Slashdot Mirror
Do You Really Want to Meet People on the Web?
Wolfspelz writes "Do you want to meet people on Web pages? The Jabber Virtual Presence project makes people aware of each other on the Web. Just like you are aware of other people in the real world anywhere you go, the virtual presence makes you aware of others on the same virtual locations. The project uses Jabber/XMPP as the transport protocol for virtual presence. Jabber conference components serve as presence servers. The code is GPL/LGPL. The Virtual Presence Protocol extensions are open and documented. The virtual presence system including the LLuna2 client is designed to protect the privacy and prohibit any indecent use, be it commercial use, advertising, or profiling. But: do you want to meet people on the Web at all?"
I don't want to meet people who need the web to meet people.
"Would you, could you, with a goat?" Dr Seuss
...for an internal project with the Jabber4R wrapper.
Jabber ended up being too slow, though, so we built a more specialized message router in C++ - and open sourced it - to replace it.
The Army reading list
That's why I'm on the internet to begin with... so I DON'T have to interact with other people. (Well, except for slashdot.)
Some cats swing, and others don't. Don't you be the kind that won't.
Being aware of other people in real life is what makes me nervous and bashful. It's a Sartrean thing.
And of course, their #1 "topsite" is porn. Like we didn't know what it would be used for.
No, I don't think I'm interested in listening to a bunch of space-hogging attention-whoring avatars while I surf, thanks.
For geek dads: Contraction Timer
that the tens of thousands of geeks out there can compete to meet with the one of the 2 geek girls in the world so the possibility of the uber geek child can become a reality.
Do not try to read the dupe, thats impossible. Instead, only try to realize the truth
What truth?
There is no dupe
You like Woman being fisted by donkeys? I like women being fisted by donkeys! Funny we should meet here. ... yeah i can see where this will lead ...
Mom?!? Dad?!?! Little Timmy!?! What are you doing on donkeypunch.com!?!?
-Malakai
A Dragon Lives in my Garage
I'd say that the more opportunity to meet interesting people in this world, the better, and this just improves the odds of randomly meeting people your probably wouldn't otherwise have to opportunity to meet.
As long as it doesn't supplant actual real world interaction with people as a primary social outlet, that is..
All of these services are just an excuse to gather a huge number of e-mail addresses and connections between people, and then to use that network to market stuff. If there were a service that banned marketing and advertising messages, maybe it would be worth doing. As it is, it almost acts like the "in-crowd", where if you buy what they want, magically you're the most popular. However, so what if people want to meet people online? How is that worse than in an establishment serving alcohol, where everyone's not themselves anyhow?
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If it was on the same level as Yahoo Messenger and AIM. There are a lot of different types of people that would be on there then. It would be a little different.
My guess is that it is mostly nerds using it now. I work with thousands of nerds. Do I really need to meet any more near me?
Evolution or ID?
While definately not the most obvious use of this software, it could prove interesting on sites such as /., cnn, salon etc. to talk live to others about an article. Posting comments is fine, but it's not live, and it could be days before anyone responds.
It's certainly not something you'd leave running all the time.
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NSFWAlthough I haven't downloaded this yet, it sounds like a fun social networking concept to me. Kind of a hybrid of the late Third Voice and the newer StumbleUpon (which I really love)
Would much rather ask someone looking at the same website as me if they have seen what I'm looking for, instead of a site map.
And no.. I dont go walking around the grocery store asking strangers where the broccoli is..
Sounds like what Odigo started out as about 5 or 6 years ago. They provided you with a display so you could see who else was at the web site you were visiting, then you could IM them if you wanted. There was more, like the ability to search for people, etc.
However, the lluna interface looks more interesting.
. 62,400 repetitions make one truth -- Brave New World, Aldous Huxley
I've met people socially who I met online, some were freaks and some were decent well adjusted people. It's the same as meeting people in the real world.
I'll admit that I have a bit of social anxiety in person and it's easier for me to start a conversation with a total stranger online and to subsequently dip out on the conversation if I don't like the tone or direction :).
Reviews with a twist! http://www.sardonicbastard.com
i would go down the pub/club/bar/gym/golf/beach/pool
i have no desire to speak to hotSexyGal14 who is really a fat pasty guy from texas with a hygiene problem and reads comics thanks
A program called virtual places allowed you to surf the web and meet people 9 years ago.
And then AOL bought it and killed it.
cat sig >
You can now make friends and be aware of people on the web!
....checks google....
So I now can order food, beer, Geek toys, clothes, make friends, work and interact - all without leaving my home.
Now if I could just be able to order sex, I can brickup my front door....
Just found out that all my needs are now catered for.....
Bricks are being delivered monday!
:^]
Jaj
... of reading Slashdot for the last 6 years, I would have to say, "Absolutely not."
IRL I'm sitting here at my keyboard typing this. The internet is no magical Alter Ego machine. I've met people from the internet, it's no different from meeting people in 'real life'. Sometimes it's good, sometimes it's bad.
Why not ask the question: Do you want to see anyone in REAL LIFE at all?
*DrugCheese rants*
"But: do you want to meet people on the Web at all?"
Well, given that I met someone on match.com more than two years ago and that we're getting married in August, I'd say there's nothing wrong with meeting people on the web.
If it weren't for the web, I wouldn't have met my font-design mentor, Chank, despite the fact that we live in the same city. Some of my best friends on the planet, I've met through IRC and Livejournal
That said, I still don't want to have a sitatuation as describe in the article of being aware of people that are surfing the same sites I am. Especially when I'm surfing the pr0n. I mean, yeesh...talk about TMI.
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but not through some random chat-roomish sort of way. I operate some discussion boards and have met some really nice people with whom I have something in common.
I was introduced to my wife through an e-mail from a mutual friend who I would not have know without the Internet. The Internet is a perfectly valid way to meet people, but not in a singles bar sort of way.
"Do the Right Thing. It will gratify some people and astound the rest." - Mark Twain
"Do the Right Thing. It will gratify some people and astound the rest." - Mark Twain
I can see how this will work: Jabber: You are visiting goatse.cx, there are 1 other visitors. Visitor: Don't you just love looking at this guy. You: Wait... is that you, Mom?
So I went to this site and was greeted by a hundred thousand avatars who had just come from Slashdot.
It was horrible
What a rotten party, have we run out of beer or something?
Some years ago ICQ (mirabilis) tried to launch something similar: a chat integrated with browser where you meet the people on the same page, but without the avatars. I don't know where it has gone.
Having met several people in person that I first met through e-mail or chat (fellow programmers and co-workers from remote locations), I've noticed several interesting dynamics from virtual communications relative to those of "real life." Some of these are obvious, such as judging people by how well they express their ideas and opinions in words (instead of by their appearance or personal hygiene).
Others are more subtle, and are apparent only over time, such as the speed with which someone responds. Do they think quickly, but type slowly? Do they fly off the handle and just post the first thing that comes to mind, or do they carefully consider every response?
In most cases, I have found that getting to know someone online, over time, gives you a better perspective on how that person sees themselves. If they have low self-esteem, that will come across (eventually). If they're confident and authoritative, that will show (again, over time). If they're egotistical and full of themselves, they'll have microsoft.com in their e-mail address.
However, you *can* get to know someone really well on one level (or in a given context), and completely miss another. For instance, I used to manage several mailing lists about Borland Delphi. One of the moderators for the list, named Jo, was moving from one part of South Africa to another, and was offline for a couple of weeks. I had known Jo for years as a serious gearhead when it came to Delphi Database programming. After I asked one of the other moderators about Jo by saying, "Where is he moving?", I discovered that Jo was, in fact, a woman.
At that point, Jo's signature line took on new meaning (and I got a much-needed lesson in gender stereotyping): "I am a programmer - I don't do relationships."
Tim
This would fall into the "News for Nerds" as opposed to the "Stuff that matters" category.
Read any good sonnets lately?
If people can send messages, there will be advertising. And believe me, a few months of no earnings compared with the ones that DO have commercial use will have them thinking about that vitamuscle or what have you as a sponsored "special friend".
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Despite my rants elsewhere about the unreality of the "real world" concept, I'd have to say no. I do not have any unfulfilled desire to meet people on the 'net (or anywhere else). I meet people all the time, netwise and otherwise, and I find this sufficient.
Slashdot just put up the news. People are downloading and starting LLuna. Our operational server is hoplessly overloaded, because most users use our internal backup server as their primary jabber server.
If you try out LLuna then please do NOT use the quick start wizard. Please use other jabber servers to log in to LLuna to distribute the load.
'For we walk by faith, not by sight.' II Corinthians 5:7
I always see the jokes about the futility of meeting girls online. Maybe this misperception that girls are not online is part of the problem! I know quite a few "hot" girls and they all use IM, email, and mobile phone text messaging EXTENSIVELY. Like way more than any geek I know.
But: do you want to meet people on the Web at all?
I didn't think I would, but yes. When I moved to London, I didn't know anyone in the city and had to bootstrap myself a new social network. Graduate school helped, but after a while I wanted more than one group of friends so I turned to Orkut. I've been to a bunch of meetings and generally my experiences have been positive.
For those interested, I wrote about my first orkut meetup on my blog here.
When you meet someone face to face, there is much more polite and civil (hopefully) openings.
It is more genuine.
The person in an internet chatroom could be
a paedophile for all I know. I can't use my intuition to determine this because there IS no presence. This is just another fad that would waist my time.
I don't believe in on-line presence.
If its not someone I already know in person, I would rather talk to AI online - honestly!
Anyone have success using the net to meet people who are geographically local? I moved recently to the remote outskirts of a metro area, and have been trying to use the net as one of the ways to meet people who might have friendship potential. I've looked at IRC, but had no luck finding channels that aggregate people by locale. I don't want to post on a match-making service, as I'm not after a relationship. Any stories of success out there?
- First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then ???, then profit.
Too bad Odigo has had this feature for a few years now. They call it "radar" or something like that, and it actually got annoying when people messaged you that were on the same website.
Because I have speech and hearing impediments so it is hard for me to socialize in person. I used to socialize on chat BBS' before Internet was hot. Now, I use IMs, e-mails, etc. to socialize. Also, it keeps my physical appearance invisible to new people that don't know me.
Ant(Dude) @ Quality Foraged Links (AQFL.net) & The Ant Farm (antfarm.ma.cx / antfarm.home.dhs.org).
Well, as a guy, I automated part of the process of being rejected by women.
- Neil Wehneman
My legal education, in nifty podcast format
As I understand it, this is like being able to turn to a shopper on the same isle as you in a retail store and ask what they think of product XYZ, or turning to the person behind you at a rock concert and saying "Man can Neal Peart play those drums!"
/. for that?).
I can see this being helpful, but at the same time, I would think the desired web default would be to ignore the person who doesn't know what it is they are looking for (isn't Google for that?) or wants to talk about the video stream I am trying to enjoy (isn't IRC for that?).
Basically I think it is a cool application of technology, but if people want to talkabout a website, they already can (isn't
I only came here to do two things; kick some ass, and drink some beer...looks like we're almost out of beer.
We've been together for just over eight years, married for almost 6, and we have a 4-month-old daughter.
;)
So, can you and should you meet people online? Hell yes!
Um, if they want your credit card right away, they're not just being inquisitive.
---
ECHELON is a government program to find words like bomb, jihad, plutonium, assassinate, and anarchy.
When I was in high school, used IRC. A lot.
The people I met were great. we formed close friendships, and met occasionally in real life. Also, it was fun being able to tell people that of my friends, more than half of them were a complete mystery to me in all of the normal ways that people identify with others. I didn't know their names, their gender, their skin colour, where they lived, what they did for a living, how old they were, what they looked like, etc. I just knew what we talked about. And it was good.
Then some of my friends started using ICQ. I could handle that, it was fun having quick text messages outside of IRC, or with the people that couldn't handle the concept of online chat (it really is a skill). It wasn't bad.
Then people switched to MSN. I don't know why. I still contend that there is no advantage over icq, and that people should still be using that. But ah well. Anyhow, the point is that because of the way that msn works, I can't handle online chat anymore. The interaction process with other people is overwhelming. Everything flashes, and beeps, and dings, and jumps up out of the bottom of my screen. It's like I'm being attacked from 7 different directions everytime I log on. Not to mention, most people think I'm a dick and lose interest if I haven't responded to them wihtin 2 seconds.
Now, I use my computer to browse blogs (and slashdot and fark, whish loosely fit into that description) and do my homework.
It used to be a tool for interaction, now interacting sucks balls.
ah well, what are you going to do?
For people like me who are socially retarded, the internet is a wonderful place to meet people. I've been meeting people from the net for the past 5 or 6 years, and I haven't had a single bad experience. It was exciting to finally meet and hang out with people who shared the same interests as me. Face it, when you're a total computer nerd with elitest tastes in music, people who share those interests are pretty few and far between. What better way to meet people with those interests than, say, a forum for one of your favorite bands?
So far, thanks to the internet, I've met a number of amazing people. I met my first somewhat girlfriend over the net, I met a band who I ended up joining and moving out to PA to be a part of (then stole the drummer's girlfriend and had my first true love for 2 1/2 years). As recent as this week, I met a girl who I'll be travelling from my home state of MI to IN to go to a concert with.
You do get a good sense of what people are like by chatting online. You say things without inhibition. There aren't any social hangups. You don't have to worry about ackward silence. You can bail out at any time. You can say how you really feel without stuttering or blushing.
It could be interseting to meet people who are all, say, hanging out at a site for a given game or something along those lines. Or who are hanging out at a specific message board.
But i also don't see any real serious potential for this to "change" anything. Take for example users of a given product like a printer. How many people "hang out" at the printer's website? How many people just browse around for hours at adobe's site, for example?
The biggest advantage this brings is that it can tighten community based web sites a little bit, but that's about it, i would think, save in relatively rare cases like when a product's site has a very active forumn.
"Nothing excites jaded grandmasters like a Theoretical Novelty" - Dominic Lawson