajodia recently posted..“A Day In The Life Of India” – Campaign By Times Of India TOI
Finally some worthwhile alternatives to Facebook! I’ve tried Orkut before and was impressed. The only downfall is that all my friends are still on Facebook so it was quite lonely at the start of using Orkut.
Except orkut remaining 3 are new to me…..
But you can also add twitter, Myspace, plurk and ibibo.com
Twitter: _robinsonc
says:
Being a blogger Facebook, Google+, Orkut, and iBibo are nice place to get traffic.
Robin recently posted..Disable Facebook Email Notifications using Email Frequency
Facebook is indeed gaining popularity. But I wonder the new facebook updates is quite bugging.
I see most people are wanting to return to the old facebook interface. It bugs people having to cope with the new updates. Unless FaceBook change this or make a way to let the people have the best experience like before, I guess people would dwell on other social media sites. People are now eager to try out new ones. Google + is one targeted as people are wanting to get the most convenient way to interact.
I’m late finding this. Today the infamous “timeline” rolled out on my Facebook page. It would be nice to give people choices over some of these major changes, the privacy (dig dig dig, and you still are not sure).
I’ve just had it. They care nothing about the users (we are just the cash in the cow), finding information on how things even work takes a college degree it seems.
Done. I’m looking for alternatives. I will take everything off but I will unfortunately have to keep the account for family issues unless they decide to move. I don’t see that happening with over 30 people any time soon.
Thank you so much for your information.
This is a great article! Have you guys checked out http://www.Formvote.com ? It’s a newer network, it’s great!