Gah. How many posts have you read that pertain to social networks in general? Sometimes, I know, it can get tedious, but it isn't very difficult to do because social networking really dictates the direction of the Web nowadays. The Web has suddenly become a socialization platform with the launch of these sites.
So you'd say that there are only a few major players out there, namely, Facebook and Twitter. The other, well, are just in the background, serving a niche market of its own. Sometimes I find it irritating that I have to maintain multiple social networking accounts just to keep with certain groups of acquaintances and friends.
Then comes Ning, the most adaptable of all social networking sites. Instead of logging on separate social networks, each of which seems to look just the same, you can create an account on Ning and make your very own specialized social network instead. There won't be a need to keep up with your Facebook Groups or your multiple social networking accounts.
Are you a fan of the All-American Rejects? They have their very own social network hosted on Ning. Do you have a reserved fondness for the Etsy community and the products sold over there You can also create your own social network on Ning. Do you idolize Sarah Palin? You can join Team Sarah, which is also up via Ning. If you can see, each of these social networks are very different from each other, thereby allowing you to fully customize each network according to your needs.
Notice that there are a few elements in common among the above-mentioned Ning sites, though. But those are basically elements that are fundamental to social networking.
As for the name, don't ask me why they chose that. Up to this day, I still confuse myself with this custom social networking site maker and the popular browser by Microsoft, Bing. Ning...Bing...Ning...Bing. Gah. It's so confusing. I wonder if the next big thing on the Web will be named something that sounds like Zing.
