Spring Break
Make Friends with the Click of a Mouse
The Facebook craze has finally hit Rollins. So get online and "poke" your friends!
Vanessa Eves
Issue date: 2/4/05 Section: Entertainment
Are you looking for a hot date this weekend? Maybe you are trying to set up a study group for that rigorous Chemistry course? Are you missing your high school friends that you have lost touch with? What if I told you that by the touch of a mouse and the click of a website that your social problems at college can be solved in minutes? For those of you that are clueless to where I am getting at, I am talking about the newest computer craze known as www.thefacebook.com.
You are probably thinking I am one of those computer geeks trying to enter you into a world of useless online dating and internet chatting. TheFacebook, however, is a virtual directory that lets college students seek out peers with similar majors, interests, political views, along with other personal information to be shared with their campus other students across the nation.
Last February, Harvard student, Mark Zuckerberg launched the online directory to his college campus. Zuckerberg explained to Current magazine, "The idea for the website was motivated by a social need at Harvard to be able to identify people in other residential houses-Harvard is a fairly unfriendly place. While each residential house listed directories of their residents, I wanted one online directory where all students could be listed."
Now, TheFacebook has spread to hundreds of colleges and universities and has altered the social culture of college. Our own Rollins College was recently added to this online craze. I will admit that even I am currently an active member of this virtual community.
On TheFacebook, students are able to decide who can read their information for safety reasons and can personally select who they want to add to their friend list. You can choose friends you know at Rollins, scope out those you want to get to know better, and even connect with students from other schools. As a transfer student and a student that has a twenty-five minute commute to the campus every day, I feel this online directory is a great way to feel more connected.
You are probably thinking I am one of those computer geeks trying to enter you into a world of useless online dating and internet chatting. TheFacebook, however, is a virtual directory that lets college students seek out peers with similar majors, interests, political views, along with other personal information to be shared with their campus other students across the nation.
Last February, Harvard student, Mark Zuckerberg launched the online directory to his college campus. Zuckerberg explained to Current magazine, "The idea for the website was motivated by a social need at Harvard to be able to identify people in other residential houses-Harvard is a fairly unfriendly place. While each residential house listed directories of their residents, I wanted one online directory where all students could be listed."
Now, TheFacebook has spread to hundreds of colleges and universities and has altered the social culture of college. Our own Rollins College was recently added to this online craze. I will admit that even I am currently an active member of this virtual community.
On TheFacebook, students are able to decide who can read their information for safety reasons and can personally select who they want to add to their friend list. You can choose friends you know at Rollins, scope out those you want to get to know better, and even connect with students from other schools. As a transfer student and a student that has a twenty-five minute commute to the campus every day, I feel this online directory is a great way to feel more connected.