Droopy eyes, stiff fingers and overworked wrists. Is Twitter the reason for all of this? A recent article posted in Business Insider speaks volumes about how Twitter is taking away the freedom of the mind and is shackling the time and space of those on it. People are actually reflecting on the dampening feeling that Twitter can give, once you are logged-on to it 24/7 on your laptop or mobile. [...]

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How many friends do you have on your Facebook account? How many followers do you have on Twitter? Perception plays an important role when you go through a person’s profile on either of these social networking websites. A random stroll through somebody’s profile would automatically shift your attention towards his/her friends list. You quickly form an opinion about the person judging by the number of friends the individual has. You start ranking the person on the social media popularity or influential scale and make up your mind about being a friend or a follower of the same person. This is what social media has done to us.

Getting the twitter handle of that cute one standing with a drink in her hand in the bar becomes a matter of life and death. Did someone mention a cell-phone number? Amazing how technology becomes redundant, even though mobile phones are shaping the way people will communicate in the future. But for the time being it is the Social networking space which has completely dominated the Gen Y and Gen Z minds. From the looks of things, it has become pretty obvious that people spend a hefty proportion of their daily time doing social networking, either on their laptops or through their cell phones. This makes it even more important, especially in the Dating circle, to know about the whereabouts of a person on these social networking websites (Will I get her Twitter handle?). It kind of makes it easier to get to know the person, without actually having to approach them directly.

See it as a sign of hesitancy or smartness, but people nowadays prefer to know a person a lot better by interacting with them on Facebook or Twitter, just to get to make sure if he/she is worth the time spent on planning a meet and actually meeting them. Gone are the days when the awkward paper notes and online chat messages were exchanged, just to make that elusive first contact. Guys have become more coy in the way they approach girls, and we all know how choosy girls can be when it comes to hanging out with guys and then even more circumspect in posting the pictures of the meeting on Facebook. Social reputation you see!

The way conversations are happening between friends and colleagues alike too has changed. Facebook and Twitter seem to have become the best ice-breakers and even the topics of regular conversation. I may dare call it as a meaningful conversation, but that is how things are shaping up to be in the modern world. Having a great Facebook profile and posting funny, witty or smart Tweets can surely make or mar a person’s reputation in the real world. Certainly a case of deadly importance, unless you don’t want to get labeled as a social outcast.

Therefore the first thing to do while creating a profile on Facebook would be to deck it up with jaw-dropping information – You ultra-lengthy Amazon Books list, the uber cool pics of your last trip to Leh and Ladakh, that awesome dance party you threw on your roof-top or just your self-shot dressed up (down) pics in front of the bathroom mirror.

It’s all good until it keeps the comments coming and lets the people know that you are indeed, socially alive and kicking.

Talks of Facebook and its issues with privacy have kept the social media world abuzz for a long time. The social networking website has grown to such huge proportions that for it to have problems with providing security to its users and their personal information, is always going to be a reason for concern. This isn’t surprising given that Facebook too is built on a technological platform known to an individual and it is but natural that another individual with a greater knowledge would be able to breach the firewalls of the website. Almost every day, one gets to hear news about people quitting Facebook over security issues or the profile information of people being leaked onto other sites all over the world. [...]