Today's technology-driven society has most likely exposed you to social networking sites (SNS). As a refresher, these new media technologies creatively distinguish themselves as a platform that allows users from all over the world to collaborate and communicate with each other; effectively, SNS integrate such information technology in order to converge people from all over the world and eliminate the global hinderance of time and space, as it encourages the fostering of a virtual community.

For lack of a better word, Facebook is the 'face' of social networking sites. Known to be the giant in its respective field, Facebook has millions upon millions of users from all around the globe. Whether you're there for messaging friends, challenging others in games like Tetris or (annoyingly) requesting assistance in FarmVille, wishing a distant relative happy birthday on their 'wall', or just to post a status about what's on your mind for your acquaintances to see, Facebook seemingly has it down pat. Despite the massive amount of users, recently (perhaps just in my neck of the woods) Facebook has acquired a reputation of being for "older people" as younger crowds are steering away to avoid that friend request from their parents who they suspect will be "all up in their business".

Unlike Facebook which typically requires your full name or the name of your organization, Twitter is making rounds with their 'handles'. As a countermeasure to the plentiful amounts of aliases, individuals who have some type of known presence or following can be viewed with a checkmark next to their handle, indicating that they've been verified. Personally, I find Twitter to be much more engaging as you constantly have access to current trends and news that are happening simultaneously around the world--not to mention, its character limit is creative in its method to keep things brief and to-the-point. Furthermore, its renowned feature of using hashtags is a great way to meet, say, like-minded individuals who are just as eager to engage in a conversation about whatever is specified in the said hashtag.

Instagram is also one of the more popular SNS that primarily focuses on posting photos about your day paired with some witty caption that friends or followers can double-tap to 'like'. Typically, I'd say Instagram is more of a personal blog of photos, but its additional features of being able to create a "business profile" and their Instagram stories add a whole new aspect to its users' communication. Similar to Twitter, Instagram is a platform that leaves a good impression with me because I'm much more of a visual type of person so capitalizing on their innovation of brief snapshots with punny captions is more so up my alley.

Finally, Snapchat is a social networking site that I find to be within the same vein as Instagram. However, instead of photos that stay captured on your feed, Snapchat is recognized for its short video stories that have an expiration date--once that's reached, it's gone forever (unless a viewer has screenshotted your story, which ties back into information technology and social responsibility). Just like Facebook, Snapchat is something that I have used, then eventually deleted (app wise) due to a personal engagement and intrigue.

All in all, it is undeniable that these SNS have revolutionized the way we as humans are able to stay up-to-date and interconnected with one another, regardless of your opinions on each platform.