In a general sense, there is great intentionality in the design of social media platforms. I’d like to assume there are clear reasons for that in the minds of the architects. Now bloated with features, Facebook started to enrich connections between people. Instagram started as a simple app for sharing a photo. Though the jury is still out on what microblogging is, Twitter is a platform for that. Creators have one way of thinking and then users get into the picture. It doesn’t seem it’s long until users start using social media platforms the wrong way.
That is, users start using the platforms in ways the creators never thought. Sometimes this helps introduce new features and innovations.
At other times, it irks me the way people use platforms. For good or bad, users will always appropriate tools and platforms. With each platform I find myself getting irritated with what people post. I sometimes catch myself irked by how they use particular networks.
For Example, ???
Why would you post photos of your cat on LinkedIn? It’s supposed to be a ‘professional’ network. Photos of your nephew’s birthday are cute but why are you putting them on LinkedIn?
Facebook allows for a lot of characters when posting an update. Not that you can’t take advantage of that for long posts but sometimes it gets out of hand. At least for me. I sometimes wonder why people don’t opt for proper blogs. Remember notes on Facebook?
Those Facebook posts that seem to use up all the characters in the world? That’s a, “No” from me.
Then comes Instagram. ?
Instagram is now a second retweet button. Some users now post screenshots of their tweets. Curating tweets on Instagram seems to be a thing now. It irks me.
Only Me ??♂️ ??♂️ ??♂️ ??♂️
I know I have issues. I seem to think that some content doesn’t belong on some platforms. That specific kinds of content should go on particular platforms. Am I the only one?
I know, I know, you can’t tell people how they should use a platform etc. How they use it is how they should choose to use. Every now and then I can’t help thinking, “Why are you posting that here? You can’t / shouldn’t be using this network like this.”
What About You? ??? ??⚖️
Do any of the things I’ve touched on bother you? While users are and should be free to use platforms the way they see fit, should they? Are there platform ‘rules’ etc. we should adhere to?
[Image via Adrián Tormo via Unsplash]
Addy Brown says
Now a days Social Media is on rise therefore most of the people make wrong use of that which is not right.
Thanks for this information.It is really helpful.
Blessing Mpofu says
Glad you found it helpful Addy