The future of social networking

We are all familiar with social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr. I am sure that you, the reader, have a comprehensive knowledge at the back of your hand. As much as we are enjoying the accompaniment of these sites right now, other companies are building new ones because we know these trends will fade away in the near future (like Friendster and myspace).

Let me introduce you to an upcoming social networking site:

My sister recommended Tinder to me because she mentioned that there is a lot of hype among her friends at the moment. Even though Tinder is known to be an online dating application, it can also be used as a platform to get to know new people and make friends. Basically, Tinder gathers users' basic information by using their Facebook profiles and analyzes each user's social graph to match potential candidates that are likely to be compatible based on their geographical location, number of mutual friends and common interests.

Oddly enough, this app allows people to judge each other at face value. Whether someone approaches your profile or not solely depends on looks (as they only see your picture). It is not entirely detailed like how you stalk other people's Facebook profiles and find out things like which schools they attend or what music do they like.

Why is it so appealing? The creators have designed the app to make rating faster and also, in a more subtle way. Instead of tapping on the big red "X" to pass over someone, users can simply flick the photo aside, as if the person has been dismissed by a wave of the hand. Users get to know if people they find "cute" will like them back. You won't have that fear of suffering the agony of rejection. Since Tinder often shows people at random, you could come up with the excuse that a handsome or beautiful stranger has not liked you back because they haven't come across your photo. I guess in a way, you will find out what kind of people you tend to attract.

It is a refreshing idea for the social networking scene. You could say that Tinder is like a guilty pleasure app. Aside from the fun you may get from using this app, please be wary of who you make friends with through this application. Some people might not appear who they are in the pictures.