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August 7, 2007 10:26 AM PDT

Find friends online

by Peter Butler
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Me.dium widget (Credit: CNET Networks)

There may be an excess of social-networking sites starting up these days, but the concept seems to be a permanent fixture on the Web landscape. Whether it's MySpace, Facebook, Friendster, LinkedIn, or your own network, people love connecting with old friends and finding new ones online.

Most social-networking occurs via Web-based software in your browser, but there are several cool downloadable tools that you can also use to connect and communicate with friends and strangers online.

IMVU

IMVU lets you chat with friends and members using a 3D avatar.

(Credit: IMVU)

Video chat is exploding right now, and Camfrog is the leading software on CNET Download.com, with Paltalk not far behind. If you're the sort who prefers to represent yourself with a 3D character, programs like Second Life and IMVU are excellent apps for meeting like-minded folks.

For those of us who have joined far too many social networks, a cool little app called 8hands can help maintain sanity. Still in alpha development, 8hands displays and manages all of your messages, photos, files, and contacts from MySpace, Flickr, YouTube, Blogger, Facebook, and more.

Facebook junkies may have a new friend in Fosimo, a tiny desktop tool that keeps track of all relevant Facebook activity without using a browser. And yesterday, I spent a good deal of the day with Me.dium, a browser add-on for Firefox and IE7 that lets you communicate with users on the same Web site or who have similar browsing patterns.

What do you use to find new and old friends online? Have online criminals scared you away from strangers on the Web? Tell me about it in the comments.

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I would love an app that allowed me to efficiently
by smilestill August 7, 2007 1:30 PM PDT
I would love an app that allowed me to efficiently manage my various social networking sites, but all the ones I have looked at have been buggy more labour intensive than the online management. Any suggestions guys?
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yes- 8hands
by danielgree August 9, 2007 6:16 AM PDT
You should read what i wrote in my comment.
It's still in it's alpha stage so there are a few bugs left, but the new version which came out like 2 weeks ago is the stablest they've ever released. The software gets automatically updated, without bugging the user.
You should definitely download it cause it's the best solution to your problem. http://www.8hands.com/hello
Two scams used on people with myspace and yahoo
by ziggy2k August 7, 2007 2:26 PM PDT
It has been my experience that there two type's of scams that apparently people from Nigeria like to use. There is the some millionaire that died in some highly publisized airplane crash. And you can be the beneficiary of several millions and you need to pay a few hundred dollars for fee's to collect as a long lost beneficiary.

The second involves always beautiful woman they find older gentlemen thru Myspace or Yahoo profiles send some choice pictures they never have a cam (probobly because its a guy doing it.) and they give some sob story of needing money to pay a debt or bills or to get home from Nigeria. They say there from the US but use horrible english, such as very broken english and usually dont understand any american slang. So anyone asking for money beward.
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Re:Two scams used on people with myspace and yahoo
by tookool47 August 16, 2007 6:55 PM PDT
Howdy,

Am Nigerian, I got you. You know what my advice is just that "You have to be very careful" online with those people.

Even those you believe to be saying the truth may not be. although it is reducing nowadays and hopeful it will be curb, though not all can be stopped but to the least that remain in hiding.

You just have to be careful.

Note: I am not saying all my peoples are con artists; there are a host of others who are honest to the bone.

Just be cautious at all time.
Get ahead of the game before the games go live!
by lotcon August 7, 2007 2:54 PM PDT
The next Social Network or Social Marketing is coming up strong. Please check http://www.excel-mlm.com/uvme
It is an Online Games Entertainment, Social Networking using Web 2.0 and a new way of Network Marketing, which has been described as Social Marketing/Network Marketing 2.0.
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alternative - weblin
by Superbottle August 8, 2007 1:30 AM PDT
I use weblin to find friends in the web you can see everybody who's on the same site actually and it's a good addition to me.dium or other messengers. The idea to have animated avatars is also nice.
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I use Wamba y Yahoo Games
by prettily_rose August 8, 2007 2:50 PM PDT
I use Wamba, HI5 and S.M.S, I use single Blooger like a note and Yahoo 360°, this very pretty this page; before he uses the page of Facebook.
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The best way to control your social life
by danielgree August 9, 2007 6:00 AM PDT
8hands really is a cool little app, as said.
It has immediate notifications which let you keep track of all your online friends from different networks.
8hands aggregates your friends and rank them so you can know who's your top 8 friends.
Since I've been using that software I know if I'm not paying enough attention to my friends.
My best friend and I made a pact that we'll always be top friends of each other. you should check it out.
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Pownce On It?
by nokdeez August 10, 2007 11:38 AM PDT
i just setup an account and the public API looks like it has some cool
possibilities - anyone else with me on this tip?
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SANDRA STRICKLAND - A Needle in A Haystack
by Lisa Fla August 12, 2007 6:43 AM PDT
Whoever comes up with a better search engine or tool for finding persons on the Web can become a near-instant gazillionaire. If you Google or Yahoo a person's name, 98% of the time the results ultimately end up being sites that require payment. And you can't even tell if it's the actual person you're looking for until you pay up.
Most commonly you end up on Intellius, PeopleSearch/Finder, Ancestry [or one of it's hundred affiliated sites].
I have been searching for Sandra Strickland [went to University of FL in early 1960s, red-head, probably from Indiana] since May. It's frustrating and overwhelming.
Please, if you know a best way to search for a person, post it on here.
I anxiously await your reply.
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If it works I'll be a very happy camper
by footsie3 August 19, 2007 2:07 PM PDT
So far C-net has never dissapointed me.
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by 09mm2 January 23, 2009 11:43 AM PST
i use not4dating.com to meet new friends.
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