Summary of "Week 1.2 Intro To Course"

Summary of “Week 1.2 Intro To Course” Video

This video provides an introduction to online social media, covering the types of social networks, the nature of content generated, the scale and speed of data creation, and examples of popular social media platforms with their unique features. It also touches on the challenges of verifying social media content and the difference between online perceptions and reality.

Main Ideas and Concepts

1. Overview of Online Social Media and Types of Content

Social media consists of various types of networks and content:

Social Networks: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.
Publishing Platforms: Wikipedia and other crowd-sourced content.
Social Games and Virtual Games.

Different social media platforms specialize in different content types:

YouTube (video sharing)
Flickr (images)
Foursquare (location-based)
LinkedIn (professional networking)
Facebook (mixed content)
Instagram (images)
Twitter (microblogging)

Newer social networks include Pinterest, Vine, Tumblr, Tinder, Whisper, Snapchat, and WeChat.

Categories of social networks:

Traditional social networks: Facebook, LinkedIn
Ephemeral networks: Content disappears after some time (e.g., Snapchat)
Anonymous networks: Content posted anonymously (e.g., Whisper)

2. Proliferation and Scale of Social Media Usage

Rapid growth in users; for example, in India, 1 in 9 or 10 people access social networks.
Mobile phone proliferation fuels social media growth.
Huge volume of content generated every minute:
- Facebook: 3.5 million posts per 60 seconds (up from 2.5 million in 2013)
- Twitter: 420,000 tweets per 60 seconds (up from 278,000 in 2013)
- YouTube: 400 hours of video uploaded every 60 seconds (up from 100 hours in 2013)
- Other data includes Google searches, Instagram photos, WhatsApp messages, emails.

3. The 5 V’s of Online Social Media Data

Velocity: Speed of data generation.
Variety: Different types of content (text, images, videos, location data).
Veracity: Accuracy and legitimacy of posted information.
Volume: Amount/size of data generated.
Value: Usefulness and meaningfulness of the data generated.

4. Detailed Look at Popular Social Networks

Facebook

Bidirectional network (friendship requires mutual acceptance).
Content types: text, images, videos.
Interactions: likes, comments, shares.
Content stored as a graph of nodes (users, posts) and edges (friendship, interactions).
Additional features: Pages and Groups (public/private).

Twitter

Unidirectional network (followers/followings).
Microblogging platform with 140-character limit.
Interactions: retweet, reply, like.
Features hashtags and trending topics.
Mentions notify users when tagged in posts.

Professional network focused on connections.
Posts are career or job-related, less personal.
Interactions: likes, comments.
Used heavily for recruitment.

Foursquare

Location-based social network.
Core activity: check-ins at locations.
Users share tips and ratings about places.

Google Plus

Uses “circles” to organize contacts.
Similar interactions as other networks (posts, +1 for likes).

YouTube

Video sharing platform.
Users upload videos, create channels, comment, like, share.
Reporting spam or malicious content is possible.

Image-based social network.
Users post images attached to “boards.”
Fast-growing platform focused on visual content.

Periscope

Live video streaming platform.
Content is streamed in real-time, unlike YouTube’s stored videos.

Tinder

Location-based social network for dating.
User interaction based on swiping left/right to connect.

Whisper

Anonymous social network.
Posts are anonymous; users cannot easily identify who posted content.
Content categorized by topics like confessions, relationships, humor.

5. Reality vs Perception on Social Media

Social media posts may not reflect real life accurately.
Example video shows discrepancy between what a user posts (e.g., about running or food) and their actual activities.
Important to critically evaluate social media content and not take it at face value.

Methodology / Key Points for Understanding Social Media in This Course

Understand the types of social media platforms and their unique content types.
Recognize the scale and speed of data generated on social media.
Learn the 5 V’s framework to analyze social media data:
- Velocity, Variety, Veracity, Volume, Value.
Study the basic building blocks of major social networks:
- Types of relationships (bidirectional vs unidirectional).
- Types of content and interactions.
Explore emerging social networks and their unique characteristics (ephemeral, anonymous).
Be aware of the difference between online perception and reality.
Use hashtags and mentions to track and analyze social media conversations.
Consider the role of social media in professional, personal, and anonymous contexts.

Speakers / Sources Featured

Primary Speaker: Course instructor (name not explicitly mentioned, but references to “I” and “my account” indicate the lecturer presenting the material).
Referenced Social Networks: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Pinterest, Foursquare, Google Plus, Periscope, Tinder, Whisper.
Example Mention: Amitabh Bachchan (used as example user on social networks).
Example Hashtag: #psosmonptel (course-related hashtag).

This summary captures the core content and lessons from the video, highlighting the diversity of social media platforms, the scale of data generation, and foundational concepts necessary for understanding and analyzing online social networks.