Myspace Review
Myspace is currently the largest Social Networking site on the web. With over 300 million users it isnt hard to see that Myspace has been an enormous success. Myspace was the first Social Networking site that offered complete customisation of a users profile, it is because of this that Myspace has become so popular, however such a feature also has its downside
Features
Photos - Myspace offers the usual feature of photo uploading and also album creation. Users can make their own albums, i.e: holidays, nights out etc etc. Friends can then make comments on the photos. Slideshows can also be created of the users photos and then displayed on the main page of their profile.
Full Customisation - Myspace offers the user a full customisation of their profile, this means they can edit their page in anyway they like. html editing is allowed and some javascript, many users use custom built templates for their profiles or just change individual parts themselves. Although this gives the user a lot of freedome it also opens up a wide variety of vulnerabilities and attacks. Myspace has had to patch countless flaws to prevent people from exploiting this feature. Many still exists. A common exploit is for someone to create a profile that imitates the main myspace login page. people will then enter their username and password, only to have them sent off to a rogue server. Compromised accounts are then used to spam others with advertisements and such.
Blogs - Users can keep a blog for others to view, this is a new feature introduced by Myspace, ever since the blog craze that has developed in the last few years on the web.
Forums - Here you have your standard internet forums for users to post messages and join a mini community of people with similar interests.
It is clear to see that Myspace is an extrememly large community and has many many features, there is a lot to offer and keep users interested which makes Myspace a lot more than just a social networking website.
Interface
As mentioned before Myspace can be customised to the users requirements. The myspace standard layout is very easy to use and straightforward, however very few people stick with it. The main issue I find with this feature is that many people get carried away, and a lot of people end up with profiles that are very uneasy on the eye, or some in cases unreadable.
Summary
Myspace offers the whole package, it is everything you need in a social networking site, and a lot more! Users will never be short of people to meet from all backgrounds, and with full customisation the possibilties are endless for changing things around as often as they like. Users should be cautious though as Myspace has its fair share of vulnerabilities as already mentioned. With that being said though users have the option to make their profile as personal as they want, this kind of freedom is not offered in Facebook.
Screenshots
Check out the screenshots below. (click for larger image)
