Using the internet to socialise is an increasingly popular activity. Some of the most popular websites for this are Facebook, twitter, bebo, msn and many others. Social networking is when you speak to other people through the internet. Facebook is by far the most popular with over 500 million users and 250 million of them logging in everyday. Twitter is not far behind Facebook with over 177 million users. With social network sites you can keep in touch everyday and you can share your photos and news with hundreds of people. There are many advantages and disadvantages of socialising on the internet.
One reason why people use the internet to socialise is because it’s easy to meet people from all over the world who share the same interests. Social sites also allow you to create new relationships and reconnect with friends and family who you might not see a lot of. You can search for a friend that you've lost contact with and start speaking to them almost immediately. Programs like MSN let you chat with lots of people from all over the world at the same time. With Facebook you can use the chat box, mail or you can write on their wall to contact the other person. Another advantage of social networking sites is that you can speak to your friends very easily. One example is that instead of meeting in a certain place, you and your friends could discuss it over the internet at the same time which can save you time and effort. People of different races can also get to know each other and mingle in just a few clicks which can help resolve racist issues. Sites like twitter are very easy to navigate and it's more scalable than Facebook. Also a lot of celebrities use twitter to contact their fans and promote their image or products.
Another reason why social networking is an advantage is that it can give people the opportunity to create a positive self-image. It can give people the chance to create an image of themselves that they