1 : WEB PAGES/ANALYSIS One website I visit frequently is www.facebook.com. It is a database of students from across the nation, and more specifically for my purposes, Georgia Tech. Students can connect with each other online. It is very much a cross between something like the GA Tech Student Center (a social gathering place) and a yearbook, like the Blueprint. It has elements of a social place like the student center because students can meet other students and get basic facts about them, things you could normally get in a conversation: name, major, year, and perhaps a few other interests. The Facebook also holds elements that you wouldn’t normally pick up in a conversation: organizations, more in-depth interests and such, things you would probably get from picking up and looking through a yearbook. Another website I visit frequently is www.fictionpress.com. It is a database of amateur writers wanting to show and get feedback on their writings. The site can be compared to the likes of a library or open mic night because of its selection and accessibility. Libraries don’t just house work from great authors but also from others who may be less known so patrons can get a broader picture. Fictionpress is very much like taking a book off a library shelf and finding a nice, quite, alone spot in a library to sit down and read. It is also similar to an open mic night in that it provides a good level and opportunity for reader input for amateur authors. These two sites compare in that a viewer has to ‘flip’ through or search the information they have to find what you want. Both sites are database oriented so that you have to browse through the literature or click around on interests to find what you are looking for. The content that you want isn’t going to be right where you open the site usually. They also compare in that they don’t really have instant person to person interaction. Not like a social gathering or an open mic night where you can get feedback and information right away, both websites tend to lag a bit in the person to person interaction. It may take a day or two for someone to log onto Facebook to give you a reply and a week for someone to critique your work on Fictionpress. While I believe the Fictionpress approach does work, Facebook is a bit more successful. The site provides more ability to interact while Fictionpress only provides a story posting / user feedback interaction. Facebook stays a bit more true to the idea of social interaction allowing for many ways for users to interact and exchange much like a social gathering. Ficitonpress is kind of like an open mic night or library but falls slightly short in the person to person interaction.