With the evolution of the internet, the life of a normal man in the towns changed from just a mere worker to a social person. With the advancement of science and technology there has been lot of new things coming in tech world and many new innovations have happened in the tech world. Internet has brought a revolution of innovations. These innovations bring changes in the life of people. But a special innovation which it brought about was the social networking.

A social network service focuses on building and reflecting of social networks or social relations among people, e.g., who share interests and/or activities. A social network service essentially consists of a representation of each user (often a profile), his/her social links, and a variety of additional services. Most social network services are web based and provide means for users to interact over the internet, such as e-mail and instant messaging. Although online community services are sometimes considered as a social network service in a broader sense, social network service usually means an individual-centered service whereas online community services are group-centered. Social networking sites allow users share ideas, activities, events, and interests within their individual networks.

The main types of social networking services are those which contain category places (such as former school-year or classmates), means to connect with friends (usually with self-description pages) and a recommendation system linked to trust. Popular methods now combine many of these, with Facebook, Bebo, Orkut and Twitter widely used worldwide.

Lately, mobile social networking has become popular. In most mobile communities, mobile phone users can now create their own profiles, make friends, participate in chat rooms, create chat rooms, hold private conversations, share photos and videos, and share blogs by using their mobile phone. Some companies provide wireless services which allow their customers to build their own mobile community and brand it, for e.g. Facebook Mobile which has innovative features and truly extends the social networking experience into the real world.

As the increase in popularity of social networking is on a constant rise, new uses for the technology are constantly being observed. At the forefront of emerging trends in social networking sites is the concept of "real time" and "location based." Real time allows users to contribute content, which is then broadcasted as it is being uploaded - the concept is similar to live television broadcasts. Twitter set the trend for "real time" services, where users can broadcast to the world what they are doing, or what is on their minds within a 140 character limit. Facebook followed suit with their "Live Feed" where users' activities are streamed as soon as it happens. While Twitter focuses on words, Clixtr, another real time service, focuses on group photo sharing where users can update their photo streams with photos while at an event.

Windward Side of it

Social Networking, today, has made life easier. Those who have nice smart-phones in their hands, can easily surf themselves right away. People can today keep themselves connected to their near and dear ones all the times. They can easily correspond with them anytime they want to do.

The friends that you can make are just one of the many benefits to social networking online. Another one of those benefits includes diversity because the internet provides a common platform to the individuals from across the world who share their culture, new languages etc.

Social networking has enabled us today to climb the mountains of connectivity so easily and its totally fre and is therefore cuts the expenditure of ISD calls.

Leeward Side of it

On large social networking services, there have been growing concerns about users giving out too much personal information and the threat of sexual predators. Users of these services also need to be aware of data theft or viruses.

However, large services, such as MySpace and Netlog, often work with law enforcement to try to prevent such incidents
In addition, there is a perceived privacy threat in relation to placing too much personal information in the hands of large corporations or governmental bodies, allowing a profile to be produced on an individual's behavior on which decisions, detrimental to an individual, may be taken.

Social networking sites have morphed into a mainstream medium for teens and adults. These sites encourage and enable people to exchange information about themselves, share pictures and videos, and use blogs and private messaging to communicate with friends, others who share interests, and sometimes even the world-at-large. And that's why it's important to be aware of the possible pitfalls that come with networking online.

While social networking sites can increase a person's circle of friends, they also can increase exposure to people with less than friendly intentions. Here are tips for helping your kids use social networking sites safely:

• Take extra steps to protect younger kids. Keep the computer in an open area like the kitchen or family room, so you can keep an eye on what your kids are doing online. Use the Internet with them to help develop safe surfing habits. Consider taking advantage of parental control features on some operating systems that let you manage your kids' computer use, including what sites they can visit, whether they can download items, or what time of day they can be onlineHelp your kids understand what information should be private
  
• Review your child's friends list. You may want to limit your child's online “friends” to people your child actually knows and is friendly with in real life.
  
• Use privacy settings to restrict who can access and post on your child's website.
  
• Remind your kids that once they post information online, they can't take it back.
  
• Tell your kids to trust their gut if they have suspicions. If they ever feel uncomfortable or threatened by anything online, encourage them to tell you.