What is that Ning thing all about?

Week 6

Ellen Hoffman in Social Media and Learning Environments: Shifting Perspectives on the Locus of Control states that,  “the growth of large-scale, freely available Web 2.0 social media applications offered a range of options. As with any design vision, none met every criterion for the ideal discussion environment. Ning, which was being used in other contexts outside of courses by some faculty in the education school, emerged as the best choice (Hoffman, 2009).”

What is the Ning thing and why was it considered the “best choice”? Ning claims, unlike other social platforms, that you and your fans can connect, converse, create content together in a place that’s truly yours. You decide how it looks and works. Not only does Ning have an easy-to-use threaded discussion Forum tool, it also has social tools such as profiles, “friending,” comment entry, blogging, areas to share images and video, and more (EducauseConnect, 2008).

In 2009, it was perceived the best choice because as Hoffman points out, “it allowed an instructor the ability to create a private Ning space to limit membership to class members and restrict outsiders from viewing, something considered desirable as students explore new concepts.” (Hoffman, 2009).

While innovative for its time, and even with the new Ning 3.0,  I believe the idea of creating your own social network has been surpassed and supplanted by Facebook and/or Google + and others, which has similar features and capabilities. The question I raise, why should I use Ning if my users are already on Facebook and are able to see feeds there? Hence, the Ning thing might have created a big stir, but now it seems to have become a Ning thing of the past that is losing ground in the competitive eras of web 2.0.

Your thoughts?

References 
Hoffman, E. S. (2009). Social media and learning environments: Shifting perspectives on the

                 locus of control.Education, 15(2), 23-38. Retrieved from 

                 http://ineducation.couros.ca/index.php/ineducation/article/view/54/533