Silly Rabbit, MySpace and Social Networking Are for Kids - NOT!

"Social networking."  Know what it is?  No?  How about "MySpace"?  If you know the latter, then you're familiar with the principles of the former.  Social networking has been around forever (it's not what you know, it's who you know!), but it's taking on a whole new dimension because of the Internet.  Get on MySpace.com, create your account, post your pictures, blog your thoughts, accept your friends, and boom!  Off you go into a brave new world, where you can be BFF (Best Friends Forever) with people you've never met in person!

Knowing that the majority of users on MySpace are teen- and twenty-somethings, I'm a little uncomfortable posting information for viewing by people who are younger than my children.  But no worries.  Other companies have seen the light and are making available their own inroads into the social networking universe, with sites geared specifically by age or preferences.

For example, if you want to share photos and videos with your family and friends, but don't want everybody else on the Internet to see them, check out Multiply or Flickr.  These sites let you upload your pictures and videos, organize them, limit who gets access to them, and get creative by making slide shows.

Maybe you're a baby boomer who enjoys life "on the flip side of 50".  Check out Eons, created by Monster.com founder Jeff Taylor.  Or if you're too young to qualify (either chronologically, mentally, or emotionally), check out TeeBeeDee, where life is To Be Determined (cute, huh?).  It's for the 40+ crowd.  Both sites deal with issues specific to their age groups.

If these groups seem too nebulous for your tastes, go to a site that lets you narrow your scope.  Ning hosts hundreds of social networks that focus on specific themes.  You might find your place in a group of 30- and 40-somethings that are divorced, remarried, and have stepchildren issues.  Perhaps you'll find a fit with that group of off-Broadway afficionados and performers.  If not, create your own criteria and start your own group.  Who knows how many poetry-writing entomologists you might find out there?

Which site is best for you?  It depends on what you want to accomplish.  If your goal is to meet new people with interests similar to yours, then find a site that offers what you want and join up.  However, if you want a place to hang with your friends on-line and they're all on FaceBook or MySpace, well, you might have to swallow your pride and accept the fact that you're one of the older users on the site.  Either way, make sure that your Internet socializing doesn't replace that face-to-face contact we all need.