| I liken online social experience to that of looking a window. A window has two main viewing states. You can either look 'at' a window, or you can look 'through' a window. huh? What the hell does this have to do with social networking? Social networking is not the beginning of social. Experience is the beginning of social, social is just a way to share and solicit experiences. So with this in mind, what are the different types of 'experience' going on in the window analogy. Looking "through" the window is being in the moment, looking through the glass and seeing the world without the frame, taking experiences as they come and letting them exist inside of you as memories, allowing them to shape you and then letting that change in character effect others. Through is just living and being. Looking "at" the window is seeing the glass, seeing the frame and putting all experience through a context. The context here is the social capital or the commodification of that experience for in order to enhance perception of self. 'At' is translating all experience into trade-able emotional commodity. If you live in the 'at' state you live in a "what used to need to be seen, now needs to be shared to be believed." Experiences become worthless unless A) you can prove that they happened, B) that you can show it to someone. Just my thoughts |