How do you gather your information? Search Engines or Social Networks?


Mike Hickinbotham on LinkedIn asked an interesting question:

“Will people prefer social networks over search engines to gather information”

Here’s my response…

Social networks are taking over from search engines for the less specific questions we have in life.

Google is great at finding specific things. It’s like using the card catalogue or computer at the library. You type in a name and find a response.

Social networks are more like wandering through the library just looking and every now and then someone comes along and suggests ‘Hey, this one’s good’. I follow specific people on Twitter and it’s like having a personal news feed of current articles and latest events.

The third element for me is Wikipedia. It’s great as a starting point and giving background information. It’s like asking the Librarian, ‘What do you know about this…’ and then they point you on to further info.

What are your thoughts? How do you gather your information about the world?

More Updates

The Room changes you with Linda Gidlund

Put a group of successful, educated adults into a training room and something strange can happen: They start behaving like sixth graders. Educator and facilitator

Mick Jagger - You Need Ego, But...

I was listening to David Marchese interview Mick Jagger for The New York Times Interview when one word stopped me: Inhabit. Marchese didn’t ask whether

I just didn't get it with Michael Henderson

Michael Henderson’s anthropology professor gave his students some unusual advice: “If you find an interesting cultural experience, go and do that… and don’t come to